McKissack & McKissack

McKissack & McKissack is an American architecture, design, program management, and construction firm headquartered in Manhattan. Founded in Nashville in 1905 by Moses McKissack III, the firm is recognized as the oldest Black-owned architecture and construction company in the United States. Its history is closely associated with the development of Black professional architecture in the country and with the design and construction of schools, churches, libraries, hospitals, residences, civic buildings, and other community facilities. The company emerged from a multigenerational building tradition. Moses McKissack III was descended from a formerly enslaved master builder who had been trained in brickmaking after being brought from West Africa to the United States. Moses III learned architectural drawing and construction through an apprenticeship and practical work, while his brother Calvin Lunsford McKissack pursued higher education at Fisk University and obtained architectural training through correspondence study. Moses established the business in 1905 and opened an architectural office in Nashville in 1907. Calvin joined him in a formal partnership in 1922. During its early decades, the practice designed and built projects for historically Black educational institutions, churches, businesses, and residential clients across the South. Its early portfolio included the Carnegie Library at Fisk University, dormitories at Roger Williams University and Lane College, the Hubbard House, and a large number of residences in Nashville and Belle Meade. In 1922, Tennessee's new architect-registration requirements initially presented a barrier to the brothers. After petitioning the state and completing the required architectural education, they received licenses and became the first licensed Black architects in the United States, an important milestone in the professional history of American architecture. The firm's work expanded through the twentieth century to include schools, publishing houses, insurance offices, hospitals, libraries, and religious buildings. Numerous McKissack-designed or McKissack-associated buildings are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. By 1975, the firm had reportedly completed more than 3,000 building projects, including approximately 2,000 churches. Its cumulative output later surpassed 6,000 publicly and privately funded planning, design, and construction projects. Leadership passed through the McKissack family after the deaths of the founders. Moses McKissack III died in 1952, and Calvin McKissack remained with the firm until his death in 1968. William DeBerry McKissack subsequently became president, followed by Leatrice Buchanan McKissack, who assumed chief executive responsibilities after William suffered a stroke. In 1990, Leatrice's daughter Cheryl McKissack Daniel opened a New York office. In 2000, Daniel acquired the company from her mother, bought out the shareholders, closed the southern offices, and re-established the enterprise under her sole ownership. The Nashville office closed in 2002, leaving New York as the corporate headquarters. Under Cheryl McKissack Daniel, the firm operates as a contemporary professional-services business combining architecture and design with program and construction management. Its work continues to draw on the legacy of African American architectural achievement while serving public agencies, institutions, corporations, and community-oriented clients. In addition to its Manhattan headquarters, the company has maintained offices in Philadelphia and Mount Vernon. The firm was reported to have approximately 150 employees in 2019.

