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Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “Arson in 1877,” 2007. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www. historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_bb6809f403a04f2a92ff2ef6e0 7c51be.pdf.
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_____. “Bakersfield and the Anti-Chinese Pogroms of 1893,” 2013. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_8c6558261fd3460793964c58c b4950ee.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “Bakersfield’s Breweries, 1866-1920 (v.4), 2022. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://hcommons.org/deposits/?facets%5Bauthor_facet%5D%5B%5D=Gilbert+Peter+Gia. Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “Bakersfield’s Curfew, 1891-1988 (v.3),” 2019. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_bba199806d7e42979c4b1e6a9 02ae80c.pdf?index=true. Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “Bakersfield High’s Dormitories, 1915-1955 (v.7).” Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https:// www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_102c401b040243bcb7c6aa914671739
6.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2013.
_____. “Bashing Bakersfield: A Look Back 1873-1922,” 2013. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_3651e6039f91432c902e9a2ed e43315c.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “The Death of Artemio Cruz, A Censorship Challenge at Bakersfield College,” 2014. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/ caae83_19fe64489b714fb1808891434874a58c.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023. _____. “Dust Storms and Valley Fever, 1874-2014, 2014. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https:// www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_1ecdcf71132345b1bbe46e9ef5dc2e66 .pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “East Bakersfield Schools and Icehouse, 1920s-1930s (v.4),” 2009. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_ b90bc5a914d34a5083e438e56938ae9d.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023. _____. “El Adobe and Crystal Inn Nightclubs, 1936-1958 (v.6),” 2014. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_a805a9506fca4b198f5ebc6893 92a11a.pdf. Accessed January 23, 2023.
_____. “Flood, War & Treason, Bakersfield’s Beginnings 1860-1867 (v.2),” 2015. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_ 597af04c49d64b6195c60bbbe3079db0.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023. _____. “History in Bakersfield Sidewalks 1893-2011,” 2016. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https:// www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_5e9bb9784a184585a81013d971b08f6
0.pdf. Accessed January 18 and April 17, 2023.
_____. “History of Weill Park (v.2),” 2016. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www. historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_0b2a0876c192415e96b1246983d7c417.pdf.
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_____. “How Andy Got Well, 1896 X-Rays,” 2009. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www. historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_7501e9c051c040d4955da5812d1d474a.pdf.
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_____. “Jim Spohn’s Old Granada Theater (v.5),” 2012. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www. historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_d1ef5305a49145e4af6d0a5e75342de4.pdf.
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_____. “John Barker’s Ranch, Ditch, and Springs 1874-1909,” 2015. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_82dd75b9941d45c78056441b2 fa8dec9.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “Life on Kentucky Street, 1930,” 2009. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www. historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_fcf9076ba35b420d976826778b615927.pdf.
Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “Lions at the Jail (v.2),” 2010. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www. historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_ffb5dc6b51b94b5e920d1df5a57905bb.pdf.
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_____. “Mme. Brignaudy In the Bakersfield Tenderloin 1905-1933 (v. 15),” 2019. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:23495/. Accessed January 18, 2023). _____. “Playing at the Mandarin, 1935,” 2019. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, . https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:24449. Accessed January 18, 2023. _____. “Sedition in Bakersfield, 1918,” 2014. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www. historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_8c6558261fd3460793964c58cb4950ee.pdf.
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_____. “Transient Relief Camp at Kern County Fairgrounds, 1930-1937” 2020. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_ 08021e284a07463e99f2edb75efbf93a.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023. _____. “Underground Bakersfield (v.6),” 2012. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.
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_____. “The Undressed Bank at 18th & Chester 1909-2014,” 2014. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://www.historicbakersfieldandkerncounty.com/_files/ugd/caae83_97b7daf74e89460ea03218880 019b49a.pdf. Accessed January 18, 2023.
_____. “What Happened to Bakersfield’s Old Chinese Cemetery?” 2009. Historic Bakersfield and Kern County, https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:48643/. Accessed January 18, 2023.
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Wood, Raymund F. “Francisco Garcés Explorer of Southern California.” Southern California Quarterly, Vol. 51, No. 3. September 1969.
Works Progress Administration. The WPA Guide to California. California, New York: Hastings House, 1939.
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ATTACHMENT: ARCHITECT BIOGRAPHIES
The following list of architect biographies comprises individuals, partnerships and firms with known works in Bakersfield from this historic context’s period of study, which extends through 1974. These include practitioners that had established practices in Bakersfield or the larger Kern County area, as well as practitioners from other geographies areas that came to Bakersfield for particular projects.
Information contained herein has been compiled from a wide range of sources, notably Withey's Biographical Dictionary of American Architects, the American Institute of Architects directories and membership files,462 and the Pacific Coast Architecture Database (PCAD). This information has been supplemented with Ancestry.com records, the Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals, and listings found in local and regional newspapers such as The Bakersfield Californian, Fresno Bee, San Francisco Examiner, and Los Angeles Times.
Alford, Clarence “Bart” (1914-1988), AIA
Born: Los Angeles, CA
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (1939) Firm: Draftsman, Charles H. Biggar, AIA (1939-42); Building Inspector, U.S.E.D./Fresno (1943-44); Draftsman, R.H. Cooley, Structural Engineer (1944-45); Architect, Charles H. Biggar (1945-49); Partner, C.B. Alford, Architect, W.J. Thomas - A Partnership (1945-48) Professional
Biography:
Clarence Barton “Bart” Alford was born in Los Angeles. By the early 1930s, Alford’s family was in Bakersfield where he became a student of educator/architect Clarence Cullimore, Sr.
Alford is chiefly known for the Tejon Theater (1946), Sierra High School (1952), North High School (1953), and Kern General Hospital. Alford and Thomas designed many schools during the postwar period in Bakersfield and the surrounding communities. These works were featured in national trade magazines such as Architect & Engineer.
C.B. Alford was a founding member of the Golden Empire chapter of the AIA in 1977. His work appears to have been heavily commercial. By the mid-1950s, he was designing department stores including the J.C. Penney store in Westchester and an F.W. Woolworth in West Los Angeles. Much of his work appears to be Mid-Century Modern in style.
Bart Alford died in Bakersfield in 1988.
Anderson, Milton Lawrence (1895-1987)
Born: Swea City, IA
Education: University of Minnesota, Bachelor of Science (1921) Firm: Draftsman, Chester Williams (1921-22); Chief Designer, John M. Cooper (1922-27); Architect, Norstrom & Anderson (1928-46); Architect, Milton L. Anderson (1946); Principal, Milton L.
Anderson (1947-unknown)
462 AIA membership files could not be requested for many of the architects during the research and writing of this historic context statement because the facility was closed for renovation until 2025, and files were not accessible during this time.
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Professional
Biography:
Milton Lawrence Anderson was born in Iowa in 1895. After completing his Bachelor of Science at the University of Minnesota, he worked in a variety of offices in Iowa and California. In 1922, he relocated to Los Angeles.
Anderson opened his own office in 1947. During his solo practice, projects included the Cornet Coffee Shop (1947) in Pasadena,
By 1969, Anderson was retired from practice and living in San Marino.
Ayer, Paul H. (1914-1989), AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: University of California, Berkeley, B.Arch (1938) Firm: Designer, Franklin & Kump (1937-41); Office Manager, Kump & Falk, Architects (1941-46); Partner, Franklin & Simpson, Architects (1945-53); Principal, Paul H. Ayer, Architect (1947- unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Paul Herbert Ayer was born in Bakersfield in 1914. He attended Kern County Union High School where he was a student of Clarence Cullimore, Sr. He earned his B.Arch from Berkeley in 1938.
During World War II, Ayer served as a structural engineer in the Panama Canal from 1941-1943.
Simpson is best known for his own house in Fresno, built in 1955, and for the Fraizer Park Elementary School (1941). Ayer’s modern design for the Bakersfield YMCA Building was published in The Bakersfield Californian.
His body of work appears to span a wide variety of projects including civic/institutional, single- family and multi-family residential.
Bemus, Erskine (1849-1921)
Born: Dunkirk, NY
Education: Unknown
Firm: Bemus & Long, Architects (c. 1911-c. 1912); Erskine Bemus, Architect (1912-unknown); also partnered with Orville L. Clark on projects
Professional
Biography:
Bemus served in the Civil War on the side of the Union, seeing action primarily in North Carolina.
By the 1880s, he was living in Ohio and working as a carpenter. During the first decade of the 20th century, Bemus was a well-known builder and architect. He appears to have had a prolific career designing and building the bungalows that Bakersfield was famous for.
By 1909, Bemus was a practicing architect in Bakersfield—living with his daughter and her husband, who worked in the oil industry. In 1910, he partnered with Orville L. Clark. The following year, he appears in partnership with Long, as Bemus and Long.
Bemus is best known for the Baer Residence, Barlow Residence (a.k.a., Guild Residence), Beggs Residence, and Jamison Residence in Bakersfield. He also designed the Laura Harding office Building and Labor Temple in that city.463
Biggar, Charles H. (1882-1948) AIA
Born: Danville Township, IL
Education: University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, B.Arch (c. 1903); Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris (1912-13)
463 “Erskine Bemus,” California State University, Bakersfield, https://hrc.csub.edu/architecture/biographies/bemus/ (accessed March 7, 2023).
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Firm: Draftsman, William P. White (1910-1911); Partner, Wiseman and Biggar (c. 1912); Partner, Kysor and Biggar (c. 1915); Principal, Charles H. Biggar, Architect (c. 1920-c. 1948) Professional
Biography:
Charles Howatt Biggar was Bakersfield’s premiere architect working in the early 20th century.
Biggar was born to Scottish parents in Danville Township, Illinois in 1882. His parents immigrated to America in the late 1870s or early 1880s. Biggar originally studied medicine at college but transferred to architecture. Upon his graduation from the University of Illinois, he went to Paris where he studied in the atelier of Leon Jaussely at the Ecole de Beaux Arts.
By 1910, Biggar was living in Bakersfield, making frequent trips to Los Angeles, and working alongside architect Thomas B. Wiseman in the firm of Train and Williams. Around 1915, Biggar established his own firm in Los Angeles with Charles Kysor. After World War I, Biggar returned to Bakersfield and re-established partnership with Wiseman. After Wiseman’s untimely death, Biggar found himself with no shortage of work during the boom time of Bakersfield’s growth.
His most well-known buildings in Bakersfield include the Woman’s Club of Bakersfield (1921), the Haberfelde Building (1927), the Chamber of Commerce Building (1928), and East Bakersfield High School (1938). Most of these commissions were in various Period Revival Styles popular at the time. His work took a more modern turn as fashion was dictating, with the Bakersfield Central Fire Station (1938), the Tejon Theater (1947), and the Harvey Auditorium (1948).
Biggar was published in Architect & Engineer for his work building schools after the 1933 Long Beach earthquake.
