The Walter Sanders collection consists of architectural drawings and photographs, correspondence, and subject files dating from the mid-1930s to his death in 1972. The collection begins with a folder of biographical material followed by a series of folders arranged alphabetically by topic or type of material. Judging by the fullness of his career, it is apparent that these materials represent but a fragment of the documents created and accumulated by Walter Sanders during his professional lifetime. The materials extant in this collection provide a sampling of Sanders' designs, his architectural philosophy, his professional associations, and his teaching career.
The richest portions of the collection include those files of correspondence with other architects and his association with CIAM (the Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne) or the International Congress for Modern Architecture. Some of Sanders' correspondents include Buckminster Fuller, Walter Gropius, and Lewis Mumford. There are few materials in this collection relating to Sanders' own designs. Except for photographs and drawings of his Ann Arbor residence, the most interesting drawings are for the Pencil Point Home Competition (undated) and for the Chile Pavilion at the 1939 New York World's Fair. Course and class material is also limited though something of Sanders' views on architecture will be found in the "Talks" folder.
Walter Sanders was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan on July 30, 1906. He graduated from the University of Illinois (B.S. in architecture, 1929) and the University of Pennsylvania (Master of Architecture, 1930). A practicing architect throughout his career, Sanders was also someone who was concerned with the teaching of architecture and the development of a curriculum that viewed architectural training from a broader perspective. "The primary concern of architecture," he once wrote, "is man and the environment in which he moves, works and enjoys his life, for environmental spaces, internal or external, are for the living. To create spaces commensurate with the importance of man, the architect must be aware of the sensory characteristics of man - his seeing, hearing, smelling and feeling and all his various activities." (1961 radio talk, Sanders "Talks" folder).
Upon graduation, Sanders moved to New York City to begin his practice and to teach and to write. From 1930 to 1936, he was an instructor in architecture at Columbia University, and from 1936 to 1938, he was associate editor of American Architect and Architectural Forum. In 1938, he established the firm of Sanders & Breck (1938-1942), and in 1939, he began lecturing at the Pratt Institute (1939-1940). Following the interruption for wartime service, Sanders returned to New York, establishing the firm of Sanders & Malsin (1946-1950) and returning to Columbia as a lecturer (1946-1949).
In 1947, Sanders was invited to lecture at the University of Michigan. He taught several courses there while still maintaining his New York residence. Then, in 1949, Sanders was appointed professor of architecture at the U-M. His firm of Sanders & Malsin relocated in Ann Arbor at the same time. Sanders was a well-respected member of his department. He taught courses in the department until his death in 1972, served as chairman from 1954 to 1964, and in 1969 was the recipient of the University's Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award. In the memorial written upon his death, March 19, 1972, the Regents of the University of Michigan wrote, "Professor Sanders helped align the curriculum in architecture more precisely with current professional practice, using as one of his instruments the new Doctor of Architecture program, which he himself had conceived and planned." (Regents Proceedings, April 1972, pp. 1448-49).
