Résumé

Architect Leland Bryant distinguished himself for his finely detailed period revival apartment houses, many of which were favorites of Los Angeles celebrities. He trained in some of the most prestigious San Francisco architectural offices of the time, including those of D.H. Burnham and Bakewell and Brown.

He worked twice in the office of the architect, G. Albert Lansburgh, (1876-1969), a highly-trained, Beaux-Arts graduate, who would have instilled architectural correctness of style, fine draftsmanship, and attention to detail. Bryant was eclectic in his approach, but he did a number of apartment towers in the Chateauesque mode. According to reporter Whitney Friedlander in Variety.com: “'[Bryant] worked in all styles, but he tended to work more in the French chateau,' says Adrian Scott Fine, advocacy director of Los Angeles Conservancy, which works to preserve the county’s historic architecture and cultural resources. 'It was all about creating a kind of exotic fantasyland with architecture, which fit well with the Hollywood scene.'” (See Whitney Friedlander, Variety.com, "Architect Leland Bryant’s Legacy Looms Large in L.A. Lore," published 04/20/2013, accessed 11/13/2020.)

Draftsman, D.H. Burnham and Company, 1907. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1907, p. 329.)

Draftsman, San Francisco, CA, 1908. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1908, p. 352.)

Draftsman, G. Albert Lansburgh, Architect, San Francisco, CA, 1911. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1911, p. 334.)

Draftsman, Julius E. Krafft and Sons, Architects, San Francisco, CA, 1912. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1912, p. 342.)

Draftsman, Bakewell and Brown, Architects, San Francisco, CA, 1914. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1914, p. 368.)

Draftsman, G. Albert Lansburgh, Architect, San Francisco, CA, 06/1917. In 06/1917, Lansburgh's office was located at 709 Mission Street. (See Ancestry.com. Source Citation: Registration State: California; Registration County: San Francisco. Source Information: U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005, accessed 11/14/2020.)

Principal, Leland Bryant, Architect, San Francisco, CA, 1918. Bryant worked at 369 Pine Street. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1918, p. 108.)

Clerk, Standard Oil Company, San Francisco, CA, 1922-1923. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1922, p. 395 and Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1923, p. 398.)

Principal, Leland A. Bryant, Architectural Designer, Los Angeles, CA, c. 1924-1928. Bryant's name appears among "Architectural Designers" in the Los Angeles Directory Company'sLos Angeles City Directories between 1924 and 1928, indicating that he hadn't passed the State of California's Architectural Registration exams. His personal name listing in the Los Angeles Directory Company'sLos Angeles City Directory, however, was listed as "archt." in 1925, and he had an office at 656 South Vermont Avenue. (See Los Angeles Directory Company's Los Angeles City Directory, 1930, p. 563.) He had an office at 700 South La Brea Avenue, Room #209. (See Los Angeles Directory Company's Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1928, p. 2265.)

Partner, [Kenneth] MacDonald and Bryant, Architects, Los Angeles, CA, 1929. In 1929, MacDonanld and Bryant had its office at 541 South Spring Street, Room #316. (See Los Angeles Directory Company's Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1929, p. 2338.)

Private, US Marine Corps, San Diego, CA, 1933. This likely was not the same Leland A. Bryant, although during the Depression, he may have joined the military to earn a living. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: The National Archives at Washington, DC. USA, Source Information: Ancestry.com. U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls, 1798-1958 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007, accessed 11/16/2020.)

Building Inspector, Los Angeles Board of Education, Los Angeles, CA, 1937. (See Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1937, p. 329.)

Designer, Vega Aircraft Company, Burbank, CA, 04/1942.(See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; World War II Draft Cards (4th Registration) for the State of California; Record Group Title: Records of the Selective Service System; Record Group Number: 147, accessed 11/15/2020.)

President/Owner, Geometric Mastering Corporation, Los Angeles, CA, c. 1945-1950. According to his obituary in the Los Angeles Times: “Mr. Bryant retired in 1950 as president and owner of the Geometric Mastering Corp. of Los Angeles, a company established to handle his invention, the Bryant tooling dock. This industrial development, which he pioneered during World War II for the aircraft industry, had recently been adapted for use in the automobile and railroad industries. It enables a sharp reduction in the tooling time required by manufacturers.” (See “Leland Bryant, Architect and Inventor, Dies,” Los Angeles Times, 07/21/1954, p. A24.)

College

Graduate, University of California, Berkeley (UCB), Berkeley, CA.

