American historic preservationist
Anne St. Clair Wright
(1910?1993) was an American
historic preservationist
. A central figure in the foundation, in 1952, of
Historic Annapolis Incorporated
(currently
Historic Annapolis Foundation
), she served four terms as president and as chairman emeritus of the board. She was responsible for the preservation of the historic center of the city of
Annapolis, Maryland
. Her preservation work, advocacy and achievements inspired many preservation movements around the United States. She is considered a leading 20th-century American preservationist.
[1]
Among many civic offices, she served as the director of the Society for the Preservation of Maryland Antiquities;
[2]
chairman of the board of
Preservation Action
; was a member of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Advisory Committee of the
U.S. National Park Service
; director of the
Southern Garden History Society
; and a director of the
Nature Conservancy
.
[
citation needed
]
Preservation of Annapolis
[
edit
]
Under her leadership, and using an innovative
revolving fund
approach, Historic Annapolis Inc. was able to restore more than 30 buildings of all types from the mansions of the elite to the homes and businesses of common citizens throughout the 18th-century core of the city of Annapolis as well as working to restore and preserve the historic street-scapes of the city.
[3]
[4]
Rescued and restored buildings include the house
[5]
of
Charles Carroll the Barrister
which was moved to the campus of
St. John's College
in 1955; the Shiplap house restored starting in 1957, Reynolds Tavern, 163 Duke of Gloucester Street, Pinkney Street, and the house of
William Paca
, a signer of the
Declaration of Independence
, whose house and garden stood on Prince George Street in Annapolis. The house was returned to its 18th-century state and the garden were restored using archeological evidence as well as Paca's contemporary writings.
[6]
The
Paca House and Garden
are now open to the public. She was instrumental in saving the Annapolis Market House from demolition in 1969. In 1965,
Stuart Udall
, the US Secretary of the Interior, designated the downtown Annapolis a
historic district
as a Registered
National Historic Landmark
[7]
In 1982 she help initiate the 'Archaeology in Annapolis' program.
[8]
The papers related to her work with Historic Annapolis are held in the University of Maryland Archives.
[9]
Biography
[
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]
Wright was born in 1910 in
Newport News, Virginia
, the daughter of U.S. naval officer Arthur St. Clair Smith and Anna Lena Salley. She lived in Annapolis, France, China, Panama, and Japan during her childhood. While living in Beijing as a girl, she attended the
Peking American School
as a member of the class of 1928. She was a graduate of
Mary Baldwin College
(
Staunton, Virginia
) and the
Maryland Institute College of Art
(Baltimore, Maryland), where she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1932. In 1932 she married Joseph Martin Pickett Wright,
[10]
U.S. naval officer, in Panama. During the 1930s she worked as a muralist and ceramicist in Maryland and Washington D.C. Her family settled in Annapolis just prior to the
Second World War
. She raised three sons, two of whom became officers in the
United States Navy
, and one of whom is
Henry Tutwiler Wright
, a professor of
anthropology
.
[11]
Throughout her life she was a passionate gardener. At the time of her death in 1993, she was still engaged in preservation action in Annapolis and the United States.
[12]
Awards
[
edit
]
- Maryland Woman's Hall of Fame,
[13]
2009
- James Marston Fitch
Charitable Foundation's first grant award, 1990
- Honorary Degree of Doctor of Public Service from the
University of Maryland
, 1985
- The Phoenix Award from the Society of American Travel Writers, 1985
- Garden Club of America Historic Preservation Medal, 1983
[14]
- Citation from the Maryland House of Delegates for Outstanding Service in the Field of Preservation, 1979
- Honorary Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from
Towson State University
, 1975
- Calvert Award from the
Maryland Historical Trust
, 1975
- Historic Preservation Award from the Federated Garden Clubs of America, 1970
- Louise duPont Crowninshield
Award from the
National Trust for Historic Preservation
, 1968
- American Institute of Architects, Chesapeake Bay Chapter, Award for Distinguished Work in Historic Preservation, 1968
- Certificate of Distinguished Citizenship, Maryland, 1965.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Crowninshield History - Preservation Leadership Forum - A Program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation"
.
forum.savingplaces.org
. Retrieved
2019-04-15
.
- ^
"Preservation Maryland - About Us"
. 15 August 2009. Archived from
the original
on 15 August 2009
. Retrieved
9 November
2017
.
- ^
Kohl, Larry (August 1988), "Annapolis, Camelot By The Bay" National Geographic Magazine 174 (2): 162-189
- ^
Middleton, Arthur Pierce and N.Jane Isley (1988) Annapolis on the Chesapeake:63-64
- ^
"Charles Carroll House"
.
Charlescarrollhouse.com
. Retrieved
9 November
2017
.
- ^
The Magazine Antiques
, January 1977
- ^
Kohl, Larry (August 1988), "Annapolis, Camelot By The Bay" National Geographic Magazine 174 (2): 168
- ^
"Wayback Machine"
. 20 August 2009
. Retrieved
9 November
2017
.
[
dead link
]
- ^
Anne St. Clair Wright papers
. Special Collections and University Archives, University of Maryland.
- ^
"ANNE ST. CLAIR SMITH TO BE WED TOMORROW; Will Become Bride of Lieutenant Joseph M. P. Wright, U. S. N., in Central Panama City"
.
The New York Times
. Retrieved
2019-04-15
.
- ^
Daemmrich, JoAnna (1993-09-20).
"Anne St. Clair Wright, Annapolis preservationist"
.
baltimoresun.com
. Retrieved
2019-10-16
.
- ^
Editorial 'Our Say', The Capital Newspaper, September 21, 1993.
- ^
"Anne St. Clair Wright, Maryland Women's Hall of Fame"
. Archived from
the original
on 2009-09-06
. Retrieved
2009-06-25
.
- ^
"Welcome to Society of American Travel Writers"
. 30 September 2006. Archived from
the original
on 30 September 2006
. Retrieved
9 November
2017
.
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