Since 1865 African-American architects have been designing and building houses and public buildings, but the architects are virtually unknown. This work brings their lives and work to light for the first time. "A gold mine for anyone interested in architecture or African American architects... Easy to use and containing scholarly information, this work will benefit general readers through architectural historians. Highly recommended. All libraries." -- Choice"There is nothing else comparable on the market... A sound purchase, especially for college and university libraries with architectural programs, though it's also intended for preservationists, architects, and historians." -- Booklist/RBB"an essential reference... The introduction offers a useful historical context for the contributions of African Americans to the built environment of the United States." -- College & Research Libraries"Recent scholarly concerns about the gaps and limitations of such a narrative have literally reshaped the study of architectural history. African American Architects: A Biographical Dictionary, 1865-1945 is a major force to continue that reshaping, giving much needed presence to a large but essentially invisible group of designers, to innumerable but largely unknown buildings across the land, and to an awesome force of educational initiative, community spirit, and pride... the most comprehensive dictionary of these architects to date... the stories in the dictionary are captivating." -- CRM: The Journal of Heritage Stewardship"The dictionary makes a significant contribution to the increasing scholarship on African American architects. A must have for aspiring and practicing architects, the book will be useful to anyone desiring to research their community's Black architects, buildings, and history in general. It is a useful reference for every church office/library and an indispensible aid of anyone seeking to nominate a historic building to the National Register of Historic Places." -- The AME Church Review