(1859-1939)
Artist, architect, educator and preservationist, William and his brother Ellsworth revitalized art in the South. Schooled in the American Arts and Crafts Movement on the East Coast, William came to New Orleans at the invitation of Tulane University to set up a fine arts department. Both gave free public art classes at the World Cotton Centennial in 1884 to encourage interest in the arts. From this beginning, William organized Tulane and Newcomb College Art departments, a fine arts guild and pottery in the French Quarter, the Tulane School of Architecture and was on the founding boards of the Delgado Museum of Art and Art Association of New Orleans. He spearheaded art education on the Gulf Coast and was recognized for his contributions nationally and internationally.
