Remembering Norval White

Norval Crawford White was a renowned architect, architectural historian and professor. He is perhaps best known for his authoritative AIA Guide to New York City, which he co-authored with Elliott Willensky.

White was born on June 12, 1926 on the Upper East Side. He received a bachelor’s degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1948 and an MFA from Princeton University in 1955. In between, White attended the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. He taught at Cooper Union and in 1968, became the founding chairman of its architecture school.

White was very active in the battle to save the old Pennsylvania Station. In 1962, he organized a group of prominent young architects under the working name Action Group for Better Architecture in New York (AGBANY). AGBANY picketed the station and published a newspaper ad decrying the proposed demolition. White intended AGBANY to represent “the image of 'modern' architects wanting to preserve something that wasn't modern.”

In 1968, White and Willensky published the first edition of the AIA Guide to New York City. In addition to his writing and activism, White maintained an active architectural practice. His best known designs include Essex Terrace in East New York and 1 Police Plaza on Park Row. In his later years, he made his home in Brooklyn Heights and France.

Norval White passed away on December 26, 2009, at the age of 83.

This project has been funded in part by a grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation's John E. Streb Preservation Fund for New York.