THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE RESOLUTION

INTRODUCED BY BISHOP, GEORGE, GEIST, GRUCELA, MANN, CALTAGIRONE, OLIVER, FLECK, ROCK, COHEN, WHEATLEY, BEYER, SWANGER, REICHLEY, MILLARD, GOODMAN, DONATUCCI, PARKER, PHILLIPS, HARKINS, DAY, JOSEPHS AND MELIO, NOVEMBER 15, 2010

INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35, NOVEMBER 15, 2010  

A RESOLUTION

Recognizing the outstanding contributions and achievements of

Julian Abele, an accomplished architect and Philadelphia

resident.

WHEREAS, Julian Francis Abele, the first African-American

graduate of the architecture program at the University of

Pennsylvania, received scant recognition during his lifetime

despite his many significant professional contributions; and

WHEREAS, Although Fiske Kimball, noted architectural

historian and director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art,

acknowledged that Abele was one of the most sensitive designers

anywhere in America in 1942, Abele remained virtually unknown

outside Philadelphia's architectural community until the 1970s

and 1980s; and

WHEREAS, Born in Philadelphia in 1881, Abele lived most of

his life in the city, residing at 1515 Christian Street for

several decades of his adult life; and

WHEREAS, An accomplished student, Abele graduated from the

Philadelphia Museum and School of Industrial Art in 1898 and

entered the prestigious architecture program at the University

of Pennsylvania that same year, where he won several impressive

awards and served as president of the university's Architectural

Society during his senior year; and

WHEREAS, After graduating from Penn in 1902, Abele augmented

his education by studying architectural design at the

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts while working evenings for

the noted Philadelphia architect Louis C. Hickman; and

WHEREAS, Abele spent the next few years studying design in

Paris and was influenced by 18th century French architecture

throughout his career; and

WHEREAS, In 1906, Abele returned to Philadelphia and joined

the firm of Horace Trumbauer, a popular architectural design

house that was responsible for many mansions in Philadelphia,

New York and Newport, Rhode Island, as well as apartment houses,

offices, school buildings, theaters, hospitals, clubhouses,

churches, libraries and museums; and

WHEREAS, One of Abele's largest projects was the firm's

commission to design and supervise the construction of the

Philadelphia Museum of Art; and

WHEREAS, In 1909, he ascended to the firm's top position,

chief designer, a remarkable accomplishment in light of his

young age and race and he continued to be the top designer of

the Trumbauer firm until his death in 1950; and

WHEREAS, In 1942, Abele was elected to the American Institute

of Architects; and

WHEREAS, In his private life, Abele was a quiet, serious man,

yet brilliant and witty, who appreciated all things French,

enjoying fine wine, classical music and opera, and who engaged

in watercolor painting, sketching and jewelry and furniture

making; and

WHEREAS, He married Marguerite Bulle, a French woman, and had

two children, a son and a daughter, but after several years the

couple parted although they never divorced; and

WHEREAS, Today, we appreciate Abele as one of the early 20th

century's most adept designers of revival buildings, who

rejuvenated many long-dormant styles as vital, modern forms of

architectural expression and changed the skyline of Philadelphia

and much of the United States; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize the

outstanding contributions and achievements of Julian Abele, an

accomplished architect and Philadelphia resident.