Episode 09: Louise Bethune
Jennie Louise “Lulu” Blanchard was the first woman to practice architecture in the United States. She was born on July 21, 1856 in Waterloo, New York. Her family moved to Buffalo and she attended high school there. She planned to attend Cornell University to study architecture, but chose to work as a draftsman under architect Richard A. Waite in Buffalo for five years to learn the trade. In 1881, she left Waite’s office and started her own firm. The same year, she married Robert Bethune, a fellow architect, and he joined her at her firm, Bethune & Bethune. They worked on many school projects in Buffalo, but Louise refused to be put into one category as an architect, so they took any commission they could get, and worked on a variety of buildings; commercial and industrial buildings, schools, a police station, a church, and a prison. Louise made sure to use the latest technological developments in sanitation, ventilation, and fireproofing in her buildings, and designed some of the first steel-frame construction with fire-resistant slabs. In 1883, she and Robert had one son Charles W. Bethune. Louise became the first female member of the AIA in 1888, and the first female fellow of the AIA. She was a staunch supporter of women in the profession and spoke out often about it and for ‘equal pay for equal work’. Her firm stayed open until 1910, and she passed away on December 18, 1913 at the age of 57.
Caryatid: Jane Frederick, FAIA
Jane Frederick is the current president of the AIA, and a fellow at the AIA. She graduated from Auburn University, where she met her husband in studio. They started a firm together in South Carolina called Frederick + Frederick. The firm does primarily residential and restoration projects. They focus on working with and adapting to the environment and how it can be used to their advantage. They also use new technology to get buildings closer to “net-zero”, where all the building’s energy is produced on-site. Jane also ran for the US House of Representatives in 1998. As president of the AIA, she is trying to promote action on climate within the building profession, and also advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion.
References
Lewis, Anna M. “Beatrix Farrand.” Women of Steel and Stone: 22 Inspirational Architects, Engineers, and Landscape Designers, 11–20. United States: Chicago Review Press, 2017.
Lewis, Anna M. “Louise Bethune” Women of Steel and Stone: 22 Inspirational Architects, Engineers, and Landscape Designers. 167–75. United States: Chicago Review Press, 2017.
Hayes McAlonie, Kelly “Louise Blanchard Bethune.” Pioneering Women of American Architecture, pioneeringwomen.bwaf.org/louise-blanchard-bethune. Accessed 9 July 2020.
Ferro, Shaunacy. “A Century After Her Death, America’s First Female Architect Gets Her Due.” Fast Company, 18 Dec. 2013, www.fastcompany.com/3023654/a-century-after-her-death-americas-first-female-architect-gets-her-due.
Herscovici, Derek. “Designing a Sustainable Future: Jane Frederick ’82.” Auburn Alumni Association, www.alumni.auburn.edu/designing-a-sustainable-future-jane-frederick-82. Accessed 10 July 2020
Images can be found on the website Pioneering Women of American Architecture - Curated by the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation
