Francis W. Wilson (1870 - 1947) was an American architect. His practice in Santa Barbara, California included work for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and its associated Fred Harvey Company hotels, as well as many residences.
Wilson was born in Massachusetts and arrived in California at the age of 17 to visit his sister, a schoolteacher in Placerville. There, he worked as a log-driver on the American River and then as a surveyor for the Southern Pacific Railroad. He moved to San Francisco in the early 1890s, becoming a draftsman for the firm of Pissis and Moore, where he was instructed by architect Albert Pissis. Wilson studied at the San Francisco chapter of the American Institute of Architects and took a grand tour of Europe before establishing his own firm in Santa Barbara in 1895. [1] [2]
Shortly after arriving in Santa Barbara, Wilson designed homes for Dr. C.C. Park and General Henry J. Strong. [3] He built up a practice designing homes for the wealthy, as well as designing, building and selling speculative houses. His connections with the wealthy led to an interest in polo and amateur horse racing, and to commissions for the Santa Barbara Club, the Central Savings Bank, the Santa Barbara library, post office, and railroad station. A friendship with Edward Payson Ripley, president of the Santa Fe Railway, led to commissions for the railway and for the Fred Harvey Company, as well as a commission to design Ripley's winter home. His most extravagant residential commission, Las Tejas in the suburb of Montecito, was built in 1917 for Oakleigh Thorne. [2]
Wilson married Julia Redington, sister of Wilson's friend and fellow Santa Barbara Polo Club member Lawrence Redington, in 1905. [2]
In 1920, Wilson purchased a forty-five acre ranch in Tuolumne County, California, as well as a nearby mining company. Shortly thereafter, he divorced Redington. During the 1930s, Wilson designed several houses in or near Sonoma, California. During World War II, he took a position as a designer for at Lockheed Aircraft's plant in Burbank, California. [3]
The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States.
Dearborn Station was, beginning in the late 1800s, one of six intercity train stations serving downtown Chicago, Illinois. It remained in operation until May 1, 1971. Built in 1883, it is located at Dearborn and Polk Streets, to the south of the Loop, adjacent to Printers Row. The station was owned by the Chicago & Western Indiana Railroad, which itself was owned by the companies operating over its line. The station building headhouse now houses office, retail, and entertainment spaces, and its trackage yard, behind the headhouse, was redeveloped into part of the Dearborn Park neighborhood.
Harvey House was a hotel and restaurant chain operated by the Fred Harvey Company in Santa Fe Railroad stations in the Western United States.
Bagdad is a ghost town in the Mojave Desert, in San Bernardino County, California.
Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter was an American architect and designer. She was one of the very few female American architects in her day. She was the designer of many landmark buildings and spaces for the Fred Harvey Company and the Santa Fe Railroad, notably in Grand Canyon National Park. Her work had enormous influence as she helped to create a style, blending Spanish Colonial Revival and Mission Revival architecture with Native American motifs and Rustic elements, that became popular throughout the Southwest. Colter was a perfectionist, who spent a lifetime advocating and defending her aesthetic vision in a largely male-dominated field.
The Fred Harvey Company was the owner of the Harvey House chain of restaurants, hotels and other hospitality industry businesses alongside railroads in the Western United States. It was founded in 1876 by Fred Harvey to cater to the growing number of train passengers.
The Grand Canyon Railway is a heritage railroad which carries passengers between Williams, Arizona, and the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park.
William Barstow Strong served as president of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway from 1881 to 1889. He is often referred to as either William B. Strong or W. B. Strong.
The Grand Canyon Limited was one of the named passenger trains of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. It was train Nos. 23 & 24 between Chicago, Illinois, and Los Angeles, California.
The El Tovar Hotel, also known simply as El Tovar, is a former Harvey House hotel situated directly on the south rim of the Grand Canyon in Arizona, United States.
Winslow station is an Amtrak train station at 501 East Second Street in Winslow, Navajo County, Arizona, United States. It is served daily by Amtrak's Southwest Chief between Chicago, Illinois and Los Angeles, California. The Santa Fe Depot and La Posada Hotel Harvey House compound are the centerpiece of the La Posada Historic District.
Williams Depot is a privately owned train station in Williams, Arizona. It is the southern terminus of the Grand Canyon Railway line.
The Barstow Harvey House, also known as Harvey House Railroad Depot and Barstow station, is a historic building in Barstow, California. Originally built in 1911 as Casa del Desierto, a Harvey House hotel and Santa Fe Railroad depot, it currently serves as an Amtrak station and government building housing city offices, the Barstow Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center, and two museums.
Myron Hubbard Hunt was an American architect whose numerous projects include many noted landmarks in Southern California and Evanston, Illinois. Hunt was elected a Fellow in the American Institute of Architects in 1908.
Grand Canyon Depot, also known as Grand Canyon Railroad Station, was constructed in 1909–10 for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, in what is now Grand Canyon National Park. It is one of three remaining railroad depots in the United States built with logs as the primary structural material. The station is within 330 feet (100 m) of the rim of the canyon, opposite the El Tovar Hotel, also built by the railroad. The depot is designated a National Historic Landmark, is listed the National Register of Historic Places, and is included in the Grand Canyon Village National Historic Landmark District.
Charles Frederick Whittlesey (1867–1941) was an American architect best known for his work in the American southwest, and for pioneering work in reinforced concrete in California.
Reginald Davis Johnson (1882–1952) was an American architect. His practice, based in Pasadena, California, focused on the Los Angeles area and southern California in general, with a mixture of residential and commercial work. Johnson's later work was influenced by his progressive ideas on housing policy.
The Los Angeles and San Gabriel Valley Railroad was a railroad founded on September 5, 1883, by James F. Crank with the goal of bringing a rail line to Pasadena, California from downtown Los Angeles, the line opened in 1886. Los Angeles and San Gabriel Valley Railroad was sold and consolidated on May 20, 1887 into the California Central Railway. In 1889 this was consolidated into Southern California Railway Company. On Jan. 17, 1906 Southern California Railway was sold to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and called the Pasadena Subdivision. The main line closed in 1994. The railroad later reopened as the MTA Gold Line Light Rail service in July 2003.
The Alvarado Hotel was a historic railroad hotel which was one of the most famous landmarks of Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was built in 1901–02 by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and was operated by the Fred Harvey Company until 1970. With 120 guest rooms, it was the largest of all the Harvey hotels. Its demolition by the railroad in 1970 was described by preservationist Susan Dewitt as "the most serious loss of a landmark the city has sustained" and helped mobilize stronger support for historic preservation efforts in the city.
The Castañeda Hotel is a historic railroad hotel located in Las Vegas, New Mexico. It was built in 1898 and 1899 by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, and was operated by the Fred Harvey Company until 1948. After being mostly vacant for many years, the hotel was restored and reopened in 2019. The Castañeda was listed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties in 1974 and the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 as a contributing property in the Railroad Avenue Historic District. It is located adjacent to the Las Vegas railroad station.
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(help) and Accompanying 19 photos, exterior, from 1985. (3.03 MB)