Architecture Archives at the University of Hawaii Library

NOTICE: the art and architecture archives will be by appointment only

October 1, 2025 through March 31, 2026

The architecture archives at the University of Hawaiʻi contain thousands of drawings for the built environment across the state. The largest is the Ossipoff & Snyder Architects Collection which also includes binders of professional photographs documenting award winning projects. The Spencer Leineweber Papers are of particular interest for preservation projects; her papers include architectural drawings plus her research files on the buildings she restored. The Hego Fuchino Papers span many building types, especially Japanese temple architecture and theaters in Hawaiʻi. The James Hubbard Landscape Drawings is currently the only archive dedicated to landscape architecture and sometimes overlaps with the other architect archives.

Tropical Modernism at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa: web version of pdf above.

Building a Rainbow: A history of the buildings and grounds of the University of Hawaii's Manoa campus, 1983. Record of the development of campus buildings through time.

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Campus Heritage Report, 2008. Getty Research report prepared by professor and preservation architect A. Spencer Leineweber.

AIA Honolulu is the local professional chapter of the American Institute of Architects. In addition to serving architects, the Honolulu chapter organizes annual design awards and walking tours that may be of interest to students and the local community.

Architecture Branch of the State Historic Preservation Division maintains a library and "participates in a variety of programs including Review and Compliance, Survey & Inventory, Certified Local Government, and Tax Credit programs."

Docomomo Hawaii is the local chapter of a non-profit dedicated to documentation and conservation of modernism in Hawaiʻi. They organize educational tours and provide open access to a digital library of images and grey literature.

Historic Hawaiʻi Foundation is a non-profit advocacy organization with directories of historic properties and resources for the preservation of historic places.

Liljestrand Foundation is a non-profit organization committed to preserving and providing educational tours and programs at Vladimir Ossipoff's most famous residence, the Liljestrand House.

The collections are available for research Monday to Friday, by appointment only, in the Jean Charlot Collection reading room on the 5th floor of Hamilton Library, across from the Hawaiian and Pacific Collection. Many of the materials are in copyright with rights managed by creators or their heirs. Collection users may take snapshots for fair use purposes of personal research and study. We do not offer scanning services.