East End Elevation of Library, circa 1874

This collection of 427 architectural drawings and sketches by William Burges and Francis H. Kimball dates approximately from 1872 to 1876. It documents the process of designing the second campus of Trinity College in Hartford, CT, including unfinished sketches; floor plans of each building; large-scale aerial views of campus designs; detailed plans for fireplaces, finials, and window frames; and notes on air flow through buildings and the cost of construction. However, few of the drawings contain textual notes related to the order or manner in which the drawings were drawn and utilized by Burges or Kimball.

Dating and attribution of some drawings and sketches proved difficult, leading to the creation of a series of materials which cannot be positively judged to be solely the work of Burges or Kimball. Burges signed and dated most of his 170 final designs, which are on linen-backed paper. Kimball’s final designs were made to resemble Burges’s, with the exception that he almost never signed or dated them. Examples of items that explicitly state their creator are “Lecture Rooms Quad Elevation, Lecture Rooms Ground Floor,” which identifies itself as being sent by Kimball to Burges, and “[Building Cross Section and Floor Plans],” which was signed by Kimball (or possibly labeled by Burges as being drawn by Kimball). Outside of these specific groupings, unless explicitly stated on the item itself, the creator has been rendered as "unknown" and placed in the third series.