Edward D. White, Jr

Edward Divine White Jr. (February 2, 1925 – April 29, 2017), FAIA, was an architect based in Denver, Colorado, whose forty-year practice (1955 through 1995) focused on contemporary architecture and historic preservation. Along with his architectural practice, White was lifelong friend to Jack Kerouac from 1947 to Kerouac's death in 1969. The pair exchanged over 90 letters and postcards during that time.

Education Born and raised in Denver, White attended Denver Public Schools (Montclair Elementary School, Smiley Junior High School, and East High School (Denver)). Excelling at school, White was encouraged by East High School guidance counselor, Justin W. Brierly, to apply to Columbia University of New York City. where he took literature courses and focused on his interest in architecture. After completing his certificate in France, he returned to Columbia University and enrolled in the Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, from which he graduated in 1955 with a B. Architecture and a Master of Architecture,

Hornbein & White In 1960 White formed a partnership with Victor Hornbein, Victor Hornbein & Edward D. White Jr. Architects.

Hornbein & White was also responsible for: The design of the Humphreys Classroom Building, the Hamilton Reiman Building, the Foundations Building, and the Gates Science Buildings at Graland Country Day School, for which they were awarded a Design Citation Award from American Institute of Architects, Colorado Society, in 1971. Design of the John F. Kennedy Childhood Development Center (1968) and the Children's Psychiatric Day Care Center (1962) on the University of Colorado Health Sciences campus. Restoration work for the Denver U.S Post Office and Custom House. and White continued his restoration and preservation work as Edward D. White Jr. AIA.

Edward D. White Jr. FAIA

White's firm worked on a number of project for properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including: Production of architectural and preservation reports, restoration of the Four Mile House, Participation in the restoration of the Molly Brown House, specifically the kitchen, pantry, and stairways. Restoration of the Colorado State Governor's Mansion. College of Fellows, American Institute of Architects, 2004

Historic preservation White laid the groundwork for and made many contributions to the early years of historic preservation in Colorado. White's grassroots work in preservation had a major impact on the existence and future of the original heart of the city of Denver as well as historic mountain mining communities throughout Colorado. In 2001, September 14 was declared Edward D. White Jr. Day by Mayor Wellington Webb.

White, in consultation with the Urban Subcommittee of the Denver Planning Board, was among a small group of Denver architects whose efforts led to the establishment of the Denver Landmark Preservation Commission. White was appointed to the Commission in 1969 by Denver Mayor William McNichols at the recommendation of the Denver Chapter of the AIA. He was re-appointed by two subsequent Mayors and served ten terms on the Commission (1969–1990), four of those terms (six years) as its Chairman. He served as advisor and mentor, and dedicated many years of service to committees, boards and commissions to identify, evaluate, and protect historic and archeological resources.

White made major contributions while serving on the Board of Directors of the Colorado Historical Foundation, Historic Denver, Inc., Four Mile Historic Park, Little Kingdom Foundation (preservation planners for Colorado’s oldest, best preserved mining district), Central City Opera Association (owner of Central City’s most important landmark structures), and other prominent civic groups. On May 18, 2010, White was honored with the Dana Crawford Award for Excellence in Historic Preservation by Colorado Preservation, Inc.

Jack Kerouac and the Beats During his undergraduate studies at Columbia University, White established a lifelong friendship with Jack Kerouac. In the fall of 1946, Kerouac and White began their friendship in New York. That same fall, the friend who introduced them, Hal Chase, struck up an acquaintance with Neal Cassady, a Denver street urchin whom Brierly had mentored and encouraged to head to New York with the hope of enrolling at Columbia. Cassady was just the hero Kerouac needed for his novels, and he soon latched himself to his character. To welcome Cassady and his 19-year-old bride Luanne to New York, Chase met him at the Greyhound bus station with Kerouac. They found housing for the kid with the help of Allan Temko and his cousin. Their apartment soon became a hub for the developing Beats. White appears in Kerouac's On the Road as the character Tim Gray; White was also a longtime friend of Columbia University classmate Allan Temko, a Pulitzer Prize winning architecture critic for the San Francisco Chronicle who died in 2006, and Columbia University classmate Allen Ginsberg.