Biggar, Whitney (1920-2005), AIA
Born: Los Angeles, CA
Education: University of California, Berkeley, B.Arch (1946); University of California, Berkeley, M.Arch (1947)
Firm: Draftsman, Charles H. Biggar (1938-46); Apprenticeship, Quintin & Westberg, AIA (1948); Apprenticeship, Gates W. Burrows, AIA (1949); Principal, Whitney Biggar, AIA Architect (1949- 68); Principal, Biggar, Frapwell, Ghezzi, Cartnal (BFGC) (1968-84) Professional
Biography:
Whitney Biggar was the son of Bakersfield architect Charles H. Biggar, and a former student of architect/educator Clarence Cullimore, Sr. He formed his own practice in 1949. His designs were greatly influenced by the work of Frank Lloyd Wright and other modern architects.
Biggar enjoyed a wide and varied practice including residential, commercial, and civic/institutional commissions. He built chiefly in Bakersfield and the surrounding communities.
His best known works include Kern County Free Library (1957), West High School (1965), and Highland High School (1970). Biggar’s designs for schools were featured as best practices in the book, California School Buildings, 1960-1965. His residential work for members of Bakersfield’s Frick family was also widely published.
Biggar received an AIA award for Brundage Pharmacy in 1950.
In his later years, Biggar partnered with other architects. In 1968, he partnered with David Cartnal in 1968, becoming Biggar, Frapwell, Ghezzi, Cartnal (BFGC). He retired from BFGC in 1984.
Biggar officially retired from the practice of architecture in 1984.
Bliesner, William John (1872-1945)
Born: Saint Louis, MO
Education: Unknown
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Firm: Designer, R.B. Young (prior to 1894); Partner, Bliesner and Merithew (1894-95); Bliesner, Heinlein and Kronnick (1897- c. 1899); Partner, Bliesner and Bradbeer (1900-c. 1901); Partner, Burnham and Bliesner (1902-05); Principal, William J. Bliesner (c. 1907-12) Professional
Biography:
William Bliesner was born in Missouri before moving to Los Angeles in his 20s. Bliesner changed his working associations frequently during his lifetime, and worked as a carpenter, architect, and engineer. Bliesner worked out of Los Angeles for most of his career.
Bliesner designed several Carnegie-funded libraries over the course of his career. These included the Carnegie Library, Pomona (1903), Carnegie Library, San Bernardino (1904), and Carnegie Library, Riverside (c. 1905).
Bliesner worked as a draftsman and engineer toward the end of his life.
Call, Wilson (1916-2017) AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: Long Beach Evening High School (1946); International Correspondence School, Certificate in Architecture
Firm: Draftsman, George K. Parker (1948-53); Draftsman, Charles H. Parker (1953-61); Draftsman, Don G. Simpson (1961-63); Wilson Call, Architect (1963-2017) Professional
Biography:
Ralph Wilson Call was born in the oilfields of Bakersfield in 1920. With no formal training in architecture per se, Call mobilized his drafting skills during World War II and was a draftsman for the U.S. Post Engineers from 1942-1945.
Around 1963, Call opened his own practice in Bakersfield. He was prolific. When the California State Licensing Board approached him for practicing without a license, Call took the exam and passed it in 1963.
Call is best known for his own residence (1964) and for his numerous commercial buildings including the Hillcrest Shopping Center (1950), Oaklane Shopping Center (1946), and Moss Rest and Convalescent Home (1961-1962). He won the Architectural Award sponsored by the Architectural Forum and Southern California Edison in 1964, for the D.M. Steele Office Building (c. 1963) in Delano.
Call was also a prolific inventor, obtaining numerous patents. It is estimated that he produced over 1000 architectural projects by 1980 and 2000 homes with local developers. He heavily invested in real estate in the city.
Call died in 2017 at the age of 101.
Cartnal, David R. (1942-present), FAIA
Born: Ohio
Education: California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo, B.S. Architectural Engineering and B.A.
Architecture (1965)
Firm: Designer, Kump Associates (1966-76); Principal, Biggar & Cartnal; Principal, BFGC Architects Planners (1968-2009); Managing Principal Architect, IBI Group Architects Planners (unknown); Managing Principal, IBI Group (2012-present)
Professional
Biography:
David R. Cartnal was born in Ohio in 1942. By 1950, he and his family were living in Kern County where his father was a horse trainer. Cartnal earned a B.Arch from California State Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo in 1965. In 1968, he partnered with Whitney Biggar to form Biggar & Cartnal. In 1968, Biggar & Cartnal and Frapwell & Ghezzi merged in 1974 to form BGFC.
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Cartnal was also active in civic affairs. During the 1970s, he served on the Design Review Board during a movement by the Downtown Business District to encourage modernization to storefronts in 1977. The previous year he had also served as one of the architects on an advisory committee for a new sign ordinance.
Cartnal’s best known works include the remodel for the Bakersfield College Downtown Center (c. 1974) and the Regional Occupational Center of Kern (c. 1978).
Cartnal was elevated to Fellow in the American Institute of Architecture in 1996.
Choate, Christian C. (1908-1981)
Born: Jackson, MO
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (c. 1930) Firms: Cliff May Homes (1953-1958), Christian Choate, Architect Professional
Biography:
Christian C. Choate was a Southern California architect. He and his partner, Cliff May, founded a mass-production line called Cliff May Homes in 1953, which marketed low-cost May designs to builders around the country. Early in life, Choate expressed his creativity through painting.
While attending architecture school at USC, Choate’s fourth-year project was singled out as a prize-winner.
As a licensed architect, Choate approved and signed May’s designs. Choate worked with May between 1953-1958. During his career, Choate focused on residential work and later designed Los Angeles homes for a celebrity clientele. Choate’s solo work, which focused on the Modern Ranch Style, was featured in the Los Angeles Home Magazine, Arts & Architecture, and Western Building. A Choate design was selected by House and Home magazine as one of their “20 Quality Houses for 1950.”
Some of Choate’s notable works include the Long Beach Rossmoor development (with architect R.C. Jones in 1958), the Beverly Hills Buhler Residence (1963), and Malibu Antibes Apartments (1964).
Choy, Allan Kinn (1920-2004), AIA
Born: Canton, China
Education: Bakersfield College, Associate of Arts (1941); University of Southern California, B.Arch (c. 1948) Firm: Draftsman, Designer & Job Captain, Ernest L. McCoy (1948-55); Principal, Goss and Choy, Architects, AIA (1959-c. 1971)
Professional
Biography:
Allan Kinn Choy was a member of the early Chinese community in Bakersfield. His father was K.C. Choy. His brother was Eugene Kinn Choy, also an architect. A student of architect/educator Clarence Cullimore, Sr., Choy was one of the students who emerged from Cullimore’s program and studied architecture at USC. During World War II, Choy served with the Army Air Force in India and China.
After graduation, Choy was employed by Ernest L. McCoy. In 1959, Choy partnered with Calvin W. Goss to form Goss and Choy, Architects, AIA.
Choy is best known for the 99 Car Wash Services Building (1959), BAMEY Office Building (1960), Robert O. McCoy Residence (1961), Dr. Wong Medical Office Building (1961), and The Bakersfield National Bank Building (1964), all in Bakersfield. He also designed the FBI Office Building in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1961.
In 1971 he became the Architect of Kern County, retiring in 1988.
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Choy, Eugene Kinn (1912-1991), AIA
Born: Canton, China
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (c. 1939) Firm: Jr. Draftsman, Stanton Willard (1938); Draftsman, Frank Wynkoop (1939-41); Draftsman, Marsh, Smith & Powell (1945-47); Principal, Eugene Kinn Choy & Associates (1949-c. 1986) Professional
Biography:
Eugene Kinn Choy was a member of the early Chinese community in Bakersfield. His father was K.C. Choy. His brother was Allan Kinn Choy, also an architect. A student of architect/educator Clarence Cullimore, Sr., Choy was one of the students who emerged from Cullimore’s program and studied architecture at USC. While at university, his 1939 design for a motion picture exposition was featured in Architect and Engineer.
Choy was just the second Chinese person in the United States to become a licensed architect.
Choy’s early works in Bakersfield included Wings Café (c. 1948), the remodel of Choy’s department store (c. 1938), and Temple Beth El (1951). Choy also designed the Temple of the Five Gods (1951).
Choy’s own Los Angeles-based practice was diverse with residential, commercial, civic/institutional, and industrial projects. A number of his avant-garde Modern-style Los Angeles and Bakersfield residences were photographed by Julius Shulman.
Choy is best known for his modern designs for the Ramo-Woolridge Building (1956), American Electronics Inc. (1962), Cathay Bank (1966), and Ford Boulevard School (1969) all in and around Los Angeles.
Clark, Orville L. (1883-1940), AIA
Born: Cleveland, OH
Education: Attended New Lyme Institute, Mathematics and Mechanics (c. 1900) Firm: Apprentice, White Architect (c. 1900); Superintendent Construction Company (c. 1905); Principal, Orville L. Clark (c. 1915 – c. 1930)
Professional
Biography:
Orville Lee Clark was born in Cleveland, Ohio and was orphaned as a child.
Clark migrated to Los Angeles around 1907 and relocated to Bakersfield in 1908 where he established a successful practice. Clark’s office was located in the old Fish Building at 19th Street and Chester Avenue. A prolific architect in Bakersfield, he also designed other commissions in and around Los Angeles including buildings in Culver City. Based on census records, he appears to have moved back and forth from Bakersfield to Los Angeles depending upon projects.
Clark’s work included single-family residences, apartment houses, hotels and other commercial buildings. One of his most revered commissions was the Baker Branch of the Bakersfield Public Library (1915).
Clark died in 1940 in Kern County.
Clement, Robert Lee (1931-2005),464 AIA
Born: Fresno, CA
Education: Bakersfield College (1951)
Firms: Architect, Wright Metcalf & Parsons (1955-62); Architect, Eddy & Paynter Associates (1962); Principal, Robert Clement, AIA (c. 1977)
464 Robert Lee Clement’s AIA membership file was not accessible due to the closure of the AIA archive until 2025.
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Professional
Biography:
Robert Lee Clement was born in Fresno in 1931. He served in the Air Force during the Korean War from 1951-55. He attended Bakersfield College.
Clement was a landscape architect who worked in the offices of Wright Metcalf & Parsons and Eddy and Paynter. He established his own firm in the early 1970s. Clement designed the landscape for the Stockdale Business Center (c. 1977).
Clement died in Bakersfield in 2005.
Clements, Stiles O. (1883-1966), AIA
Born: Centerville, MD
Education: Drexel Institute of Technology, B.Arch (1902); Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Special Student in Architecture (1908); Ecole Des Beaux Arts, Paris (one year) Firms: Designer, Morgan, Walls & Morgan (1917-24); Partner, Morgan, Walls & Clements (1924-37); Partner, Stiles Clements & Associates (1937-55); Stiles & Robert Clements (1955-65) Professional
Biography:
Stiles Oliver Clements was born in Maryland and moved to Los Angeles in 1911 at the age of 28.
He became a designer with Morgan, Walls & Morgan eventually rising to the level of partner. In 1937, he established his own solo practice.
Clements is best known as the designer of more than 40 major buildings on Wilshire Boulevard.
