Louise Severin

Master Builder Louise Mary Severin was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1892. Louise had to learn to be independent early on, due to her father’s early death when she was a teenager. She spent time at construction sites as a young woman and by 1920 she was able to pass the general contractor’s licensing exam.

Louise had a sister Stella. Each sister married a Severin brother. Louise married Hilmer and Stella married Urban. The Severin brothers were in the automobile manufacturing business yet got involved in Louise’s building contractor business in 1922. Louise was responsible for bidding the jobs, designing the homes, and managing the construction projects. Her husband and brother-in-law did cement laying and carpentry. Hilmer also tended to sign water records and Notices of Completion. This is certainly true in Talmadge. Five out of the six Notices of Completion on Severin homes were filed by Hilmer Severin.

There is an article written by Michael Good for the San Diego Uptown News in 2016 entitled, “The Lady Contractor.” This article says Louise Severin built the first Federal Housing Administration (FHA) house in Talmadge at 4720 Norma Drive. FHA loans helped new homeowners buy their first home during the Great Depression. The FHA also gave builders like Severin confidence that they would get paid. Before the FHA began issuing loans, Severin built beautiful Spanish Revival and Spanish Eclectic homes. After 1935, the Minimal Traditional home became the style of choice. This is reflected in Severin’s buildings in Talmadge (1934-1939). All the known houses in Talmadge Park Estates Historic District (TPEHD) are in the Minimal Traditional style. She built beautiful Spanish style homes in Kensington in 1929 and 1930.

The Severin family lived very close to the houses they worked on. This pattern is evident in Talmadge, as four Severin homes were built next to each other on  Constance Drive.

Eventually, Severin moved to Los Angeles and built beautiful homes in Beverly Hills and Brentwood in the 1940s. Sadly, she died in 1949, when a tree branch feel on her while on a job site.

Six of Severin’s houses have been designated as historical resources by the City of San Diego Historical Resources Board. Louise Severin was established as a Master Builder by the Historical Resources Board (HRB) in 2003.

References

City of San Diego Historical Resources Board 2020. “Biographies of Established Masters” Pages 85-86 http://www.sohosandiego.org/enews/images/0121hrbmasterslist2020.pdf

Good, Michael December 16, 2016. “The Lady Contractor” San Diego Uptown News https://sduptownnews.com/the-lady-contractor/

May, Ronald V. & Wallace, Kiley 2015. “The Louise M. Severin Spec House # 3” Pages 13 https://sandiego.cfwebtools.com/images/files/4220%20Norfolk%20Terrace.pdf

Montes, Beth 2005. “Carleton A. & Frances Bunce/Louise M. Severin House” Page 4 https://sandiego.cfwebtools.com/images/files/CR%207431.pdf