William Cody, FAIA
William Cody, FAIA is among a number of Palm Springs based architects who have defined the mid 20th century desert modern aesthetic.
William Cody, FAIA - Image Courtesy Palm Springs Modernism Committee
Born in 1916 in Dayton Ohio and raised in Los Angeles, Cody began working in architecture in the 1930’s with Cliff May while attending the University of Southern California’s School of Architecture. According to authors Alan Hess and Andrew Danish in Palm Springs Weekend, Cody was initially confused and angered by Modernism and that his designs echo a care for warmth and lifestyle rather than those of overriding theoretical purity. He is described by architect Donald Wexler, with whom Cody worked in the 1950’s as earning the nickname “Wild Bill” for his social life after work hours. Among Cody’s first desert designs was the 1947 Del Marcos Hotel, followed by numerous Palm Springs projects including the conversion of the Thunderbird Dude Ranch to the Thunderbird Country Club and later the Tamarisk and El Dorado Country Clubs.
Borrego Springs - De Anza Country Club
It was this work at the Palm Springs country clubs that brought Cody to the attention of George Kuhrts, who in 1953 was leading the development of de Anza Desert Country Club; Borrego Springs largest and most important development for its time. Golf course designer Lawrence Hughes was contracted to design the de Anza course. On several Hughes projects Cody had designed the clubhouses and some residences. It seems probable that when Kuhrts was looking to repeat the success of Palm Springs, he not only chose Lawrence Hughes but William Cody for initial plans and designs. The Borrego Sun reports in September, 1954 that the final subdivision map has been completed and approved and in July, 1955:
“The site selected for the club house commands a superlative view of Borrego Valley, the golf course and the mountains on the horizon. The club house will be the hub of activities for the adjacent residential community. While the architecture will be contemporary modern, it will convey the mood of the desert.”
In May of 1956, at a meeting of the shareholders to determine the order for lot purchase,
“Kuhrts also announced that William Cody, who was the architect for clubhouses at Thunderbird and Tamarisk in Palm Springs, the Silverado Country Club in San Francisco and the Mission Valley Country Club in San Diego, has started initial plans for the clubhouse that will be erected at the new course.”[1] And in June 1956, “A master plot plan for the entire area has been drafted by William Cody, San Diego and Palm Springs architect, and he will soon submit detailed drawings for a clubhouse…”[2]
An examination of the William Cody archive at California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) provided several Cody completed designs for de Anza Country Club and homes.[3] The plans are significantly different than what ultimately was built.
William Cody plans for de Anza Country Club. Courtesy William Cody Archive, Special Collections, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
In October 1956, a Borrego Sun front page rendering of the proposed clubhouse no longer refers to Cody as the architect, but attributes the design and construction to Hal Martinez. A year later a new and larger clubhouse design and Fairway Cottage project would be turned over to Borrego Springs and Julian Architect Richard Zerbe. In an interview with Beverly Kuhrts, the widow of George Kuhrts, the question was raised as to why the change in architects. While she does not have direct knowledge concerning the change, she believes money was most likely the reason – that Cody would have been more expensive than Zerbe, and at the time money was tight.[4]
Residential Designs
William Cody has several residential designs in the Borrego Valley. The Borrego Sun reported in March 1957 on the growth in valley development:
William Cody, the noted Palm Springs architect has been commissioned to design several homes, particularly in the golf course area, and Valley developers hope that his influence will set a new standard for future construction in this area. Late last month final plans were completed and a contract awarded for a $100,000 home construction program announced in January by George Kuhrts of Borrego Valley Associates. This house, designed by Cody and to be built by Martinez Construction Co. will be located on an estate lot on Verbena Drive and Lazy S Road overlooking the golf course. The 1,500 square foot house will feature the ultimate in design for desert living with a sheltered patio on the south side to which direct access is available from the living room, kitchen and bath. The sheltered effect is achieved through an overhanging roof which juts out over the patio. The house will have two baths and three bedrooms, which can be converted into one bedroom, a den and maid’s room and any combination thereof. Meanwhile, the first home, also designed by Cody and built by Martinez, was nearing completion in the same area and will be ready for occupancy this month.
Cody also designed a home at de Anza Cody (Lot 8) that was built for George Kuhrts. The home appears for sale in a Borrego Sun ad from the 1960’s. It was substantially altered in 2006.
Fairway Cottages
In September of 1957 – the De Anza Divots (the newsletter for the country club) originally published in the Borrego Sun announced:
“Plans have been completed for the building of four rental units on the course north of the present clubhouse. The luxury units, which will be available to club members for rent, will cost between $20,000 and $30,000 each. They were designed by William Cody, Palm Springs architect”
Shortly after publication, The Fairway Cottage project was turned over to Richard Zerbe. The plans of Cody and Zerbe are strikingly different and it is clear that the first four units were not the proposed units by Cody and that Zerbe also designed the remaining 8 units that were constructed from 1957-1959.
Authors Hess and Danish write of Cody’s work:
“(His work)…ranks him among the best of mid-century California designers ---a field already crowded with talents like Eames, Koenig, Ellwood, Lautner, Frey, Neutra, Esherick, Callister, Jones and many others. It is time for his work to become more widely known.”
[1] Borrego Sun, May, 1956, Page 1 [2] Borrego Sun, June 1956, Page 1 [3] [4] Beverly Kuhrts Interview, 2006