Died: December 11, 2008
The Washington Post
HAMMELL ROBERT PALMER HAMMELL
Published in The Washington Post on 12/13/2008
Mr. Hammell died suddenly on Thursday, December 11, 2008 in Alexandria, VA. Born July 11, 1945 in Corpus Christi, TX to the late Margaret Holmes and Richard Hammell. Rob was a U.S. Army Veteran who served in Vietnam. Rob was a 1967 graduate of Williams College and received a MARCH degree from Yale in 1975. He was an architect and partner in Boggs & Partners in Annapolis, MD. He is survived by his beloved wife, Virginia Munson Hammell of Alexandria, VA and their two children, Hilary Palmer Hammell and Davis Munson Hammell, also of Alexandria, VA. He is also survived by three brothers, Stephen Hammel of Philadelphia, PA, Douglas Hammel of Atlanta, GA and John Hammel of Point Robert, WA. The funeral was held on December 13, 2008 at Christ Episcopal Church, 118 N. Washington St., Alexandria, VA. In lieu of flowers, charitable contributions may be made to Habitat for Humanity, 4451 S. First Pl., Arlington, VA 22204 or Covington Boys Home, 306 Boys Home Rd., Covington, VA 24426.
Independent Press
by Independent Press
Monday December 29, 2008, 4:21 PM
Robert Palmer “Rob” Hammell, FAIA, 63, a Washington, D.C., architect who was nationally recognized for his work in saving and extending the lives of such public landmarks as the Lincoln Memorial and the Library of Congress, died suddenly of a heart attack at his home in Alexandria, Va., on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2008.
Born on July 11, 1945, and raised in Summit, Mr. Hammell was one of four children of the late Margaret Holmes and Richard Hammell. A 1967 graduate of Williams College, he interrupted his studies at the Yale School of Architecture to serve in the Army in Vietnam, returning to receive an M. Arch degree in 1975. He moved to Washington in 1977.
In June, Mr. Hammell was named a partner of Boggs & Partners Architects, an international practice based in Annapolis, Md., following more than six years as national director for federal markets of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM). Earlier he served as a principal of URS Greiner, DMJM and Ellerbe Becket.
As both an executive and a design architect, Mr. Hammell helped realize 12 projects involving federally designated Category One National Landmarks, including the Jefferson Memorial, the Pentagon, the Old Executive (Eisenhower) Office Building and the Treasury Department Building. The results received more than 21 national awards. In 2001 he co-founded the National Landmark Institute, an organization designed to study and teach the kinds of team-building, technical, management and design skills he helped develop for high-profile public projects.
He was a member of the Washington Chapter/AIA and was named a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects in 2002.
Survivors include his wife, Virginia Munson Hammell, and their two children, Hilary Palmer Hammell and Davis Munson Hammell, all of Alexandria, as well as three brothers, Stephen Hammell of Philadelphia; Douglas Hammell of Atlanta; and John Hammell of Point Robert, Wash.