Maurice B. Biscoe (July 19, 1871 – December 29, 1953) was an American architect. He spent his early and mature career in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and the intervening years in

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

. He spent most of his career with the Boston

architectural firm In the United States, an architectural firm or architecture firm is a business that employs one or more licensed architects and practices the profession of architecture; while in South Africa, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark and other countr ...

of Andrews, Jones, Biscoe & Whitmore.

Life and career

Maurice Bigelow Biscoe was born July 19, 1871, in

Westborough, Massachusetts Westborough is a New England town, town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,567 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, in over 7,000 households. Incorporated in 1717, the town is governed under the N ...

, to Arthur G. Biscoe and Helen Biscoe, née Bigelow. He was educated at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

, graduating in 1893. After a year of postgraduate work he joined the office of H. Langford Warren. In 1898, after two years with Warren and two with

Peabody & Stearns Peabody & Stearns was a premier architectural firm in the Eastern United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the firm consisted of Robert Swain Peabody (1845–1917) and John Goddard Stearns ...

, he formed the firm of Smith & Biscoe with F. Patterson Smith. In 1900 they merged their practice with Warren's, forming Warren, Smith & Biscoe."Biscoe, Maurice Bigelow" in ''Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Class of 1893 Thirtieth Anniversary Report'' (Boston: Thomas Todd Company, printer, 1924): 71-72. In 1906 he left Boston for

, where he established himself as the representative of Gordon, Tracy & Swartwout of New York. He would be their superintendent for the Cathedral of St. John in the Wilderness (1911) and the

Byron White United States Courthouse The Byron White United States Courthouse is a courthouse in Denver, Colorado, currently the seat of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. It formerly housed courthouses of the United States District Court for the District of C ...

(1916) and independently was architect for Bemis Hall (1908) of

Colorado College Colorado College is a private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Founded in 1874 by Thomas Nelson Haskell in his daughter's memory, the college offers over 40 majors a ...

. and In 1907 he formed the partnership of Biscoe & Hewitt with Henry Harwood Hewitt (1874 – 1926). Their work included the Wood–Morris–Bonfils House (1909), an enlargement of Richthofen Castle (1910) and the campus of the former

Clayton School for Boys Clayton School for Boys, established as George W. Clayton Trust & College and also known as Clayton College, was established to house and educate boys whose fathers had died and whose mothers could not provide for them. It was established in 191 ...

(1911)."Hewitt, Henry Harwood" in ''Who's Who in the Pacific Southwest'' (Los Angeles: Times-Mirror Printing and Binding House, 1913): 175-176. In 1913 Hewitt moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and Biscoe continued independently. His independent work included Frederick H. Cossitt Memorial Hall (1914) of Colorado College and the former Dickinson Branch Library (1914). In 1918 Biscoe returned to Boston, where he joined the Housing Company as a staff architect and planner. The Housing Company, led by president Albert Farwell Bemis, developed housing in the manner of the public

United States Housing Corporation The United States Housing Corporation (USHC) was a federal agency that existed during World War I. Its purpose was to provide housing for wartime production workers near arsenals and shipyards. Context With a massive wartime shipbuilding p ...

. He returned to independent practice in 1921, dividing his time between Boston and Denver. In Denver he designed the now-demolished

University of Colorado School of Medicine The University of Colorado School of Medicine is the medical school of the University of Colorado system. It is located at the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, Colorado, Aurora, Colorado, one of the four University of Colorado campuses, six mil ...

(1924) with local architects Fisher & Fisher. After his Denver work was completed he joined the established Boston firm of Andrews, Rantoul & Jones to form Andrews, Jones, Biscoe & Whitmore. His partners were Robert Day Andrews, Howland Jones and John Whitmore. After Andrews' death in 1928 Jones, chief designer, became senior partner. Biscoe was the junior design partner. His works for the firm included: Hitchcock Residence Hall (1929) of

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zepha ...

,Stanley King, ''The Consecrated Eminence: The Story of the Campus and Buildings of Amherst College'' (Amherst: Amherst College, 1951): 156-157. The Lincoln-Eliot Elementary School (1939) in

Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: People * Newton (surname), including a list of people with the surname * ...

, the South Boston Boys Club (1940), the Newton Cemetery chapel (1941), the now-demolished Salvation Army Building (1950) and the Memorial Spaulding Elementary School (1954) in Newton. He was also responsible for the firm's hospital projects, building on his Colorado experience."Class notes" in ''Technology Review'' 56, no. 5 (March 1954): iii. The firm's Cousens Gymnasium (1932) at

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...

was part of the architecture event in the art competition at the

1932 Summer Olympics The 1932 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the X Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1932) were an international multi-sport event held from July 30 to August 14, 1932, in Los Angeles, California, United States. The Games were held du ...

. A number of his works, alone and with others, are listed on the United States

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Affiliations

He was a member of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

(AIA) and the

Boston Society of Architects The Boston Society for Architecture (formerly known as the Boston Society of Architects) (BSA) is a nonprofit membership organization committed to architecture, design and the built environment. History On June 20, 1867, approximately 50 archi ...

and served as president of the Colorado chapter of the AIA for two years.

Personal life and death

Biscoe was married in 1906 to Agnes Slocum. They had five children: three sons and two daughters. He died December 29, 1953, at home in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is located roughly west of Downtown Boston, and comprises a patchwork of thirteen villages. The city borders Boston to the northeast and southeast (via the neighborhoods of ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Biscoe, Maurice B. 20th-century American architects Architects from Denver Architects from Boston 1871 births 1953 deaths Art competitors at the 1932 Summer Olympics