Talbot F. Hamlin
Sometimes listed as Talbot Faulkner Hamlin and Talbot Hamlin.
Biography
Talbot Faulkner Hamlin (1889-1956) was the son of Minnie Florence Martson and A.D.F. Hamlin, a Professor of Architecture at Columbia University. Talbot Hamlin attended Amherst College, graduating with a B.A. in Classics and English in 1910. He also earned a B. Arch in 1914 from Columbia University, where he would spend his lengthy academic career. Hamlin practiced architecture with the firms of Murphy, McGill and Hamlin; McGill and Hamlin; and his private practice. In 1934, Hamlin was appointed as the Librarian of the Avery Architectural Library at Columbia University where he served until 1945 while continuing to teach architectural history at the University. Hamlin is responsible for creating the Avery Architectural Index, and for expanding the Library's holdings to the world renowned collection that it is today. He also worked as an architectural history instructor at Columbia University early in his career and a professor of architectural history until 1954, a 38 year-long career. Hamlin was also a prolific author who published numerous books and essays on architecture and architectural history. He won the Pulitzer prize for his book Benjamin Henry Latrobe(1955) in 1956. Hamlin expressed his ideas on architecture in letters to the editor of the New York Times.
Oral History
Anthony C. Wood, “Pioneers of Preservation: Part III: Preservation’s Scholarly Roots: Talbot Hamlin and the Avery Library; An Interview with Commissioner Adolf Placzek,” Village Views 4, no. 4 (Fall 1987): 15.
Offices Held
Chairman, Society of Architectural Historians, 1945-
Involvement in Preservation Campaigns and Related Activities
Hamlin's contributions to historic preservation range from his posts at Columbia University to his involvement with groups such as the American Scenic and Historic Preservation Society and the co-founding role in the Society of Architectural Historians to his critical essays that posed questions to the nascent modern preservation movement. Hamlin wrote essays and letters in support of preserving several historic and architectural gems including Battery Park and the row of houses on Washington Square North. His most direct contribution, however, was his compilation of a list of important historic New York buildings: the “Tentative list of Old Buildings of Manhattan built in 1865 or earlier, and worthy of preservation. Annotated by Talbot Hamlin”(1942). This was likely prompted by then President of the Municipal Art Society, Ely Jacques Kahn's, initiative to save "New York's remaining historic buildings, as well as areas." Hamlin's preliminary 1941 inventory reflected his own interest and expertise in the Greek Revival style, but his list was used as a base for expanded indexes by groups including the Society for Architectural Historians, Municipal Art Society, and the American Institute of Architects for exhibits and publications. Hamlin's list would prove to be the grandfather of New York Landmarks: An Index of Architecturally Notable Structures in New York, and ultimately, Alan Burnham’s New York Landmarks.(1963) The formation of Hamlin's early list was key in the movement to take inventory of New York's historic resources to build a constituency for historic preservation and to the steer the Landmarks Preservation Commission.