Julia Morgan, Architect by Nancy J. Farrier

Julia Morgan was born in 1872 and grew up in Oakland, California. She had an affinity for math and was fascinated with buildings and design. She and her sister, Emma, were both encouraged to pursue and education. Julia and Emma both went to Berkley. Emma got a law degree while Julia pursued an engineering degree. At the time she attended Berkley they had no architectural degree. 

Julia Morga by Irneh
Wikimedia Commons

 

Julia Morgan House, Sacramento
Photo by Irneh, Wikimedia Commons

Upon graduation, Julia was encouraged to go to Paris and apply to the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, a school that had an excellent architecture program. She failed the first two attempts to pass the entrance exams, but then found out she’d been deliberately failed because they didn’t want to encourage women to apply. The third time she applied, the faculty relented and accepted her into the program. She was the first woman to complete the architectural course. 

 

After graduating, she returned to Oakland and worked for an architect there. She began to make a name for herself, and in 1904 she opened her own office in San Francisco. She was hired by Mills College in Oakland. They wanted a bell tower designed. The tower was 72-feet tall, a first of its kind west of the Mississippi. 

 

Fairmont Hotel 1906
Wikimedia Commons

Julia’s design was sound and a marvel of engineering. The contractor who did the building persuaded the sponsor to give Julia second billing when she deserved top billing for the project. But, her tower is still standing when many early buildings didn’t survive the earthquakes of the area.

 

In 1906, the big earthquake hit San Francisco. The building that house Julia’s offices collapsed as did many other buildings. But, her tower at the college stood. That gained her some notoriety and there were requests for her designs as the city began to rebuild.

 

Fairmont Hotel today, Wikimedia Commons

One of the structures that was severely damaged, was the Fairmont Hotel, which had been ready to open. Julia was hired to redesign the hotel and get it built as fast as possible. With the reconstruction of so many buildings, materials were hard to come by and this was a luxury hotel. Julia had it finished and ready to open a year after she was hired, while many other projects were still in the works.

 

Hearst Castle by King of Hearts
Wikimedia Commons

One of Julia’s biggest projects came about when Randolph Hearst inherited the Hearst estate. He was familiar with Julia and her work because she’d built his office building. He hired her and they spent many hours going over plans and looking at architecture books to come up with the house and estate that stands today. Julia was very careful to design everything to perfection and was very hands on during the building of Hearst Castle.

 

Indoor Roman Pool, Hearst Castle
Photo by Jim G., Wikimedia Commons

Outdoor Neptune Pool, Hearst Castle
Photo by Jim G., Wikimedia Commons

Watercolor by Julia
Tour Cesar, Provins, France
Photo by Apuchette
Wikimedia Commons

Julia designed over 700 buildings, from simple homes to luxurious buildings. She had books of watercolors of different buildings she’d seen around the world, such as the one of Tour Cesar, Provins, France at the left. She was often overlooked doing what was considered a man’s job, but her work ethics and her talent ended up garnering respect. 

 

In 1929, the University of California at Berkley awarded her an honorary doctorate. It was one of the few honorariums she accepted.

 

The Hearst Estate offers tours that showcase Julia Morgan’s work. Have you ever visited there? I would love to go and take the tour. Have you ever heard of Julia Morgan. She was a fascinating person. 

Nancy J Farrier is an award-winning, best-selling author who lives in Southern Arizona in the Sonoran Desert. She loves the Southwest with its interesting historical past. When Nancy isn’t writing, she loves to read, do needlecraft, play with her cats and dog, and spend time with her family. You can read more about Nancy and her books on her website: nancyjfarrier.com.