Finding Aid for the Francis T. Underhill papers, circa 1896-circa 1925
0000188
Finding aid prepared by Chris Marino
The processing of this collection was made possible through generous funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, administered
through the Council on Library and Information Resources “Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives” Project.
Architecture and Design Collection, Art, Design & Architecture Museum
Arts Building Room 1434
University of California
Santa Barbara, California, 93106-7130
805-893-2724
adc@museum.ucsb.edu
10/10/2012
Title: Francis T. Underhill papers
Identifier/Call Number: 0000188
Contributing Institution:
Architecture and Design Collection, Art, Design & Architecture Museum
Language of Material:
English
Physical Description:
9.0 Linear feet
(3 record storage boxes and 2 flat file folders)
Date (inclusive): circa 1896-circa 1925
Location note: Box 1/ADC - regular Box 2-3/ADC - oversize* 2 Flat File Folders/ADC - flat files misc.
creator:
Underhill, Francis T., 1863-1929
Access
Partially processed collection, open for use by qualified researchers.
Custodial History note
Gift of Miss Frederica Poett, 1964.
Preferred Citation note
Francis T. Underhill papers, Architecture and Design Collection. Art, Design & Architecture Museum; University of California,
Santa Barbara.
Biographical/Historical note
Francis T. Underhill was born in New York in 1863. Not able to attend university because of poor health, Underhill traveled
around Europe with a private tutor studying architecture and landscape architecture. Underhill designed and built his own
estate on Long Island, along with the gardens and furnishing. At age 20, he married Henrietta Graham Meyer. In 1884, Underhill
made the decision to move his family West. He purchased the Ontare Ranch, chartered several rail cards, and filled them with
sheep, Holstein cattle, farm equipment, and supplies. Arriving in Los Angeles, the entire family took wagons and carriages
to Santa Barbara.
In Santa Barbara Underhill made some profitable investments including establishing a sightseeing stage line from Santa Barbara
to the San Marcos Pass and purchasing a racetrack. In 1896, Underhill published a book entitled
Driving for Pleasure, that dealt with horse equipment and riding. In 1900, Underhill divorced Henrietta and married Carmen Dibblee. From 1902
to 1903, Underhill designed and built a small cottage on six parcels of land, but shortly after the residence was built, he
left town to join the Pacific Mail Steamship Company in San Francisco followed by serving a term as the secretary to the Union
Pacific Railroad. When he returned to his cottage in 1904 he designed a large single-story redwood bungalow which he named
La Chiquita (which is now part of the Santa Barbara Biltmore Hotel complex). This creation was listed as one of the twelve
best country houses in American by Henry H. Saylor who wrote for
Country Life in America in 1915. After the publicity surrounding La Chiquita, Underhill began receiving commissions. For the next ten years (circa
1915 to 1925), Underhill designed 32 houses and several gardens. Some of his more notable projects include: Villa de la Guerra,
the Peabody residence, the Solana, the Roman bathhouse and lower garden for George Owen Knapp’s Arcady, and landscape contributions
to the Casa del Herrero. His residential designs varied from Classical Greek and Roman edifices to English manors and Mediterranean
villas. At the tail end of his career in architecture, Underhill began breeding hogs, he bred seven generations of hogs at
his ranch in Montecito in an effort to produce a breed that would be “foolproof.” Francis T. Underhill died in 1929.
Scope and Content note
The Francis T. Underhill papers span 9 linear feet and date from circa 1896 to circa 1925. The collection is composed of scrapbooks
containing newspaper and magazine clippings regarding Underhill’s book
Driving for Pleasure and hog breeding; Mrs. Underhill’s travel scrapbook; a copy of Underhill’s
Driving for Pleasure book; a copy of Underhill’s essay on his hog breeding; his 1918 tax audit; correspondence regarding animal breeding; a letter
from President Roosevelt; photographs and negatives of his architectural projects; two flat file folders of architectural
drawings and reprographic copies for the Ward and Dibble residences; telegrams regarding horse competitions; and Underhill’s
hog breeding lineages and logs.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Underhill, Francis T., 1863-1929
Architectural photographs
Letters
Scrapbooks
Personal Papers
1894-1959
Scope and Contents note
This series contains books and scrapbooks owned by Underhill, correspondence between Underhill and other horse owners and
hog breeders, a pedigree list of his hogs, and numerous materials about the Underhill family. It also includes clippings of
Underhill's engagement to Carmelita Dibblee, who was from a prominent Santa Barbara family.
Box 1, Folder 7
Engagement and marriage to Carmelita Dibblee
1906
Box 1, Folder 8
Hog Breeding in Santa Barbara articles
circa 1926
Box 1, Folder 1
Horse Riding Competition articles
1894-1924
Box 1, Folder 9
Horse Show and Riding correspondence
1895-1921
Box 1, Folder 10
Horse Show Telegrams
1899-1909
Box 2*
Pedigree List of Hampshire Boar
1916-1919
Scope and Contents note
Handwritten pages of breeding history of hogs.
