Background
Balcom was born on February 16, 1870 in Chili, New York, the only child of Mahlon and Francis (Gage) Balcom.
Balcom was born on February 16, 1870 in Chili, New York, the only child of Mahlon and Francis (Gage) Balcom.
Balcom was the most prominent consulting structural engineer in America after World War One (World War I). He earned his degree in civil engineering in 1890 from Cornell University. In 1908 he opened his engineering consulting firm in New York City, H.G. Balcom and Associates.
Its main offices were located at 314 Madison Avenue.
On October 24, 1900, 30-year-old Homer Balcom married Gertrude McCrum. They would have one daughter, Gertrude Marie.
She would often accompany her father to engineering and social functions. During World War One he volunteered to engineer steel ships for United States. government at the Hog Island, Pennsylvania shipyards.
Because of his contributions by far the largest number of ships were built there.
Although most of his notable works are in United States of America he also designed buildings outside of the United States. Examples include the Louvain University Library in Belgium, Devonshire House in London and Young Men's Christian Association (Young Men’s Christian Association) building in Jerusalem. Balcom died July 3, 1938, at age 68. He had checked into the hospital four days earlier for a heart aliment.
Masonic funeral services were held at his residence, 65 Calumet Avenue, Hasting-on-Hudson, and afterward he was buried at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Tarrytown, New New York
Empire State Building
David McCullough Bridge
Rockefeller Center Plaza
General Electric Building
Waldorf-Astoria Hotel
Nebraska State Capitol.