Lunch and Learn: The California Fires and Landmark Architecture with Robert Craig

“Special Report: In the Path of the California Fires,  Landmark Architecture and Historic Houses, what was lost and what has survived”

Los Angeles boasts some of the most notable architecture of the late 19th and 20th centuries, from Queen Anne and Shingle Style homes to iconic houses designed by the likes of Frank Lloyd Wright, Richard Neutra, Greene and Greene, Bernard Maybeck, and Charles Eames.  While observers across the nation watched television news reporters standing along smoke-filled highways, fiery orange landscapes, burning houses, and vast devasted streetscapes, we were especially horrified at the obliteration of whole neighborhoods, the loss of life, the complete destruction of people’s homes and loss of cherished belongings, and we were shocked by images where charred ruins looked like a war zone. 

Historians and preservationists inquired about the safety of friends and family but also about the status of prominent, well-known historic landmarks, major works of architecture, museums, and historic gardens.  How had these cultural resources fared? In 2005, when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf coast, Professor Robert Craig published a series of reports on the status of cultural landmarks along the coasts of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, and presented illustrated talks at academic conferences reporting on Katrina’s impact on cultural resources. The fires in California have prompted similar research.  What landmarks did the fires consume? What notable architecture has been lost and what has been preserved by being out of the path of the fires (and in some cases barely so).  Dr. Craig’s series of free public lectures on architects and architecture continues with a special Report on the status of Los Angeles area landmarks, lost in, or escaping the paths of, the worst wildfires in the country’s history. 

Bring Your Lunch! 

Details:

February 25, 2025 12-1 PM

DeKalb History Center

Second Floor

101 E. Court Square

Decatur, GA 30030

FREE

Parking Information:

Plenty of parking is available in Downtown Decatur. Options include, street parking and parking garages. The closest is One West Court Square, located next door. Garage has two entrances, Swanton Way and West Ponce De Leon.

DHC Members receive $5 Parking Voucher, good for all day at One West Court Square.

Handicap:

We don’t have any specified handicap spots, but a few handicap spots are available close by on East Court Square.

Event will be recorded and available on this page and our Youtube Channel after.