Hal Box collection
Scope and Content of the collection
The Hal Box Collection consists of papers, drawings, photographic material, date books, clippings, posters and boards that reveal the architectural and teaching career of Hal Box. Faculty papers make up the bulk of the collection, containing material from Box's tenure at The University of Texas at Arlington and the University of Texas at Austin.
Equally as prominent in the collection is material gathered during Box's activities in Earthwatch. Among the communal spaces documented are Santa María Asunción in Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca; San Miguel Arcángel in Acatlán, Hidalgo; and Templo de San Esteban in Axapusco, Mexico. This collection of materials includes approximately 6.5 linear feet of field notes, and over 300 measured drawings.
The Box collection is arranged into seven series: A. Personal Papers (2.75 boxes); B. Professional Papers (11.25 boxes, 2 oversized folders); C. Faculty Papers (17 boxes, 1 audio cassette tape and 3 oversized folders); D. Office Records (2 folders and 1 oversized folder); E. Project Records (2 boxes); F. Earthwatch (15 boxes and approximately 325 sheets of drawings); and G. Unprocessed Material (1 box). The bulk of the material dates from 1971 to 1998.
Dates
- Creation: circa 1933-1988
- Creation: (bulk 1971-1998)
Creator
- Hal Box (contributor, Person)
Policies Governing Use and Access
This collection is open for research. Researchers must register and agree to copyright and privacy laws before using archival materials. As all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site, advance notice of at least three working days is required for retrieval. Certain items may require additional time for flattening or humidifying before they can be viewed. Access is by appointment only. Please contact the archives' reference staff for further information.
Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications (e.g., a cause of action under common law for invasions of privacy may arise if facts concerning an individual's private life are published that would be deemed highly offensive to a reasonable person).
The Alexander Architectural Archives operate in accordance with applicable federal or state laws and regulations, providing unrestricted access to university records not covered by state and federal right to privacy acts.
The Alexander Architectural Archives, The University of Texas Libraries, and The University of Texas at Austin, assume no responsibility for infringement of literary property rights and copyright or for liability to any person for defamation or invasion of privacy that results from a researcher's use of collections.
Researchers agree to indemnify and hold harmless The University of Texas at Austin, and their officers, employees, and agents from and against all suits, claims, actions, and expenses arising out of use of collections held by the libraries. Please alert staff if anything inappropriate is found during research.
Copyright interests in this collection may not have been transferred to the University of Texas. Researchers assume full responsibility for observing all copyright, property, and libel laws as they apply. Additionally, the public use of material must be cited. See citation information below.
Biographical Sketch of Hal Box:
John Harold (Hal) Box was born August 18, 1929, in Commerce, Texas. Hal Box received his early training in architecture at The University of Texas at Austin, where he graduated at the age of 20 with a five year Architecture Degree, and as an apprentice to architect O'Neil Ford. His career began in aircraft structural design during his service in the U.S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps, and was followed by his tenure as Project Architect for Broad and Nelson Architects of Dallas, Texas. In 1958, Box formed the architectural and design practice of Pratt, Box and Henderson Architects in Dallas, Texas, in which he remained active for the next 27 years. His work there included The State Fair of Texas Master Plan, Brookhaven College, and University Facilities for the University of California at Santa Barbara, University of Oregon, Colorado State, and The University of New Mexico.
Box was the first Dean of the School of Architecture and Environmental Design at The University of Texas at Arlington, a program he created in 1971 and remained with until 1976. In 1976, he was chosen as Dean of Architecture at The University of Texas at Austin, a program he led for 16 years. Box began research in 1988 to study and document the 16th century open air churches of Mexico under the auspices of Earthwatch with additional funding from the Graham Foundation, the University Research Institute and the University of Texas Institute for Latin American Studies. Each summer through 1994 he has led a group of volunteers (assisted by Logan Wagner) to Mexico to undertake archival research, photographic documentation, and the preparation of measured drawings of open air churches and other civic spaces in the states of Morelos, Mexico, Michoacan and Hidalgo.
After serving as Dean, Box was W.L. Moody Centennial Professor of Architecture, a position he held until his 1998 retirement. Over the years, Hal Box won several design competitions, national, state and local design awards; and numerous professional honors. He was inducted into the College of Fellows, American Institute of Architecture in 1971. In 1994, Professor Box was presented an ACSA Distinguished Professor Award in Montreal, Canada, and he was given the prestigious Llewellyn W. Pitts Award by the Texas Society of Architects in 1998. The Hal Box Endowed Chair in Urbanism was established at UT-Austin in 1999. The Texas Exes alumni association bestowed its highest honor, the Distinguished Alumnus Award, on Box in 2003. He is active in architectural research, photography, and documentation of communal open spaces of the 16th century New Towns in Mesoamerica. Box is the author of The Prairie's Yield, Designs for Dallas, and The Architecture of Ricardo Legorreta.
