Myron Hubbard Hunt (February 27, 1868 – May 26, 1952) was an American architect whose numerous projects include many noted landmarks in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...

and

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...

. Hunt was elected a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

in the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to s ...

in 1908.

Early life and education

Hunt was born in

Sunderland, Massachusetts Sunderland is a town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States, part of the Pioneer Valley. The population was 3,663 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. Sunderland was first set ...

but his family later moved to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

where he graduated from Lake View High School in the city's Lakeview district. From 1888 to 1890 he attended

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, and then returned to Massachusetts to study at MIT between 1890 and 1893. He graduated with a B.S. in Architecture from MIT in 1893. After spending three years in Europe, he returned to Evanston where he obtained a position as draftsman in the local office of the Boston firm of

Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge was a successful architecture firm based in Boston, Massachusetts, operating between 1886 and 1915, with extensive commissions in monumental civic, religious, and collegiate architecture in the spirit and style of Henry ...

. He married Harriette Boardman and his son was poet Robert Hunt, long-time partner of

Witter Bynner Harold Witter Bynner (August 10, 1881 – June 1, 1968), also known by the pen name Emanuel Morgan, was an American poet and translator. He was known for his long residence in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and association with other literary figures the ...

Career

Myron Hunt house, 200 North Grand Avenue, Pasadena, California

Hunt is mentioned in the writings of

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...

and other Chicago architects of the era as an early member of the group which came to be known as the

Prairie School Prairie School is a late 19th- and early 20th-century architectural style, most common in the Midwestern United States. The style is usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped ...

, but in 1903 he moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, where he entered into a partnership with architect

Elmer Grey Elmer Grey, FAIA (April 29, 1872 – November 14, 1963) was an American architect and artist based in Pasadena, California. Grey designed many noted landmarks in Southern California, including the Beverly Hills Hotel, the Huntington Art Gall ...

(1871–1963). Opening an office in Pasadena, the firm of Hunt and Grey soon became popular with the well-to-do denizens of that city, who were building many costly houses during that period. Some of the firm's Pasadena work was featured in the national magazine ''

Architectural Record ''Architectural Record'' is a US-based monthly magazine dedicated to architecture and interior design. "The Record," as it is sometimes colloquially referred to, is widely-recognized as an important historical record of the unfolding debates in a ...

'' as early as the issue of October, 1906. They were soon designing large houses in communities throughout Southern California including the summer ranch home for cereal magnate

Will Keith Kellogg William Keith Kellogg (April 7, 1860 – October 6, 1951), generally referred to as W.K. Kellogg, was an American industrialist in food manufacturing, best known as the founder of the Kellogg Company, which produces a wide variety of popular ...

at the present day campus of

California State Polytechnic University, Pomona California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona, CPP, or Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in San Luis Obispo. See the ''name'' section of this article for more infor ...

(Cal Poly Pomona). They also began receiving commissions to design larger projects, including hospitals, schools, churches and hotels. This included work for Throop Institute in Pasadena, the school which would soon become

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...

. In 1911, they began plans for the new campus of

Occidental College Occidental College (informally Oxy) is a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887 as a coeducational college by clergy and members of the Presbyterian Church, it became non-sectarian in 1910. It is one of the oldes ...

in the Eagle Rock district of Los Angeles. (Hunt would be the principal architect of all of Occidental's buildings through 1940.) Another school with which the firm had an association was

Pomona College Pomona College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Claremont, California. It was established in 1887 by a group of Congregationalists who wanted to recreate a "college of the New England type" in Southern California. In 1925, it became t ...

, for which Hunt and Grey designed a master plan of expansion in 1908, and where Hunt designed a concert hall, Bridges Hall of Music, in 1915. Bridges Hall of Music Interior, Pomona College

Bridges Hall of Music Interior, Pomona College

In 1913, Hunt and Grey designed a new wing for the Mission Inn in

Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...

