Michael J. Murphy (builder)

Michael James Murphy (June 26, 1885 – March 6, 1959) was an American master builder in the Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. He had a significant influence on the character and architecture of the Village of Carmel. From 1902 to 1940, he built most of the early houses in Carmel, nearly 350 buildings. He erected the first house in Pebble Beach and also in the Carmel Highlands. He founded M. J. Murphy, Inc., which continues to supply building material for the Monterey Peninsula.

Early life
Murphy was born in Mendon, Utah, on June 26, 1885. He was one of the twelve children of Michael and Martha Emma Hagle and grew up on his family's cattle ranch. In 1891, his parents sold the ranch and separated. In 1900, Emma and her five unmarried children moved from Utah to Los Angeles.

Career


In 1901, Emma brought Murphy and her youngest daughter to Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. They were promised work to construct small Victorian cottages for real estate developer James Franklin Devendorf and his Carmel Development Company. During this period, he was the only contrator in Carmel.

Murphy developed his own designs and did most of the building himself. As his reputation grew, more people wanted Murphy built homes. Murphy went back to Idaho to marry Edna M. Owens (1886-1954) on February 13, 1904, in Malad, Oneida, Idaho. They had four children.



In 1902, Murphy, at age 17, built his first one-story wood-framed home, a 820 sqft cottage, for his mother and sister on Mission Street between fifth and sixth Avenues. The home was a mixture of Victorian and Craftsman Bungalow. It has a horizontal clapboard wood siding and a used brick exterior wall chimney located on the South side.

In 1990, to save the house from demolition, and with the support of the Carmel Heritage Society, the citizens of Carmel formed the First Murphy Foundation, which raised $16,000 for the relocation of the Murphy house. The City of Carmel offered city-owned property at Lincoln Street and Sixth Avenue for the relocation site. The house occupies part of First Murphy Park and bronze sculpture on a commemorative wood bench by George W. Lundeen, at the corner of Lincoln and Sixth.

In 1914, Murphy became a general contractor and in 1924, he established M. J. Murphy, Inc., a business which sold building supplies, did rock crushing and concrete services, and operated a lumber mill and cabinet shop. His company did the rock crushing and supplied wood materials for the construction of the Big Sur Coast Highway.

Murphy was hired by Robinson Jeffers in 1919 to build the first part of the Tor House a small, two-story cottage. During the first stage of construction Jeffers studied under Murphy as an apprentice. Jeffers went on to finish the house and build Hawk Tower in 1924.

Murphy was also a Carmel City Council member and helped with the plans for planting trees along Ocean Avenue.

Murphy retired in 1941 and turned his business over to his son James Franklin Murphy. He had a fish camp on the Mackenzie River near Vida, Oregon. His wife died in 1954.

Death and legacy
Murphy died on March 6, 1959, in Vida, Oregon. He was buried in the Little Chapel-by-the-Sea.

In 1992, the First Murphy House became the home for the Carmel Heritage Society. The house was declared historical by the City of Carmel and was registered with the California Register of Historical Resources on November 7, 2002. The house is significant under California Register criterion 2, for the contributions of Murphy in establishing the early residential character of the village between 1902 and the early 1920s.

About 350 buildings in Carmel are attributed to Michael J. Murphy. It is estimated that about 80% of the homes in Carmel were designed or constructed by him in the 1930s.

Works
• First Murphy House (1902)

• Mabel Gray Young (Lachmund) redwood cottage (1905)

• Mary Austin's "Wick-I-Up" (1906)

• Mary Austin's House, Rose Cottage (1907)

• Carmel City Hall (1913)

• Highlands Inn (1915)

• Peter Bartowick's cabin (Santa Rita & 4th Ave.) (1917)

• Tor House (1919)

• Pine Inn (1922)

• De Yoe Building (1924)

• La Playa Hotel (1925)

• Isabel Leidig Building (1925)

• W. C. Farley Building (1927)

• Harrison Memorial Library (1928) in collaboration with Bernard Maybeck

• Sundial Lodge (1929)

• Las Tiendas Building (1930)

• Hasenyager House (1931)

• Doud Building (1932)

• Goold Building (1935)

• Fee Building (1935)

• Carmel Fire Station (1937)

• Carmel Art Association (1938)