Mary Almy (1883–1967) was an American architect, and a partner at Howe, Manning & Almy, Inc., one of the first architecture firms founded by women in the United States and specializing in domestic architecture. She studied architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1917 to 1919.
Early life and education Almy grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She had polio as a child and walked with crutches throughout her life. In 1905 she graduated from Radcliffe College. She worked as a teacher before developing an interest in architecture. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in architecture at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1919 after three years of study. Due to academic policies in place at the time, female students were not accepted into the four-year program in Architecture, but limited to the two-year degree program in architectural drafting at MIT. Prior to her education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Almy designed a summer home for her family on Cape Cod.
Career Almy worked as a drafter at a London based architectural firm called Collcutt and Hamp, for two years. In the 1920s, she became a drafter for the Boston firm owned by Lois Lilley Howe and Eleanor Manning, who had also attended MIT. In 1926, she became a member of the American Institute of Architects and a partner at Howe, Manning & Almy, Inc. Upon becoming partner at the firm, she took over the position of chief draftsman. Despite surviving the Great Depression, the firm closed in 1937 after Howe retired. Manning and Almy continued in private practice. Almy also worked with landscape architect Henrietta Pope.
Works Commission NumberBuilding NameYearLocationOther InformationReference652Fitchburg Art Museum1926185 Elm St, Fitchburg, Massachusetts 01420660Cape Cod Competition1926Unbuilt684The College Club of Boston192644 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02116686Pine Manor College1926400 Heath St, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts 02467724Radcliffe College1928Cambridge, MassachusettsUnited States831Fleur-de-Lis Camp1931120 Howeville Rd, Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire 03447834Stevens Institute of Technology 19321 Castle Point Terrace, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030835Winship - Boston Public Schools193254 Dighton Street, Brighton, MA 02135866Subsistence Homesteads Division1933-34United States Department of the Interior867Lynn Boy Scout Camp1934Lynn, Massachusetts873Paine Webber193448 Congress Street, Boston, MA878Lynn Bank Block193421–29 Exchange Street Lynn, MA 01901890Cambridge Social Union1935Cambridge, Massachusetts944Garland Junior College1937Chestnut Street Beacon Hill, Boston
Legacy Mary Almy's papers reside in the collection for Howe, Manning and Almy at MIT. The Almy family papers are located at the Schlesinger Library at Radcliffe College. Howe, Manning, and Almy were the subject of a dissertation defended in 1976 at Boston University by Gail Morse.
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