McKissack & McKissack traces its origins to the McKissack family's building tradition in Tennessee. The family's earlier generation included Moses McKissack, a formerly enslaved brickmaker and master builder whose skills were passed to his descendants. His son, Moses McKissack II, became a master carpenter and contributed decorative woodwork to the Maxwell House Hotel. Moses McKissack III entered the building and architecture trade as an apprentice in Pulaski, Tennessee. His work included architectural drawings, construction, and residential building in Tennessee and Alabama. In 1905 he formally established McKissack & McKissack as a construction firm, and in 1907 he opened an architectural office in Nashville. One of the firm's earliest major commissions was the Carnegie Library at Fisk University. The library's cornerstone was laid in 1908 and the building became an important example of the firm's institutional work. During the 1910s, Moses designed dormitories for Roger Williams University and Lane College, as well as residences in Nashville and nearby Belle Meade. Calvin McKissack developed a parallel career: he operated an independent practice in Dallas beginning in 1912, returned to Tennessee in 1915, taught architectural drawing and industrial arts, and held educational leadership roles. In 1922, the brothers combined their activities in the formal McKissack & McKissack partnership. The same year brought a major professional challenge. Tennessee introduced an architect-registration law, but the brothers were initially denied licenses. They petitioned the state, obtained architectural degrees through correspondence education, and ultimately became licensed. They are widely credited as the first licensed Black architects in the United States. Their professional recognition enabled the firm to undertake a growing range of architectural and construction work at a time when racial exclusion sharply restricted opportunities for Black practitioners. The firm's portfolio expanded throughout the 1920s and subsequent decades. It designed or constructed churches, schools, libraries, hospitals, publishing facilities, insurance offices, residences, and other institutional buildings. Projects associated with the practice included the Hubbard House, Capers C.M.E. Church, the Morris Memorial Building, Washington Junior High, Tennessee State University's Memorial Library, Pearl High School, Bridgeforth High School, Cameron School, St. John's Baptist Church in Miami, Taborian Hospital, and the Universal Life Insurance Company building. Several of these structures were later placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Moses McKissack III died in 1952. Calvin continued with the firm until his death in 1968, after which William DeBerry McKissack succeeded his uncle as president. When William retired because of illness following a stroke, his wife, Leatrice Buchanan McKissack, became chief executive. The family business entered a new phase when their daughter, Cheryl McKissack Daniel, opened a New York office in 1990. In 2000, Cheryl McKissack Daniel purchased the company from her mother. She paid out the shareholders, closed the southern offices, and reconstituted the firm under her sole ownership. The Nashville office closed in May 2002, making New York City the corporate headquarters. The modern firm combines architecture, design, construction management, and program management. It has offices in New York, Philadelphia, and Mount Vernon and has reported a portfolio exceeding 6,000 public and private planning, design, and construction projects.

• 2002

  Nashville office closed

  [1]McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org

  The Nashville office closed, leaving New York City as the company's corporate headquarters.

• 2000

  Cheryl McKissack Daniel acquired the company

  [1]McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org

  Daniel bought the business from her mother, paid out shareholders, closed the southern offices, and re-established the firm under sole ownership.

• 1990

  New York office opened

  [1]McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org

  Cheryl McKissack Daniel opened a New York City office, beginning the firm's transition toward its current headquarters.

• 1922

  Formal partnership and architectural licensure

  [1]McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org

  Calvin joined Moses in the formal partnership, and the brothers became the first licensed Black architects in the United States after overcoming Tennessee's registration barrier.

• 1908

  Carnegie Library commission at Fisk University

  [1]McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org

  The cornerstone was laid for the firm's major early library project on the Fisk University campus.

• 1907

  Nashville architectural office opened

  [1]McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org

  Moses McKissack opened the firm's first architectural office in Nashville.

• 1905

  Firm founded in Nashville

  [1]McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org

  Moses McKissack III formally established the construction business that became McKissack & McKissack.

A Black-owned American architecture and construction practice positioned around professional design, program management, construction expertise, and a multigenerational legacy of serving civic, educational, religious, commercial, and community institutions.

• Professional services · 1905

  Architecture and building design

  The firm's core architectural practice has historically covered civic, educational, religious, healthcare, residential, and commercial buildings. Its portfolio includes new construction as well as work connected to historically significant institutions and communities. Early projects such as the Fisk University Carnegie Library and later schools, churches, hospitals, and business buildings demonstrate the practice's longstanding emphasis on institutional and public-facing architecture.

• Professional services

  Program and project management

  McKissack & McKissack's contemporary service offering includes program management and coordination of complex planning, design, and construction activities. This extends the firm's role beyond architectural design into the organization and delivery of publicly and privately funded building programs.

• Construction services · 1905

  Construction management

  Construction expertise has been part of the business since its founding. The firm combines construction knowledge with architecture and program management, serving clients that require oversight of building delivery, institutional facilities, and large or technically coordinated projects.

• 2000

  Reconstitution under sole ownershipStrategy

  Background

  Cheryl McKissack Daniel acquired the company from her mother after having established its New York presence in 1990.

  Action taken

  She bought out the shareholders, dissolved the original business structure, closed the southern offices, and re-established McKissack & McKissack as a solely owned company.

  Aftermath

  The firm continued from New York, and the Nashville office subsequently closed in 2002. New York became the corporate headquarters.

  Source

1. 1McKissack & McKissacken.wikipedia.org
2. 2McKissack and McKissack Architectstennesseeencyclopedia.net