Background
He was born in San Francisco, California, the son of Luriline (née Matson) and William Philip Roth. In 1962, Roth and his mother purchased Ghirardelli Square in fear that it would be torn down and replaced with condominiums.
He was born in San Francisco, California, the son of Luriline (née Matson) and William Philip Roth. In 1962, Roth and his mother purchased Ghirardelli Square in fear that it would be torn down and replaced with condominiums.
He is credited with the preservation of Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco. They hired a landscape architectural firm to convert the factory with its historic brick structure into a retail complex. lieutenant was considered to be the first major adaptive re-use project in the United States.
Ghirardelli Square was later listed on the National Register of Historical Places to preserve for future generations.
In 1966, he was targeted along with Clark Kerr and Elinor Raas Heller by a fellow Regent, Edwin Pauley, for his alleged "ultra-liberal" views. Ronald Reagan made the Free Speech Movement and Opposition to the Vietnam War on the Berkeley campus one of his major campaign issues.
At the first Regents" meeting after Reagan"s election, Kerr was fired, with all the governor"s new appointees voting for termination. President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed him to be the Trade Representative, following the death of Christian A. Herter the previous year.
Among other activities, Roth worked as special representative for trade on United States-European trade talks (named the Kennedy Round negotiations).
See photo of Roth at a 1967, United States. Chamber of Commerce conference alongside United States Secretary of Commerce Alexander B. Trowbridge. Secretary of Agriculture Orville Freeman, and Under Secretary of Labor James J. Reynolds. In 1974, Roth, a long-time contributor to the Democratic Party, ran for Governor of California in the Democratic Primary election.
Roth had a summer home on Sonoma Mountain with substantial area, having purchased the holding around 1950.
The Roth family gave this property to the Nature Conservancy, who transformed it into a nature preserve, presently known as the Fairfield Osborn Preserve. They have two children together.
Roth died on May 29, 2014 in Petaluma, California.
Roth remained a member of the Regents" Board for many years, and was deliberately late for Reagan"s last meeting in 1974, to avoid voting on a resolution of approval for the outgoing governor.