Society of Architectural Historians facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
The Society of Architectural Historians

Charnley House, the Society headquarters
Established	July 31, 1940
Location	Chicago , Illinois , United States
Address	1365 N. Astor Street

The Society of Architectural Historians (often called SAH) is a group that helps people learn about and protect buildings and places around the world. It is a non-profit organization, meaning it does not aim to make money. SAH is based in Chicago, United States.

About 3,500 people are members of SAH. These members include people who study the history of buildings, architects who design buildings, and landscape architects who design outdoor spaces. It also includes people who work to save old buildings, students, and anyone interested in architecture.

The Story of SAH: How It Started

The Society of Architectural Historians began on July 31, 1940. It was first called the Society of American Architectural Historians. The idea came from a historian named Kenneth John Conant from Harvard University.

Twenty-five people helped start the group. They chose Turpin Bannister as the first president. He was also asked to edit the group's first magazine, the Journal of the American Society of Architectural Historians. Ten years later, the name was made shorter to its current form, SAH. From 1964 to 1966, Robert Branner was the president. Today, SAH is the biggest group for architectural history in the United States.

What SAH Does: Books and Events

SAH wants to help everyone understand the history of buildings, designs, landscapes, and cities. To do this, they publish many different things.

Books and Magazines

One important project is the Buildings of the United States series of books. They also publish a newsletter and a magazine called the Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. This magazine shares new research and ideas.

SAH Archipedia: An Online Encyclopedia

SAH is also creating an online encyclopedia about architecture called SAH Archipedia. They are working with the University of Virginia on this project. You can look at information about 100 important buildings in each state for free. SAH is adding more and more buildings to it. If you are a member of SAH, you can see the full version. It has over 19,000 building histories!

Awards for Great Work

SAH gives out several awards each year. These awards celebrate the best work in architectural history and related fields.

SAH Publication Awards

Every year, SAH gives five awards for excellent books and other writings. These awards honor great work in architectural history, city history, landscape history, and saving old buildings. They also give awards for catalogs from architecture exhibitions.

• The Alice Davis Hitchcock Book Award started in 1949. It goes to a scholar in North America for the best book on architectural history.
• The Philip Johnson Exhibition Catalogue Award honors the best writing in a catalog for an architecture show.
• The Antoinette Forrester Downing Award is for great contributions to saving old buildings.
• The Elisabeth Blair MacDougall Book Award is for excellent work about landscape architecture.
• The Spiro Kostof Book Award recognizes outstanding books about the history of city design and growth.
• The Founders Award is given to the best article written by a new scholar in the SAH journal.

SAH Award for Film and Video

This award started in 2013. It celebrates the best film or video about the history of buildings and places. The most important thing is how well the film helps people understand the built world. It should either make that understanding deeper or share it with new audiences. The film also needs to have strong research and be well-made.

Other Groups Like SAH

There are other groups similar to SAH in different countries. These include:

• The Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain
• The Society for the Study of Architecture in Canada (SSAC)
• The Society of Architectural Historians, Australia and New Zealand

See also

• SESAH
• Alice Davis Hitchcock Award
• Category: Architectural historians
• James Charnley House
• Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain