Buildings of Texas collection

The Buildings of Texas multi-volume publication is a part of the Buildings of the United States series. Administered by the Society of Architectural Historians (SAH), the goal of the project is to document the extensive built environment of the United States. The Buildings of the United States began with the March 1993 publication of the Buildings of Iowa. At the time of Buildings of Texas's publication, 21 books have been published covering 16 states, two cities (Pittsburgh, PA and Savannah, GA), and Washington, D.C.

In 1999, Stephen Fox, an architectural historian and lecturer at Rice University, asked Gerald Moorhead to spearhead the publication of the Texas edition. Moorhead submitted a proposal to the SAH in 2000, which was accepted. Over the course of the next 19 years, Moorhead oversaw the project as editor, researcher, writer, and photographer. Other contributors included James W. Steely, W. Dwayne Jones, Anna Mod, John C. Ferguson, Cheryl Caldwell Ferguson, Mario L. Sánchez, Stephen Fox, Willis C. Winters, Mark Gunderson, Jay C. Henry, and Joel Warren Barna. When SAH began its new contract with the University of Virginia Press, Moorhead convinced the new publisher to expand Texas coverage to two volumes. The first volume, Buildings of Texas: Central, South, and Gulf Coast, was published in 2013. The second volume, Buildings of Texas: East, North Central, Panhandle and South Plains, and West was published in 2019.

Sources:

"About the BUS Series." Society of Architectural Historians. Accessed January 3, 2018. http://www.sah.org/publications-and-research/buildings-of-the-us.

Gerald Moorhead was born in 1947 in Davenport, Iowa. Moorhead graduated high school in El Paso, Texas. Afterwards, he attended Rice University in Houston, Texas, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture and Fine Arts in 1969. He received his Bachelor of Architecture degree in 1971. During his undergraduate degree, he worked as a draftsman for two firms, Middleton & Statton, and M.A. Floyd Associations in 1967 and 1968, respectively. He completed his preceptorship in programming, planning, and design studios, a required component of Rice University's architecture program, at CRS Design, Inc. from 1969-1970. Moorhead also began working as a designer for Phillips & Peterson AIA, a position he retained from 1969-1973. He worked as a designer for Kenneth F. Parry Associations in 1972. In 1973, he joined Charles Tapley Associations, Inc., where he was a project architect and partner. As a project architect, Moorhead was involved in all aspects of practice. From 1986-1987, he was a design associate for Lloyd Jones Fillpot Associates. He was a senior associate and project architect at Raid/Fehn Architects from 1990-1991. Beginning in 1983, Moorhead began a proprietorship in architecture, planning, and interior design until 1998. He joined Ray Bailey Architects, Inc. (now the Houston office of Shepley Bulfinch) in 1998, where he remained until 2014. Moorhead works as a writer, consultant, and photographer.

Along with his professional experience, Moorhead has been active in professional organizations. He has been involved with the Texas Society of Architects, American Institute of Architects (AIA), and the Houston chapter of AIA through committees, photography, writing, curatorial, and editing work. He has served on AIA's Committee of Design since 1986. With AIA Houston, Moorhead was involved in various committees including the Midtown Task Force, Honors and Awards, Guidebook 1999 Committee, and Urban Design Committee. Additionally, he has served on the Houston Chapter AIA's Design Committee since 1990, and the Historical Resources Committee since 2010. He has also contributed to the Houston AIA's Houston Architecture Guide as photographer and editor for three editions. In addition to his contributions to AIA, Moorhead has contributed to the Texas Society of Architects. He was particularly active with its publication, Texas Architect as a member of the Publications Committee from 1983-1987, and a contributing editor from 1987-2011. He was also contributing editor to the Architectural Record from 1990-1998.

Throughout his career, Moorhead has received a number of awards for his work. He received the President's Citation from the AIA Houston in 1992 and 1996. He also received the Young Architect Award from AIA Houston in 1985. Moorhead was the architect laureate of Kazakhstan in 1992. In 1991, he was named a fellow for the American Institute of Architects. His architectural works have received awards from the Texas Society of Architects; Texas Historical Commission; Houston AIA; Nicholas Clayton Awards Program; Guild for Religious Architecture; Interfaith Forum on Religion, Art, and Architecture; and the Union of Architects of Kazakhstan.

Mario L. Sánchez was born on April 30, 1949. Sánchez received his Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame in 1976. From 1976-1978, he was an assistant professor of history with the University of Georgia System. Sánchez served as an adjunct professor of history at St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas from 1979-1980. He graduated with a Master of Architecture from School of Architecture at The University of Texas at Austin in 1982. From 1982-1987, he was an intern and architect at Robert Jackson Architects in Austin, Texas. In 1987, he joined the Texas Historical Commission (THC) as a historical architect. He later became the director of THC's Rio Grande Heritage Program from 1990-1997. He was then promoted to director of THC's Heritage Tourism Program. In January 2000, Sánchez left the Texas Historical Commission and joined the Texas Department of Transportation as a historical architect.

Among his professional work, Sánchez has received awards from American Planning Association, American Association for State and Local History, San Antonio Conservation Society, and was the recipient of the La Frontera Excellence Award from Fundación Margarita M. De Mascareñas. He has also written for the Texas Historical Society, Texas Architect, Preservation Forum, and the Texas Department of Transportation.

Sánchez was invited to the Buildings of Texas project in 2000 by Gerald Moorhead. He researched and wrote the South Texas region section in Buildings of Texas: Central, South, and Gulf Coast. In addition to writing, Sánchez also assisted with some editing for Buildings of Texas: East, North Central, Panhandle and South Plains, and West.