If you stop to think about the legacy of America’s first female archtect, Louise Blanchard Bethune, and what her impact has been on Buffalo and the nation, it’s kinda neat to think that after all the years of neglect, her building, The Hotel Lafayette, once again shines in the City of Light.
The Atlantic Cities is paying tribute to Bethune in an early birthday salute, as you can see here. It’s hard not to read the article and feel a sense of pride for our city, and the comeback that the hotel has made. Thanks to the resurrection of the noteworthy architectural gem, and her University at Buffalo building namesake Bethune Hall (now Bethune Lofts), Bethune’s name remains strong in Buffalo. The two recent renovations are both contributing to the city’s rebirth and each reflects the fortitude of the woman who helped to open doors for others to follow suit.
From commentor Teddy Hudson who added a take on the article. Comment can be found on The Atlantic Cities:
Louise Blanchard Bethune was the first female associate of the American Institute of Architects. She and her husband shared a practice in Buffalo, New York.
Bethune’s best-known project was Buffalo’s Hotel Lafayette (1902). She turned down a chance to enter the design competition for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exhibition in protest over the low rates offered to women designers.
Buffalo remembers the first woman of architecture with the soon-to-open “Bethune Lofts,”in the renovated Buffalo Meter Building. The building was formerly known as “Bethune Hall” when it housed the SUNY Buffalo department of art, from 1970 to the early 1990s.
*Hat tip to Keetz4