Hubert H. Crawford facts for kids

Hubert Horace Crawford (1910–1985) was an American painter from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He was very talented in many art forms. He played the violin and was also a skilled woodworker who designed furniture. He even designed and built his own powerboat. People believe he was the first African American yachtsman in Buffalo, New York. He was also a member of the Michigan Avenue Baptist Church and the Michigan Avenue YMCA.

Early Life and Art

Crawford was born on September 22, 1910, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. In 1917, his family moved to Buffalo, New York. He spent his childhood in Buffalo and later graduated from the Albright Art School. He grew up during the Harlem Renaissance, a time when African American art and culture thrived. This period greatly influenced his later career.

While in high school, Crawford took a Saturday morning painting class at the Albright Art Gallery. He earned a one-year scholarship to the Albright Art School and finished his studies in 1932. Later, he married Vera Jane Patterson.

Amazing Art Career

Crawford was a talented painter who created many large murals during his life. Because he lived during the Harlem Renaissance, he was chosen to paint a mural for a popular jazz nightclub in Buffalo called The Moonglow. This club was a special place for African Americans. He painted beautiful murals both inside and outside The Moonglow.

In 1939, the US Army hired Crawford to paint a mural at the Officers Club Building of Fort Niagara State Park. This mural honored World War I. It was very large, measuring 28 feet long and 20 feet high. The mural celebrated the Battle of Cantigny, which was the first battle led and fought only by American soldiers.

In 1940, Hubert was asked to create another mural for the American Negro Exposition in Chicago. This mural celebrated the 75th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared many enslaved people free.

Crawford explored many different kinds of art. He also created graphic arts and cartoons. He even became a professor at the University of Buffalo.

Later Life and Legacy

In 1940, Crawford had a serious accident. He fell from a third-story window in his home. This accident affected his health for the rest of his life. He later lived in a special care center in Buffalo. Even after his accident, he continued to create art.

In 1977, he moved to a senior center in Hamburg, New York. Hubert Horace Crawford passed away on January 11, 1985, in a nursing home in Utica, New York.

After Crawford's death, his artwork was largely forgotten for a time. Robert Emerson, who was the executive director of Old Fort Niagara, once said in an article in The Buffalo News, "He was well known in the 1930s but is forgotten today."

However, his large mural in the Officer's Club at Fort Niagara was carefully restored by the Art Conservation Department at SUNY Buffalo State. People like Robert Emerson hope to make Crawford's name famous again. There were plans to display his Battle of Cantigny mural in a special room at Fort Niagara, along with other items that remember the World Wars. This helps keep his amazing artistic contributions alive.