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Arts and Crafts in America: The Roycroft Campus
Elbert Hubbard turned a vision into a reality for turn-of-the-century artisans.
The Roycroft Campus, now a National Historic Landmark, was founded by Elbert Hubbard in the late 1890s in East Aurora, New York. Hubbard, a man of many talents, was able to start the artisan community at the Roycroft by using his profits from the sale of his book on entrepreneurship entitled A Message to Garcia.
Initially, a building in a quaint town in Western New York housed a print shop and a home for the founder. Hubbard had visited a print shop in England run by William Morris, generally credited with being the Father of the Arts and Crafts movement (you’ve heard of the Morris Chair, right?), and returned to America to set up a similar shop. After his book, A Message to Garcia gained Hubbard fame, he was able to expand the campus beyond the print shop.
Eventually, in 1905, an Inn (The Roycroft Inn) was established where the print shop and Hubbard’s home were initially. The Inn served as housing for visiting artisans and operated from 1905–1987. And as people visited, they were enamored of the well-crafted furnishings which led them to buy them for their own homes and businesses. The Roycroft employed over 500 people at the peak of its popularity and demand.
