Ortrude White became an architect in an era when females in the field were rare. Still, she managed to build her own firm, and held leadership positions in a number of trade associations until her career ended abruptly in 2009.

At StoryCorps, Ortrude’s daughter, Erika Gonzalez, asked her mother about what happened.

Broadcast version of story that aired Tuesday, August 27, 2013

StoryCorps Atlanta comes to you in partnership with the Atlanta History Center, host of the Atlanta StoryCorps Studio.