Relocation

Bryant was native to California. He was born in Santa Cruz, CA, where his father, Arthur Bryant, had lived since at least 1884. Originally from Maine, Arthur became a teacher living in the town of Soquel. The family lived here well into the 1890s, judging from Santa Cruz voting records for Arthur. In 1892, the Bryant Family had a dwelling at 157 Laurel Street in 1892, and lived at 99 Center Street in Santa Cruz in 1898. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1900-1968, accessed 11/26/2020.) During his first twenty years, Leland changed houses frequently.

The Bryants relocated to San Francisco by 1904, at least, when Arthur's voting record listed his address as 2384 Mission Street, (lower floor). Voting records of 1908 indicated that they moved to a residence at 1192 O'Farrell Street. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1900-1968, accessed 11/26/2020.)

His adult life was marked by periodic changes of occupation and address, suggesting a personal restlessness and a resourcefulness in finding new work.

Between 1907 and 1908, Bryant resided at 1192 O’Farrell Street in San Francisco, CA. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1907, p. 329 and Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1908, p. 352.) At age 19, Leland lived with his parents and three siblings in a residence at 41 San Jose Avenue in San Francisco. The 1910 US Census also indicated that Leland continued to live at 41 San Jose Avenue. This census mistakenly indicated that Bryant and his brothers and sisters had been born in Maine, although his father had been. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1910; Census Place: San Francisco Assembly District 35, San Francisco, California; Roll: T624_98; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0129; FHL microfilm: 1374111, accessed 11/14/2020. See also Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1910, p. 342.)

It is possible that Bryant attended the University of California, Berkeley, while he lived in his parents' home, possibly c. 1907-1911.

He lived at 1247 9th Avenue in San Francisco, CA in 1911-1913. Leland married in 1912, but remained at home at 1247 9th for one year. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1911, p. 334, Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1912, p. 342 and Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1913, p. 361.)

Bryant and his wife relocated to 1840 Larkin Street by 1914. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1914, p. 368.) On 06/05/1917, Bryant and his wife lived at 3523 17th Street in San Francisco, CA, and remained there in 1918. (See Ancestry.com. Source Citation: Registration State: California; Registration County: San Francisco. Source Information: U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005, accessed 11/14/2020 and Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory, 1918, p. 345.)

According to the 1920 US Census, Bryant lived with his mother and siblings at 1528 Wellington Avenue in Oakland, CA. At this time, the household consisted of his wife Virginia, their daughter Joyce, mother Letitia Bryant, and brother Raymond Bryant (born c. 1907 in CA). (See Ancestry.com. Source Citation Year: 1920; Census Place: Oakland, Alameda, California; Roll: T625_90; Page: 4A; Enumeration District: 118, accessed 11/14/2020.) The following year, the city directory listed him living at 38 6th Avenue in San Francisco and remained here in 1923, his last year in the city. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1921, p. 377 and Crocker-Langley San Francisco City Directory, 1923, p. 398.)

Byrant moved his family to Southern CA by late 1923 or early 1924. He had a residence at 335 ¼ North Alexandria Avenue in Los Angeles in 1924. (See Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1924, p. 595.) The Bryants lived at 6131 Afton Place in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles in 1925. (See Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1925, p. 563.)

Bryant was listed as living in Beverly Hills, CA, in 1929. (See Los Angeles Directory Company's Los Angeles City Directory, 1929, p. 534.)

By 1930, Bryant had relocated to Los Angeles, CA, where his family had an apartment at 1750 North Serrano Avenue, in the Trianon Apartments. Bryant designed the Trianon, completed in 1930. They paid $150 rent, a significant amount for the time, for their accommodations. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1930; Census Place: Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California; Page: 9A; Enumeration District: 0060; FHL microfilm: 2339869, accessed 11/14/2020.) In 1932, the architect listed a permanent address of 8356 Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1932; Arrival: New York, New York, USA; Microfilm Serial: T715, 1897-1957; Line: 3; Page Number: 37, accessed 11/14/2020.) Bryant and his family continued to live in Trianon in 1932. (See Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1932, p. 347.)

In 1936-1937, the Bryants lived at 1226 North Flores Street in Los Angeles, later to become part of West Hollywood, CA. (See Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1936, p. 311 and Los Angeles, California, City Directory, 1937, p. 329.)

