Charles Babcock (March 23, 1829 – August 27, 1913) was an American

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

, academic,

Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United States ...

priest and founding 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 ...

. He was elevated to the AIA College of Fellows in 1857. He was born in

Ballston Spa, New York Ballston Spa is a village and the county seat of Saratoga County, New York, United States, located southwest of Saratoga Springs. It is part of the Capital Region. The population of the village, named after Rev. Eliphalet Ball, a Congregational ...

. After being educated at

Union College Union College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the s ...

in 1847, he served as an apprentice of

Richard Upjohn Richard Upjohn (22 January 1802 – 16 August 1878) was a British-American architect who immigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to popula ...

while he designed Trinity Church in

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. Remaining with the firm for five years, he became a partner and later married Upjohn's daughter.''The Journal of San Diego History'', Winter 1987, Volume 33, Number 1, William ''Sterling Hebbard: Consummate San Diego Architect''; By Kathleen Flanigan From 1858 to 1862 he taught in St. Stephen's college, Annandale, New York. His interest in

Gothic Revival architecture Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

led him to study for the ministry, and after his training he became the priest and rector of an Episcopal church in

Arden, New York Arden is a hamlet around the town line of the Orange County towns of Tuxedo and Monroe in the "boot" of New York, United States, west of the Hudson River. It is roughly coterminous with the 10910 ZIP Code. The area was originally known as G ...

. He was elected the first Professor of Architecture at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

on September 18, 1871, essentially founding the

College of Architecture, Art, and Planning The College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP) is the school of architecture at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. It offers 20 undergraduate and graduate degrees in five departments: architecture, art, urban planning, real estate, ...

. While at Cornell, he continued to serve as a minister, and authored two textbooks, ''Elementary Architecture'' (1876) and ''Vaults'' (1884), and designed several important campus buildings, including

Sage Hall Sage Hall was built in 1875 at Cornell University's Ithaca, New York, Ithaca, New York (state), New York campus. Originally designed as a residential building, it currently houses the Johnson Graduate School of Management. Conception Although w ...

, Franklin Hall (later renamed Olive Tjaden Hall), and

Sage Chapel Sage Chapel is the non-denominational chapel on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York State which serves as the burial ground for many contributors to Cornell's history, including the founders of the university: Ezra Cornell and A ...

. He was a professor until 1897, when he became Professor

Emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

, and served in that position until his death.Writers' Program of the Work Projects Administration in the State of New York, ''New York: A Guide to the Empire State'', Oxford University Press, 1940 He designed Christ Church in

Sparkill, New York Sparkill, formerly known as Tappan Sloat, is a suburban hamlet and census-designated place in the Town of Orangetown, Rockland County, New York, United States located north of Palisades; east of Tappan; south of Piermont and west of the Hudso ...

. The church was listed on the

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 ...

in 2011. Charles Babcock died in

Ithaca, New York Ithaca () is a city in and the county seat of Tompkins County, New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region of New York (state), New York, Ithaca is the largest community in the Ithaca metrop ...

at the age of 84.

Gallery

File:St Andrew's Episcopal Church, Walden, NY.jpg, St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Walden, NY, designed by Babcock in 1871. File:Cornell Armory.jpg, The Cornell Armory, a Babcock building that has since been demolished File:Sage College, Cornell University Campus (3678122369).jpg, Sage Hall, 1875 File:Olive Tjaden Hall, Cornell University.jpg, Franklin Hall, now Olive Tjaden Hall, 1883

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Babcock, Charles 1829 births 1913 deaths 19th-century American Episcopal priests Cornell University faculty Union College (New York) alumni People from Ballston Spa, New York Architects from New York (state) Founder of American Institute of Architects Fellows of the American Institute of Architects