Modern Woman

Nellie Norton Coffman, the “Mother of Palm Springs,” arrived in Palm Springs and opened the Desert Inn as a respiratory clinic. By 1928, she had expanded the hotel into a prestigious resort, transforming the tiny desert village into a world-famous tourist destination.

Zaddie Bunker, an aviator, entrepreneur, and landowner, arrived in Palm Springs and later opened Bunker’s Garage, which played a critical role in the town’s early automotive industry.  She would go on to expand the garage in the heart of the village, contributing to the town’s growth.

Harriet Dowie-Cody purchased property adjacent to the Desert Inn and built Casa Cody Inn, the oldest adobe-style hotel in Palm Springs. She later commissioned architect Rudolph Schindler for two unrealized Palm Springs projects.

Betty Popenoe (with husband Paul) commissioned architect Rudolph Schindler to design a small cabin in Coachella, the first Modernist building in the Coachella Valley.

Pearl McCallum McManus, a pioneer and architectural innovator, commissioned architect Lloyd Wright (son of Frank Lloyd Wright) to design the Oasis Hotel, a masterpiece in slip-form concrete.

Julia Shaw Patterson Carnell, a real estate developer, commissioned architects Harry Schenck and Harry J. Williams to design La Plaza Shopping Center, Theater, and Apartments, America’s first car-oriented mixed-use complex.

Ruth Hardy, Palm Springs’s first city councilwoman, acquired the Birge Estate, designed by architect George Washington Smith, and converted it into the Ingleside Inn, a 20-room luxury hotel.

Katherine Bashford, Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects, designed the landscaping with Fred Barlow, Jr. for the Davidson Residence (Ship of the Desert) and later for the Woman’s Club in Palm Springs.

Mary Perrine Patterson Davidson (daughter of Julia Canell) commissioned architects Erle Webster and Adrian Wilson to design the Davidson Residence (Ship of the Desert), a Streamline Moderne nautical-style house.

Grace Lewis Miller, a practitioner of the Mensendieck System of Functional Exercise, commissioned Modernist architect Richard Neutra to design a small desert house and studio in Palm Springs.

Maryon Toole, Indian Wells’s first postmistress, commissioned architect Rudolph Schindler to design a desert house in Palm Village (now Palm Desert). In 2014, the house was designated a local landmark.

Ruth Patricia Shellhorn, Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects, designed the landscaping for the Palm Springs Bullock’s department store, Disneyland, and the University of California at Riverside. 

Cornelia White, an entrepreneur and Native American art collector, deeded land for the Palm Springs Desert Museum on Tahquitz Drive, designed by the architectural firms Clark, Frey, and Chambers and Williams, Williams, and Williams.

Vyola J. Olinger (later Ortner), a visionary leader, was elected to the Tribal Council of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians and later chaired the first all-woman council in the United States. She was instrumental in opening large areas of Palm Springs for sustainable land use, housing, and business development.

Lou Sawyer (with husband Clif) created design plans and decorations in the Tiki modern vernacular for many Southern California food and beverage establishments,  including Don the Beachcomber restaurant in Palm Springs.

Lucille Ball (with husband Desi Arnaz), an actress, comedian, producer, and studio executive, commissioned a ranch-style home designed by pioneering Black architect Paul R. Williams at Thunderbird Country Club in Rancho Mirage.

Eileen Miguel, secretary of the all-woman Tribal Council of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, helped to secure vital long-term property leases, ensuring a stable future for the Agua Caliente people. She served as council chair from 1959 to 1965.

Colleen Carol Crist, a draftswoman, designed and served as project contractor for the Monkey Tree Hotel in Palm Springs.

Luella Maslon (with husband Samuel), a museum trustee and modern art collector, commissioned the prominent Modernist architect Richard Neutra to design a stunning home on the 12th fairway of Tamarisk Country Club in Rancho Mirage, which was sadly demolished by new owners in 2002.

Vee Nisley, an interior designer and aviator, opened her studio in Rancho Mirage and worked on design projects for developers and clients at Canyon Country Club, Casa Dorado, Desert Bel Air, Green Acres, Marrakesh Country Club, Sandcliff Garden Apartment Homes, Sandpiper, Thunderbird Villas, and other properties over her 40+year career.

Leonore Annenberg (with husband Walter), a diplomat, art collector, and philanthropist, commissioned architect A. Quincy Jones to design the historic 200-acre Sunnylands Estate, with custom furniture and interiors by esteemed designers William Haines and Ted Graber.

Dinah Shore (with husband Maurice Smith), an actress, singer, and golfer, commissioned mid-century modern architect Donald Wexler to design a home in Palm Springs.

