Meem, John Gaw (17 November 1894–04 August 1983), architect and preservationist, was born in Pelotas, Brazil, the son of John Gaw Meem III and Elsa Krishke, Episcopalian missionaries. From 1910 until 1914 Meem attended the Virginia Military Institute, graduating with a degree in civil engineering. He was an infantry captain in Iowa from 1917 until 1919. After World War I Meem worked as a banker in Brazil, but he had to return to the United States to be treated for tuberculosis. He was admitted as a patient at Sunmount Sanatorium near Santa Fe, New Mexico, in the spring of 1920. Although Santa Fe had a population of only 10,000 in 1920, there was a vocal group of people who wanted any growth in the area to occur within the architectural traditions of the native Pueblos and the Spanish settlers. Meem immediately was drawn into this circle in part because the founder and head of the sanatorium, Frank Mera, and several patients (like the painter Carlos Vierra) were advocates for preserving the distinctive character of Santa Fe....
