Smith, George Washington, 1876-1930

Biographical Note

Born in Pennsylvania in 1876, George Washington Smith was the son of a respected civil engineer for Southern Pacific Railroad Atlantic and Pacific Railway. He began his education with the study of art and painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of fine arts, and later attended Harvard University where he studied architecture. He began his career as a draftsman with Newman, Woodman and Harris, but soon after, took a position with the Francis R. Welsh bond company where he made enough money to retire to a life of painting by 1912.

Smith married Mary Catherine Greenough on April 10, 1912 and begin a new stage in his life. They traveled to Europe for their honeymoon on the RMS Carpathia and toured Europe, eventually settling in Paris where Smith studied at the Academie Julien. Smith and his wife left Europe in 1914 at the outbreak of World War I. They rented a house known as Greenacres in Montecito, until their own house was built on Middle Road in Montecito. This house, which later came to be known as the Heberton house (1920), brought George Washington Smith national attention when it appeared in the 1920 issue of Architectural Forum. In some respects, this house became the standard by which the best work of Spanish revivalism should be judged. The house became a mission statement for George Washington Smith future work.

David Gephardt once noted, "George Washington Smith was one of the first of the major California architects to conceive of the close relationship between the building itself and the gardens, drive, and open spaces around it."

The George Washington Smith collection features some of the finest houses built in the Santa Barbara in Montecito area. The collection contains many important drawings and photographs from George Washington Smith career. Researchers may contact the ADC and arrange a visit to the collection by appointment.

References Gebhard, P., Smith, G. W., & Gibbs Smith, Publisher. (2005). George Washington Smith: Architect of the Spanish colonial revival. Salt Lake City: Gibbs Smith.

From the guide to the George Washington Smith Collection, 1900-1932, (Architecture & Design Collection)