Geography & Building Types

In 1908, Tulane University School of Technology Professor William Woodward (1859-1939) articulated his fervent belief that New Orleans was especially suited to provide the ideal environment for a School of Architecture:

"The geographical location of the city of New Orleans, its cosmopolitan character, and the age and variety of its types of buildings, make it a fitting place in which to develop a school of architecture which shall be suited to its environment, and shall maintain a reasonableness of planning and construction as appropriate to climatic conditions."

The university offered its first architecture courses as early as 1894, but it was not until 1907 that Woodward's dream of a Department of Architecture was realized. Five years later, Nathaniel Cortlandt Curtis, Sr. (1881-1953) was hired as the first full-time architecture faculty. By 1916, he was also serving as the department's librarian.

Tulane University Bulletins and other institutional publications are available through the Tulane University Archives, 202 Jones Hall.