. They provided designs for the remodeling, expansion, or construction of a number of hotels during the next decade, culminating with the plans for their largest such project, the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, which opened in 1921. Hunt also redesigned Pasadena's Wentworth Hotel, a failed resort hotel in the city's Oak Knoll residential district purchased by

Henry E. Huntington Henry Edwards Huntington (February 27, 1850 – May 23, 1927) was an American railroad magnate and collector of art and rare books. Huntington settled in Los Angeles, where he owned the Pacific Electric Railway as well as substantial real estate ...

in 1911. Rebuilt to Hunt's design, the hotel reopened as the Huntington Hotel in 1914 and was Pasadena's leading hotel for decades thereafter. In 1921, he transformed the Vista Hotel into one of the premier resorts in Pasadena, designing several of the hotel's original bungalows. Hunt and Grey's association with Henry Huntington had been established a few years earlier when, in 1909, they designed his house in

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

. With a large addition built in 1934, the house was to become the main art gallery of the cultural center built around the

Huntington Library The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens, known as The Huntington, is a collections-based educational and research institution established by Henry E. Huntington (1850–1927) and Arabella Huntington (c.1851–1924) in San Ma ...

. Later in his career, Hunt would design a new main building for the hospital that bore Huntington's name. Another Pasadena landmark designed by Hunt is the Rose Bowl. In 1927 Hunt designed a hotel for Senator Frank P. Flint, which was quickly sold to the Biltmore chain of hotels. Due to the Great Depression, the hotel was sold in 1931 to the Dominican Sister of Mission San Jose, who founded Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, an all-girls' day and boarding high school. By 1912, Hunt was no longer in partnership with

, but had established a new firm with Los Angeles architect Harold C. Chambers. In this partnership Hunt designed a number of California libraries, including those in Redlands,

Palos Verdes Estates Palos Verdes Estates (''Palos Verdes'', Spanish for "Green Sticks") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The city was master-planned by the noted American landscape architect and p ...

(Malaga Cove Library), Santa Barbara, and most notably the Pasadena Central Library, one of the three major civic buildings making up the Pasadena Civic Center District. In 1913, he designed a building for the Standard Oil Company in Los Angeles which they occupied until 1928 and it became a storage facility. From 1975-1991, the building was occupied by a feminist art center called the Woman's Building and was recommended for Historic-Cultural Monument status in 2018. The report states that the building "embodies the distinguishing characteristics of an architectural-type specimen, inherently valuable for study of a period, style, or method of construction as an excellent and highly intact example of Beaux Arts architecture applied to an industrial building. Hunt retired to

Port Hueneme, California Port Hueneme ( ; Chumash: ''Wene Me'') is a small beach city in Ventura County, California, surrounded by the city of Oxnard and the Santa Barbara Channel. Both the Port of Hueneme and Naval Base Ventura County lie within the city limits. P ...

near

Berylwood Berylwood (also known as the Thomas R. Bard Estate) was the home of Thomas R. Bard, who was influential in the formation of Ventura County as a landowner, entrepreneur, and politician. Located in Port Hueneme, California within Naval Base Ventur ...

that he designed for the home of Senator Thomas R. Bard. He died there in 1952.

Myron Hunt projects

*1895, 1731 Wesley Avenue,

, for Charles A. Wightman *1896, 1627 Wesley Avenue,

, his own house *1896, 1600-02 Ashland Avenue,

, for Harvey B. Hurd *1897, 1307-13 Ridge Avenue,

, for Catherine White *1897, apartment buildings Hereford, Boylston, Cambridge *1897, 1580 Ashland Avenue,

, for Harvey B. Hurd *1897, 1414 Church Street,

, for George R. Jenkins *1897, 1621 Wesley Avenue,

, for Arthur S. Van Duesen *1898, 1570-74 Ashland Avenue,

, for Harvey B. Hurd *1898, 1827 Asbury Avenue,

, for John R. Woodridge *1898, 1330 Church Street,

, for John Taylor Pirie, Jr. *1898, 930 Michigan Avenue,

, for John E. Nolan *1898, 1228 Oak Avenue,

, for William G. Sherer *1898, 1217 Ridge Avenue,

, for Chancellor Livingston Jenks, Jr. *1898-99, 1401 Davis Street,

, for Harlow N. Higinbotham *1898-99, 1411-15 Davis Street,

, for Harlow N. Higinbotham *1898-99, 1606 Wesley Avenue,

, for Harlow N. Higinbotham *Phoebe Apperson Hearst Campus Plan Competition for

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...

