James L. (Lewis) Brandt was born in Brooksville, Mississippi, on 20 September 1926. He grew up in Washington, Durham, and Greenville, all in North Carolina, and he graduated from Greenville High School. In 1944 he enlisted in the Navy, and he was discharged in 1946.
In 1947 he moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, when his father joined the zoology faculty at North Carolina State College. He enrolled in the college's new School of Design the following year. During his time at NC State, Frank Lloyd Wright visited, and Dutch architect H. Th. Wijdeveld was a visiting professor. Both had a strong influence on Brandt. In 1951 he became the first editor of the Student Publication of the School of Design, and he graduated with a B. A. in Architecture that same year.
In November 1951 he began working for architect Edward Lowenstein of Greensboro, North Carolina. In November 1952 he returned to Raleigh to work for architect G. Milton Small. He became an associate architect in the firm, working on many notable modern building in the Research Triangle area. He designed his own residence, considered his masterpiece, in Raleigh's Drewry Hills area. He retired professionally in 1991, and he passed away on 6 February 2012.
From the guide to the James L. Brandt Papers, 1950-2012, (Special Collections Research Center)
