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Founded in 1883 in Philadelphia, the T-Square Club became an important voice in the professionaliza tion of American architecture. The original constitution for the club de clared that the group would "promote the study and practice of Archi tecture and the Kindred Arts; to afford its members opportunities for friendly competition in design; and to further the appreciation of Archi tecture by the public."1 The club fostered a conversation about archi tecture, giving parameters to the changing and professionalizing field of architectural design. This attempt to define professionalism was not unique. Over the course of the nineteenth century, Americans attempt ed to navigate the shifting economic, industrial, and political landscape through the formation of professions, where groups of male profession als banded together to create regulatory bodies and mandates about education, accreditation, and other assorted requirements. This rising professional class of Americans—born from the volatile and compli cated nature of the business realm—sought ways to control who would be considered a professional and how he should conduct business. Robert Wiebe notes that it was "the ambition of the new middle class |