(1898–99) – Hunt Entry. *1899, 1140 Forest Avenue,

, for James A. Lawrence *1899, 1032-34 Michigan Avenue,

, for Nina Drain *1901, 815-817 Monroe Street,

, for Michael L. O'Malia *1902, Potter Hotel

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning " Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West ...

. *1903, 201 Garfield Street,

Harvard, Illinois Harvard is a city located in McHenry County, Illinois. The population was 9,469 at the 2020 census. The city is 63 miles from the Chicago Loop and it is the last stop on the Union Pacific/Northwest Line. History The original owners of the l ...

, for Harvard mayor William D. Hall

Hunt and Grey (1903–1910)

Hunt and Grey, Architects—the partnership firm with

, from 1903 to 1910. *

Mount Wilson Observatory The Mount Wilson Observatory (MWO) is an astronomical observatory in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The MWO is located on Mount Wilson, a peak in the San Gabriel Mountains near Pasadena, northeast of Los Angeles. The observat ...

and complex (1904–1913) – for the Carnegie Institution, on Mount Wilson in the

San Gabriel Mountains The San Gabriel Mountains ( es, Sierra de San Gabriel) are a mountain range located in northern Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range is part of the Transverse Ranges and lies betw ...

. *James Waldron Gillespie House (design 1902) –

Montecito, California Montecito (Spanish for "Little mountain") is an unincorporated town and census-designated place in Santa Barbara County, California.McCormack, Don (1999). ''McCormack's Guides Santa Barbara and Ventura 2000''. Mccormacks Guides. p. 58. . Located ...

El Fureidis El Fureidis (Arabic for "Little Paradise") is a historic estate built in 1906 on in Montecito, California. Originally called the James Waldron Gillespie Estate or Gillespie Palace after its original owner, the Spanish Baroque & Neo-Mudéjar ar ...

, designed by

Bertram Goodhue Bertram Grosvenor Goodhue (April 28, 1869 – April 23, 1924) was an American architect celebrated for his work in Gothic Revival and Spanish Colonial Revival design. He also designed notable typefaces, including Cheltenham and Merrymount for ...

, was built on site in 1906. *Myron Hunt house, 200 North Grand Avenue,

Pasadena, California Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. ...

(1905) *Montecito Hot Springs Hotel (1905–1906) –

. *Wentworth Hotel (1905–1907) –

. *Polytechnic Elementary School (1909) –

. *Throop Polytechnic Institute, Campus Plan (1907–1908) – present day

campus,

. *Westmoreland Place House (1909) –

(with Greene and Greene-designed gates). *Gartz Court (1910) –

Myron Hunt office (1910–1920)

Myron Hunt, Architect—the firm of Myron Hunt, from 1910 to 1920. * Mabel Shaw Bridges Hall of Music, "Little Bridges" (1915) –

Claremont, California Claremont () is a suburban city on the eastern edge of Los Angeles County, California, United States, east of downtown Los Angeles. It is in the Pomona Valley, at the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. As of the 2010 census it had a popu ...

. * Ambassador Hotel (1919–1921) –

Wilshire Boulevard Wilshire Boulevard is a prominent boulevard in the Los Angeles area of Southern California, extending from Ocean Avenue in the city of Santa Monica east to Grand Avenue in the Financial District of downtown Los Angeles. One of the principal ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

(demolished). * First Congregational Church of Riverside (1913) – Mission Inn Avenue,

. *Hotel Maryland (1903–1904),

* The Huntington Hotel – Oak Knoll,

. * Huntington Mansion (1907–1910) – for

Arabella ''Arabella'', Op. 79, is a lyric comedy, or opera, in three acts by Richard Strauss to a German libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, their sixth and last operatic collaboration. Performance history It was first performed on 1 July 1933 at the Dr ...

and

, San Marino Ranch, San Marino, California.Huntington.org: "About Henry E. Huntington"
/ref> *

(1919) – Arabella and Henry E. Huntington, San Marino Ranch, San Marino, California. *Mary Stewart House (1918) –

. *

– Eagle Rock,

, master plan; Hunt remained principal architect to 1940. * Kellogg Ranch – estate residence and equestrian stables near

Pomona, California Pomona is a city in Los Angeles County, California. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 census, the city's population was 151,713. The main campus of California State Polyt ...