He and Virginia lived at 9660 Heather Road, Beverly Hills, CA, in 04/1942. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: The National Archives at St. Louis; St. Louis, Missouri; World War II Draft Cards (4th Registration) for the State of California; Record Group Title: Records of the Selective Service System; Record Group Number: 147, accessed 11/15/2020.)

The architect and inventor died following a protracted illness at this Beverly Hills residence at the age of 63. He was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, CA.

Parents

Leland Bryant's father Arthur Wilton Bryant (born 1858 in Union, ME-d. 10/02/1919 in Alameda County, CA) transitioned among three or four professions during his adult life, beginning as a school teacher in Union, ME, according to the 1880 US Census. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1880; Census Place: Union, Knox, Maine; Roll: 483; Page: 277C; Enumeration District: 114, accessed 11/26/2020.) The Great Register of Santa Cruz County for the Year 1886 listed Arthur Wilton Bryant as a teacher living in Soquel. He registered to vote In Santa Cruz County on 08/16/1884. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Registers, 1866-1898; Collection Number: 4-2A; CSL Roll Number: 127; FHL Roll Number: 978581, accessed 11/26/2020.)

Santa Cruz County voting records noted that Arthur worked as a merchant in 1898, his second profession.

San Francisco voting records for 1908 listed him as a contractor, his next profession. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1900-1968, accessed 11/26/2020.)

The US Census of 1910 reported that Arthur Bryant operated a San Francisco millinery business in 1910, wither his second or third profession. Leland's mother Lillian A. Collins (born c. 1869 in Canada-d. 1935 possibly), worked with Arthur in the hat store. (Lillian, who left Canada in 1870, was supposedly naturalized the following year, according to the 1920 US Census.) Arthur and Lillian also ran this millinery store in 1912-1913. (See San Francisco, California, City Directory, 1912, p. 2026 and Crocker-Langley San Francisco, California, City Directory, 1913, p. 361.)

By later 1913, Arthur returned to work as a building contractor or carpenter and he continued in this line of work until just before his death in 1919. (See Crocker-Langley San Francisco, California, City Directory, 1914, p. 368 and Crocker-Langley San Francisco Directory, 1918, p. 345.)

After Arthur's death in 1919, Lillian lived with Leland in Oakland, and by 1926, lived on her own in a house at 4489 Moraga Avenue in Oakland, a residence that she owned. (See Oakland, California, City Directory, 1926, p. 426.) The 1930 US Census indicated that the house had the substantial value of $9,000. She worked as a dressmaker in a shop at the time. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1930; Census Place: Oakland, Alameda, California; Page: 8A; Enumeration District: 0115; FHL microfilm: 2339839, accessed 11/26/2020.)

Leland's siblings included brothers Earle L. Bryant (born 07/04/1892-d. 04/28/1953) and Raymond Bryant (born c. 1907 in CA) and sister Lucile E. Agnes Bryant Frates (born 02/07/1894-d. 09/27/1977 in San Mateo County, CA).

Spouse

He wed Virginia Scheere Bryant (born 09/09/1893 in MT-d. 06/26/1979 in Orange County, CA) in 1912.

Her father Charles H. Scheere (born c. 02/1860 in MI) worked as a printer in Helena, MT, in 1900. Her mother, Hattie (born c. 08/1874 in OH), raised two children, including her brother Fred Scheere (born c. 11/1894 in MT). (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1900; Census Place: Helena Ward 5, Lewis and Clark, Montana; Page: 7; Enumeration District: 0174; FHL microfilm: 1240912, accessed 11/14/2020.)

Children

Leland and Virginia had two daughters Joyce Bryant Henry (b. 04/11/1916 in San Francisco, CA-d. 06/10/2004 in CA) and Janice Bryant (born c. 1921 in CA).

Biographical Notes

His World War I draft registration card listed Bryant as being Caucasian, with medium height and build. The architect had blue eyes and dark hair at age 26. (See Ancestry.com. Source Citation: Registration State: California; Registration County: San Francisco. Source Information: U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005, accessed 11/14/2020.)

Leland Bryant departed aboard the S.S. President Harding from Southampton, England, on 09/15/1932, landing in New York, NY, on 09/23/1932. He was not accompanied by any family members, according to the ship's manifest. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1932; Arrival: New York, New York, USA; Microfilm Serial: T715, 1897-1957; Line: 3; Page Number: 37, accessed 11/14/2020.)

Prior to 11/03/2020, PCAD erroneously listed Bryant's death date as 1966-09-07. It was 07/20/1954.

SSN: 558-07-0247.