[1][2][3] She was impressed by a textbook by professor Joseph LeConte of the University of California, Berkeley and decided to study science under him, earning a master's degree in 1893.

[4] After buying a small property near Blackberry Canyon in Berkeley with an inheritance, she hired an architect, William Knowles, to prepare the construction drawings.

[5] The interior featured local unpainted redwood paneling and built-in window seats that could be transformed into beds for visitors.

For many years, Lillian Bridgman lived with her sister, Irene, a nurse, sometimes staying in the studio and renting out the front house to boarders.

[13] Lilian Bridgman did not only contribute to the environment of Berkeley with her simple and harmonious houses but was also involved in the community and lectured to educate the public about building homes.

One example is her lecture Art in House Building in Relation to the Community and to Purposes of a Home which she presented to the College Women's Club.