Kathryn E. Holliday

Kathryn E. Holliday is the Randall J. Biallas Professor of Historic Preservation and American Architectural History, and Professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Illinois. She currently chairs the Graduate Minor in Heritage Studies. Her work focuses on bridging academic research with public engagement to promote equitable historical narratives, particularly through architecture and landscape studies. Holliday holds a Ph.D. in Architecture (2003), MA in Art History (1994), and BA in Art & Environmental Studies (1991) from the University of Texas at Austin and Williams College respectively.

Her research explores intersections of labor, technology, race, and gender in architectural and landscape histories. Notable projects include her forthcoming book Telephone City: Architecture and the Rise and Fall of the Bell Monopoly, supported by a Mellon Fellowship (2022-23). Key publications address topics like telephone infrastructure's architectural legacy, modernist landscape movements, and the role of town squares in civic culture.

• Awards:
• 2020 Texas Historical Commission Award for The Open-Ended City
• 2009 Victorian Society & SESAH Awards for Leopold Eidlitz

Holliday's work emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration, combining architectural history with environmental studies and museum practices. She leads projects that engage communities in preserving marginalized historical narratives, particularly in underrepresented urban and rural landscapes.