Box 1, Folder 3
Underhill family articles and clippings
1899-1960
Box 1, Folder 5
Underhill, Francis newspaper writings by
1907-1909
Box 1, Folder 6
Underhill, Francis obituary
1929, 1959
Box 1, Folder 4
Underhill Society of America / Captain John Underhill
1908-1959
Box 1, Folder 15
Klink, Bean & Company
1918
Box 1, Folder 11
Reminton, Frederic
undated
Box 1, Folder 12
Stockwell, H.K. letters from
circa 1923-1924
Box 1, Folder 14
Stockwell, H.K. letters to
1922-1925
Box 1, Folder 16
Underhill Society of America
1926
Box 1, Folder 17
Whitehead, Ralph Radcliffe
1915
Box 3*
A Brief Essay on the Evolution of a Hampshire Herd with Reflections on the Art of Animal Breeding by Francis Underhill
1925
Box 3*
Driving for Pleasure or, the Harness Stable and its Appointments by Francis Underhill
1897
Box 3*
Nevves from America by Captaine John Underhill
1951
Box 3*
Scrapbook-- Mary Louisa Underhill
1869
Box 3*
Scrapbook -- Driving for Pleasure
1896-1897
Scope and Contents note
Collection of articles about Francis Underhills' book
Driving for Pleasure; newspaper articles glued onto scrapbook pages.
Projects
1894-1920
Scope and Contents note
This series consists of articles and clippings, photographs, and and drawings of projects designed by Underhill. Architectural
drawings of the Dibblee and Ward homes, photographs of the some of his work in Montecito, as well as photographs and clippings
of Underhill's own houses. It also contains many postcards and promotional photographs of Spain-- its people and cultural
landmarks.
Box 1, Folder 19
Bacon house (Montecito, Calif.)
undated
Scope and Contents note
Photographs of waterfall and landscaping; possibly the Chatfield-Taylor house?
Box 1, Folder 20
Bartlett Polo Club Building (Montecito, Calif.)
undated
Box 1, Folder 21, Box 1, Folder 40
Billings, C.K.G. house (Montecito, Calif.)
1918
Box 1, Folder 22
Bolot, George C. house
undated
Box 1, Folder 18
Chatfield-Taylor, Hobart "Farafield" (Montecito, Calif.)
undated
Scope and Contents note
Exterior photographs of house and garden.
Box 1, Folder 23
Coleman house (Montecito, Calif.)
circa 1913
Box 1, Folder 24, Drawer 543, FlatFile 1
Dibblee, Franscesca house 333 Junipero Plaza (Santa Barbara, Calif.)
circa 1910
Scope and Contents note
2 drawings and one negative of floor plan and landscape plan.
Box 1, Folder 25
Douglas, Walter house
undated
Box 1, Folder 32
Knapp, George Owen house "Arcady" (Montecito, Calif.)
undated
Box 1, Folder 33
Miscellaneous clippings
undated
Scope and Contents note
Miscellaneous clippings about applications of ancient technology.
Box 1, Folder 26
Norton, Mary house (Montecito, Calif.)
undated
Box 1, Folder 27, Box 1, Folder 41
Peabody house (Montecito, Calif.)
circa 1917
Box 1, Folder 28
Spanish architecture travel photographs and postcards
circa 1910s
Scope and Contents note
Handwritten captions on back in German.
Box 1, Folder 29
Spanish art and sculpture postcards
undated
Box 1, Folder 30
Spanish Peasant photos and postcards
undated
Box 1, Folder 31
Spanish and Native American textiles and people
undated
Box 1, Folder 2
Underhill, Francis house (Montecito, Calif.)
1902, 1909, 1915
Scope and Contents note
Articles and clippings about Underhill's own house; includes handwritten list of projects.
Box 1, Folder 34
Underhill, Francis house "Los Alisos Ranch" (Montecito, Calif.)
circa 1910-1920
Box 1, Folder 35
Underhill, Francis house "La Chiquita" (Montecito, Calif.)
circa 1904-1905
Box 1, Folder 36
Underhill, Francis portraits
1894-1918
Box 1, Folder 37
Unidentified Photographs
undated
Scope and Contents note
Unidentified photographs of a woman, loggia, San Marcos pass, and horse with carriage.
Drawer 543, FlatFile 2
Ward, Willis house (Montecito, Calif.)
1915-1916
Scope and Contents note
17 drawings of plans, sections, elevations, and details.
Box 1, Folder 38
Wetmor, Arthur Oglivy house (Montecito, Calif.)
undated
