All right, it is time for your way black history fact. In today's way black history fact comes from the LA Times, and I'm going to be reading the words of the author, Grace Adams. This is opinion Paul Revere Williams, a case study on the importance of preservation. Discovering Paul Revere Williams's story as an architect and the failure to ensure that his work has been safeguarded, revealed to me the undeniable
importance of preservation. Countless books scattered across my room. I was in the midst of research for my senior independent study project, but I did not know what I was searching for. Yet, I was delving into the architectural history of Los Angeles with an interest in investigating the topic of preservation. After perusing various outlets, I stumbled upon a note in the LA Times Archives published on April fourth,
twenty fourteen. Marcia Sells, the former president of Holmbye Hills Homeowners Association, wrote the article describing the work of Los Angeles architect Paul Williams was bittersweet. Williams is known for his significant contributions to our city's landscape, yet his work faces the threat of destruction. Surely Harvard Westlake School can find a preservation solution to keep the morris Landell residents in its historic location. Williams overcame enormous obstacles to achieve success.
We should not have to remember his visionary work from pictures. As La residents. We should show respect for our history and speak up for the preservation of Williams's buildings. I was captivated. Not only had I never heard of Paul Revere Williams, but the building being discussed had once been located on my middle school campus. I started investigating the morris Landeu building, admiring the black and white photos of the home. What's more, was the impression of the architect
behind the treasure made on me. Paul Revere Williams, who was black, was born in eighteen ninety four at a time when Los Angeles real estate was still deeply segregated. When Paul Williams first began his career, much of the demographic layout of Los Angeles was bleak, dirt roads, connected oil fields and vast farms and agrarian reality that starkly contrasts the urban, vibrant, bustling city of Lascas Angelus. We
know today. Nonetheless, by nineteen twenty, the greater area of southern California underwent a massive boom in the real estate market, creating high demands for homes, which created opportunities for well trained architects. The population of Los Angeles reached one million in nineteen thirty, and the city was booming with residents who had money and wanted to carve out their slice
of land. As author Jana Ireland explained in her book regarding Paul R. Williams, a photographer's view, there were numerous white people liberal or desperate enough to hire a black architect for their projects, since they wanted them to be executed quickly and had the finances to spare. It was then that Paul Revere Williams started his prolific career as an architect of both personal and commercial spaces, achieving outstanding notoriety with his elegant and refined work that appealed to
people with money, notwithstanding celebrities. Magnetized by his resilience and indefatigable insistence on success despite racial injustice, I learned that he had to develop the ability to sketch buildings upside down to appease white clients who were uncomfortable sitting next to him. I also discovered that when he visited construction sites, he walked with his hands behind his back to be amenable to white people who would not want to shake
his hand. Most astonishing to me was that many of the places where his homes were built were exclusively white. Los Angeles was fraught with restrictive covenance that barred people of color from spending the night in particular neighborhoods or
owning land deeds. With all this in mind, I look at Paul Revere Williams as an individual whose work not only contributed significantly to the development of the visual landscape of Los Angeles, but also as an important figure who represents the vastly ignored, overlooked, or undermined contributions of the black community. For these reasons, his work is important to preserve in the specific locations it was created to honor
his legacy and perseverance. Preservation is a challenging topic. It forces us to re imagine the relationship between the past and the future. It allows us to celebrate astounding achievements, but also drives us to reconcile with the shadow of injustice. For this reason, while it may not be easy to explore preservation, learning about Paul Revere Williams taught me that is an important issue to consider. Her