Ralph Emerson Carpenter, Jr.

Ralph Emerson Carpenter, Jr., born in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, on October 6, 1909, died February 2, 2009,[1] was a noted expert on Colonial American furniture and decorative art and a published author. A descendant of the noted Carpenter founding family of colonial Rhode Island,[2] for more than a half century, he was actively involved in the restoration of some of Newport, Rhode Island's defining structures. Two of his books, The Arts and Crafts of Newport, Rhode Island, 1640-1820,[3] published in 1954, and The Fifty Best Historic American Houses, Colonial and Federal,[4] published in 1955, are credited with bringing American colonial design international recognition.

He graduated from Cornell University in 1931 with a degree in mechanical engineering, but became an insurance and investment banking executive in New York City, retiring as senior vice president of a securities firm in 1978. In retirement, he used his expertise in and encyclopedic knowledge of the decorative arts and antiques to become a senior American decorative arts consultant, a position he held for 30 years.[5] In 1999, his accomplishments were honored with the Henry Francis du Pont Award for the Decorative Arts.[6]

References

  1. ↑ William Grimes: "Restored Many Historic Landmarks In Newport, R.I. Ralph E. Carpenter | Died Feb. 2, 2009", Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania), Sunday, February 22, 2009, http://www.allbusiness.com/society-social/families-children-marriage/11932059-1.html, accessed 22 Nov 2009.
  2. ↑ William Carpenter, Providence Rhode Island
  3. ↑ The Preservation Society of Newport County, Newport, R.I., see Antiques and The Arts Editorial: "Ralph E. Carpenter, 99, Leading American Preservationist", Antiques and The Arts Online, http://antiquesandthearts.com/Antiques/Obituaries/2009-02-10__12-37-45.html, accessed 22 Nov 2009.
  4. ↑ Mowbra Hall Press, E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., New York.
  5. ↑ Antiques and The Arts Online...
  6. ↑ "Ralph E. Carpenter to Receive the Henry Francis du Pont Award", Maine Antique Digest, http://maineantiquedigest.com/articles_archive/articles/carp0599.htm, accessed 22 Nov 2009.
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