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Walter T. Steilberg Collection, ca. 1910-1974
1973-1
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Collection Title: Walter T. Steilberg Collection,
Date (inclusive): ca. 1910-1974
Collection Number: 1973-1
Creator:
Steilberg, Walter T., 1817-1974
Extent: 12 boxes, 5 card file boxes, 10 flat file drawers, ca. 35 tubes
Repository: Environmental Design Archives. College of Environmental Design. University of California, Berkeley. Berkeley, California
Language:
English.
Collection is open for research.
All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from materials in the collection should be discussed with the
Director.
[Identification of item], Walter T. Steilberg Collection, (1973-1), Environmental Design Archives. College of Environmental
Design. University of California, Berkeley. Berkeley, California
Architects--California.
Architecture--California.
Building materials.
Buildings--California--Earthquake effects.
Structural engineering.
Berkeley (Calif.)--Fire, 1923.
Sather Tower (Berkeley, Calif.)
University of California, Berkeley -- Buildings.
Morgan, Julia, 1872-1957
Dailey, Gardner, 1895-
Walter T. Steilberg was born in 1887 in Louisville, Kentucky. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in
1910 with a bachelor's degree in architecture and a minor in structural engineering.
Steilberg worked with Julia Morgan from 1910-1920 as draftsman , architect, office manager, and structural engineer. In 1920
he formed his own architecture and consulting firm, and designed the Berkeley College Women's Club, Claremont Junior High
School in Oakland, the Pavilion at Lake Merritt, and numerous residential projects. In addition, he designed buildings on
many University of California Campuses, and directed the preservation of Sather Tower. He also supervised the dismantling
of Spanish monastery in Santa Marin de Oliva, Spain. The building was shipped piece by piece to San Francisco as a gift to
the city from William Randolph Hearst, but was never reassembled. As a consultant, Steilberg collaborated with Gardner Dailey
on many projects.
Steilberg became an expert in seismic architecture and engineering issues. He researched and wrote a book entitled "Earthquakes
Made Simple," presented illustrated lectures, and collected reference materials on the subject. Additionally, he did extensive
experimental research in concrete.
He was a member of the American Institute of Architects, the Seismological Institute and the Concrete Institute of America.
Steilberg died in 1974 at the age of 88.
Sources:
University of California job application, 1942 (folder II.1)
University of California job application, 1942 (folder II.1)
"W. T. Steilberg Dies; San Simeon Designer," San Francisco Sunday Examiner and Chronicle: 8 December 1974: 4.
The Walter Steilberg Collection spans the years 1910-1973 and documents Steilberg's engineering and architectural careers,
as well as his own research into building materials and the structural effects of earthquakes. The collection is organized
into five series: Personal Papers, Professional Papers, Office Records, Project Records, and University of California.
Steilberg's personal papers are minimal, consisting of his student drawings. His professional papers, which contain correspondence,
collected articles, writings and photographs, are more thorough. These records are primarily related to earthquakes throughout
California and in other states. The Berkeley fire of 1923, the structural characteristics of concrete and the effects of termites
are also documented. Office records include correspondence to various trade publications and product literature.
Steilberg's project records include correspondence, notes, reports, photographs and drawings documenting both his consulting
and design work. Projects for the University of California, including the Sather Tower renovation, are well-represented. The
project records also contain correspondence between Steilberg and architect Gardner Dailey, and biographical information on
Julia Morgan.
Title: Interviews with Walter Steilberg and related material,
Identifier/Call Number: BANC MSS 77/97,
Contributing Institution: The Bancroft Library
Title: Gardner Dailey Collection,
Identifier/Call Number: 1988-1,
Contributing Institution: Environmental Design Archives
Title: Julia Morgan Collection,
Identifier/Call Number: 1959-2,
Contributing Institution: Environmental Design Archives