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Earl A. Young (March 31, 1889 – May 24, 1975) was an American architect, realtor and insurance agent. Over a span of 52 years, he designed and built 31 structures in Charlevoix, Michigan but was never a registered architect. He worked mostly in stone, using limestone, fieldstone, and boulders he found throughout Northern Michigan. The homes are commonly referred to as gnome homes, mushroom houses, or Hobbit houses.〔〔 His door, window, roof and fireplace designs were very distinct because of his use of curved lines. Young's goal was to show that a small stone house could be as impressive as a castle. Young also helped make Charlevoix the busy, summer resort town that it is today.〔 ==Early life== Earl Young was born in Mancelona, Michigan in 1889 to parents Adolf and Myrtie Young. He moved to Charlevoix at 11 years old where his father set up an insurance business. As a teenager, Young was interested in photography and taught himself photofinishing. He took many photos in Charlevoix, of both the city and the woods. In high school, he was on the skating team and the track team. During his senior year, Young was coeditor of his school's newspaper with Irene Harsha, who would later become his wife. In 1908, he enrolled in the School of Architecture at the University of Michigan. He was influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright's idea that buildings should respect their surroundings. Young was discouraged by the classic Greek, Roman, and Victorian architecture he was learning about and left school after only one year.〔 That was the last time Young would have any formal schooling. He joined his family's insurance business, which soon expanded to include realty. For the rest of his life, he would say he was a realtor and would tell people that he had held his realtor's license for 60 years.〔 In the same building as the insurance agency, Young also ran a photofinishing business and sold bread. During this time, he continued to learn about architecture and construction by reading books and magazines and talking to construction workers and stonemasons. On February 14, 1914, Myrtie Young died and Earl was left alone in the family business.〔 On September 21, 1915, Young married Irene Harsha, his high school sweetheart. He joked that he married her to "keep her on his staff."〔 Over the next 11 years their family grew to include four children: Drew, Marguerite, Louise, and Virginia. Young developed some bad habits very early and they continued with him throughout his career. He was a difficult architect to deal with. He never made blueprints; workers were lucky to get a rough sketch that was refined by Irene. Young also never thought about practicality, making very short doorways and kitchens like hallways. He was an on-the-spot designer and said the stones spoke to him. When asked which building was his favorite, Young would always respond, "The next one." 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Earl Young (architect)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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