He was also the designer of the Richfield Oil Building in downtown. He worked in a variety of styles over the years from Beaux Arts to Spanish Colonial Revival, to Art Deco. His work was well published—appearing in Architectural Record, American Architect, Architect & Engineer, Architectural Digest, California Arts and Architecture and many others. His work appears frequently in Gebhard and Winter’s Los Angeles: An Architectural Guide. Clements also served on the Regional Planning Commission for the County of Los Angeles.
Cody, William F. (1916-1978), FAIA
Born: Dayton, OH
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (1942) Firms: Heth Wharton (1935); Asa Hudson (1935); William Knowles (1942); Blanchard, Maher and Ward (1945); Marsh, Smith and Powell (1946); William F. Cody & Associates (1946-72) Professional
Biography:
William F. Cody, FAIA, was born in Dayton, Ohio in 1916. He trained in progressive Modernism at the USC School of Architecture and graduated in 1942. During his time at USC, Cody worked with Cliff May, whose houses were influenced by vernacular historic architecture in California.
From May, Cody developed a preference for houses that were convenient and comfortable.
Following his graduation from USC, Cody apprenticed at several California firms, moving to Palm Springs in 1946. In Palm Springs, Cody was first employed as staff architect for the Desert Inn Hotel before setting out on his own to design the Del Marcos Hotel (1947). A subsequent project, the conversion of the 1936 Thunderbird Ranch to Thunderbird Country Club, led to design commissions for clubhouses at Tamarisk, Eldorado, Seven Lakes and seven other country clubs in the area. It is through these many projects that Cody is credited with the County Club Sub-division concept in the West.
Cody’s career included a wide variety of commercial and residential projects in Palm Springs and beyond, including projects in Phoenix, San Diego, Palo Alto, and Havana. Notable works include the Spa Bath House (along with Wexler & Harrison and Phillip Koenig), and the adjacent Spa Hotel, the Perlberg Residence (1952), Shamel Residence (1961), Abernathy Residence (1962), and the L’Horizon Hotel (1952), St. Theresa’s Catholic Church (1968), and the Palm Springs Library Center, (1972-1975).
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Cody was inducted into the College of Fellows of the AIA in 1965. Cody suffered a debilitating stroke in 1972 that ended his architectural career.465
Cross, David G. (1935-2017), AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: Bakersfield High School
Firms: Draftsman, David Harkness, AIA (1955-1956); Draftsman, Whitney Biggar, AIA (1956-60); Draftsman, Wright Metcalf & Parsons, AIA (1960-64); Principal, David Gardner Cross, AIA (1966-69); Principal, David Gardner Cross Associates (1969-unknown) Professional
Biography:
A student of architect/educator Clarence Cullimore, Sr., Cross worked as a draftsman for several prominent Bakersfield architects and firms. He established his own practice in 1965. Cross also co-founded American Home Industries Corporation, a successful pre-fabricated home company based in Bakersfield.
Cross’ best known works include Presbyterian Church (1967), Community National Bank (1968) and the Delano Community Center (1969). He also designed projects outside of Bakersfield including a shopping center in Huntington Beach and the Tahiti Marina at Marina Del Rey.
Cullimore, Sr., Clarence C. (1886-1963), FAIA
Born: Jacksonville, IL
Education: University of California, Berkeley, B.S. (1910); University of Southern California, March (1942) Firm: Principal, Clarence Cullimore, Architect (1925-27); Partner, Symmes & Cullimore (1927-30); Principal, Clarence Cullimore, Architect (1931-55)
Professional
Biography:
Upon graduation from Berkeley where he trained under John Galen Howard, Clarence Cullimore, Sr. immediately relocated to Bakersfield where he obtained a job teaching mechanical drawing at Kern County High School. During his time there, Cullimore transformed the program well beyond mechanical drawing to include a high school version of architectural training. He also taught architecture in the evening adult school and at Bakersfield College. His book, Elementary Courses in High School Drafting, was adopted as supplementary text for Cal’s university courses in 1922.
Cullimore was fascinated with adobe construction and traveled throughout California drawing and painting these romantic buildings. During the 1940s, he attended USC where he did his masters’ thesis on contemporary adobe construction—resolving the seismic issues associated with the construction method. He was the author of several books and articles including Santa Barbara Adobes. He was also instrumental in the preservation of Fort Tejon.
During the 1920s and 1930s, Cullimore designed a number of small residences for clients throughout Bakersfield in popular period revival styles, but most often in Spanish Colonial Revival. He often used adobe to construct his residential designs. His Bakersfield home and studio at 101 Oleander Avenue was an exemplar of his talent as a designer as well as an educator. His design work was published in Arts + Architecture, Architect & Engineer, Sunset, and other national trade publications.
In 1944, Cullimore was elevated to Fellowship in the American Institute Of Architects for his contribution to modern adobe construction.
Cullimore, Clarence, Jr. (1926-2014), AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
465 “William F. Cody (1916-1978),” PS Mod Com, http://psmodcom.org/index.php/william-f-cody (accessed June 24, 2015).
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Education: University of Southern California, M.Arch (1949) Firms: Part-time Draftsman, Clarence Cullimore FAIA (1941-1950); Draftsman and Job Captain, Ernest J. Kump, AIA (1949-1951); Senior Draftsman, Masten and Hurd Architects AIA, (1951-52); Architect, Ernest L Mc Coy, AIA (1954); Partner, Kenney, Maag and Cullimore (1955-56), Partner, Kenney & Cullimore (c. 1956-c. 1958); Architect, Division of Architecture, State of California (1959-unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Clarence Cullimore, Jr., also known by the nickname “Cully”, was the son of architect/educator Clarence Cullimore, Sr. During World War II, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy. After the War, he attended and graduated from the USC School of Architecture.
After graduation, he worked for Ernest J. Kump in San Francisco. He practiced in San Mateo and in Bakersfield. In the mid-1950s Cully partnered with Edward J. Kenney forming Kenney & Cullimore. The firm leveraged Cully’s experience in school design from the Kump office and designed Buttonwillow High School (c. 1958), Mexicali Restaurant (1957), Jastro Park Swimming Pool and Toilets (c. 1958), Santa Rosa School (c. 1958) and other projects.
However, his career is largely remembered for his 27 years of service in Sacramento with the State of California. He also served as Director of Building and Safety for the City of Stockton (1972-1974). When he retired in the early 1990s, he was Executive Director of the State Historical Building and Safety Board.
In 2010, Cully received the California Preservation Foundation’s President’s Award for the 15 years he served as Executive Director of the State Historical Building Advisory Board and his efforts in developing and implementing the California State Historical Building Code.
Deasy, C.M. (1918-2010), FAIA466
Born: Mineral Wells, TX
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (1941) Firms: Principal, C. M. Deasy (1946-61); Partner, Deasy & Bolling (1961-c. 1971) Professional
Biography:
Cornelius Michael Deasy was born in Mineral Wells, Texas in 1918. After graduating from USC with his B.Arch, he served in World War II in the South Pacific.
Deasy designed a wide variety of projects. He is best known for Brock’s Department Store (1953), Granada School (1953), the Porterville Memorial Auditorium (1956), Mulholland J. High School (1963), and Lincoln Savings Building (1966). The majority of his work was in the Modern style.
Deasy was elevated to Fellowship by the American Institute of Architects in 1961. In addition to his practice, he taught architecture at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and wrote Design For Human Affairs (1974) and Designing Places For People (1985). He was active in community affairs throughout Los Angeles.
De Foy, F.W. (1889-1954), AIA
Born: Seattle, WA
Education: Unknown
Firms: James I. Barnes Construction (1942)
466 The C.M. Deasy AIA membership file was inaccessible due to the closure of the AIA Archive until 2025.
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Professional
Biography:
Fred Willard De Foy was born in Seattle, Washington in 1889 to a laborer father. By 1900 family had relocated to Buckeye Township in Shasta County. In the 1920 U.S. Census, De Foy is enumerated in Calexico, where he is working as an architect, although newspaper accounts place De Foy in Calexico as early as the mid-teens. De Foy first appears in Los Angeles City Directories in 1922 as an assistant building inspector for the City of Los Angeles. He was promoted the following year to inspector.
By 1924, De Foy was a draftsman at an unidentified firm. By 1929, the Los Angeles City Directory lists De Foy as a builder. His work appears to have mostly been industrial in nature:
designing a one-story machine shop in 1927467 and a Spanish-style bottling plan for the W.J.
Latchford Company in Los Angeles in 1929.468
By the 1940 U.S. Census, De Foy reports his occupation as architect and engineering. De Foy’s work on the 7-Up bottling plant in Bakersfield was published in Architectural Concrete in 1940, suggesting his interest in concrete construction. By 1944, he was working for James I. Barnes Construction in Santa Ana, California and temporarily relocating there.
Dooley, Railan G. (1925-2013)
Born: Jeanerette, LA
Education: ArtCenter (1954)
Firms: Ray Dooley Associates (1975)
Professional
Biography:
Railan “Ray” Gabriel Dooley in 1925 to a carpenter father. By 1940, he was living in Texas with his mother who was a cook in a private home. During World War II, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps. By 1948, the family had relocated to Kern County and he graduated from Taft High School. By 1950, Ray was a fireman in the oil fields. Ray then turned to more artistic pursuits and attended ArtCenter College of Design, from which he graduated in 1954.
Upon graduation, Dooley went to work at the Ford Motor Co. in Detroit but decided to pursue a career in architecture rather than industrial design. The 1956 Bakersfield City Directory shows he found employment as a draftsman at Mikles & Power in Taft.
Unconfirmed reports suggest that he did small projects as an architect. In 1976, The Bakersfield Californian reported that Dooley would be the architect of record for a new medical office for Dr. Vincent J. Troy.
Dooley was also known as a sculptor, with his work collected by the Bakersfield Museum of Art.
He died in 2013.
Dupes, Thomas (1879-1939)
Born: Maryville, TN
Education: Unknown
Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
Thomas Walter Dupes was born in 1879 in Tennessee. He came to Kern County during the 1910s. In 1916, Southwest Contractor reported that Dupes was commissioned to design a new Labor Temple for the Kern County Labor Council.469 Among his jobs was as a building inspector around 1918. In 1925, Dupes had his own architectural design firm with Edward Glass, architect in Bakersfield.
467 “Pacific Coast,” Iron Age, December 1, 1927. Googlebooks scan, 1575. 468 “Spanish Type Warehouse Completed,” Los Angeles Times, February 10, 1929, E6. 469 “Business Buildings,” Southwest Contractor, April 1, 1916, 18.
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At his death in 1939, he was a construction foreman for the California State Forestry Department.
Eckbo, Garrett (1910-2000), FASLA
Born: Cooperstown, NY
Education: University of California, Berkeley, B.S. Landscape Architecture (1935); Harvard Graduate School of Design, M. Landscape Architecture (1939)
Firms: Partner, Eckbo, Royston & Williams (1945-58); Partner, Eckbo, Dean & Williams (1958-67); Partner, Eckbo, Dean, Austin & Williams (1967-92)
Professional
Biography:
Landscape architect Garrett Eckbo, FASLA, was one of the central figures in modern landscape design. Through several highly successful collaborations Eckbo became a leading practitioner of the "California style" of landscape architecture. His first firm, Eckbo, Royston & Williams, established an office in Pasadena in 1946. They designed landscapes for several Case Study program architects.