, on present day

campus. *

Villa Carlotta Villa Carlotta is a villa and botanical garden in Tremezzo on Lake Como in Northern Italy. Today the villa is a museum, whose collection includes works by sculptors such as Antonio Canova, Bertel Thorvaldsen, and Giovanni Migliara; painters such ...

(1917) – for Anna and Francis Raymond Welles,

Altadena, California Altadena () ("Alta", Spanish for "Upper", and "dena" from Pasadena) is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in the Verdugo Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, approximately 14 miles (23 km) from the down ...

. *1913, 1727 N. Spring Street,

. Standard Oil Company Sales Department Building.

Hunt and Chambers (1920–1947)

Hunt and Chambers, Architects—the partnership firm with Harold Coulson Chambers, from 1912 to 1947. Chambers started working with Hunt as a draftsman in 1907, and worked his way to becoming a Partner in 1920. *San Marcos Hotel (1912–1913) –

Chandler, Arizona Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). It is bordered to the north and west by Tempe, to the north by Mesa, to the west by Phoenix, to t ...

. *Amelia Seibert House (1912) – Oak Knoll,

. *Red Hill Country Club (1922) –

Rancho Cucamonga, California Rancho Cucamonga ( ) is a city located just south of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and Angeles National Forest in San Bernardino County, California, United States. About east of Downtown Los Angeles, Rancho Cucamonga is the 28 ...

. *Malaga Cove Library—Palos Verdes Public Library and Art Gallery (designed 1923, built 1928–1930), at 2400 Via Campesina,

Palos Verdes Estates, California Palos Verdes Estates (''Palos Verdes'', Spanish for "Green Sticks") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The city was master-planned by the noted American landscape architect and ...

, on the National Register of Historic Places. * Rose Bowl (1922) -

. *Pasadena Central Library (1924) – Pasadena Civic Center District,

. *Point Loma Hotel Project (1924) – Point Loma,

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...

. *La Arcada Plaza (1926) – State Street,

. *County National Bank Building (1924–1927) –

. * Flintridge Biltmore Hotel (1927) –

La Cañada Flintridge, California La Cañada Flintridge, commonly known as "La Cañada" (Spanish for "The Canyon"), is a city in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains in Los Angeles County, California. Located in the Crescenta Valley, in the western edge of Southern Califor ...

. * Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. House (1927) –

. *W.S. Weith House (1927) –

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

. *Redlands Community Hospital (1927) –

Redlands, California Redlands ( ) is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 73,168, up from 68,747 at the 2010 census. The city is located approximately west of Palm Springs and east of ...

. *100 Los Altos Dr. (1928) –

. *

I. Magnin I. Magnin & Company was a San Francisco, California-based high fashion and specialty goods luxury department store. Over the course of its existence, it expanded across the West into Southern California and the adjoining states of Arizona, Oregon ...

Department Store (1939) –

, near

Bullocks Wilshire Bullocks Wilshire, located at 3050 Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, is a Art Deco building. The building opened in September 1929 as a luxury department store for owner John G. Bullock (owner of the more mainstream Bullock's in D ...

, Mid-Wilshire district of

. *

Department Store (1939) –

(present day Saks Fifth Avenue). *

Huntington Memorial Hospital Huntington may refer to: Places Canada * Huntington, Nova Scotia New Zealand * Huntington, New Zealand a suburb in Hamilton, New Zealand United Kingdom * Huntington, Cheshire, England * Huntington, East Lothian, Scotland * Huntingto ...

(Main Building, 1940) –

. *Encino Hacienda (1941) – Encino,

San Fernando Valley The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...

.LA Curbed: Encino Hacienda
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunt, Myron 1868 births 1952 deaths American neoclassical architects Beaux Arts architects Historicist architects Spanish Revival architects Spanish Colonial Revival architects Architects from Los Angeles Architects from Pasadena, California Fellows of the American Institute of Architects History of Los Angeles History of Los Angeles County, California People associated with the Huntington Library 20th-century American architects People from Port Hueneme, California People from Evanston, Illinois Architects from Illinois