Robinson, Willard Bethurem, 1935-

Architectural historian, architect and author. Authority on Texas architectural history. Born in 1935 in Sheridan, Wyoming. B. Arch, Montana State University (1958) M. Arch from Rice University (1960). Member of the Architecture faculty at Texas Tech University (1963-1991). Instrumental in the establishment of the Ranching Heritage Center at Texas Tech University. Author of four books including "Gone From Texas: Our Lost Architectural Heritage" and "The People's Architecture: Texas Courthouses, Jails and Municipal Buildings." Served on numerous boards and commissions and recipient of various awards including: Society of Architectural Historians (Board of Directors 1979-1981); Texas Society of Architectural Historians (Vice-President 1971-1972); member, Phi Beta Delta, Honor Society for International Scholars (1988); Listing in Who's Who in Texas (1987); and being named a "living cultural and historical resource" by the House of Representatives of the state of Texas (1990). Named Paul W. Horn Professor of Architecture (1987). Also served as Interim Dean of the College of Architecture, and Director of Land-

From the description of Papers, ca. 1981. (Texas Tech University). WorldCat record id: 24812899

Willard B. Robinson, Horn Professor of Architecture at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, had expertise in historical buildings preservation and restoration. He worked with the Historic American Buildings Survey for Jefferson, Texas; for the State of Rhode Island on the restoration of Fort Adams; as the restoration architect for the Ranching Heritage Center Museum at Texas Tech and as a research associate for the Amon Carter Musuem in Fort Worth, Texas. He was the consultant architect for several private and non-profit organizations, including the Texas Historical Commission and the Tennessee Valley Authority. Robinson was recognized as an expert in both Euro-American and Spanish-Mexican architectural styles. His numerous article and monograph writings include a book length prublication on American fortifications and four on 19th century buildings and Southwestern architecture. He was Interim Dean of the Department of Architecture at Texas Tech at the time of his death in 1991.

From the description of Willard Bethurem Robinson papers, 1955-1991. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center). WorldCat record id: 56367118

Robinson was the Paul W. Horn Professor of Architecture at Texas Tech University in Lubbock with expertise in historical buildings preservation and restoration. Born in Sheridan, Wyoming, he received a bachelor’s degree in Architecture from Montana State in 1958 and a master’s from Rice University in 1960. His thesis work consisted of a study of the 19th century architecture of Northwestern buildings. This work led to his book publications of Texas Public Buildings of the Nineteenth Century in 1974 and American Forts: Architectural Form and Function, in 1977.

In the early part of his career, he worked extensively with the Historic American Buildings Survey for Jefferson, Texas; for the State of Rhode Island on the restoration of Fort Adams; as the restoration architect for the Ranching Heritage Center Museum at Texas Tech and as a research associate for the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. He served as a consultant architect for the Texas Historical Commission in Austin, the Tennessee Valley Authority in Knoxville, Tennessee, and the Buffalo Bill History Center in Cody, Wyoming. He worked with several architectural consulting firms throughout the Southwest for the restoration of historic buildings, such as old military forts, churches and courthouses. Robinson was recognized as an expert in both Euro-American and Spanish-Mexican architectural styles. Perhaps his most unusual and ambitious project was to form a cultural exchange program with Texas Tech and the University of Guanajuato in Mexico to study the cultural influences of architecture in both regions and how American technology may have influenced both.

Robinson was the project director for several National Endowment for the Humanities and Texas Historical Commission grant awards. Other publications include Gone from Texas: Our Lost Architectural Heritage, 1981, and Reflections of Faith: Houses of Worship in the Lone Star State, 1991. He published widely in architectural journals, Texas and Southwestern quarterlies. His last manuscript, Images of Knowledge: The Architecture of Higher Education in America, an extensive review of the history and influences in higher education architecture, was completed at the time of his unexpected death but had yet to find a publisher. Also, at the time of his death, he was Interim Dean of the Department of Architecture at Texas Tech.

From the guide to the Willard Bethurem Robinson Papers, 1955-1991, (University of Wyoming. American Heritage Center.)