 Charles
Bridgham Hosmer, Jr. (1932-1993)
Dr. Charles Hosmer, Jr., was nationally known
as the historian of the preservation movement in the United States,
a title earned from his two pioneering publications, Presence
of the Past: A History of the Preservation Movement in the United
States before Williamsburg and Preservation Comes of Age:
From Williamsburg to the National Trust, 1926-1949. These two
volumes have become standard teaching and reference texts. The American
Institute of Architects has designated them “the bible of the
preservation movement.”
Charles Hosmer was born in Naples, Italy, and
raised in Washington, D.C.. He received his bachelor’s degree
from Principia College, and his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Columbia
University. From 1961 to 1992, he was a professor of history, including
architectural history, at Principia College. He held the first endowed
chair at the College as the Jay P. Walker Professor of History.
A very popular teacher who was equally known for his rigorous scholarship,
Professor Hosmer instilled in students enthusiasm and dedication
to learning. For decades he cultivated an appreciation and understanding
of Bernard Maybeck’s architecture on the Principia campus.
Active in local preservation, Dr. Hosmer helped
establish the Historic Elsah Foundation, served as its president
from 1971 to 1993, and was editor of “Elsah History” from
1980 to 1993. In 1967, he co-authored with Paul O. Williams, Elsah:
A Historic Guidebook. In 1973, he wrote the documentation for
the nominations of the Village of Elsah’s historic district
to the National Register of Historic Places, and later in 1991,
the same for Principia College as a National Historic Landmark.
He served several separate terms on the Elsah Zoning Board. From
1972 to 1976, he was a member of the Illinois Historic Sites Advisory
Council, a panel that advised the state of matters pertaining to
historic preservation and evaluated properties for National Register
designation.
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