Lilian Jeannette Rice

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Lilian Jeannette Rice
Rice c. 1910
Born(1889-06-12)June 12, 1889
National City, California, United States
DiedDecember 22, 1938(1938-12-22) (aged 49)
Rancho Santa Fe, California, United States
Occupationarchitect
DesignRancho Santa Fe, California
Websitelilianjrice.com

Lilian Jeannette Rice (June 12, 1889 – December 22, 1938) was an eco-conscious, early 20th-century American architect working primarily in the California

Spanish Colonial Revival style. Several of her works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places under spelling variation Lilian Jenette Rice.[1][2]

Biography

Rice was the daughter of Julius Augustus Rice (1854–1933) and Laura (Steele) Rice (1854–1939) and was born in

San Diego State Teacher's College (now San Diego State University).[5]

In 1921, Rice was chosen by

American Institute of Architecture, one of only a few women admitted up to that time.[5] She hired other women to work with her, including fellow Berkeley alumna Olive Chadeayne, who worked with Rice until her death.[6]

In July 1938 Rice was diagnosed with ovarian cancer by La Jolla physician Ross Paull, and on December 22 of the same year she died of the disease. At the time she was a permanent resident of Rancho Santa Fe. She was cremated and her remains were interred at La Vista Memorial Park Cemetery in National City. In later years the Rice family headstones were vandalized, but well-meaning volunteers replaced the violated headstones. It was at this time that Lilian J. Rice's birth date was incorrectly assigned. However, sponsored by Miriam W. Sellgren, a then living relative, by marriage, of Rice's, the headstone was replaced, etched with her correct birth year. Contemporaneous birth announcements in the National City Record and the San Diego Union, plus Lilian Rice's birth certificate, prove unequivocally that she was born on June 12, 1889.[7]

The Lilian J. Rice Elementary School in Chula Vista, California is named for her.[7]

A number of her buildings, especially in Rancho Santa Fe, are on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).[7]

"She insisted on three things in her designs: restraint in decoration, high-quality craftsmanship and harmony between a home and its site." read a New York Times obituary, written many years after her death as part of the "Overlooked" project.[8]

In 2018, noted the Times, she was included in Pioneering Women of American Architecture,[9] a website featuring 50 women born before 1940 who made important contributions to architecture. While Spanish Colonial Revival was not uncommon at the time, Rice was significant in making it a widespread style in California, said Mary McLeod, a professor of architecture at Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture and an editor of the website project.[10]

“She was designing and working as an independent architect and was so productive,” McLeod said in an interview. “I have wondered if California offered women more options, if there was more freedom there.”[8]

Rice designed at least 60 homes in Rancho Santa Fe, according to Welch. And while many have been greatly remodeled since they were built, Rice’s name still carries weight. “People cherish and value a Lilian Rice home,” she said.

Partial list of buildings

Rancho Santa Fe, CA

  • Charles A. Shaffer House, 5610 La Crescenta (NRHP listed)
  • Claude and Florence Terwilliger House, 5880 San Elijo (NRHP listed)
  • George A. C. Christiancy House, 17078 El Mirador (NRHP listed)
  • Inn at Rancho Santa Fe (1922)
  • Lilian Jenette Rice House, 16780 La Gracia (NRHP listed)
  • Norman and Florence B. Carmichael House, 6855 La Valle Plateada (NRHP listed)
  • Pearl Baker Row House (1926), 6122 Paseo Delicias (NRHP listed)
  • Village Gas and Service Station (1926), Rancho Santa Fe Civic Center
  • Rancho Santa Fe Garden Club (1937)
  • Rancho Santa Fe Land and Improvement Company Office, 16915 Avenida de Acacias (NRHP listed)
  • Reginald M. and Constance Clotfelter Row House (1926), 6112 Paseo Delicias (NRHP listed)
  • Samuel Bingham House, 6427 La Plateada (NRHP listed)

Other sites

  • Robinson house (1929), La Jolla, CA
  • Fleet-Rice-Hoyt House (1936–1937)
  • Martha Kinsey House, 1624 Ludington Ln., La Jolla, CA (1936; NRHP listed)
  • ZLAC Rowing Club clubhouse, Mission Bay, CA (1932) [Rice was a member of the club and its president in 1915–1916.][11]

See also

References

Notes
  1. Edmund Rice is as follows: Edmund Rice (1594–1663); Thomas Rice (1626–1681); Elisha Rice (1679–1761); Zebulon Rice (1725–1799); Eliakim Rice (1785–1834); Luther Rice (1799–1876); Azro Aritis Allen Rice (1828–1916); Julius Augustus Rice (1854–1933); Lilian Jeannette Rice (1896–1938).[4]
Citations
  1. ^ Ray Brandes (August 1990). "Lilian Rice Designed Buildings in Rancho Santa Fe MPS".
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. ^ "Julius Augustus Rice". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  4. ^ a b Edmund Rice (1638) Association, 2014. Descendants of Edmund Rice: The First Nine Generations. (CD-ROM)
  5. ^
    ISBN 978-0764349584
    .
  6. ISBN 978-0786446568
    .
  7. ^
    ISBN 978-0764334566
    .
  8. ^
    New York Times. Archived
    from the original on December 3, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  9. ^ Mary McLeod and Victoria Rosner, eds. Pioneering Women of American Architecture website.
  10. ^ Welch, Diane Y. "Lilian J. Rice". Pioneering Women of American Architecture. Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation. Archived from the original on November 30, 2018. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  11. ^ Wallace, Helen Wetzell. A History of the ZLAC Rowing Club, 1892–1992. San Diego, CA: 1992.

Further reading

External links
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