Description
Bernadine Swadley was born in 1917 in the city of Paso Robles, CA. Her family is sixth generation Californian. Mrs. Swadley’s father attended Stanford during the 1906 Earthquake, and was able to sign for her admittance in 1936. After studying architecture at Stanford, Swadley worked at a lumber yard in El Cerrito for the next twenty years. During this time she recalls drawing FHA kitchen plans at the World’s Fair on Treasure Island, visiting Port Chicago a day after the explosion and entertaining troops during World War II. She also speaks in great depth about the Bay Area housing boom after the war. Mrs. Swadley later went on to hold leadership positions for The American Red Cross in Alameda, CA and The Daughters of the American Revolution. She lives in Oakland, CA.