In 1958, the firm became Eckbo, Dean & Williams, and, in 1967, Eckbo, Dean, Austin & Williams (EDAW). Eckbo also spent several years as chair of the Department of Landscape Architecture at UC Berkeley. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Eckbo designed landscapes for a number of residences, working prominent architects such as Palmer & Krisel, Wexler & Harrison, E. Stewart Williams, and William F. Cody.
Eddy, Robert N. (1915-2006), FAIA
Born: San Bernardino, CA
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (1940) Firms: Draftsman, Charles H. Biggar Architect (1937-38); Designer, Senior Draftsman, Inspector, Ernest L McCoy (1945-47); Principal, Robert N. Eddy Architect (1947-58); Principal, Eddy & Paynter Associates (1958-71); Principal, Eddy Paynter Renfro (1971-c. 1980); (Principal, Millard Archuleta/Eddy, Paynter Associates AIA (1980-unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Robert Nevelle Eddy was a student of educator/architect Clarence Cullimore, Sr., graduating Kern County Union High School in 1933. He went on through the USC pipeline and graduated from the School of Architecture in 1940.
Like so many, after graduation Eddy found employment as a draftsman in the office of Charles H. Biggar. From 1940-1942, Eddy worked as a draftsman for the Union Oil Company of California in Los Angeles.
After World War II, Eddy worked in the office of Ernest L. McCoy. He formed Eddy & Paynter with his fellow USC graduate William Paynter in 1957. Their robust practice included many residential, commercial, industrial, and civic/institutional commissions in the Central Valley. He is best known for Bakersfield City Hall (1955), Bakersfield Savings (1963), Foothill High School (1962), and the Valley Plaza Shopping Center (1967). Eddy and Paynter worked primarily in the Mid-Century Modern style. They were prolific and build many buildings in Bakersfield.
In 1980, Eddy/Paynter/Associates, AIA became an affiliate of Millard Archuleta Associates, AIA in Los Angeles. The firm was renamed Millard Archuleta/Eddy, Paynter Associates AIA. Eddy was elevated to Fellowship in the AIA in 1994 for his contributions to earthquake building standards—largely the result of his work in Bakersfield after the 1952 earthquake.
Frapwell, C. Robert (1924-2016), AIA
Born: Santa Cruz, CA
Education: University of California, Berkeley
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Firms: Designer, Wright Metcalf and Parsons (c. 1960); Frapwell and Ghezzi (1965-73); Principal, Biggar Frapwell, Ghezzi & Carnal (1974-unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Robert Clarence Frapwell was born in Santa Cruz and received his degree in architecture from the University of California, Berkeley. He served in the US Army during World War II. In 1952, he had his wife moved to Bakersfield because of all the work from the earthquake.
In 1965 he partnered with Frank Ghezzi to form Frapwell and Ghezzi. Their first commissions included the Kern Valley Bowling Center (c. 1965) and the Fruitvale Community Church (c. 1965). They also designed the Italian Heritage Association Fair Concession (1968). Other projects included Ferguson Bosworth Office Building (1968), Leo Meek Car Agency (1969), and the Leo Meek Volkswagen Agency (1969).
Biggar & Cartnal and Frapwell & Ghezzi merged in 1974 to form BGFC. Projects at that firm include buildings at California State University, Bakersfield (c. 1974) and the Regional Occupational Center (c. 1979).
Frapwell also served on the Bakersfield Planning Commission and business-civic organizations.
Ghezzi Frank A. (1930-present), AIA
Born: Zurich, Switzerland
Education: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, M.Arch in Architecture and City Planning (1957) Firms: Designer, Wright Metcalf and Parsons (c. 1960); Frapwell and Ghezzi (1965-73); Principal, Biggar Frapwell, Ghezzi & Carnal (1974-unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Frank A. Ghezzi was born in Zurich, Switzerland. He earned his master’s degree in architecture and planning from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. While in Paris, he met a girl from Bakersfield; they married and settled in Bakersfield around 1957.
While at Wright, Metcalf & Parsons, he worked on the Bakersfield Civic Center. In 1965 he partnered with C. Robert Frapwell to form Frapwell and Ghezzi. Their first commissions included the Kern Valley Bowling Center (c. 1965) and the Fruitvale Community Church (c. 1965). They also designed the Italian Heritage Association Fair Concession (1968). Other projects included Ferguson Bosworth Office Building (1968), Leo Meek Car Agency (1969), and the Leo Meek Volkswagen Agency (1969).
Biggar & Cartnal and Frapwell & Ghezzi merged in 1974 to form BGFC. Projects at that firm include buildings at California State University, Bakersfield (c. 1974) and the Regional Occupational Center (c. 1979).
For years, Gehzzi lived in the Richard Neutra-designed Davis Residence and made a small addition to the home.
Goss, Calvin W. (1917-1984), AIA
Born: Bird City, KS
Education: Pasadena Junior College (1938); Utah State Agricultural (1943) Firms: Draftsman, Chief Draftsman, Chief Architect, E. L. McCoy 1947-57); Partner, Goss & Choy (1959-unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Calvin Wendol Goss was born in Bird City, Kansas in 1917.
In 1959 he joined forces with Allan Kinn Choy to form the partnership of Goss & Choy. Notable works include the FBI Office Building (1961) in Las Vegas, Pine Street School (1964) in Bishop, the County Services Building (1964) in Independence, California, the Trona Intermediate School in Trona, and the Bakersfield National Bank (1964) in Bakersfield.
Goss retired from practice in 1981.
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Harding, Clifford (1922-1994), AIA470
Born: Las Vegas, NM
Education: University Southern California, B.Arch (1952) Firms: Chief Draftsman, Lloyd Fletcher (1952-53); Job Captain/Designer, Wright Metcalf & Parsons (1953-55); Job Captain, Robert N. Eddy (1955-56); Principal, Clifford Harding, Architect (1956- unknown); Partner, Harkness, Hayslett & Jang (c. 1956-58) Professional
Biography:
Clifford Harding was born in Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1922. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1942-1945. After World War II, he attended USC’s architecture program--graduating in 1952.
After working his way up in various Bakersfield firms, Harding formed his own solo practice in 1956. Harding’s best known works include the Chester Avenue Baptist Church (1960), Kern County School Employee’s Federal Credit Union (1961), and the Skyway House Motel and Restaurant (1961). He also designed numerous projects throughout Kern County. In addition to commercial and civic/institutional projects, Harding designed several residences, including the 1966 Palla Residence.
In 1977, Harding was hired to advise downtown Tehachapi business owners for redevelopment of the area.
Harkness, David R. (1918-1995), AIA
Born: Wenatchee, WA
Education: University of Oregon, B.Arch (1951)
Firms: Ralph Beardsworth (c. 1952); Kistner, Wright & Wright (1951-52); Norman Entwistle (1952- 1953); Van Dyke & Barnes (1952-53); Risley & Gould (1953); Burton Schutt (1953); Wright Metcalf & Parsons (1953-54); Partner, Harkness, Hayslett & Jang (c. 1956-58) Professional
Biography:
David R. Harkness was born in Washington state and educated there until he attended and graduated from the University of Oregon.
Harkness is known of modern designs including his expressive, structural modern design for the Community National Bank of Kern County (1962). He is also known for his design for a ranch- style home for Tracy Harkness that was purchased by Buck Owens c. 1969.
By 1956, Harkness had formed a partnership with Harding and Jang. Their projects included the Mary Lavers Home For Girls (c. 1956) on the Kern County General Hospital grounds. Once again, his expression of structure was apparent on Our Savior’s Lutheran Church (c. 1957) in East Bakersfield, and the First Southern Baptist Church (c. 1958) in Bakersfield.
Hayslett, Jack (1928- present) AIA
Born: Maricopa, CA
Education: University of California, Berkeley B.Arch (1951) Firms: Draftsman, Robert N. Eddy (c. 1952); Partner, Harkness, Hayslett & Jang (1956-58); Partner, Hayslett & Essert (1958-61); Partner, Moring, Billing & Hayslett (1962-66)
470 Clifford Harding’s AIA membership file was not accessible due to the closure of the AIA archive until 2025.
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Professional
Biography:
After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley in 1951, Jack Hayslett was a draftsman in the office of Robert Eddy. He formed his first partnership in 1956, with a series of new partners over time.
He was an instructor at Bakersfield College and with William Goodban, wrote the college textbook, Architectural Drawing and Planning, in 1965. He is best known for his Municipal Transit Building (1959) and the Security First National Bank in Bakersfield.
During the late 1980s, Hayslett moved to Visalia and continues to practice architecture.
Hicks, James (1917-1985), AIA
Born: Anaconda, MT
Education: Glendale College (1935-36); University of Southern California, B.Arch (1941) Firms: Senior Draftsman and Architect, Spaulding, Rex and DeSwarte, Architects and Engineers (1945- 47); Architect Graham Latta (1948-49); Architect, Wright Metcalf & Parsons (1949-53); Architect, Robert N. Eddy (1953); Partner, Raport & Hicks, Architects (1947-48); Stuhr & Hicks, Architects (1953-c. 1970)
Professional
Biography:
James Mason Hicks, Jr. was born in rural Montana in 1917. After earning a degree from the USC School of Architecture, he trained with a series of Los Angeles-based firms before moving to Bakersfield around 1949.
Hicks is best known for additions to Jefferson High School (1954) in Bakersfield, the Police Station and Jail (1955) in Santa Maria, and Shandon Elementary School (1955) in Shandon.
Notable works by Stuhr and Hicks include Castle School (1976), St. John’s Catholic Church (1963); St. Phillip’s Catholic Church (1975); Greenfield High School (1964); Caroline Payne Harris School (1960), Lindsay High School (1964), and the Sherriff’s Facility for the County of Tulare (1961).
Jang, Harry (1919-1997), AIA
Born: Courtland, CA
Education: Sacramento Junior College (c. 1942); University of California, Berkeley M.Arch (1949) Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
Harry Jang was born one of 11 children in a Chinese American family in Courland (near Sacramento) in 1919. He earned his architectural degree from the University of California Berkeley.
Jang moved to Bakersfield from Sacramento in 1953. It is likely he may have had family ties to Bakersfield’s large Chinese community and was aware of the work available after the earthquake. He appears to only have been in the area for a few years. By the early 1960s, he had returned to Sacramento. He worked in the office of the State Architect for 35 years.
Little is known of Jang’s work while in Bakersfield. A large residence on a corner lot in Westchester is documented by The Bakersfield Californian.471 The house is likely from the 1950s. Jang moved his office to Sacramento in the early 1960s.
Jefferson, E.L. (1856-unknown)
Born: New York (city unknown)
Education: Unknown
471 “Elegant Simplicity,” The Bakersfield Californian, May 3, 1967, 28.
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Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
E.L. Jefferson was born in New York in 1856. His early architectural education is unknown, but by 1910, he had joined forces with T.R. Griffith in Bakersfield and advertised their services as architect and engineer.
