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HomeMy WebLinkAbout060925_Template-SmedleyHouse_2102NRoss.pdfState of California ⎯ The Resources Agency Primary #______________________________________________ DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #__________________________________________________ PRIMARY RECORD Trinomial______________________________________________ NRHP Status Code_____________________________________ Other Listings_____________________________________________________________________ Review Code________ Reviewer________________________ Date_______________ Page _1_ of _3_ Resource name(s) or number (assigned by recorder) Smedley House P1. Other Identifier: *P2. Location: Not for Publication Unrestricted *a. County Orange County *b. USGS 7.5’ Quad TCA0054 Date: *c. Address 2102 North Ross Street City Santa Ana Zip 92706 *e. Other Locational Data: Assessor’s Parcel Number 002-112-20 *P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries.) This one-story, stucco-clad Spanish Colonial Revival residence features a low-pitched, cross-gabled roof with red tiles and shallow overhangs. H-shaped in plan, the residence has a prominent front-gabled wing, projecting from the façade’s north half. The stucco finish of the gable is uninterrupted, except for two exposed clay drainage pipes in the gable apex. Along the façade’s south half, a low, stucco-clad wall encloses an open courtyard, which is raised on three steps. The south portion of the courtyard features a projecting wing with multipane casement windows. The main entrance is recessed in the northeast corner of the courtyard. Fenestration on the façade consists of a tripartite window, capped with a molded arch and a multipane transom, centered on the projecting wing. A variety of multipane casement windows, some with awnings, as well as double-hung sash windows line the courtyard and the side elevations. Side elevations display rows of three exposed clay pipe ends, repeating the theme found on the façade. A wrought-iron railing marks the side entrance on the north elevation, which consists of a wood door with single-light glazing and an awning. Wrought-iron fences that appear nonoriginal (albeit sensitive to the house’s Spanish Colonial Revival style) enclose the north side of the porch and mark the entrance to the driveway. Other alterations include an addition to the original garage in the northwest corner of the property. The house otherwise appears substantially intact and is enhanced by mature trees and landscaping. *P3b. Resource Attributes: (list attributes and codes) HP2. Single-family Property *P4. Resources Present: Building Structure Object Site District Element of District Other P5b. Photo: (view and date) West elevation September 2006 *P6. Date Constructed/Age and Sources: historic 1927/City of Santa Ana Building Permits *P7. Owner and Address: Robert and Judith Johnson 2102 North Ross Street Santa Ana, CA 92706 *P8. Recorded by: L. Heumann and D.Howell-Ardila Sapphos Environmental, Inc. 133 Martin Alley Pasadena, California 91105 *P9. Date Recorded: September 25, 2006 *P10. Survey Type: Intensive Survey Update *P11. Report Citation: (Cite survey report and other sources, or enter “none”) None. *Attachments: None Location Map Sketch Map Continuation Sheet Building, Structure, and Object Record Archaeological Record District Record Linear Feature Record Milling Station Record Rock Art Record Artifact Record Photograph Record Other (list) DPR 523A (1/95) *Required information P5a. Photo State of California ⎯ The Resources Agency Primary #__________________________________________ DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#______________________________________________ BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND OBJECT RECORD Page 2 of 3 *CHR Status Code_5S1__________________________ *Resource Name or #: Smedley House B1. Historic Name: Smedley House B2. Common Name: Same B3. Original Use: Single-family Residence B4. Present Use: Single-family Residence *B5. Architectural Style: Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival *B6. Construction History: (Construction date, alterations, and date of alterations): Constructed in 1927 January 11, 1927. Residence and garage constructed for $6,600. March 18, 1949. Unspecified alterations, $125. March 21, 1949. Unspecified alterations, $14. February 4, 1970. Patio brought into code, $60. March 28, 1979. Add den and hobby room to garage, $10,200. September 27, 1982. Reroof. *B7. Moved? No Yes Unknown Date:______ Original Location:_ ____________________ *B8. Related Features: None. B9a. Architect: Unknown b. Builder: Unknown *B10. Significance: Theme Residential Architecture Area Santa Ana Period of Significance: Circa 1895-1965 Property Type: Single-family Residence Applicable Criteria: NR: C; CR: 3 (Discuss importance in terms of historical or architectural context as defined by theme, period, and geographic scope. Also address integrity) The Smedley House is architecturally significant as an intact and representative example of the Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival style. City of Santa Ana records indicate that the house was constructed in January 1927 for Roland Dye for a total cost of $6,600. Mr. Dye, an executive with the Orange County Council of the Boys Scouts of America, resided in the house with his wife Ruby until 1928. Between 1929 and 1930, city directories indicate that the house was owned by Ralph C. Smedley, a prominent Santa Ana resident who founded the first Toastmasters Club in Santa Ana in 1924—then founded Toastmasters International in 1930, when he was listed as owner of this house with his wife Frances. By 1935, the ownership had shifted to Hiram Currey, an eye, ear, nose, and throat doctor with an office at 311 S. Main, and his wife Ruth. The Curreys owned the house until at least 1941. In subsequent decades, ownership of the house shifted on multiple occasions. (See Continuation Sheet 3 of 3.) B11. Additional Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes) *B12. References: City of Santa Ana Building Permits Santa Ana History Room Collection, Santa Ana Public Library Sanborn Maps (See Continuation Sheet 3 of 3.) B13. Remarks: *B14. Evaluator: Leslie J. Heumann *Date of Evaluation: September 25, 2006 DPR 523B (1/95) *Required information Sketch Map (This space reserved for official comments.) 