David H. Larson ’52

David H. Larson ’52 passed away on August 11, 2015, in San Mateo, California. He was born on February 17, 1928, in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania. After graduating from Lansdowne High School he joined the U.S. Army for two years and served with the 11th Airborne Division in Japan. He graduated from Dartmouth and Harvard Graduate School of Design, class of 1956. At Dartmouth Dave was a member of Psi Upsilon and Casque & Gauntlet. Dave and his wife, Joan, were married in 1953. In 1956 they moved to California, where they lived in San Francisco, Burlingame and, most recently, San Mateo. He worked for 30 years for the architectural firm, Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) in San Francisco, where he was senior design architect for Davies Symphony Hall and the opera house addition of 1976 and was senior design architect for the Stanford Law School in Palo Alto, California. Following SOM he joined the architectural firm of Heller & Leake as a senior design architect. After retiring he continued consulting as an architectural illustrator. Always a lover of music, Dave learned to play the cello at age 40 and was a member of the Peninsula Symphony for 26 years, playing in pit orchestras for many local musical theater productions. Joan, his wife of 62 years, children Eden, Ann, Stephen and Elin, and six grandchildren survive him. Dave’s brother, Peter ’47, predeceased him.


Portfolio

Book cover Original Sin with photo of hands over face
Alumni Books
New titles from Dartmouth writers (July/August 2025)
Woman posing with art sculpture
Inspiration in the Adirondacks
Artist Catherine Ross Haskins ’94 transforms an old grain mill into a vibrant arts hub.
Comeback Story

Alumni first returned to campus for official reunions in 1855.

Illustration of woman in movie theater eating popcorn
Katie Silberman ’09
A screenwriter on storytelling in Hollywood

Recent Issues

July-August 2025

July-August 2025

May-June 2025

May-June 2025

March-April 2025

March-April 2025

January-February 2025

January-February 2025

November-December 2024

November-December 2024

September-October 2024

September-October 2024