He appears to have had large business interests in Portland, Oregon although the exact nature is unknown.472 In the 1920s, Jefferson was sued for not being a licensed architect, so it is possible that he had little formal training. In the 1910 census he identifies as an architect of city buildings.
References to E.L. Jefferson in The Bakersfield Californian no longer appear after 1913, suggesting he may have moved elsewhere.
Kump, Ernest, Jr. (1911-1999), FAIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: University of California Berkeley, B.Arch (1932); attended Harvard University Firms: Draftsman, J. M. Saffell; Partner, Franklin & Kump (1937-c. 1990) Professional
Biography:
Ernest Kump was born in Bakersfield in 1911, the son of Ernest Kump, Sr., who abandoned the family in 1914. Ernest studied under Clarence Cullimore, Sr. at Kern County Union High School.
He began studies for his M.Arch at Harvard but was forced to return to California for financial reasons. He then worked for his father’s firm in Fresno, but the two didn’t see eye to eye. His father fired him for what he referred to as “chicken coop architecture.”473 Ernest met Charles Franklin while working in his father’s office and in 1937, they established a practice with offices in Fresno and Bakersfield. Franklin and Kump rose to national prominence with their design for Fresno City Hall (1941). Following World War II, they established an office in San Francisco. Their work was published in Progressive Architecture and other trade magazines. They received numerous awards and Kump became a vocal spokesperson for the merits of modern architecture.
Kump authored several books and served on President Ronald Reagan’s Task Force for the Arts and Humanities. He also taught at Harvard, Columbia, Stanford and MIT. In 1956, he was elected a Fellow of the American Institute of Architecture.
Kump, Peter (1915-1991), AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: B.Arch, Stanford (1937); Harvard University (1937-38); University of California, Berkeley (1938) Firms: Draftsman, Franklin & Kump (1939-41); Architectural Administration, U.S. Navy (1941-43); Architect, Kump & Falk (1943-50); Principal, Peter Kump, AIA (1950-c. 1962) Professional
Biography:
Peter Kump was born in Bakersfield in 1915, the son of Ernest Kump, Sr., who abandoned the family in 1914. Ernest studied under Clarence Cullimore at Kern County Union High School. He was the brother of Ernest Kump, profiled above.
During World War II, he served in the U.S. Navy and in 1944 he earned a meritorious service award.
By the mid-1950s, Peter established his own firm in Menlo Park, California. He was known for his work on schools including Ladera Elementary School (1953), Las Lomitas Elementary School (1954), and Ravenswood City Elementary School (1955). In addition to his school work, he also designed commercial office buildings and residences.
472 E.L. Jefferson Like Kern County Best,” Bakersfield Morning Echo, September 28, 1910, 8. 473 Finding aid for the Ernest J. Kump Collection, Environmental Design Archive, University of California, Berkeley.
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Lee, S. Charles (1899-1990), AIA
Born: Chicago, IL
Education: Technical College, Chicago (1918-1920); Armor Institute of Technology (1921) Firms: Draftsman, Rapp and Rapp Architects (1921); Principal, S. Charles Lee Architect (1922-48); Partner, Lee and Hayden, Architects (1948-unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Simeon Charles Lee was born in Chicago, Illinois and moved to Los Angeles in 1921. He was born Simeon Charles Levi, the son of German Jewish immigrants.
Lee is most famous for his theaters—specifically movie palaces of the 1920s. Lee’s theater designs employed the idea that experiencing the building should provide as much entertainment value as the film itself. He designed dozens of revered theaters throughout Southern California.
Many of these buildings are highly lauded in Gebhard and Winter’s guides to architecture.
Lee died in 1990 at the age of 101.
Leydenfrost, Harold (1923-2003), AIA
Born: Budapest, Hungary
Education: No college or university training
Firms: Architect, C.B. Alford & W.J. Thomas, Architects (1947-1957) Professional
Biography:
Harold Bernard Leydenfrost was born in Budapest, Hungary in 1923.By 1942, his family had relocated to New York where he attended high school. In 1942, he enlisted in the U.S. Army. He first appears in Bakersfield around 1947.
For a decade he worked in the office of C.B. Alford and W.J. Thomas. Little is known about his projects. In 1985, he was a member of the American Society of Engineers and Architects.
Luckman, Charles (1909-1998), FAIA
Born: Kansas City, MO
Education: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, B.S. Architecture (1931) Firms: Chicago Master Steam Fitters, Association (1926-27); Robert L. Pioso (1928-29; 1930-31); Lind & Luckman (1936-43); Lever Brothers Company (1943-50); Pereira & Luckman (1950-58); Charles Luckman Associates (1958-98)
Professional
Biography:
From 1950 to 1958, Charles Luckman, FAIA, worked in partnership with William Pereira, specializing in large-scale projects such as office buildings, airports, hotels and Air Force bases, primarily in California. He studied architecture at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, graduating in 1931. During the Depression, he worked in the advertising department of the Colgate-Palmolive-Peet company and later advanced to sales manager of the Pepsodent Company. In 1937, he was featured on the cover of Time magazine.
In 1946, Luckman became president of Lever Brothers and was instrumental in commissioning the company’s new headquarters, Lever House (designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill), a major landmark in New York. An entrepreneur at heart, Luckman merged his passion for architecture with his sense of business and acquired ambitious commissions throughout the United States.474
Martin, Eugene K. (1883-1955), AIA
Born: Free State Danzig (Poland)
474 Pierluig Serraino and Julius Shulman, Modernism Rediscovered (New York, NY: Taschen, 2000), 564.
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Education: University of California, B.Arch and M.Arch (1912) Firms: Principal, Eugene K. Martin, Architect (1919-33); Engineer/Inspector, Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works (1934-35); Assistant Architect, Long Beach Board of Education (1935-36); Architect, Federal Housing Administration (1938-40); Partner, Gerald Marsac (1941); Supervisor of Construction, U.S. Navy, San Diego (1941-42); Chief Inspector, U.S. Navy Terminal Island (1942-43)
Professional
Biography:
Eugene K. Martin was born in Free State Danzig, a city state under the protection of the League of Nations. It was originally part of the nation of Poland when he was born there. Martin came to the United States in the early years of the 20th century and appears to have settled in San Francisco. He apprenticed as a draftsman in several offices in San Francisco. He was also a designer on the Panama Pacific Exposition in 1914-15.
Martin served in the U.S. Army during World War I, from 1916 through 1917. Martin appears to have gone to Bakersfield in 1918 as part of his duties with the U.S. Railroad Administration for the Southern Pacific Company. In 1919, Martin opened his own office where he designed buildings as well as provided inspection and supervision of construction. During the 1930s, Martin studied mass housing in England, France, Italy, Poland, Germany and Switzerland.
Martin retired from the practice of architecture in 1953.
McCoy, Ernest (1906-1981), AIA475
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (1933) Firms: Draftsman, Charles H. Biggar, AIA (1934-42); architect, Charles H. Biggar, AIA (1943-44); Ernest McCoy, AIA (1944-c.1980)
Professional
Biography:
Ernest Lynn McCoy was born in Bakersfield in 1906. He was a student of Clarence Cullimore, Sr. at Kern County Union High School. He graduated from USC with a B.Arch in 1933. He was immediately hired by Bakersfield architect Charles H. Bigger as a draftsman and worked his way through various aspects of the practice: Draftsman, inspector, construction supervisor, etc. ultimately becoming the architect supervising all work for Bigger in 1942.
During World War II, McCoy worked for the U.S. Engineers in Sacramento where he supervised all airport construction. Upon his release from the service, he associated with Biggar on a housing project at Muroc Army Base.
In 1944, he opened his own practice. He worked mostly locally and was known for St. Pauls Episcopal Church (1954), First National Bank (1954), Emerson Junior High School (1954, McKinley Elementary School (1954), John Compton Jr. High School (1960), Golden Bear Oil Co. Lab (1960), and several other school projects. The majority of the school projects were Mid-Century Modern in style.
In 1975, he was named “Boss of the Year” by The Bakersfield Californian. McCoy was a founding member of the Golden Empire Chapter of the American Institute of Architects in 1977.
McDougall, Benjamin Greer (1865-1937), AIA
Born: San Francisco, CA
Education: California School of Design
Firms: Principal, Benjamin Greer McDougall
475 Alastair Simpson’s AIA membership file was not accessible due to the closure of the AIA archive until 2025.
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Professional
Biography:
Benjamin Greer McDougall joined the office of his father, Barnett McDougall & Sons and elder brother, Charles McDougall, and worked there until 1906 when he established his own office.
He designed a wide variety of buildings in the San Joaquin Valley as well as in San Francisco.
They included churches, apartments, commercial and single-family residences.
He is best known for the Sheldon Office Building (c. 1906-07) in San Francisco, the Federal Office Building (c. 1910) in Oakland, and the Standard Oil Building (1910) in San Francisco. He also designed St James Church in Los Angeles in 1922.
Metcalf, Arthur C. (1908-2002), AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch (1932) Firms: Draftsman, E. J. Symmes (1932-35); Draftsman, Stanton Willard (1935-37); Associate Architect, Stanton Willard (1937-41); Principal, Wright & Metcalf (1945-46); Principal Wright, Metcalf & Parsons, (1946-c. 1974)
Professional
Biography:
Arthur Charles Metcalf was born in Bakersfield in 1908. His extended family were Bakersfield pioneers; his mother was the daughter of Charles Quincy, for which Quincy Street was named.
He was a student of architect/educator Clarence Cullimore, Sr. at Kern County Union High School. Metcalf was inducted into the Army during World War II, serving as a technical sergeant at Fort MacArthur.
After World War II, Metcalf formed a partnership with J. Warren Wright whom he met while in Symmes’ office. In 1953, they built their own office building in Bakersfield. The firm primarily worked in the Mid-Century Modern style.
His firms were best known for their civic/institutional work. Metcalf’s projects included Juvenile Hall (1948) in Bakersfield, the West Side District Hospital (1950) in Taft, State Employment Building (1951) in Shafter, and the master plan of Bakersfield College any many of its initial buildings. The Greater Bakersfield Memorial Hospital is also credited to Wright, Metcalf & Parsons.The firm was published in Progressive Architecture.
Metcalf retired from architectural practice in 1974. The same year he was presented with the AIA Key Man Award.
Mullgardt, Louis Christian (1866-1930), FAIA
Born: Washington, MO
Education: Attended Washington University, Department of Fine Arts Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
He began professional practice in an office in St Louis in 1893. In 1902 he went to England. Upon his return, he practiced in San Francisco. Between 1920 and 1922, he was an architect in Honolulu, Hawaii.
He is best known for his design for the Court of Ages at the Pan Pacific International Exposition (1914-15). He also designed many single-family residences. He was a member of the Architectural Commission and the International Jury of the 1914-15 Exposition and also served as Architectural Advisor on National Parks. He authored many articles in trade magazines.
