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Paul. R. William photo By Charles Alston

Top 10 Facts About Famous Architect Paul Williams

Paul Williams was born on February 18, 1894, in Los Angeles, California, U.S. and died on January 23, 1980, in Los Angeles, California, U.S. He was an American architect based in Los Angeles. He worked mostly in Southern California and designed the homes of several celebrities such as Barbara Stanwyck, Charles Correll, Frank Sinatra, Desi Arnaz and Lon Chaney among others.

He was raised by C.I Clarkson and his wife, who adopted him after his parents died 2from tuberculosis living him and his brother under foster care. Paul was married to Della Mae Givens on June 27, 1917, at First AME Church in Los Angeles. The couple was blessed with 3 children namely Paul Revere Williams Jr, Marilyn Frances Williams, and Norma Lucille Williams Harvey.

Williams designed several notable buildings throughout his career such as the 1964 Beverly Sunset Medical Center Los Angeles, 1926 28th Street YMCA, Los Angeles, 1968 First AME Church, Los Angeles, 938 First Church of Christ, Scientist (Reno, Nevada), and 1961 LAX Theme Building (joint venture) among others.

1. He Designed Homes for Several Celebrities

Blackburn_Residence,_Paul_R._Williams,_Architect_1927 photo by known author

Paul Williams was an American architect based in Los Angeles, California. He was one of the best architects of the time. He was lucky to get a chance to design the homes of several celebrities.

Some of the celebrities include Frank Sinatra, an American singer and actor, Charles Correll, an American radio comedian, writer and actor, Lucille Ball, an American comedian, actress and producer, Barbara Stanwyck, an American model, actress and dancer, Desi Arnaz, an American actor, and Lon Chaney, an American actor among others.

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2. He Came From Middle Class of Memphis Residents

Paul Williams came from middle-class Memphis residents. However, in 1893 his parents migrated to Los Angeles together with his brother Chester. Paul was not born at the time.

The aim of migration was to start a fruit business but it never succeeded. On February 18 1894 Paul was born in Los Angeles, California, US.

3. His Parents Died of Tuberculosis

After Paul was born about like 2 years his father Chester Stanley died from tuberculosis in 1896. After 2 years of his father鈥檚 death, his mother Lila Wright Williams died from tuberculosis as well.

Paul and his brother Lila Wright Williams were still young at the time of their parent鈥檚 death and they were left under foster care. Paul William was later adopted by C.I Clarkson and his wife.

4. He was Educated

Los_Angeles_School of_Art_and_Design photo By Unknown author

Even though Paul鈥檚 parents died when he was young, that did not stop him from pursuing his dreams. He studied at the Los Angeles School of Art and Design and also at the New York Beaux-Arts Institute of Design Atelier a Los Angeles branch.

In 1916 he joined the architectural University of Southern California to study architectural engineering. He completed his studies in 1919 and graduated with his degree in architectural engineering. It is interesting to know that Paul designed several buildings even before he completed his studies.

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5. Paul was Married

Photo by Sandy Millar on

Paul was a married man and had a beautiful family. On June 27, 1917, he married Della Mae Givens at the First AME Church located in Los Angeles. The couple was blessed with three children.

Paul Revere Williams was their firstborn child, he was born and died on the same day June 30, 1925. They were later blessed with another child on December 30, 1926, Marilyn Frances Williams. Norma Lucille Williams Harvey is the last born of the family and she was born on September 18, 1928.

6. He Opened His Own Office

When William was only 28 years old, he opened his own office known as an outstanding draftsman. At that time he perfected his rendering drawing skills, which is drawing upside down. The aim of developing the skill was because back in the 1920s many of his white clients never wanted to sit directly next to a Black man.

This helped the clients to see the drawing right side up when he seats across the desk from the clients. This skill helped him not to maintain his white clients who were never comfortable sitting with a black man like him.

7. He was the First Member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA)

In 1923, William joined the American Institute of Architects and became the first-ever African-American member of the organization. The AIA is a professional organization for architects in the United States and its headquarters are located in Washington, D.C. It was founded back in 1857 by a group of 13 architects to help 鈥減romote the scientific and practical perfection of its members”

The AIA is a beneficial organization to architects and offers useful education, community redevelopment, government advocacy and public outreach to help support the architecture profession.

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8. Paul Williams Won Several Awards, Recognition and Honors

Throughout his career time, Paul received several awards, honors and recognition. He was the winner of the AIA Award of Merit for his design of the MCA Building in 1939 in Beverly Hills. He also won the Omega Psi Phi fraternity in 1951.

Some of the other awards include the Man of the Year award in 1951, the Spingarn Medal in 1953 from NAACP, the award for service in 1956 from Wisdom magazine, and lastly, Williams received honorary doctorates from Lincoln University of Missouri.

9. The Architect Designed over 2000 Buildings

Paul Williams during his lifetime in his architectural career, he designed many buildings, approximately 2000 buildings. Many of his buildings are notable and recognized by many.

Some of the buildings he designed include the 1964 Beverly Sunset Medical Center Los Angeles, 1926 28th Street YMCA, Los Angeles, 1968 First AME Church, Los Angeles, 1935 Rene Faron Residence, 1962 St. Jude Hospital, Memphis, 1938 First Church of Christ, Scientist (Reno, Nevada), 1961 La Concha Motel, 1939 Saks Fifth Avenue, Beverly Hills, 1961 LAX Theme Building, 1940 Pueblo del Rio Housing Development, 1958 Los Angeles Superior Court, 1948 Golden State Mutual Life Los Angeles, 1953 Imperial Courts Housing Development, Los Angeles and 1949 and 1963 Perino’s Restaurant among others.

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10. He Faced Discrimination and Racism throughout his Career

Paul. R. William photo By Charles Alston

Paul Williams was an African-American architect. Due to his skin colour, he faced a lot of discrimination from white people. Some of his clients never wanted to sit directly with him, which gave him hard time when presenting his designs to them.

He had to learn the skill of rendering drawing, which is drawing upside down to help his clients see the building right side up when he sits across them. It was indeed a struggle but he had to push on.

Due to the struggles, he faced, William authored a memoir known as “I Am a Negro and I Can Design,鈥� in 1951. In the memoir he aired all struggles and discrimination, he faced as a black architect.