Roland E. Coate, Sr. (1890-1958): Estates

Roland Eli Coate, Sr. (1890-1958) was born in Richmond, Indiana. After attending Earlham College for two years, he transferred to Cornell University where he completed his degree in architecture in 1914. Upon finishing school, Coate settled in New York and found work at the Trowbridge and Ackerman architectural firm. During WWI, Coate served as a 1 st Lieutenant with the American Expeditionary Forces.

In 1919, Coate moved to Los Angeles and joined Reginald Johnson and Gordon Kaufmann, in the architectural firm, Johnson, Kaufmann and Coate. While he was a junior partner in the firm, Coate helped to design St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral in downtown Los Angeles and All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena.

By 1925, the firm had disbanded and Coate opened his own office in Los Angeles and continued to design until his death in 1958. His first solo project was the All Saints Episcopal church in Beverly Hills. He went on to design many homes in the greater Pasadena area and in West Los Angeles. Coate was one of the early exponents of Monterey Revival, the style for which he is best known, though he also designed Colonial Revival and California ranch houses.

Roland Coate, architect

Roland Eli Coate, Sr. papers, Architecture and Design Collection. Art, Design & Architecture Museum; University of California, Santa Barbara.

circa 1916-1957

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