Neutra, Richard (1892-1970), FAIA
Born: Vienna, Austria
Education: Technische Hochschule Vienna (1917); University of Zurich
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Firms: Principal, Richard J. Neutra (1926-49); Partner, Neutra & Alexander (1949-58); Partner, Neutra & Neutra (1955-70)
Professional
Biography:
Richard Neutra was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1892. He graduated from the Technische Hochschule in Vienna in 1917. After World War I, Neutra moved to Switzerland and then to Germany, before joining the office of Erich Mendelsohn in Berlin in 1921.
In 1923, Neutra immigrated to the United States by way of Chicago along with fellow Austrian architect Rudolph Schindler. Together, they are credited with bringing European Modernism to America. Neutra worked with Frank Lloyd Wright, following him to Los Angeles in the early 1920s.
After collaborating with Schindler for several years, Neutra established his own practice in 1926.
The Lovell “Health” House (1927-29), widely recognized as one of the most important houses of the 20th century, came very early in his career. It is praised for its use of concrete and for being the first completely steel-framed residence in the United States.
Over the following decades, Neutra refined his style and material palette. His earlier houses were generally conceived as a series of interlocking minimal boxes. In later works these boxes dissolve into a series of planes and lines dynamically sliding past each other in three-dimensional collages, as in the Sorrells House (1956-57).
Neutra was also responsible for several large public commissions, either individually or in partnership with other architects. These included the Corona, the Channel Heights Community in San Pedro (1941-42), the Corona School in Bell (1935), Eagle Rock Park Clubhouse (1953), and the Los Angeles County Hall of Records (1962, with Robert Alexander, Honnold & Rex, and Herman Light). Between 1949 and 1958, he worked in partnership with Robert Alexander. Other notable projects include the VDL Research House in Los Angeles (1933), the Kaufmann House in Palm Springs (1946), and the Perkins House in Pasadena (1955).
Parsons, W. Francis (1903-1981), AIA
Born: Andale, KS
Education: University of California, Los Angeles (1921-23), University of Southern California, B.Arch (1923- 25)
Firms: Head Draftsman, Louis N. Crawford; Draftsman, E. Keith Lockhard; Draftsman, Soule and Murphy; Architect, Kern County Building Department (1938-46) Professional
Biography:
Wayman (“William”) Francis Parsons was born in Kansas in 1903.
The 1930s finds Parsons working as a draftsman in Santa Maria. By the late 1930s, Parsons was living in Bakersfield where he had associated himself with local architect Louis N. Crawford.
Parsons joined Wright & Metcalf to become Wright, Metcalf and Parsons in 1946. As J. Warren Wright and Arthur C. Metcalf found their firm expanding and growing in the postwar period, they selected Parsons, who had logged several years in the Kern County Building Department, to lead projects such as schools, city halls, lodges, commercial and office buildings. Parsons projects included Bakersfield College (1956), James Curran Jr. High School (1961), Delano Elementary School (1961), and Shafter High School (1961).
Parsons also served on the Kern County Planning Commission in the mid-1940s.
Paynter, William H. (1924-2004), AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: University of California, Berkeley (1943-44); University of Southern California, B.Arch (1951)
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Firms: Draftsman, E. L. McCoy (1947); Robert N. Eddy & Associates (1949-54); Architect, Robert N.
Eddy & Associates (1954-57); Partner, Eddy & Paynter (1957); Partner, Eddy, Paynter & Renfro (c. 1980); Partner, Millard Archuleta/Eddy, Paynter Associates; Design Director, BFGC (1985- unknown)
Professional
Biography:
William Hackett Paynter was a student of educator/architect Clarence Cullimore, Sr., graduating Kern County High School. Paynter served in the US Army Air Force and was stationed in Brazil and Ascension Island.
He attended UC, Berkeley prior graduating from the School of Architecture in 1951. While at USC, he received the Alpha Rho Chi Honor Medal and was later decorated with the Producer’s Council Student Honor award in 1950 and as 1St Place Winner for the Western Division Carrier Corporation Small Home Competition.
Like so many, after graduation Eddy found employment in Bakersfield as a draftsman in the office of Ernest L. McCoy and later in Robert Eddy’s office. He formed Eddy & Paynter with his fellow USC graduate in 1957. Their robust practice included many residential, commercial, industrial, and civic/institutional commissions in the Central Valley.
Paynter is best known for Bakersfield City Hall (1955), Bakersfield Savings (1963), Foothill High School (1962), and the Valley Plaza Shopping Center (1967). Eddy and Paynter worked primarily in the Mid-Century Modern style. They were prolific and build many buildings in Bakersfield.
In 1980, Eddy/Paynter/Associates, AIA became an affiliate of Millard Archuleta Associates, AIA in Los Angeles. The firm was renamed Millard Archuleta/Eddy, Paynter Associates AIA. In 1985, he joined BFGC and served as design director.
Pedersen, John P. (1888-1969), AIA
Born: Bodo, Norway
Education: Bodo Technical School, Certificate (1907), Pratt Institute, Certificate (1916) Firms: Draftsman, Harold Heyden, Architect (1918); Draftsman, Stiles Clements (1921); Draftsman, W.
Asa Hudson (1921-22); Draftsman, Arthur Kelley & Joe Estep, Architects (1922); Draftsman, T.
Beverly Keim, Architect (1922); Draftsman, W. Asa Hudson (1922-25: Associate Architect, W.
Asa Hudson (1925-28); John P. Pedersen, Architect (1928-42); Draftsman, Woodford & Bernard (1957-58); John P. Pedersen, Architect (1958-63)
Professional
Biography:
John P. Pedersen was born and schooled in Bodo, Norway. He attended the Pratt Institute in New York then came west to California where he worked in a variety of architect’s offices before he opened his own office in Beverly Hills in 1928. For the next 14 years he practiced there.
According to the Walter W. Stiern Library at California State University, Bakersfield, his practice was largely residential. He designed homes throughout Los Angeles, including a residence for Bruno Walter, conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic.476 He is known to have designed several residences in Bakersfield, including the George H. Barnett Residence on Elm Street.477
Raney, Vincent G. (1905-2001), AIA
Born: Loogootee, IN
Education: University of Illinois, B.Arch (1930), University of Indiana, University of Arizona
476 “John Pedersen,” Historical Research Center, CSU Bakersfield, https://hrc.csub.edu/architecture/biographies/john-pedersen/ (accessed February 3, 2023).
477 Historical Research Center, CSUB.
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Firms: Draftsman, H.G. Atherton (1928); Draftsman, Frederick H. Reimers (1930-36); Draftsman, William I. Garren (1930-36); Draftsman Masten and Hurd (1934-35); Principal, Vincent G. Raney (1935-c. 1970)
Professional
Biography:
Vincent G. Raney was born in Loogootee, Indiana in 1905 and earned a B.Arch from the University of Illinois in 1930. During the Great Depression, he bounced around from firm to firm, picking up draftsman work.
By 1956, he established his own practice in San Francisco. He appears to have had a practice chiefly composed of commercial and civic/institutional projects. He is best known for his St. Ann Chapel (1953) in Palo Alto, Holy Cross High School (1957) in Mountain View, Notre Dame College (1961) in Belmont, and Century Theaters (1964-69) in San Jose, Sacramento, Orange, Reno, Salt Lake City, and Seattle. A rare residential commission was a home in Inverness that was published in Housing: Magazine of Homes and Gardens in 1942.
Renfro, Donald, (1931-2023), AIA
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: Bakersfield College (1949-51)
Firms: Designer, Whitney Biggar, Architect (1955-61); Associate, Eddy & Paynter (1961-71), Principal, Eddy Paynter Renfro & Associates (1970-78); Donald Renfro & Associates (1978-2004); Partner, Renfro & Cunningham; Partner, Renfro & Elliot
Professional
Biography:
Donald William Renfro attended Bakersfield College then served in the US Army in the European theater from 1952-1954. Upon returning to Bakersfield, he went to work for Eddy & Paynter Associates as a designer and project architect. Renfro was project architect for the building of Valley Plaza.
Eddy Paynter & Renfro continued the firm’s legacy of commercial and civic/institutional work.
Projects included Continental Telephone Corporation (1971), Occidental Petroleum Exploration Headquarters (1975), and a remodel of the Education Center for the Bakersfield School District (1976). The firm’s work during this period evolved from Mid-Century Modern to Corporate Modern in style.
Donald Renfro was also President of the Bakersfield Section of the Los Angeles Chapter of the AIA and a founding member and past-President of the Golden Empire Chapter during the 1970s.
He was also appointed to the Architectural Advisory Board of Bakersfield College.
Later in life, Renfro established other partnerships including merging with the Cunningham Group in 2004 to become Renfro & Cunningham, and later Renfro & Elliot.
Saffell, J.M. (c. 1858-1936)
Born: Washington County, Arkansas
Education: Unknown
Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
Jackson McWIlliams Saffell was born in Arkansas around 1868. Prior to 1900, Saffell lived in Fresno, but established residency in Bakersfield in 1900.
Although very little is known about Saffell’s early years or education, he became a well-known architect in Kern County, designing many public buildings. He designed public buildings in Fresno and San Pedro as well.
Schroeder, Leonard John (1929-2020), AIA
Born: Wasco, CA
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Education: University of Oregon, B.Arch (1955), graduate work (1957) Firms: Leonard J. Schroeder, Architect (1965)
Professional
Biography:
Wasco-born Leonard Schroeder was not a student of educator/architect Clarence Cullimore, Sr. at Kern County Union High School. He studied at the Redemptorist Seminary in Oakland for eight years, prior to earning a B.Arch from University of Oregon. His early work life is currently unknown but he opened his own practice in Bakersfield in 1965.
His work includes the Dr. Siltze Chiropractic Office (1966) and Teakwood Mobile Home Lodge (1968), both in Bakersfield. He also designed the St. Elizabeth Catholic Church (1969) in McFarland. He was the architect of record for the Christian Reformed Church (1969) and the BPOE Elks Lodge, both in Bakersfield.
Over the years, he completed work for five school districts and projects for the Housing Authority of Kern County. He may be best known for the house he designed for Merle Haggard near the mouth of the Kern River.
Schroder retired in 2008.
Schulze, Henry A. (1853-c.1925), AIA
Born: Boston, MA
Education: Unknown
Firms: Partner, Schulze and Meeker (1889-90); Principal, Henry A. Schulze, Architect (1891-97); Partner, Arthur Brown, Jr. (1906); Principal, Henry A. Schulze, Architect (1907); Professional
Biography:
Henry Atherton Schulze was born to German parents in Boston, Massachusetts in 1854. Not much is known about his early years or education, but by 1880, Schulze was living in Alameda, California. By 1910, the firm was a family affair with his daughter as private secretary and two sons engaged as an architect and a draftsman.
Schulze is best known for the 1st Church of Christ Science (1900-1902), J.A. Folger and Company Office Building (1904); and the Olympic Club City Clubhouse #3 (1893-1894) all in the Bay Area. Schulze was widely published in Architect & Engineer of California, of which he was architectural editor for a number of years.
Schulze was retired from architecture by 1920.
Shomate, Edwin M. (1916-2013), AIA478
Born: Bakersfield, CA
Education: Attended University of California, Berkley (c. 1937) Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
Edwin Maurice Shomate was born in Bakersfield in 1916. He was a student of Clarence Cullimore’s at Kern County Union High School.
