Thomas C. Hubka (born 1946) is an American architectural historian whose primary focus is

vernacular architecture Vernacular architecture (also folk architecture) is building done outside any academic tradition, and without professional guidance. It is not a particular architectural movement or style but rather a broad category, encompassing a wide range a ...

and related issues of

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

and cultural meaning.

Education

Hubka received his Bachelor of Architecture ( B.Arch.) from

Carnegie-Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a Private university, private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became t ...

in 1969, and his Master of Architecture ( M.Arch.) from the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

in 1972. While at Carnegie Mellon, he was a varsity football player and played quarterback.

Career

He taught at the University of Oregon from 1972 to 1983. From 1987 to 2011, he was a professor in the Department of Architecture at the

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee The University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee (UW–Milwaukee, UWM, or Milwaukee) is a Public university, public Urban university, urban research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It is the largest university in the Milwaukee metropo ...

. After retiring in 2011, he moved to

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. He is currently an adjunct faculty member in the Architecture program at

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon, United States. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the next ...

. Although Hubka is trained as an architect, he was an early advocate for widening

architectural history The history of architecture traces the changes in architecture through various traditions, regions, overarching stylistic trends, and dates. The beginnings of all these traditions is thought to be humans satisfying the very basic need of shelt ...

research to include

. He is best known for his work on connected farm buildings in

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. His book ''Big House, Little House, Back House, Barn'' was the 1985 winner of the "

Abbott Lowell Cummings Abbott Lowell Cummings (March 14, 1923 – May 29, 2017) was a noted architectural historian and genealogist, best known for his study of New England architecture. Life and career Cummings was born in St. Albans, Vermont, educated at the Hoo ...

Award" of the

Vernacular Architecture Forum The Vernacular Architecture Forum (VAF) is a scholarly organization founded in 1980 to support the study and preservation of all aspects of vernacular architecture and landscapes. The organization has brought together scholars and practitioner ...

. Hubka's research on eastern European synagogues, begun in the mid-1980s, addressed 18th century wooden synagogues of Eastern Europe emphasizing the relationships between

Jewish culture Jewish culture is the culture of the Jewish people, from its formation in ancient times until the current age. Judaism itself is not simply a faith-based religion, but an orthopraxy and Ethnoreligious group, ethnoreligion, pertaining to deed, ...

and eastern European contextual factors. This research received significant funding support from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

and the

National Endowment for the Humanities The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...

, and led to his 2003 book, ''Resplendent Synagogue: Architecture and Worship in an Eighteenth-century Polish Community'', which won the "Henry Glassie Award" of the

in 2006. The book also received an honorable mention from the

American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

(AAASS)/Orbis Books prize committee in 2004. In recent years Hubka has researched workers' housing in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

and other cities. This research led to his book ''Houses Without Names: Architectural Nomenclature and the Classification of America's Common Houses'' published in 2013. Hubka served on the Wisconsin Historic Preservation Review Board for twelve years; during this time he chaired its Architecture Committee. The ACSA (

Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Association may refer to: *Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal *Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry *Voluntary associatio ...

) honored Hubka with the ACSA Distinguished Professor Award in 2009-10.ACSA Archives, Distinguished Professor Award winners.
/ref> In 2021, his book ''How the Working-Class Home Became Modern, 1900-1940'' was the recipient of the

University of Mary Washington University of Mary Washington (UMW) is a public liberal arts university in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Established in 1908 as the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Fredericksburg, the institution later became known as Fredericksbu ...

Center for Historic Preservation Book Prize.

Selected writings

* Hubka, Thomas C., ''Big House, Little House, Back House, Barn: The Connected Farm Buildings of New England'',

University Press of New England The University Press of New England (UPNE), located in Lebanon, New Hampshire and founded in 1970, was a university press consortium including Brandeis University, Dartmouth College (its host member), Tufts University, the University of New Hampsh ...

, Hanover NH 1984, * Hubka, Thomas C., ''Resplendent Synagogue: Architecture and Worship in an Eighteenth-century Polish Community'', Brandeis University Press, published by University Press of New England, Hanover NH 2003, * Hubka, Thomas C., ''Houses Without Names: Architectural Nomenclature and the Classification of America's Common Houses'', University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville TN 2013, * Hubka, Thomas C., and Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl, "H.H. Richardson: The Design of the William Watts Sherman House," ''Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians'' 51/2 (June 1992), pages 121-145. * Hubka, Thomas C., and Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl, “The East Elevation of the Sherman House,

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

.” ''Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians'', 52/1 (March 1993), pages 88–90. * Hubka, Thomas C., "H.H. Richardson's Glessner House: A Garden in the Machine," ''Winterthur Portfolio'' 24/4 (Winter 1989), pages 209-229.

References

External links

University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hubka, Thomas C. 1946 births Living people American architectural historians American architecture writers American male non-fiction writers Writers from Milwaukee Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts alumni University of Oregon alumni University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee faculty Architects from Milwaukee Historians from Wisconsin