Roots of the Hillside Club and “Living with Nature”

Description:

Berkeley’s beloved Hillside Club got its start when a group of local women organized and acted to preserve the charm and rustic atmosphere of their newly-established neighborhood north of the university campus. Hillside Club members (who later included men) vigorously promoted the idea of “building with nature,” advocating for maintaining the natural contours of the land and building with natural, local materials.

This Northside walking tour will focus on houses built by early club members, as well as on the club’s early civic projects. We’ll see the work of Berkeley’s most important architects of the early 20th century, such as Bernard Maybeck, Julia Morgan, Ernest Coxhead, Lilian Bridgman, John Galen Howard, and Walter Ratcliff. Along the way, tour goers will gain intimate access to some rarely-seen properties.

Led by Daniella Thompson, a long-time club member and an expert in Berkeley’s evolution and built environment, this tour offers an exclusive in-depth opportunity to look, listen, and learn. It will be especially valued by lovers of local architecture and history.

The tour will conclude with a small reception at the recently restored Hillside Club House (John White, architect, 1924).

The tour will run approximately 2 1/2 to 3 hours. Final location details to be shared closer to the tour date.

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Image courtesy Daniella Thompson

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Host or Publisher Berkeley Historic Building Fund