The Founding Fathers as Architects and Urban Designers

FAIN: FB-58252-15

Susan J. McWilliams Barndt
Pomona College (Claremont, CA 91711-4434)

In this project, I study the most tangible of the American founders' constructions--the cities, farms, homes, parks, and public buildings they designed--in order to shed a new kind of light on their visions for the nation. By considering the places and spaces that the founders brought into being, this project reveals new dimensions in their thought, dimensions not evident in the abstract language of the Constitution and the Declaration. In doing so, it uncovers many of the central assumptions, convictions, and tensions that lie beneath the surface of those famous documents.

Media Coverage

Professor’s Project Shows America’s Founding Fathers Were More than Nation-Builders; They Were Architects in a Literal Sense (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Sneha Abraham
Publication: Pomona College
Date: 1/29/2015
Abstract: Recently awarded a $50,000 National Endowment for the Humanities research grant, Professor of Politics Susan McWilliams is working to show that the founding fathers—architects of a nation—were also architects in the literal sense.
URL: http://www.pomona.edu/news/2015/01/29-mcwilliams-founders.aspx

Move over 'Warcraft,' NEH is funding new online games (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Mike Boehm
Publication: Los Angeles Times
Date: 12/9/2014
Abstract: The NEH announced $17.9 million in grants this week to support scholarship and education in the arts and letters, including the two grants of $100,000 each for online gaming projects, which are part of a new funding initiative for online cultural resources called Digital Projects for the Public. This grant is mentioned at the end of the article.
URL: http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/culture/la-et-cm-online-gaming-world-warcraft-neh-federal-grants-20141208-story.html

Benjamin Franklin’s Philadelphia Home Hit by Federal Budget Cuts (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Elizabeth Wallace
Publication: Architectural Digest
Date: 3/16/2017
URL: http://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/benjamin-franklins-philadelphia-home-hit-federal-budget-cuts

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