Elbert Hubbard & the Roycrofters
Buffalo and environs were at the epicenter of the social and cultural ferment of the late-19th and early-20th centuries. Among the leaders of this turn-of-the-century cultural vanguard was Elbert Hubbard, founder of the Roycroft community in nearby East Aurora and father of the American Arts and Crafts movement.
Hubbard was a partner in the Larkin Soap Company of Buffalo - the same company that helped to bring Frank Lloyd Wright to the attention of the world by bringing him East to design its administration building and the homes of several of its executives - when he decided to strike out on his own and pursue a career as a writer. While traveling in England he visited the home of William Morris, the visionary behind the Arts & Crafts Movement, Inspired by Morris, Hubbard returned to East Aurora and founded the Roycroft Press. Success quickly followed.
The Message to Garcia, a motivational piece on initiative and devotion to duty, catapulted Hubbard to international fame. As a result of the essay’s success, he became a highly paid lecturer, a columnist for the Hearst newspapers and a public figure of considerable renown.
Armed with a burgeoning reputation and a considerable fortune from his stake in the Larkin Company, Hubbard began recruiting the country’s finest craftsmen, seeking out printers, book designers, painters, sculptors, furniture makers, metalsmiths, photographers, potters, leatherworkers and writers. The Roycroft Campus continued to grow and by 1902 was teeming with activity. The Roycroft Inn was built between 1903 and 1905 to house the many visitors who came to East Aurora to see the work of this acclaimed collective and pay homage to Hubbard.
On May 7, 1915 Hubbard and his wife, Alice Moore Hubbard, died in the sinking of Lusitania, when it was torpedoed by a German U-boat off the coast of Ireland. Their tragic loss was mourned by East Aurora and throughout the world.
Hubbard’s son, Elbert II, successfully managed the Inn and the Roycroft enterprises in the wake of his father’s death until 1938, when the ravages of the Great Depression caused the once thriving institution to close.
After years of neglect, the Inn was lovingly restored in 1995. Today, it is an internationally-acclaimed attraction, visited by lovers of fine design, collectors of authentic American craftsmanship and those seeking a respite from the cacophony of contemporary life. The nearby Elbert Hubbard Roycroft Museum and the Schoolhouse Gallery are also "must sees" for anyone interested in the legacy of Elbert Hubbard.
