Georgia Louise Harris Brown facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Georgia Louise Harris Brown
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Georgia Louise Harris
June 12, 1918 Topeka, Kansas, United States
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| Died | September 21, 1999 (aged 81) |
| Alma mater | University of Kansas |
| Occupation | Architect |
Georgia Louise Harris Brown (born June 12, 1918 – died September 21, 1999) was a very important American architect. She is known for being one of the first African American women to become a licensed architect in the United States. This means she was officially allowed to design buildings. She was also the first black woman to get an architecture degree from the University of Kansas.
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Early Life and Education
Georgia Brown was born in Topeka, Kansas. Her parents were Carl Collins and Georgia Watkins. She was one of five children. Her father worked as a shipping clerk. Her mother was a school teacher who also studied classical music.
From a young age, Georgia showed a talent for art and mechanics. She enjoyed working on cars and farm equipment with her older brother. She was also interested in painting. She went to Seaman High School. Later, she attended Washburn University in 1936 and 1937.
In 1938, she moved to Chicago. There, she took classes at the Armour Institute of Technology. This school is now known as the Illinois Institute of Technology. She studied with a famous architect named Mies van der Rohe. From 1940, she went to the University of Kansas. She earned her architecture degree in 1944. She was the first black woman to do so from that university. In 1941, she married James A. Brown. They later divorced in 1952.
Starting Her Career
After finishing her studies, Georgia Brown began working in Chicago. From 1945 to 1949, she worked for Kenneth Roderick O'Neal. On July 19, 1949, she officially became a licensed architect. That same year, she started working for Frank J. Kornacker & Associates.
At this firm, she was in charge of structural calculations. This meant she figured out how strong buildings needed to be. One of her big projects was the apartments at 860 Lake Shore Drive in Chicago. While working at Kornacker's firm, she also took evening classes in civil engineering.
Moving to Brazil
In 1953, Georgia Brown left Chicago and moved to Brazil. One reason she moved was that it was harder for her to get ahead in her career in the United States because of her race. She believed there would be more opportunities for her in Brazil.
She learned to speak Portuguese by studying with a friend. By 1954, she had permanently moved to São Paulo. For a short time in 1954, she worked for Charles Bosworth. After that, she opened her own interior design company called Escandia Ltda.
Important Projects in Brazil
In Brazil, Georgia Brown worked on many important buildings and projects. She was the project manager and designer for a large building complex in Osasco. She also worked on another complex for Pfizer Pharmaceutical Corporation in Guarulhos.
She designed a Jeep factory in San Bernardo. She also designed a shipping facility for Siemens. Another big project was designing an airport for Krupp of Germany. She also worked on the large Kodak Brasileire Comerico film factory. This factory was in São Jose dos Campos and was very big, covering over 376,000 square feet. From 1971 to 1985, she designed more than a dozen homes for wealthy families in Brazil.
Later Life
In 1995, Georgia Brown moved to Washington, D.C. She retired there and spent her last years volunteering. She was a youth mentor at St. Luke's Episcopal Church. She passed away in 1999.
See also
In Spanish: Georgia Louise Harris Brown para niños