In 1940, he was employed by the Works Progress Administration and living in Burbank. By the 1970s, Shomate was working in the office of the California State Architect. One of his enduring legacies in that capacity is his contribution to the development of ADA accessibility code, in 1976.
Sibbert, Edward F. (1899-1984), AIA479
478 Edwin Shomate’s AIA membership file was not accessible due to the closure of the AIA archive until 2025. 479 Edward F. Sibbert’s AIA membership file was not accessible due to the closure of the AIA archive until 2025.
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Born: Brooklyn, NY
Education: Pratt Institute, Structural Engineer (1919-20), B.Arch, Cornell University (1921-22) Firms: Designer, Kiehnel & Elliott (1923); Partner, Pancoast & Sibbert (1924-25); Architect, E.H. Faile & Co (1926-28); Architect/Vice President, S.H. Kress & Co. Buildings (1929-54); Partner Edward F.
Sibbert and Frederic C. Wood (c. 1956)
Professional
Biography:
Edward F. Sibbert was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1899. After graduating with a degree in architecture from Cornell University in the early 1920s, he was quickly employed as a designer and architect.
For over 20 years, Sibbert was the architect for S.H. Kress & Co. He won an AIA Gold Medal Award for his design for a 1940 Kress store in New York City.
Simpson, Alastair (1910-1992), AIA480
Born: San Francisco, CA
Education: University of California, Berkeley, B.Arch (1936) Firms: Principal, Ernest J. Kump & Associates (1937-45); Partner, Franklin & Simpson (1945-52); Alastair Simpson & Associates (1952-70)
Professional
Biography:
Alastair Simpson was born in San Francisco in 1910. After completing his architectural education at the University of California, Berkeley in 1936, he went to work for Ernest J. Kump & Associates. Simpson moved to Bakersfield in the late 1930s.
During World War II, Simpson worked for the U.S. government as an architect on military facilities. Simpson opened his own firm in Fresno in 1952. Simpson is best known for his civic/institutional commissions in and around Fresno and Bakersfield. They include Sierra High School (1958); Fresno Community Hospital (1959), and the Fresno Co. Jail (1960)—all in Fresno.
He also designed St Joseph’s Hospital (1963) in Stockton, Lodi Memorial Hospital (1966), and Lemoore High School (1968).
Smith, Whitney R. (1911-2002), FAIA
Born: Pasadena, CA
Education: Pasadena Junior College; University of California, Berkley, B.Arch. (1934) Firms: Farm Security Administration, San Francisco (1936); Lawrence Test, Architect in Pasadena (1937); Kem Weber and Harwell H. Harris, Designer (1938); Marsh, Smith & Powell, Architects (1939); Joseph Westor Smith, Jones & Contini. Principal, Smith and Williams (1949-73) Professional
Biography:
Whitney R. Smith was born on January 16, 1911, in Pasadena. He attended the University of Southern California (USC) and graduated in 1934 with his bachelor’s degree in architecture.
After receiving his degree Smith went on to work as a designer for notable architects in the Los Angeles area: Lawrence Test, Harwell Hamilton Harris, Kem Weber, and William L. Pereira.
From 1941 to 1942, Whitney Smith taught at USC. One of Smith’s students was Wayne Williams (1919-2007), who started working for Smith in the early 1940s.
Smith and Williams were published nationally and internationally in Arts + Architecture, Architectural Record, House and Home, Architect and Engineer, Architecture d'aujourd'hui, Bauen und Wohnen, Architecture Française, Architectural Form and Architect and Building News. Their residential and commercial work were both lauded by the critics as exceptional examples of the Mid-Century Modern style.
480 Alastair Simpson’s AIA membership file was not accessible due to the closure of the AIA archive until 2025.
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Whitney Smith also served on several civic boards and commissions in Pasadena and in Los Angeles. In 1957, Smith was elevated to Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects.
Sorenson, Ken (1938-present), AIA
Born: Washington, Oklahoma
Education: Unknown
Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
Sorenson was born in 1938 in Washington Township, Oklahoma. By 1940, Sorenson’s father had moved the family to Ford City in Kern County where he was working in the oil fields.
Sorenson was a founding member of the Golden Empire chapter of the AIA.
Sorenson’s practice was diverse including residential, commercial and civic/institutional commissions during the 1970s. His best known work includes the Dana Villas condominiums (1977), an office for attorneys Ray Yinger and Philip C. Blanton (c. 1976), and ongoing work for the West Kern Community College District.
Stuhr, Robert (1917-2004), AIA
Born: San Francisco, CA
Education: Modesto Junior College; Notre Dame University; University of Oregon, B.Arch (1941) Firm: Chief Draftsman, Ernest L. McCoy, Architect (1946); Principal, Robert F. Stuhr and Associates (1953); Principal, Stuhr and Hicks, Architects (c. 1953-unknown) Professional
Biography:
Robert Francis Sthur was born in San Francisco. He attended Modesto Junior College and Notre Dame University prior to earning his B.Arch from the University of Oregon in 1941.
He established his own firm in 1953 with offices in Bakersfield and in San Luis Obispo. Offices, schools, churches and civic facilities were the firm’s principle emphasis. Notable works include Castle School (1976), St. John’s Catholic Church (1963), St. Phillip’s Catholic Church (1975), Greenfield High School (1964), Caroline Payne Harris School (1960), Lindsay High School (1964), and the Sherriff’s Facility for the County of Tulare (1961).
He retired from practice in 1992.
Swasey, McNeal (1891-1946), AIA
Born: St. Louis, MO
Education: No degree in architecture
Firms: Draftsman/Architect, Hedden Construction Co; Project Manager, Myron Hunt (1919-22); Principal, McNeal Swasey (1922), Architect; Partner, Swasey and Hayne (c. 1930) Professional
Biography:
McNeal Swasey was born to an Australian-born architect. He had no formal architectural education but likely learned from his father as well as the numerous architectural firms he worked for. He practiced primarily in the period revival styles popular during the 1920s and 1930s. He was construction supervisor for Myron Hunt on the Ambassador Hotel and Huntington Library in Pasadena.
His body of work is wide ranging including residential, commercial, and civic/institutional projects. He is best known for the Barker Brothers In Los Angeles, a 12-sided dance pavilion in Lake Arrowhead (1922), and the Bank of Italy (1928) in Redlands. His work was published nationally in trade magazines such as Architectural Record.
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Symmes, Edwin J. (1883-1935), AIA
Born: Livermore Valley, CA
Education: University of California, Berkeley, B.Arch (1909) Firms: Draftsman, Bliss & Faville (c. 1911); Draftsman William C. Hays (1912); Partner, Edwin Symmes, Architect (1915); Partner, Symmes & Cullimore (1927-30); Edwin Symmes Architect (unknown) Professional
Biography:
Edwin Joseph Symmes graduated from the architecture program at Berkeley in 1909. Initially, he established a practice, Edwin Symmes, Architect in Alameda (near San Francisco) in 1915.
Symmes and Clarence Cullimore, Sr. likely knew one another at Berkeley and Cullimore may have been influential in Symmes decision to move to Bakersfield in 1912.
From 1916 to 1923, Symmes was Architect and Engineer for the Yosemite National Park Company. In that capacity he worked on the Glacier Point Hotel, Yosemite Lodge, and adjoining buildings. During the mid-to-late 1920s, Symmes designed homes for the Ferndal tract in Alameda, the Municipal Electric Light Plant, the Masonic Temple and several commercial projects in the area.
Between 1927 and 1930, Symmes partnered with Clarence Cullimore, Sr. in Symmes & Cullimore. At this time, he designed more than twenty grammar and high school buildings in Kern County and developed a reputation as one of the most successful school architects in central California. After 1930, he continued to obtain school commissions in Bakersfield and Kern County. He also designed many private residences in Bakersfield.
Symmes died in Bakersfield in September of 1935.
Thomas, William (1906-1997), AIA
Born: Hailey, ID
Education: No architectural degree
Firms: Apprentice, Charles H. Biggar (1925-28); Draftsman, Charles H. Biggar (1928-34); Chief Draftsman, Charles H. Biggar (1934-42); Partner, Biggar Alford & Thomas (1949-56; Partner, Alford & Thomas (1949-56); Partner, Alford, Thomas & Leydenfrost (1956-c. 1958) Professional
Biography:
William John Thomas was born in Hailey, Idaho in 1906 and learned his craft through working in architecture offices. He worked his way up in the office of Charles H. Biggar His career was interrupted by World War II during which he served as a Senior Engineer from 1942-1945. After the war, he formed a partnership with C. “Bart” Alford.
Thomas is best known for his civic/institutional projects including Sierra Junior High School (1954), Kern General Hospital (1955), and Ford Agency Sales (1961) all in Bakersfield. He also designed Burroughs High School (1961) in Ridgecrest.
Thomas was a founding member of the Golden Empire chapter of the AIA in Bakersfield in 1977.
Ticer, James E., Jr. (1928-2007), AIA481
Born: Shawnee, OK
Education: University of Illinois, B.Arch.
Firms: Architect, Eddy & Paynter (c. 1958-62); Architect, Randall Presley, Builder and Subdivider (1962); Partner, Leach, Kehoe, Ticer, Architects and Planners (1969)
481 James Ticer’s AIA membership file was not accessible due to the closure of the AIA archive until 2025.
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Professional
Biography:
James Everett Ticer was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma in 1928. Around 1938, Ticer and his father, a sheet metal fabricator, relocated to Bakersfield. After earning his degree from the University of Illinois, he returned to Bakersfield and worked for Eddy & Paynter. He was tapped by builder Randall Presley in 1962 to design and build a group of homes in Benton Park.
In 1963, Ticer moved to Ventura County and established an office in Camarillo. In 1969, Ticer formed a partnership with Camarillo-based architects Leach and Kehoe. Little is known of Ticer’s own projects. Newspaper accounts suggest he may have designed the Camarillo Community Center (c. 1966).
Train, Robert F. (1870-1951), AIA
Born: Nottingham, England
Education: Attended University of Illinois for architecture but did not graduate.
Firms: Jr. Draftsman, F. E. Edbrooke & Co (1890-91); Draftsman, Pease & Barber; Henru Ives Cobb and Holabird & Roche (1891-1992); Draftsman, Sumner P. Hunt; Draftsman, Hugh Todd (1893- 1895); Partner, Howard & Train (1896-1898); Partner, Train and Williams (1900-26); Partner, Train and Cressy (1926-38); Principal, Robert F. Train, Architect (1939); Partner, Train and Schaefer (1939-44); Principal, Robert F. Train, Architect (1944-46) Professional
Biography:
Robert Farquhar Train was born in Nottingham, England. He attended schools there until the age of 13, when he appears to have come to the United States. Although he attended the University of Illinois architecture program, he did not graduate. He supplemented his education with private instruction in math, drawing and construction during time in Colorado.
