Arthur Burnett Benton

Arthur Burnett Benton (April 17, 1858 – 1927) was an American architect.

Life

He was born in Peoria, Illinois. He studied at the School of Art and Design, at Topeka, Kansas. He worked for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway.

He moved to Los Angeles. He promoted Mission Revival architecture.[1][2]

In 1900, he received the commission for the First Church of Christian Science, in Riverside, CA, which was built in that style. This building caught the eye of Frank Augustus Miller, who ran a nearby adobe tourist hotel, known as the Glenwood Inn. Miller had a vision of a great Mission Style hotel and in Benton, he saw the man to make his vision a reality. In 1902, work began on the first phase of the Mission Inn, under Benton’s supervision. He did several additions to the sprawling complex, including the “Cloister Wing”, which was modeled after the Mission in Carmel.[3]

Another commission was the rebuilding of the Arlington Hotel at Santa Barbara in 1911. A previous building had been gutted by fire, so fire safety was an objective in its construction and it incorporated red roof tiles, steel beams, and much brick and concrete. It was destroyed in the Santa Barbara earthquake of 1925; a large water tank in one of the bell towers came crashing down. The tank had been placed there to provide a ready source of water in case of fire, and its collapse caused the only fatalities in the hotel.[4]

He was President of the Southern California Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.[5]

His papers are at the University of California, Santa Barbara.[6]

Benton was a very active member of the Society of Colonial War. He was second "Governor" (president) of the California Society from 1908 to 1910. He was admitted to life membership on December 24, 1902. General Society Membership number 3351, California Society number 55.[7][8]

Family

In 1893, he married Harriet Phillipina von Schilling.

Historic buildings

References
  1. Robert Winter (1997). Toward a Simpler Way of Life: The Arts & Crafts Architects of California. University of California Press. pp. 191–. ISBN 978-0-520-20916-9.
  2. Society, Nancy AlexanderPresident, Highland Area Historical. "Arthur Burnett Benton: Mission-style architect". Highland Community News.
  3. "Arthur B. Benton".
  4. "The Arlington Hotel". Santa Barbara Vintage Photography. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  5. "PCAD - Arthur Burnett Benton". pcad.lib.washington.edu.
  6. "Finding Aid for the Arthur Benton photograph collection, circa 1880-circa 1919 0000111". www.oac.cdlib.org.
  7. General Society of Colonial Wars Index of Ancestors and Members (2011).
  8. Register of the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of California (2008) pgs.46,90.
  9. Crago, Jody. "How Arthur Benton changed Chandler's architecture". The Arizona Republic.
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