Julia Morgan (1872 – 1957)
San Francisco, California – Designer of Hearst Castle
Julia Morgan was one of America’s most important and prolific architects. She was the first woman to study architecture at the prestigious Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and the first woman to work as a professional architect in California. During her 45-year career, Julia Morgan designed more than 700 homes, churches, office buildings, hospitals, stores, and educational buildings. Julia Morgan helped rebuild San Francisco after the earthquake and fires of 1906.
Like her mentor, Bernard Maybeck, Morgan was an eclectic architect who worked in a variety of styles. She was known for her painstaking craftsmanship and for designing interiors that incorporated the owners’ collections of art and antiques.
Of the hundreds of homes that Julia Morgan designed, she is perhaps most famous for Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. For nearly 28 years, craftsmen labored to create William Randolph Hearst’s magnificent estate. The estate has 165 rooms, 127 acres of gardens, beautiful terraces, indoor and outdoor pools, and an exclusive private zoo. Hearst Castle is one of the largest and most elaborate homes in the United States.
Career Highlights:
1902-1903: Worked for John Galen Howard, University Architect in Berkeley
1904: Established her own practice in San Francisco
1906: Office destroyed in a fire caused by the 1906 earthquake; Morgan established a new office
1919: Newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst hired Morgan to design his San Simeon estate, Hearst Castle
1920s: Problems with her inner ear required surgery that distorted Morgan’s face and affected her balance
1923: Fires in Berkeley destroyed many homes designed by Morgan
Notable Buildings:
1917: Livermore House, San Francisco
1922: The Hacienda, William Randolph Hearst’s home at Valley of the Oaks, CA
1922-1939: San Simeon (Hearst Castle), San Simeon, CA
1929: The Berkeley City Club, Berkeley, CA