Sallie Stevens Nichols (with husband Culver) commissioned architects Albert Frey and Robson Chambers to design the Enco Tramway Service Station (now Palm Springs Visitor Center) with a hyperbolic paraboloid roof, an iconic symbol of mid-century design at the city’s entrance.

Leonore Annenberg, Palm Springs Desert (now Art) Museum trustee and board president, acted as a fundraising force for the 1976 museum building designed by architect E. Stewart Williams and generously contributed funds for the Museum’s Annenberg Theater with interiors by designer Arthur Elrod.

Nelda Linsk (with husband Joseph), a local realtor, acquired the renowned Kaufmann Desert House by Modernist architect Richard Neutra with furnishings by Arthur Elrod. She is featured in Poolside Gossip by Slim Aarons, an iconic photograph epitomizing desert modernism.

Mary Delgado (with husband Florencio) commissioned architect Arthur Valdes to design a restaurant inspired by Spanish haciendas and opened Las Casuelas Nuevas in Rancho Mirage. In 2006, she was recognized on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars.

Dolores Hope (with husband Bob), a singer, entertainer, and philanthropist, commissioned architect John Lautner to design an organic modern residence atop the hills overlooking Palm Springs. 

Cora Crawford, a community leader dedicated to underserved children, chaired the advisory council that helped the city build the Unity Community Center (James O. Jessie Desert Highland Unity Center) and was a founding member of the Palm Springs Black History Committee.

First Lady Betty Ford (with husband Gerald) commissioned architects Welton Becket & Associates to design a custom-built ranch-style residence with interiors by Beverly Hills decorator Laura Mako on the 13th fairway at Thunderbird Country Club in Rancho Mirage.

Annette Lerner (with husband Ted), a philanthropist, art collector, and museum trustee, commissioned architects Richard Holden and William Carl Johnson with Jerry Harpole for a Steve Chase-designed residence at Thunderbird Cove in Rancho Mirage.

Mary E. Nichols, an architecture and design photographer, published photographs of the Steve Chase-designed Lerner Residence at Thunderbird Cove in Rancho Mirage in the August 1991 issue of Architectural Digest.

Barbara M. Gonzales Lyons, vice-chair for the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, was critical in pursuing tribal economic development and independence through gaming and tourism.

Tracy Conrad (with husband Paul Marut), a physician, local historian, writer, and preservationist, owned and sensitively restored important historic properties in Palm Springs, including the Willows (William Mead Residence, 1998 historic site designation), the Thomas O’Donnell House (2000), and the Roland Bishop House (2019).

Beth Edwards Harris (with husband Brent), a preservationist and architectural historian, restored Richard Neutra’s Kaufmann Desert House using the architectural firm of Marmol Radziner. In 2025, she received recognition on the Palm Springs Walk of Stars.

Adele Cygelman, a writer and editor specializing in architecture and interior design, published the seminal Palm Springs Modern: Houses in the California Desert (in print since 1999) and Arthur Elrod: Desert Modern Design, published in 2019.

Catherine Meyler, a preservationist and location management owner, rescued and restored the Grace Lewis Miller House designed by Modernist architect Richard Neutra.

Marybeth Norton, a local interior designer and business owner, worked for Arthur Elrod Associates and then at Steve Chase & Associates in her early design career. 

Trina Turk (with husband Jonathan Skow), a fashion designer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, completed the restoration of the Davidson Residence (Ship of the Desert) by architects Erle Webster and Adrian Wilson.

Lisa Vossler Smith, CEO of Modernism Week (now in its 20th year), continues to attract worldwide participants to embrace and celebrate mid-century architecture, art, and design during an internationally acclaimed 11-day Palm Springs festival.

Tracy Beckmann (with business partner Ryan Towbridge), an interior designer, preservationist, and co-owner, renovated architect John Lautner’s residential fourplex into the Lautner Compound in Desert Hot Springs.

Sidney Williams, a preservationist, educator, and curator, led efforts to purchase and rehabilitate the Santa Fe Savings & Loan Association building by architect E. Stewart Williams. It opened in 2014 as the Palm Springs Art Museum Architecture and Design Center, Edwards Harris Pavilion.

Janice Lyle, a museum director, oversaw the restoration of the historic Annenberg Sunnylands Estate by architect A. Quincy Jones, the construction of the estate’s public Center & Gardens by architect Frederick Fisher and Partners, and its administrative campus by architect Lance O’Donnell.

Helena Arahuete, an architect and designer, consulted on restoring architect John Lautner’s Dolores and Bob Hope House, bringing the property to its original design vision.

Susan Secoy Jensen, an architect and preservationist specializing in mid-century design and adaptive reuse projects, received the Architectural Preservation Award from the Palm Springs Modern Committee.