Train & Williams was an architecture partnership in Los Angeles, California. A major contributor to the Arts and Crafts movement, several of the firm's works are listed as Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments and/or in the National Register of Historic Places.
Robert Farquhar Train | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 4, 1869 |
| Died | January 10, 1951 (aged 81) |
| Education | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Practice | Howard & Train (1894-1901) Howard, Train & Williams (1901-1903) Train & Williams (1903-1926+) |
Robert Farquhar Train was born in 1869 in Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England to John Farquhar Train, a commercial traveler, and Elizabeth (Hood) Train. John died in 1872 and Elizabeth in 1883. Robert had one older brother, and also grew up living with two aunts and one servant. [1] [2]
Train immigrated to the United States in 1884, first living in Illinois and Nebraska, then in Denver and Colorado Springs, Colorado, where he worked as a draughtsman. He studied architectural engineering at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where he helped design the World's Columbian Exposition. [2]
Train moved to Los Angeles in 1894, where he started a partnership with G. A. Howard Jr. [2] Train became a naturalized citizen in 1895 and in 1897, he married Vera May Creeth. [1]
According to Los Angeles voter rolls, Train was six feet tall, had blue eyes and light-colored hair, and was a lifelong Republican. [1]
Robert Edmund Williams | |
|---|---|
| Born | January 16, 1874 |
| Died | 1960 (aged 85–86) |
| Occupation | Architect |
| Practice | Howard, Train & Williams (1901-1903) Train & Williams (1903-1926+) |
Robert Edmund Williams was born in 1874 in Hespeler, Ontario, Canada to William Williams, a clergyman, and Mary Burman Williams. Robert moved to Los Angeles, California in 1895, one year after his brother and four years before his parents. [2]
Robert married Annie Pierce, year unknown, and by 1930 he was married to Jean K. Williams. Robert and Jean had one daughter, born in 1925. [2] Robert died in Tustin, Orange County, California in 1960. [3]
In 1894, Train partnered with G. A. Howard Jr. [2] Williams joined in 1901 and Howard left two years later, resulting in the partnership Train & Williams. Train & Williams was located in the Rindge Building on Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. In 1910, Train & Williams opened a branch office in Taft, California. [4] The partnership is considered one of the major contributors to the Arts and Crafts movement. [5]
Train and Williams's most notable works were done during their partnership. These works include:
Train also designed Bell High School in Bell, California, in 1925. [1]