Julia Morgan was one of the nation's first prominent female architects. Born in 1872, a native Californian, Morgan was one of two dozen female students to attend the University of California at Berkeley in 1890, where she was the only female studying civil engineering. Morgan then became the first female architect to graduate from the Ecolé des Beaux-Arts, in Paris. She returned to the West Coast and after working in another architect's office for two years, established her own practice in San Francisco at age 32. One of her best known works is the Hearst San Simeon Estate, recognized as a National Historic Landmark. Begun in 1919, this princely estate was intended to be a permanent family residence, a place of retreat, and a showcase for the many art treasures amassed by publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst.