Peter Thomas HOLMES

HOLMES, Peter Thomas Beloved husband of Ann Elliott -Holmes, his wife of 34 years, died peacefully in hospice, on November 8, 2025, after a long illness.

Born in 1936, to Tommy and Grace McDonald Holmes, Peter grew up in Brooklyn, where his father was a notable sportswriter and columnist for The Brooklyn Eagle and The New York Herald Tribune. On many occasions, Peter accompanied his dad to Ebbets Field, where he witnessed the exciting heyday of the Brooklyn Dodgers and was introduced to many of the players.

Peter attended Brooklyn Poly Prep Country Day School, where he excelled in academics and athletics and met lifelong friends. He went on to study mathematics and physics at Colgate University, graduated magna cum laude and first in his class and was an all-American lacrosse player.

Peter earned his degree in architecture from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. He worked at several Cambridge firms including Davies and Wolf, Ben Thompson and Associates and The Architects Collaborative (TAC), which was founded by Walter Gropius. An accomplished photographer, he documented many of Gropius's TAC buildings; some of the photos remain on display at the Gropius House Museum in Lincoln, MA. He was involved in a variety of projects, including government buildings (JFK Federal office Building), schools (Williams College Science Center) and hospitals (Children's Hospital, Boston). He spent over a year as TAC's manager of the office in Kuwait.

Peters's architectural sensibility extended beyond his professional work. His home in Cambridge, which he designed and built, reflected his minimalist aesthetic and deep appreciation for space and light. It also highlighted his practical abilities and his ease in developing strong relationships with the carpenters, painters and others, whose work he understood and appreciated.

In addition to architecture and photography, Mr. Holmes was an avid collector of Native American pottery, drawn to its tactile beauty and integrity of form. His collection reflected not only a deep respect for craftsmanship but also a lifelong curiosity about the ways design and culture intertwine.

His enduring love of music, especially jazz, folk and the blues, began with train rides into Manhattan as a young man, when he and his under-aged friends would sneak into Birdland to hear the jazz greats. Later, he learned to play guitar and enjoyed the folk artist scene at Club 47 and Passim and had a special affinity for local performances by Rambling Jack Elliott.

Peter's curiosity and exuberance for his many interests was contagious. After taking up skiing at age 35, he loved spending weekends and holidays at Killington Mountain. He had a passion for travel and he and Ann took numerous retirement trips to France, Italy, Cuba, Greece, Santa Fe and Four Corners, where he explored the pueblos that created the pottery he so admired. Summers on Cape Cod over the years held a special place in his heart.

Peter delighted in the company of others who describe him as an inveterate storyteller. He could be counted on to liven conversations with his interesting perspectives, curiosity and humor. Modest and unpretentious, he also greatly enjoyed the simple pleasures of a shared meal with good wine. Friends and family will remember him as a kind, loyal and generous man of quiet depth and resilience.

Peter will be sorely missed by his wife, Ann; his niece, Jacie (Elliott) Shockley and her husband, Brennon of Fairfield, CA; his extended family and his many friends. In lieu of flowers, please consider a contribution to a local food bank or to Care Dimensions Hospice House, in Lincoln, MA, where Peter received such excellent and respectful end-of-life care. A Celebration of Peter's Life will be held at a later date.