Résumé

Draftsman, Hawaiian-Raymond-Turner Company, Alameda, CA, 10/16/1940. Hawaiian-Raymond-Turner was a conglomeration of three construction companies that formed among the Turner Construction Company of New York, Raymond Concrete Pile Company also of New York and Hawaiian Dredging of Honolulu. It took a lead role in the construction of naval bases just prior to World War II.

Associate, Hardeson and DeMars, Associated Architects, Berkeley, CA, c. 1950-1953. Hardison and Vernon DeMars collaborated on the design of the Easter Hill Village Public Housing development in Richmond, CA, completed in 1954.

Partner, Donald Hardison and Associates, San Francisco, CA. c. 1954-1958.

Partner, Hardison and Komatsu, Architects, San Francisco, CA, 1958- .

Professional Activities

Registered Architect in the State of CA. (See American Architects Directory, 1970, John F. Gane, ed., [New York: R.R. Bowker Company, 1970], pp.375-376.)

Member, American Institute of Architects (AIA), 1948- .

Fellow, American Institute of Architects, 1966, for Service to the Profession.

College

A.B., University of California, Berkeley (UCB), Berkeley, CA, 1938.

Relocation

He was born and raised in the agricultural town of Fillmore, CA, where his father Leigh W. Hardison managed a ranch. According to the 1940 US Census, the ranch was located off of Young Road in Fillmore. Nearby, a relation, E. Domingo Hardison (born c. 1897 in South America) also operated a farm with his family. By 1934, E. Domingo had become the superintendent of the Hardison Ranch. (See the Los Angeles Directory Company's Ventura, California, City Directory, 1934, p. 542.)

He and his wife had a residence at 164 Collins Street in Richmond, CA, between 1942 and 1944. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1942, accessed 04/20/2022 and Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1944, accessed 04/20/2022)

Hardison resided at 1415 Vista Road, El Cerrito, CA, in 1970. (See American Architects Directory, 1970, John F. Gane, ed., [New York: R.R. Bowker Company, 1970], pp.375-376.)

Parents

His parents operated a ranch near Fillmore in Ventura County, CA. His father Leigh Winter Hardison (born 09/19/1890 in Caribou, ME-d. 02/01/1974 in Fillmore, CA) was raised in ME, but migrated to CA sometime between 1912 and 1918. BY 1918, he had established himself as a "dairyman and farmer" in Fillmore. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1910; Census Place: Caribou, Aroostook, Maine; Roll: T624_537; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 0011; FHL microfilm: 1374550, accessed 04/20/2022.) In 1934, Leigh Hardison was the Treasurer of the Fillmore Lemon Association and lived in Sespe, CA. (See the Los Angeles Directory Company's Ventura, California, City Directory, 1934, p. 542.)

His mother was Myrtle Glenn Thorpe (born c. 1891 in Canada-d.), who married Leigh on 01/03/1912 in Portland, ME. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Maine State Archives; Cultural Building, 84 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333-0084; 1908-1922 Vital Records; Roll Number: 25, accessed 04/20/2022.)

As per the 1940 US Census, both Myrtle and Leigh completed three years of high school.

Don had three younger brothers: Richard G. Hardison, James E. Hardison and Wilbur T. Hardison.

Spouse

Hardison married Betty Jane Decker (born 1920 in Vallejo, CA-d. 01/10/2017 in Oakland, CA) on 06/08/1942 in Fairfield, CA. (See Source Citation: Sacramento Bee; Publication Date: 06/11/1942, Publication Place: Sacramento, California, USA, accessed 04/20/2022) In 1942, Alameda County voter records indicated that Betty worked as a stenographer. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1942, accessed 04/20/2022.) Her obituary online on the Find a Grave.com website said of her: "Betty was a member of First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley and a longtime member/volunteer of the Richmond Art Center. She was an extraordinary secretary and companion of her husband in his early architectural practice and his lifelong service to the profession, as well as a gifted community volunteer and leader dedicated to such charities as the Hospital Auxiliary (serving the former Richmond and Brookside Hospitals), the YMCA, and the Richmond Art Center where she served as Board President in 1980-82. She was also an early volunteer for the Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front National Historical Park." (See Find a Grave.com, "Mrs Betty Jane Decker Hardison," accessed 04/20/2022.)

Her parents were Lillian Schleicher (born 10/21/1896 in Calistoga, CA-d. 10/13/1991 in Walnut Creek, CA) and Harry Erwin Decker, Sr., (born 08/06/1889 in Calistoga, CA-d. 08/11/1950 in Calistoga, CA). Harry Decker was an electrician.

Children

He and Betty had two children: Steve Hardison and Jan Hardison Brown.

Biographical Notes

In 1940, Hardison's World War II draft registration card listed him as Caucasian with a light brown complexion, hazel eyes and brown hair. He wa 6-feet, 1-inch tall and weighed 165 pounds.

Voter rolls for 1942 and 1944 indicated that Hardison was a registered Republican. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1942, accessed 04/20/2022 and Ancestry.com, Source Citation California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1944, accessed 04/20/2022)

• Fillmore, CA (Architect's Birth)
  Fillmore, CA

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