AFRICAN AMERICAN ARCHITECTURE
EMERGENCE OF
EARLY AFRICAN AMERICAN ARCHITECTURE IN KENTUCKY
Born in Lexington, KY, Vertner W. Tandy was the first African American to become licensed as an architect in the state of New York. One of his most recognized local works is Webster Hall on Georgetown St. in Lexington, KY. In New York, he designed some of the Abraham Lincoln Houses and the housing projects on Lexington Avenue and 135th Streets, and his works included the St. Philip's Protestant Episcopal Church on W. 133rd Street. Tandy was also the first African American to be commissioned as an officer in New York du ring World War I. In 1904, he was a graduate at the Tuskegee Institute and in 1908 he graduated from Cornell University School of Architecture. Tandy also helped find the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity at Cornell.
VERTNER W. TANDY
WILLIAM S. PITTMAN
William S. Pittman, who was the son-in-law of Booker T. Washington, was born in Alabama and in 1897 he graduated with an architectural degree from the Tuskegee Institute and completed graduate school at the Drexel Institute, which now known as Drexel University. Pittman would later become known as one of the most accomplished architects in the US during 1909. Pittman also helped design important structures at Kentucky Normal and Industrial Institute for Colored Persons, which is now known as Kentucky State University. The name of the buildings:
the Trade School Building and Hume Hall, which is still standing and houses the President's Office.
SAMUEL M. PLATO
Samuel M. Plato was born in Alabama and was the son of James and Katie Hendrick Plato. He was the husband to Nettie M. Lusby Plato. They are listed in the 1910 and 1920 U.S. Federal Census. Plato enrolled at the State University of Louisville in 1898, and prior to graduation he moved to Pennsylvania and enrolles in the architectural program. After completing school, Plato relocated to Marion, IN where he began his practice. In Marion he became one of the first African American architectural designers and building contractors and built over 39 post offices throughout the U.S. Plato was one of the very few African Americans to receive contracts to build defense homes during World War II.