Partial Extent
325 drawings
Partial Extent
33 Linear Feet
Partial Extent
7 exhibit_panels
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Hal Box was Dean of the School of Architecture at The University of Texas at Austin from 1976 to 1992 and practiced architecture for 40 years, apprenticing with O'Neil Ford and serving in the U.S. Navy Civil Engineering Corps. Drawings, boards, papers, and photographic material reveal his architectural and teaching career, and his involvement in Earthwatch.
Other Finding Aids
Unpublished inventory in the Archive.
References to works by or about Hal Box
-- compiled by Rebecca Romanchuk
- Attoe, Wayne, ed., assisted by Sydney H. Brisker; essays by Ricardo Legorreta; contributions by Hal Box ... (et al.). The Architecture of Ricardo Legorreta. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1990.
- Box, Hal. "University of Texas at Austin" in "Architectural Education." Texas Architect 35.5 (1985): 40-43.
- Box, Hal. "Exploring Concepts." Discovery (1984):
- Box, Hal. "A Sense of Texas Architecture." The Architectural Review 164 (1978): 266-270.
- Box, Hal. "Design of the City", in Proposals for Achieving the Goals . Goals for Dallas, Texas. 1969.
- American Institute of Architects. Dallas Chapter (Hal Box, James Pratt, Jim Wiley). The Prairie's Yield; Forces Shaping Dallas Architecture from 1840 to 1962. New York: Reinhold Pub. Corp., 1962.
- Austin, Ann. "Architecture for a New World."Earthwatch 7 (1988): 28-32.
- Fuller, Larry Paul. "Architecture: Hal Box." Texas Homes 9.4 (1985): 31, 35-38.
- Redstone, Louis.New Dimensions in Shopping Centers and Stores. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1972. p. 196-197.
- Meyer-Bohe, Walter. Ebenerdig Wohnon; der Flachbau als Wohnform und also städtebauliches Element. Stuttgart: J. Hoffmann, 1963. text p. 55; ill. p. 66-67.
- Dixon, John Morris. Architectural Design Preview, U.S.A. New York: Reinhold, 1962. (portion)
- Fitch, James Marston. Architecture and the Esthetics of Plenty. New York: Columbia University Press, 1961. text p. 261; ill. p. 262.
Works by Hal Box
- Attoe, Wayne, ed., assisted by Sydney H. Brisker; essays by Ricardo Legorreta; contributions by Hal Box ... (et al.). The Architecture of Ricardo Legorreta. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1990.
- Box, Hal. "University of Texas at Austin" in "Architectural Education." Texas Architect 35.5 (1985): 40-43.
- Box, Hal. "Exploring Concepts." Discovery (1984):
- Box, Hal. "A Sense of Texas Architecture." The Architectural Review 164 (1978): 266-270.
- Box, Hal. "Design of the City", in Proposals for Achieving the Goals . Goals for Dallas, Texas. 1969.
- American Institute of Architects. Dallas Chapter (Hal Box, James Pratt, Jim Wiley). The Prairie's Yield; Forces Shaping Dallas Architecture from 1840 to 1962. New York: Reinhold Pub. Corp., 1962.
Works about Hal Box
- Austin, Ann. "Architecture for a New World."Earthwatch 7 (1988): 28-32.
- Fuller, Larry Paul. "Architecture: Hal Box." Texas Homes 9.4 (1985): 31, 35-38.
- Redstone, Louis.New Dimensions in Shopping Centers and Stores. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1972. p. 196-197.
- Meyer-Bohe, Walter. Ebenerdig Wohnon; der Flachbau als Wohnform und also städtebauliches Element. Stuttgart: J. Hoffmann, 1963. text p. 55; ill. p. 66-67.
- Dixon, John Morris. Architectural Design Preview, U.S.A. New York: Reinhold, 1962. (portion)
- Fitch, James Marston. Architecture and the Esthetics of Plenty. New York: Columbia University Press, 1961. text p. 261; ill. p. 262.
Processing Information
Processing is not complete. Collection contains unprocessed oversized flat material. Please see Archive's staff for more information.
Collection Processors
Collection processed by: Wai-Yin Kwan, Regina Koehler, Adrienne Anderson, Molly Wheeler, May 2000-May 2003.
Subject
- Hal Box (contributor, Person)
- Earthwatch Institute (contributor, Organization)
- University of Texas at Arlington. School of Architecture. (contributor, Organization)
- University of Texas at Austin. School of Architecture (contributor, Organization)
Genre / Form
- Administrative records
- Faculty papers
- Field notes
- Professional papers
- architectural drawings (visual works)
- personal papers
- photographs
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Hal Box collection
- Date
- 2003
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Alexander Architectural Archives Repository
University of Texas Libraries
101 E. 21st Street
Austin Texas 78712 United States
(512) 495-4621
apl-aaa@lib.utexas.edu