Newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst asked architect Julia Morgan in 1919 to build something on the hilltop where his family had camped. The work continued until 1947.
Guests included Charlie Chaplin, Cary Grant and Winston Churchill; Hearst insisted dinner guests eat in the dining hall and paper napkins stayed on the table.
The Hearst Corporation donated it to the State of California in 1957.
Timeline
- 1919Julia Morgan begins work.
- 1947Hearst leaves the estate for health reasons.
- 1957The estate is donated to California.
The architect behind the most famous house in California was a woman most visitors never hear about.
