The French collection consists of project files and drawings. The records are arranged into four series: professional papers from both Helen and Prentiss French, projects by Helen French, projects by both Helen and Prentiss French, and projects by Prentiss French. Their projects consist mainly of houses in Northern California and Florida. The records also include photographs of the site of the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant and a PG&E station. Helen French's oversize drawings consist of various residences, while Prentiss French's large drawings are from landscape designs of Harvey Mudd College, the University of Alaska, and US Army Air Defense Missile Sites.

Architect Helen Douglass French and her husband, landscape architect Prentiss French, worked together and independently in New England, Florida and the San Francisco Bay area. Prentiss French earned his Master's degree in Landscape Architecture from Harvard in 1921. Based on the records, it appears that the two spent their early careers working in the office of architect Clarence Martin in Sarasota, Florida. They had relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area by 1946, the year Helen Douglass French received her California certification. The couple shared an office in San Francisco from 1947 into the 1960s, working primarily on residential projects throughout Northern California. Prentiss French completed numerous projects for the U. S. Army in the late 1950s, in California, Alaska, and other western states.

Publication Rights All requests for permission to publish, reproduce, or quote from materials in the collection should be discussed with the Director.

Access Collection is open for research.