Train worked in a number of architect’s offices in Denver, Chicago and Los Angeles. During 1891-1892, he worked on the Chicago World’s Fair. Train opened a series of co-partnerships in Los Angeles at the turn of the century and the ensuing three decades. Train appears to have substantially retired from architectural practice in 1949.
Weeks, William H. (1866-1936)
Born: Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
Education: Brinker Institute
Firms: Principal, William H. Weeks, Architect; Partner, Weeks & Weeks.
Professional
Biography:
William H. Weeks was born the son of a Canadian builder and architect. At the age of 14, Weeks and his family moved to Denver where he took up architectural study at the Brinker Institute.
After spending some time in Wichita, he relocated to Watsonville, California. He became associated with the Spreckel’s Sugar company designing facilities for the company.
In 1904, he established a practice in San Francisco where he designed a Carnegie Library and the First Christian Church. He was active in designing and rebuilding the city after the 1906 earthquake.
In 1924, he formed Weeks & Weeks with his son. It is estimated the firm built more than 100 buildings in California.482
Werner, Carl (1875-1943)
Born: Philadelphia, PA
Education: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, B.Arch (c. 1895)
482 Withey, Henry F. and Elsie Rathburn Withey, Biographical Dictionary of American Architects, Facsimile Edition, Hennessey & Ingalls, Inc., 1970, 641.
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Firms: Carle Werner, Architect (1898-unknown)
Professional
Biography:
Carl Werner was born in Philadelphia. He trained at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and upon graduation, at the age of 19, he moved to California. In 1898, he opened his own practice in San Francisco. His projects included a number of schools, residences, and buildings for the Masonic Order. He also designed the vast majority of educational buildings in Northern California prior to 1906.
Wetmore, James A. (1863-1940)
Born: Bath, NY
Education: Unknown
Firms: Unknown
Professional
Biography:
James A. Wetmore began working in Washington, D.C., as a Court Stenographer in the Treasury Department. He later was a court stenographer for the Architectural Department. Wetmore held the post of Architectural Supervisor of the U.S. Treasury Department. In this capacity, more than 2,000 buildings were designed in his office.483 He retired during the 1930s to Coral Gables, Florida.
White, Stanford (1853-1906), FAIA
Born: New York, NY
Education: Private schools; no university training
Firms: Student Draftsman, Gambrill & Richardson (c. 1872); Partner, Mead, McKim & White (1880- 1906)
Professional
Biography:
Stanford White was born to the son of a noted Shakespearian actor. He attended private schools and became a student draftsman in the New York firm of Gambrill & Richardson at the age of 19. He rose to Richardson’s chief assistant.
In 1878, White traveled extensively in Europe with Charles F. McKim and when they returned in 1880, White was asked to join McKim and William Mead, forming Mead McKIim & White.
White is best known for Judson Memorial Church (1885), Washington Memorial Arch (1889), Metropolitan Club, New York University Library (1900), Knickerbocker Trust Building (1904) and Madison Square Presbyterian Church (1905) in New York. White also designed many luxurious homes and country estates.
White died at the height of his fame from a gunshot at the age of 53.
Willard, Stanton D. (1891-1964) AIA
Born: Chicago, IL
Education: None
Firms: York & Sawyer (no dates); Howard Sill (no dates); Henry H. Meyers (no dates); Kenneth MacDonald, R. (no dates); Designer, William B. Faville (no dates); Chief Designer/Office Manager, Walker & Eisen (c. 1909-c. 1926)
483 Withey and Withey, 647.
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Professional
Biography:
Stanton D. Willard was born in Chicago, Illinois. Although not formally educated at a university, he received training from the American Society of Beaux Arts for two years. He worked for architect William B. Faville for 11 years and for Walker & Eisen for 18 years.
Around 1930, Willard relocated from Southern California to San Francisco. He moved to Bakersfield in 1938 where he worked until returning to San Francisco in 1943. In 1945 he moved to Sacramento when he joined the State Division of Architecture where he worked on the Soledad state prison design and the Deuel Vocational Institution at Tracy. Willard is best known for his design of San Francisco’s State Building and several of the Panama Pacific International Exposition structures (1915). He was also known for his school designs during the period in which he lived in Bakersfield.
Williams, Wayne Richard (1919-2007), FAIA
Born: Los Angeles, CA
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch. (1947) Firms: Principal, Smith & Williams (1949-1973)
Professional
Biography:
Wayne Williams was born in Los Angeles in 1919. He was a student of Whitney Smith at USC during Smith’s tenure from 1941-1942. He graduated with his bachelor’s degree in architecture from USC in 1947.
By 1949, Whitney Smith and Wayne Williams officially became partners. Some of their most notable early projects include Crestwood Hills (1950) and Griffith Park Girl’s Camp (1951).
During the firm’s 24 years, Smith and Williams produced numerous award-winning architectural projects, including private residences, educational buildings, religious buildings, community buildings, recreational facilities, commercial buildings, and parks. The Smith & Williams partnership dissolved in 1973, although both Whitney Smith and Wayne Williams continued to practice.
Smith and Williams were published nationally and internationally in Arts + Architecture, Architectural Record, House and Home, Architect and Engineer, Architecture d'aujourd'hui, Bauen und Wohnen, Architecture Française, Architectural Form and Architect and Building News. Their residential and commercial work were both lauded by the critics as exceptional examples of the Mid-Century Modern style.
In 1964, Williams was elevated to Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects.
Wiseman, Thomas B. (1891-1920)
Born: Washington state (city unknown)
Education: Unknown
Firms: Principal, Thomas Wiseman, Architect (c. 1910-11): Partner, Smith & Wiseman (1911-c. 1920) Professional
Biography:
Little is known about the early history and education of Thomas B. Wiseman. He appears in the Bakersfield census in 1910 as a practicing architect. In 1911, Wiseman and San Francisco-based architect Henry C. Smith elected to form a partnership in anticipation of the large number of school projects to be erected in Kern County. Within a couple of months, Wiseman was awarded a school project in Wasco.
In 1911, he was also recruited by the Board of Education of Santa Monica to discuss the design of a Polytechnic High School building. Despite the new emphasis on educational buildings, Wiseman continued to receive commissions for large commercial and civic/institutional buildings in Bakersfield.
In July of 1920, the promising young architect’s career was cut tragically short when he drowned in the Kern River. He was 29 years old.
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Wright, Frank Lloyd (1867-1959)
Born: Richland Center, WI
Education: Attended University of Wisconsin, Madison
Firms: Draftsman, Joseph Lyman Sisbee (1887-1888); Draftsman/Head Draftsman, Adler & Sullivan (1888-1893); Principal, Frank Lloyd Wright, Architect (1893-1959) Professional
Biography:
Frank Lloyd Wright was born in Richland Center, Wisconsin as a preacher’s son. Both parents were active in music and the arts. Wright’s parents divorced when he was 14 years old. Wright’s interest in architecture and design was evident when he attended the University of Wisconsin, Madison. However, he did not complete his studies.
Wright went to Chicago where he ultimately landed in the office of Adler and Sullivan. Louis Sullivan had a profound influence on Wright’s thinking about architecture. Sullivan’s practice was asking questions about what a truly American architecture would look like—questions Wright would continue to work through over his entire career.
Wright’s highly-influential own home and studio in Oak Park, Illinois were completed in 1889.
Wright formed his own firm in Oak Park in 1893. During the early years of his practice, Wright became well-known for his Prairie-style homes and for breaking the box of traditional floor plans by creating the open plan. The publication of Wright’s work in the Wasmuth Portfolio introduced him to the world. His influence was soon felt among the established architecture community worldwide.
In the early 1920s, Wright came to California where he designed the textile block system along with his son, architect Lloyd Wright. His work in California is often regarded as his Romanza period for his embrace of ornament and the influence of Native forms.
Wright was extremely prolific, designing more than 1,000 structures over a 70-year career. This productivity was due in large part to his schools, Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin, and later Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Arizona. The Taliesin Fellowship produced hundreds of architectural apprentices that worked on important Wright projects.
Wright is responsible from some of the most important and best-known works of 20th century American architecture. Among these are the Robie House in Chicago, Illinois (1909), Fallingwater in Laurel Highlands, Pennsylvania (1935-39), Johnson Wax Headquarters in Racine, Wisconsin (1936), and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City (1956-59).
In his later years, Wright was prolific in his designs for private residences and civic and institutional projects.
Wright, J. Warren (1910-1997), AIA
Born: Selma, CA
Education: University of Southern California, B.Arch. (1933) Firms: Draftsman, Edwin J. Symmes (1934-35); Draftsman, Ira W. Hoover (1935-36); Chief Office Manager, Franklin and Kump (1936-37); Draftsman, Stanton Willard, AIA (1937-38); Associate Architect, Stanton Willard, AIA (1938-41); Architect and Deputy Co. Superintendent, Kern County (1941-42); Partner, Wright Metcalf & Parsons (1945-unknown) Professional
Biography:
John Warren Wright was a student of educator/architect Clarence Cullimore Sr., graduating from Kern County High School in 1928. Like so many, he attended the USC School of Architecture and graduated in 1933.
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After World War II, Wright formed a partnership with Arthur Metcalf. In 1953, they built their own office building in Bakersfield. The firm primarily worked in the Mid-Century Modern style.
His firms were best known for their civic/institutional work. Wright’s projects included Kern County Detention Home (1951), Arvin Sierra School (1953) in Arvin, and the State Employment Building (1953) in Bakersfield. Wright, Metcalf & Parsons was also responsible for the master planning and early buildings at Bakersfield College. The Greater Bakersfield Memorial Hospital and the Bakersfield Civic Auditorium are also credited to Wright, Metcalf & Parsons.
Wright, Metcalf & Parsons was published in Progressive Architecture. Their body of work was significantly in the Mid-Century Modern style.
Wynkoop, Frank (1902-1978), AIA
Born: Denver, CO
Education: No architectural degree; Beaux Arts Competitions for Seattle Architecture Club Firms: Junior Draftsman, John and Donald B. Parkinson; Draftsman, Shack Young & Myers; Designer, National Theater Supply Company; Designer, R. C. Reamer; Design/Drafting/Specifications, W.
D. Coates; Architect, Edwin J. Symmes (1936); Partner, The Office of Frank Wynkoop, Architect (1937-c.1942); Principal, Frank Wynkoop, Architect, AIA (c. 1942-c. 1978) Professional
Biography:
Frank Wynkoop was born in Denver, Colorado. He came to Southern California as a young boy attending Los Angeles Polytechnic High School, Long Beach Polytechnic High School, and Pomona High School.
After a number of junior positions in architectural offices in Los Angeles, Seattle, and Fresno, he moved to Bakersfield and went to work for Edwin J. Symmes. He formed his own office in 1937 in Bakersfield. He obtained his architectural license in 1941.
Wynkoop is best known for his schools including Lakeside Union Elementary School (1942) in Bakersfield, Delano High School (1953), a high school auditorium (1952) in Clovis, and Carlmont High School (1955) in San Carlos. His design for Westside Elementary School was featured in Architectural Forum in 1949.
In 1947, Wynkoop moved his architectural practice from Bakersfield to San Francisco. By 1958, however, he had moved his office again to Santa Ana in Southern California.