Podcast
“What Minerva Built” is a limited-series podcast with companion video shorts, produced with support from the James Marston Fitch Charitable Foundation.
The podcast episodes presented here are also available through most major platforms.
Episode 1 | Introduction
Introducing "What Minerva Built," a special podcast about architect Minerva Parker Nichols, and what she can teach us about the work of architecture, preservation, and history.
Episode 2 | Lady Architect
When she died in 1949, architect Minerva Parker Nichols was memorialized in the New York Times with a headlined obituary—no small feat. This episode traces the lifelong themes of Minerva's work, beginning with her childhood in Peoria, Illinois, and her architectural education in Philadelphia.
Episode 3 | Pioneers
This episode places Minerva Parker Nichols in context with her design peers, male and female, and examines her path into the field in the context of other early women architects. It considers why we focus so strongly on the “pioneers"—setting them apart as individuals without situating them as fully participating members of the profession.
Transcript | Mentioned in this episode: Where Are the Women Architects?
Episode 4 | Specialization
This episode looks at Minerva's overall portfolio and her specialization in residential architecture, including the principles of her design philosophy and the common features of her designs. Her approach to architecture cannot be separated from her approach to the profession, so this episode takes full account of her competency and the ways in which her training factored into her projects.
Transcript | Mentioned in this episode: Cranaleith Spiritual Center
Episode 5 | Clubwomen
Minerva's career dovetailed with the emergence of women’s clubs in the late 19th century, and her designs for three women's clubhouses created new hubs of social action for white American women. These projects were pivotal commissions for Minerva, expanding her network of available clients, and she enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship with many of her clients.
Transcript | Mentioned in this episode: Delaware Children's Theatre; Move Over B.O.B.
Episode 6 | Scaffolding
Grounded in practical apprenticeship training, Minerva supervised construction on all of her design projects. This episode takes a closer look at that particular aspect of Minerva's competency, and considers how women navigate the construction site day.
Episode 7 | Gatekeeping
One of Minerva's highest-profile projects was a pavilion commissioned by the Queen Isabella Association, to be built for the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893. A series of political maneuvers by the fair's organizers ultimately cost Minerva the project and led to the breakdown of one of her colleagues in the profession, Sophia Hayden. This episode examines the ways in which the profession of architecture has for over a century written the definition of an "architect" so that women are left out.
Transcript | Mentioned in this episode: Equity by Design; Women in Architecture, Philadelphia AIA; Penn Women in Design
Episode 8 | Memory Loss
The collective forgetting of Minerva Parker Nichols is not an isolated case. This episode take a look at three other case studies in which under-represented communities have been overlooked, including a re-examination of Edith Farnsworth's house in Plano, Illinois; the work of the New York City LGBT Historic Sites Project; and the mission of H.O.P.E. Crew.
Transcript | Mentioned in this episode: Curtained Walls/The Vanishing Porch in Perspective, NYC LGBT Historic Sites Project, H.O.P.E. Crew
Episode 9 | What Minerva Built
The final episode of the series takes a look back at Minerva's surviving records, in the form of her drawings and extant buildings. It sheds new light on the influence that Minerva has continued to wield for over a century, through her life, teachings, writings, and most importantly, her work.
Transcript | Mentioned in this episode: Architectural Archives, University of Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office; Cranaleith Spiritual Center; Delaware Children's Theatre
Podcast
Produced and written by Molly Lester
Produced and edited by Justin Geller
Music by Justin Geller
Editorial advising by Samantha Kurland
Additional advising by Ashley Hahn, Heather Isbell Schumacher, Bill Whitaker, and Kelly Whitton
Voiceovers by Kimberly Chantry, Michael Bacon, Elizabeth Lester-Abdalla, Alexander Lester-Abdalla, Kathryn Lester-Bacon, Graeme Peterson, and Neil Peterson
Video Shorts
Produced and written by Molly Lester
Produced and edited by Kaitlyn Levesque
Music by Justin Geller
Editorial advising by Samantha Kurland
Additional advising by Heather Isbell Schumacher and Bill Whitaker
Interview + Filming Partners
Carrie + Patrick Baker
Linda + Angie Ferber Bickell
Heather + Derek Bodenstab
Angela Cacace
Mary Werner DeNadai
Sarah Dreller
Nicole Dress
Efrie Escott
Jazz Graves
Nan Gutterman
Kathy Holden
Ken Lustbader
Cory Kegerise
Susan Kolber
Ruth Picozzi
Monica Rhodes
Heather Isbell Schumacher
David Seator + Kirsten Lett
TJ Scully + Judy Lustig
Despina Stratigakos
Donna Swajeski
Sister Mary Trainer
Fon Wang
Christine Witkowski + Dan Berkowitz
Aaron Wunsch