2102 N. Ross Street 002-112-20 State of California ⎯ The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________________ DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________________ CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial _____________________________________________ Page 3_ of 3_ Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Smedley House *Recorded by Leslie J. Heumann and Deborah Howell-Ardila *Date September 25, 2006 ⌧ Continuation Update DPR 523L *B10. Significance (continued): Santa Ana was founded by William Spurgeon in 1869 as a speculative town site on part of the Spanish land grant known as Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana. The civic and commercial core of the community was centered around the intersection of Main and Fourth Streets. Stimulated by the arrival of the Santa Fe Railroad and incorporation as a city in 1886, and selection as the seat of the newly created County of Orange in 1889, the city grew outwards, with residential neighborhoods developing to the north, south, and east of the city center. Agricultural uses predominated in the outlying areas, with cultivated fields and orchards dotted with widely scattered farmhouses. The Smedley House is located in Floral Park, a neighborhood northwest of downtown Santa Ana bounded by East Seventeenth Street, North Flower Street, Riverside Drive, and Broadway. Groves of oranges, avocados, and walnuts and widely scattered ranch houses characterized this area before 1920. Developer and builder Allison Honer (1897-1981), credited as the subdivider and builder of a major portion of northwest Santa Ana, arrived in Santa Ana from Beaver Falls, New York in 1922 (Talbert, pages 353-356). “Before nightfall on the day of his arrival, Mr. Honer purchased a parcel of land. And that month, he began building custom homes in Santa Ana” (Orange County Register, September 15, 1981). The parcel chosen became the Floral Park subdivision between Seventeenth Street and Santiago Creek. “When built in the 1920s, the Floral Park homes were the most lavish and expensive in the area. They sold for about $45,000 each” (Orange County Register, September 15, 1981). Revival architecture in a wide variety of romantic styles was celebrated in the 1920s and 1930s and Floral Park showcased examples of the English Tudor, French Norman, Spanish Colonial, and Colonial Revival. The Allison Honer Construction Company went on to complete such notable projects as the 1935 Art Deco styled Old Santa Ana City Hall, the El Toro Marine Base during World War II, and the 1960 Honer Shopping Plaza. Honer lived in the neighborhood he had helped to create, at 615 West Santa Clara Avenue. In the late 1920s and 1930s, another builder, Roy Roscoe Russell (1881-1965), continued developing the groves of Floral Park. An early Russell project was his 1928 subdivision of Victoria Drive between West Nineteenth Street and West Santa Clara Avenue. The homes were quite grand and displayed various revival styles, including Russell’s own large, Colonial Revival mansion at 2009 Victoria Drive. In the early post World War II years, Floral Park continued its development as numerous, smaller, single-family houses were built. Continuing in the Floral Park tradition, they were mostly revival in style. In the 1950s, low, horizontal Ranch Style houses completed the growth of Floral Park. Today (2006) Floral Park maintains its identity as the premier neighborhood of Santa Ana, historically home to many affluent and prominent citizens. The Smedley House qualifies for listing in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Property under Criterion 3 for its exemplification of the distinguishing characteristics of the Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival style. Typical features of this style illustrated by the house include its low-pitched, tile-roof with shallow eaves; stucco cladding with sparse ornament; its L- shaped plan and courtyard; and its arched tripartite window and exposed clay pipe ends on the front gable. Additionally, the house has been categorized as “Contributive” because it “contributes to the overall character and history” of Santa Ana, and, as an example of the Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival style “is a good example of period architecture.” Character-defining exterior features of the Smedley House that should be preserved include, but may not be limited to, materials and finishes (stucco and wood); roof configuration and detailing; original windows and doors where extant; architectural details such as exposed clay pipe ends and awnings. *B12. References (continued): Harris, Cyril M. American Architecture: An Illustrated Encyclopedia. New York, WW Norton, 1998. Marsh, Diann. Santa Ana, An Illustrated History. Encinitas, Heritage Publishing, 1994. McAlester, Virginia and Lee. A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1984. National Register Bulletin 16A. “How to Complete the National Register Registration Form.” Washington DC: National Register Branch, National Park Service, US Dept. of the Interior, 1991. Office of Historic Preservation. “Instructions for Recording Historical Resources.” Sacramento: March 1995. Whiffen, Marcus. American Architecture Since 1780. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1969. Armor, Samuel. History of Orange County. Los Angeles: History Record Company, 1921. Franklin, Don. “NW Santa Ana History: Roy Russell & Son, Builders.” Unsourced article from the Santa Ana History Room Historic House File, circa 1995. Santa Ana and Orange County Directories, 1932-1954. Filename: Ross St 2102 N DPR final Directory: M:\Historic Info\110206HRC\FINAL_DPRs Template: C:\My Documents\General\Forms\Myprimry.dot Title: P1. Other Identifier: Subject: Author: City of Santa Ana Keywords: Comments: Creation Date: 10/12/2006 3:44:00 PM Change Number: 5 Last Saved On: 10/17/2006 10:10:00 AM Last Saved By: Hally Soboleske Total Editing Time: 7 Minutes Last Printed On: 11/13/2006 10:44:00 AM As of Last Complete Printing Number of Pages: 3 Number of Words: 1,805 (approx.) Number of Characters: 10,294 (approx.)