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University of New Mexico, Dept. of Facility Planning Architectural Drawings

 Collection
Identifier: SWA-UNMFPLAN-Drawings

Scope and Content

The Department of Facility Planning collection is comprised of approximately 800 sets of architectural drawings and plans for campus buildings at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. A small number of drawings are for buildings on the Gallup campus and for the University owned D. H. Lawrence Ranch outside Taos, New Mexico. Specific drawings include floor plans, elevations, mechanical and electrical plans, and detail drawings, as well as master plans, site plans, and landscaping plans. Highlights of the collection are numerous hand drawn pencil and color perspectives.

Many architectural firms worked with the Department of Facility Planning, formerly known as the Office of the University Architect. Collection architects include: Van Dorn Hooker, Joe Boehning; Dean Hunt & Associates; Ellison & Associates; Flatow, Moore, Bryan, Fairburn; Holien & Buckley; W. C. Kruger & Associates; Meem, Zehner, Holien and Associates; Antoine Predock; and Stevens, Mallory, Pearl & Campbell. The collection also contains plans by landscape architects Eckbo, Dean, Williams, and by Bridgers & Paxton, Engineers.

The earliest items are plat maps of the campus dated 1892. The earliest building plans are for the original Chemistry Building designed by Francis Barry Byrne in 1916. Drawings for many campus projects by John Gaw Meem, are also in this collection. Meem oversaw over forty campus building and planning projects over a twenty-seven year period, including two excellent examples of the Pueblo Style; Zimmerman Library and Scholes Hall.

Dates

  • 1892-2011

Creator

Access Restrictions

The collection is open for research.

Copy Restrictions

Limited duplication of CSWR material is allowed for research purposes. User is responsible for compliance with all copyright, privacy, and libel laws. Permission is required for publication or distribution.

Background Information

The University of New Mexico, unique among college campuses, is built in the Spanish Pueblo Revival Style of architecture. The style was first introduced to the campus by President George Tight around 1901. President Tight and architect E.B. Christy, helped popularize the regional style throughout Santa Fe and central New Mexico.

Architect John Gaw Meem researched and further developed and popularized the Spanish Pueblo Style, designing many buildings on the UNM campus, from 1933-1959. Meem, and partners Hugo Zehner, Edward Holien, and later William R. Buckley, became passionate advocates of the preservation of New Mexico’s indigenous architecture.

In 1963, architect Van Dorn Hooker was appointed UNM's University Architect by the Campus Planning Committee. Hooker's tenure was characterized by his commitment to maintaining the historical and visual continuity of the University’s built environment. Acting in an advisory and administrative capacity, the Campus Planning Committee, with Hooker as a member, established long-range planning for the University. In spite of rapid campus expansion from the 1960s to the 1980s, the University of New Mexico campus retained its unique, regional qualities. The sensitive management of Van Dorn Hooker allowed contemporary architectural designs to appear without losing campus integrity. The result was a careful blending of traditional forms with modern interpretations.

After the retirement of Van Dorn Hooker in 1987, the Department of Facility Planning was established in July of 1988. Within its various capacities, similar to those of the University Architect and the Campus Planning Committee, the department oversees the master planning of the main and branch campuses of the University of New Mexico, as well as general campus development. Other specific duties include the approval or disapproval of building designs and landscape projects, interviewing and recommending architects, and recommending decisions to the President. The department further oversees capital construction, facility planning management, disabled needs compliance, and space planning.

Extent

65 Drawers (16.25 lin. ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Microfilm of Selected Drawings

Selected drawings from this collection are available on microfilm CSWR Anderson LD 3781 N53 M57 at the Center for Southwest Research. A guide to the microfilm is also available.

Related Archival Material

University of New Mexico. Dept. of Facility Planning records. Center for Southwest Research, University of New Mexico. Center for Regional Studies and the Center for Southwest Research Fellows presentation, Meghan Bayer. Van Dorn and Marjorie Mead Hooker Architectural Drawings and Plans, Center for Southwest Research. University Libraries. University of New Mexico. Saulsberry, Joshua Joel. Engineers report, University of New Mexico, 1910. Includes 14 blueprint plans housed in mapcase (ZIM CSWR LB 3241.4 N6 S38 1910).

Separated Material

UNM Department of Facility Planning Records are housed separately in University Archives, Center for Southwest Research.
Title
Finding Aid of the University of New Mexico, Dept. of Facility Planning Architectural Drawings, 1892-2011
Status
Completed
Author
E. Evans and A. Bellmore
Date
© 2009
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid is in English

Revision Statements

  • May 2017: Revised by Erin Fussell
  • Monday, 20210524: Attribute normal is missing or blank.

Repository Details

Part of the UNM Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections Repository

Contact:
University of New Mexico Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections
University Libraries, MSC05 3020
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque NM 87131
505-277-6451