Alberta Jeannette Cassell Explained

Alberta Jeannette Cassell
Other Names:Alberta Jeannette Cassell Butler
Birth Name:Alberta Jeannette Charolette Cassell
Birth Date:22 November 1926
Birth Place:Washington, D.C.
Nationality:American
Alma Mater:Cornell University
Spouse:Francis Butler
Children:2
Parents:Albert Cassell

Alberta Jeannette Cassell (November 22, 1926 – October 24, 2007), was an African American architect who worked for the United States Navy, and a children's book author.[1] She was also known by the name Alberta Jeannette Cassell Butler.

Early life and education

Alberta Jeannette Charolette Cassell was born in the District of Columbia, the daughter of architect Albert Cassell and teacher Martha Ann Mason. She attended James Monroe Elementary School, Bannecker Junior High, and Dunbar High School, graduating in 1944. Her father was determined that all of his children would become architects like himself, and that they would also attend his alma mater, Cornell University.[2]

Cassell honored her father's wishes and went to Cornell University. In 1948, she became one of the first two African American women to graduate from their school of architecture (the other was her sister Martha Cassell Thompson).[3] In 1947, she was part of an award-winning Cornell architecture team, in a national competition sponsored by the American Institute of Architects.[4]

Career

For two years, Cassell worked in her father's architecture firm, but left when he became involved in real estate development. In May 1951, she began working as an architectural engineer for the Naval Research Laboratory, until May 1961, when she started working as an engineering draftswoman with the Military Sea Life Command.[5] Afterwards, she became a naval architect with the United States Naval Sea Systems Command between 1971 and 1982. She was a member of the Association of Women Architects (founded by Henrietta May Steinmesch), the Alpha Alpha Kappa chapter.

Personal life

In 1950 Casell married Francis Butler, a mechanical engineer trained at Howard University; they had two children, Karl (born 1951) and Mira (born 1953). She retired due to a disability in 1982, and in her retirement, she began to write children's stories and devoting her time to photography. She was widowed in 2004,[6] and she died in 2007, aged 80 years.[7] Her children's book, The Little White Butterflies, was published posthumously, in 2012.[8]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: May/Jun '08 Obituaries. 2008. 15 October 2015. Cornell Alumni Magazine. Cornell Alumni Association.
  2. Building on Opportunity: The Cassell Family of Architects. Aloi. Daniel. 2014. Ezra. 15 October 2015. 7. 1.
  3. Web site: Alberta Jeannette Cassell . https://archive.today/20160316092621/http://dna.bwaf.org/archive/entry/alberta-jeannette-cassell . dead . 16 March 2016 . 15 October 2015 . Dynamic National Archive . Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation . Washington . Roberta .
  4. News: 1947-07-06. Cornell Team Wins Architecture Award. 7A. Poughkeepsie Journal. 2020-06-04. Newspapers.com.
  5. Book: Cassell, Charles Irvin. African American Architects: A Biographical Dictionary 1865-1945. Routledge. 2004. 0-415-92959-8. New York. 86–87. Wilson. Dreck Spurlock. Alberta Jeannette Cassell Butler. https://archive.org/details/africanamericana0000unse_p3b4/page/86.
  6. News: October 10, 2004. Francis Edward Butler. The Washington Post. June 4, 2020.
  7. News: October 27, 2007. Alberta J. Butler. The Washington Post. June 4, 2020.
  8. Book: Butler, Alberta J.. The Little White Butterflies. 2012-09-14. Trafford Publishing. 978-1-4669-5657-5. en.