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(1942– )
Gilstrap grew up in Greenville SC. He graduated from Carolina HS and attended Clemson for almost three years. He worked for McPherson Group and Joe Hiller in Greenville SC. He moved to Charlotte NC around 1968 and worked for Belk Stores Services on store remodeling and brand logos. He worked for Jim Bell around 1969; Home Design and Construction Company, owned by Gene Beard; The Erving Company; then Crosland Homes before going on his own in 1973, designing about 30 houses in the Charlotte area. As with many Modernist architects, Gilstrap's "houses offended at least half the population. There were neighbors who did not want me building next to them or even in the neighborhood. One guy offered me 50% profit on the lot I had made a deposit on to avoid my design being next to him. At an open house one spouse refused to come in with her partner. On the other hand it is nice when a stranger stops in front of your house for a photograph. Or the fire department uses a depiction of your oversized house numbers to show others how visible their house numbers should be."
In 1983, he moved to California and built several spec houses, including a house for himself. Around 1990, he started designing and selling swimming pools. He started a home improvement business around 2000 and retired in 2010.
Sources include: Alan Gilstrap; daughter Holly Gilstrap; Rebecca Primm; Justin Dashiell; The Charlotte Observer; Mecklenburg County Register of Deeds.
