Lutah Maria Riggs

Lutah Maria Riggs (October 31, 1896 – March 8, 1984) was an American architect who worked for several decades in Santa Barbara, California. Born in Toledo, Ohio, she moved with her mother to Santa Barbara after high school, where she returned after receiving a BA in architecture from the University of California, Berkeley. From 1921 to 1930, she worked as a draftswoman for George Washington Smith, and she continued to work as an architect in Santa Barbara until 1980, focusing primarily on residential work. She was the first licensed female architect in Santa Barbara, and the first woman in California to be named a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects.

Early life and education

Lutah Maria Riggs was born in 1896 in Toledo, Ohio, the only child of a physician and a homemaker. Her father died when she was a child. She graduated from Manual Training High School in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1914. Later that same year, Riggs and her mother moved to Santa Barbara to join her stepfather.

Riggs completed her initial undergraduate studies at Santa Barbara City College, from which she received a certificate in 1917. She then won a scholarship to attend the University of California at Berkeley, from which she received her B.A. in architecture in 1919. Riggs completed graduate coursework at Berkeley in 1920, but moved back to Santa Barbara before finishing her graduate degree to be closer to her ailing mother.

Career

Riggs began her architectural career in 1920, working in Susanville as a draftswoman and designer for architect Ralph D. Taylor. She travelled with the Smith family on their architectural study trips to Mexico in 1922, and Europe in 1924.

In 1928, Riggs obtained her architectural license. She continued to work for George Washington Smith through 1930, when Smith had a sudden heart attack and died. After a short stint working in partnership with colleagues, in 1931 Riggs started her own firm, which she ran until 1942.

In addition to running her practice, Riggs was active in her local AIA chapter, and served on the California Architects' Board as both a member and a commissioner. In 1960, she was named a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects for "excellence in design and service to the profession". In 1967, the Los Angeles Times named her "Woman of the Year", the first architect to be chosen for this honor. Riggs continued to practice architecture through 1980, and died in Montecito, California, in 1984. The Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara has funded a yearly scholarship in Riggs' name, to be given to architectural students, with special consideration for women.

Works