Henry J. Beukema: Campus Map Designer

Henry J. Beukema, professor emeritus of engineering graphics at Western Michigan University, was the co-author of more than a dozen high school and college textbooks and workbooks in the fields of engineering graphics and welding technology. Active in a number of professional organizations, he served on the boards of the Kalamazoo Engineering Society and the Michigan Industrial and Technology Education Society.

Beukema retired in 1977, after 35 years of teaching at WMU. Prior to teaching at the University, he taught industrial education at high schools in Algonac and Grand Haven, Michigan, and he had an active career in industry, having worked for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as well as a number of manufacturing companies. Beukema died Nov. 23, 2005 in Kalamazoo, at age 90.

Samples of Beukema's work

1952 campus map

This detail from the 1952 campus map, included in a Western Michigan college brochure, displays the irregularities of hand-drafting and "cut-and-paste" assembly. Note the wavy nature of the lines for the railroad tracks and the stadium yard lines. Most of the text and building numbers were typed, cut out and pasted onto the drawing. The label on building #12 is hand-lettered, but also cut-and-pasted. The map is drawn in "plan view", with building and road silhouettes only and no structural or aesthetic details.

1959 pamphlet map

The above detail, from a campus map that was part of a mass-produced 1959-60 pamphlet, has several graphic features that reveal its 'hand-drafted' origins. The lower-case letters identifying individual buildings under #23 are obviously cut and pasted onto the drawing. Faint guidelines are visible in several places such as along the street in front of #10. Below #9 is a clear example of overlapped intersecting lines. This is a common hand-drafting technique to achieve a crisp corner and to add visual interest to a drawing.

1962 campus map and brochure

This detail from a 1962 map and brochure is an orthographic projection with sophisticated building details and shadow patterning. In addition to the use of color, the grounds and landscaping are indicated by stylized bushes, trees and flower beds.

Beukema graphic signatures

The following are graphic signatures of Beukema throughout the years. Note that the 1962 graphic signature forms the silhouette of the T-square, one of the primary drafting tools for architects, engineers and designers.