Passing the hammer: ACBA says goodbye to a friend, mentor and inspiration

ACBA News Release
June 30, 2009

America was faced with a pressing need for the systematic training of artisans through educational programs emphasizing craftsmanship. The country was losing master craftsmen and women who are skilled with their hands, creative and innovative with their minds, and passionate about quality workmanship in their hearts. The solution to the crisis was the American College of the Building Arts (ACBA); a college inspired by Master Blacksmith Philip Simmons.

Philip Simmons was more than just another outstanding American craftsman; he remains the inspirational founder of an entire American movement to ensure that art goes back into building. Just as Philip Simmons understood the critical need for master artisans in America, a small group of individuals in Charleston saw the shortage of professional building artisans across the United States and in 1997 the group joined forces with Simmons to try and preserve the lost arts and give a national crisis hope.

The project goal was to make a universal change to what was and still is one of the largest critical needs in the American Workforce; a Master Building Artisan trained through educational programs. After years of work, this group of pioneers founded the American College of the Building Arts, which is now our nation’s first and only college to offer a Bachelor’s degree in the Building Arts in six different majors/trades (Architectural Metal, Architectural Stone, Carpentry, Masonry, Plaster Working, and Timber Framing).

Simmons was a critical inspiration during the entire ACBA project and devoted his last years watching the College grow. On May 2, 2009 Simmons made his last public appearance at the graduation of the American College of the Building Arts inaugural class in Washington Park, Charleston, SC.

“ACBA is very sad to have lost their friend and mentor on June 22, 2009. We like to believe Philip Simmons has now passed the hammer to the college” says Huguley, “his legacy will forge on through our teachings, and he will always be remembered by our students, faculty and founders.”

The American College of the Building Arts educates and trains artisans in the traditional building arts to foster exceptional craftsmanship and encourage the preservation, enrichment, and understanding of the worlds’ architectural heritage through a liberal arts education. www.buildingartscollege.us

Back To The Top