Architecture at WPI: Built on a Storied History
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) was an early pioneer in architectural education in the United States. Founded in 1865, the Institute began offering formal instruction in architecture by 1868 and graduated the first students from a collegiate architecture program in the United States in 1871.
From the outset, WPI’s early course of study combined theoretical instruction with professional practice and students in the earliest classes devoted time each week working in the offices of prominent local architectural firms to satisfy their academic practicum requirement. In doing so, WPI integrated key strengths of the traditional apprenticeship model with emerging polytechnic approaches that emphasized technical skill development, while also engaging aspects of contemporary academic architectural instruction.
Notable early faculty included George E. Gladwin, who taught design and architectural drawing and helped shape WPI’s early approach to architectural instruction with an emphasis on drawing, technical proficiency, and applied learning. Other noted faculty include William Robert Ware, a prominent architectural educator of the period who contributed lectures and provided formative input on elements of the early architectural curriculum from the start.
WPI’s early campus development reflects close ties between architecture, engineering, and education in Worcester. Stephen C. Earle and James E. Fuller, partners in the firm Earle & Fuller, contributed to the architectural character of the early campus and provided professional training opportunities for WPI architecture students. Elbridge Boyden, a leading regional architect, designed the Washburn Shops in 1868, recognized as the oldest continuously used shop at any university in the United States. Boyden was also the architect of Mechanics Hall, internationally renowned for its exceptional acoustics.
The earliest WPI graduates in architecture at WPI include George Herbert Nichols and Everett C. Bardwell. After graduating in 1871, Nichols worked in Philadelphia in the office of Furness & Hewitt, a partnership noted for its innovative and distinctly American architectural practice. Within the firm, Frank Furness was particularly recognized for an experimental design approach that helped attract a generation of young architects, including Louis Sullivan.
Today, WPI continuous to act as a pioneer in architectural education in the United States through its integrated five-year program, uniquely structured to satisfy both engineering and architectural accreditation requirements and continuing the Institute’s longstanding commitment to interdisciplinary, practice-oriented design education.