Smith (George Washington) papers, circa 1912-circa 1930

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Summary

Title:
George Washington Smith papers
Dates:
circa 1912-circa 1930
Creators:
Smith, George Washington and Smith, George Washington
Extent:
162 Linear Feet (30 record storage boxes, 1 tube, and 43 flat file drawers)
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

George Washington Smith papers, Architecture and Design Collection. Art, Design & Architecture Museum; University of California, Santa Barbara.

Background

Scope and content:

The George Washington Smith papers span 162 linear feet and date from circa 1912 to circa 1930. The collection contains architectural drawings and reprographic copies, presentation boards, travel sketches and photographs, correspondence, specifications, project progress reports, newspaper and magazine clippings, and financial records in the form of invoices, receipts, estimates, and requisitions.

Biographical / historical:

Born in Pennsylvania on February 22, 1876, George Washington Smith began his education with the study of art and painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of fine arts, and later attended Harvard University (1895-1987) where he studied architecture, but never graduated. After leaving Harvard, Smith took a position supervising construction with Newman, Woodman and Harris, but, unhappy with the work, left to join the Francis R. Welsh bond company, where he made enough money to retire to a life of painting by 1912. After marrying, he travelled through Europe, eventually settling in Paris where he studied painting at the Académie Julian of the Ecole des Beaux Arts. Smith and his wife left Europe in 1914 at the outbreak of World War I, and settled in New York, where he continued to paint and exhibit his work. In 1915, Smith and his wife traveled to California to see one of his paintings exhibited at the Panama Pacific Exposition in San Francisco. While in California, the two decided to take a trip to Santa Barbara. After seeing Santa Barbara, Smith and his wife made the decision to settle temporarily there to wait out the war, until they could return to Europe. They rented a house in Montecito while Smith built a house for them, later known as the Heberton house, designed to resemble the Spanish farmhouses he had seen in Europe. This house brought George Washington Smith national attention when it appeared in the 1920 issue of Architectural Forum. As his neighbors asked him to build similar houses for them, Smith developed an architectural practice, with the help of Lutah Maria Riggs who joined his office in 1921. Smith became very well known nationally for his Spanish Colonial Revival style. He continued to practice architecture in Santa Barbara until his death in 1930.

Custodial history:

Gift of Lutah Maria Riggs, 1973. Additional materials gifted by M. A. Seamster in 1975, Marc Appleton in 2002, Professor Paul V. Turner in 2005 and in 2022 by Jonathan and Michael Berger in memory of Peter, Eliane, Mina and Oriel.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Alex Hauschild, Melinda Gandara, Jocelyn Gibbs, Jillian O'Connor, Jennifer Whitlock, Caitlyn Ehisen, and Chris Marino, Marlene Moser
Sponsor:
The finding aid for this collection was made possible by a Getty Foundation Archival Arrangement Description Grant.
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2025-10-21 10:13:47 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers.

Preferred citation:

George Washington Smith papers, Architecture and Design Collection. Art, Design & Architecture Museum; University of California, Santa Barbara.

Location of this collection:
University of California, Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara, CA 93106-7130, US
Contact:
(805) 893-2724
adc@museum.ucsb.edu
Website