Julia Morgan Built A Castle by Celeste Davidson Mannis

Julia Morgan was born in 1872 in Oakland, a city on San Francisco Bay. Julia's father was an engineer at a time when cities like San Francisco were rapidly growing. He often took his young family on tours around various construction sites, giving Julia the opportunity to see how buildings were constructed. They frequently visited her cousin, Pierre LeBrun an architect working in New York City. Julia dreamed of being an architect like her cousin but this profession was not considered suitable for a young woman.

In 1890, Julia was accepted into the University of California at Berkeley's engineering program - the only woman in her class. When she graduated in 1895, Julia was hired by Bernard Maybeck, one of her professors who had studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. This school was renowned throughout the world but was closed to women. However, times were beginning to change and there were rumours the school might soon open to women students.

Hopeful that this would happen, Julia moved to Paris where she studied the architecture of Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower as well as many other buildings. Julia spent time sketching and making notes and she eventually studied at the studios of two Parisian architects. The Ecole des Beaux-Arts however remained closed to her until 1897 when she was allowed to take the school's exam. Julia was made to write it three times before she was finally accepted in October of 1898. She graduated from the school in 1902, at the age of thirty, winning the first place medal for her design project on a theatre.

Eventually Julia returned to the United States and opened her own business in San Francisco. Most of her buildings survived the devastating earthquake of 1906. In 1919, William Randolph Hearst, a wealthy newspaper publisher commissioned Julia to build his home on land he owned in the Santa Lucia Mountains. This project would occupy more than half of Julia Morgan's fifty-year career as an architect.

Discussion

Julia Morgan

Julia Morgan Built A Castle portrays the life of famous architect Julia Morgan who is probably best known for her design and building of the Hearst Castle, the residence of William Randolph Hearst at his ranch in San Simeon, California. Julia was both an engineer and architect by training, two disciplines which helped her excel in her work.  Hearst Castle is a stunning example of the melding of architecture and engineering.

Mannis captures Julia Morgan's determination to follow her own dream of becoming an architect. She, like many other women of this era, had to prove themselves above and beyond what was required of men. Many obstacles were placed in her path; she had to write the entrance exam to L'Ecole des Beaux Arts three times and when the requirement that certificates be completed by age thirty, Julia completed hers in three years instead of the normal five years.

Women were thought incapable of working as architects, and it was believed they could not understand the construction of buildings. Yet Julia's bell tower, on the Mills College campus in Oakland withstood the 1906 San Francisco earthquake which leveled almost all buildings in the vicinity. Eventually, her work spoke for itself, earning her the reputation as an outstanding architect.

Although Julia Morgan worked on and completed numerous other projects while working on Hearst Castle, it was one of her best known works. Construction stopped in 1947 on the estate which Hearst called "La Cuesta Encantada" or Enchanted Hill. You can learn more about the Hearst Castle here.

Mannis' text is enhanced by the rich, earthy tones of illustrator Miles Hyman. His bold artwork with solid lines and strong colours, mirrors Julia's determined approach to life. The author has included a special note at the back with more details about Julia Morgan, but there are no photos of this famous woman architect nor of any of the buildings she designed.

image credit: https://www.californiamuseum.org/inductee/julia-morgan

Book Details:

Julia Morgan Built A Castle by Celeste Davidson Mannis
New York: Viking      2006