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HomeMy WebLinkAbout010228_Template-EpiscopalChurchMessiah_614NBush.pdfPage 1 of 4 cm\historic\templates\Bush 614 N (Episcopal Ch Messiah) 7/25/01 NAME Episcopal Church of the Messiah REF. NO. 251 ADDRESS 614 North Bush Street CITY Santa Ana ZIP ORANGE COUNTY YEAR BUILT 1888 LOCAL REGISTER CATEGORY: Landmark HISTORIC DISTRICT Santa Ana Downtown NEIGHBORHOOD NATIONAL REGISTER CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION C NATIONAL REGISTER STATUS CODE 1D Location: Not for Publication Unrestricted USGS 7.5” Quad Date: T R ¼ of ¼ of Sec : B.M. Prehistoric Historic Both ARCHITECTURAL STYLE: Shingle Style DESCRIPTION/BACKGROUND RELATED TO PERIOD ARCHITECTURE: The Shingle Style, named by architectural historian Vincent Scully in his book of the same name published in 1955, was predominantly a residential style dating from the 1880s through the first decade of the 20th century. Marrying characteristics of the Queen Anne Revival, the Colonial Revival, and Richardsonian Romanesque, the style is recognizable by walls of shingles, at least on the upper stories. Ground or basement levels are often masonry. The Shingle Style is more horizontal than its Queen Anne Revival predecessor, but often incorporates rounded towers, balconies, bays, and porches from the earlier genre. Roofs are usually gabled or gambreled (Whiffen, 127-132). Other common features include clustering of windows, classical columns, arched openings, and dormer windows. The overall emphasis is on a complex shape enclosed within the shingled exterior, rather than on the decoration of individual building elements (McAlester, 288-291. Page 2 of 4 cm\historic\templates\Bush 614 N (Episcopal Ch Messiah) 7/25/01 CONSTRUCTION HISTORY: (Construction data, alterations, and date of alterations) Constructed in 1888 Raised on top of new parish hall in 1911 Annex: 1955-1969 RELATED FEATURES: (Other important features such as barns, sheds, fences, prominent or unusual trees, or landscape) Annex (1955-1969) (Does not contribute to historic significance) DESCRIPTION: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, settings, and boundaries.) Located on the southwest corner of Bush Street and Civic Center Boulevard, the Episcopal Church of the Messiah displays an eclectic combination of the Shingle Style, the Queen Anne Revival, and the Tudor Revival which was typical of the building’s architect, Ernest Coxhead. Square in plan, the building is one and two stories in height and rests on a partially subterranean brick basement which houses the parish hall. It is sheathed in shingles, enlivened bands of patterned shingles, sawtooth moldings, and decoratively half-timbered gable ends. The building is anchored by a two-story tower at its northeast corner and a turret topped, rounded apse on the east elevation. Above a bracketed overhang, a square spire and a round cupola containing a bell surmount the tower. Windows include small round-headed openings glazed with art glass in the tower and apse, a large tripartite arched opening on the north, various single and paired casement and one-over-one sash, some with leaded glass, and a pair of dormers, in the north slope of the gable roof. Crosses have been inset into the shingling on both the north and the east. Entries are unobtrusively located on both elevations. The entire composition is asymmetrical and picturesque. Alterations do not detract from integrity of the original design, and include an L-shaped, brick, two-story annex which wraps the building and a steel exterior staircase on the north elevation. HISTORIC HIGHLIGHTS: The Episcopal Church of the Messiah was built in 1888-1890 and can claim to be the oldest surviving public building in continuous use in Orange County, as well as the oldest remaining downtown church in Santa Ana (Les, 20). It was built for the modest sum of $4,592 and was dedicated on Easter Sunday in 1889 (Anderson). Dr. Howe-Waffle, Orange County’s first woman doctor whose house is across the street, was instrumental in the development and financing of the church (Les, 20). English born architect Ernest Coxhead was the architect of the Church of the Messiah. Elected to the Royal Institute of British Architects (“RIBA”) in 1886, Coxhead was intrigued by reports about California which were published in England. Lured by the promise of work from the Episcopal archdiocese, Coxhead and his brother Almeric relocated to Los Angeles in January 1887. Over the next two years, the majority of new Episcopal churches in Southern California would be designed by him; only four, including the Church of the Epiphany (Los Angeles, 1888), the Church of the Angels (Los Angeles, 1889), Church of the Ascension (Sierra Madre, 1888) and the Church of the Messiah, survive. In 1889 Coxhead moved to San Francisco, and became one of the premier architects of the late 19th century in northern California. The church was modified in 1911, when the parish hall was built beneath the sanctuary and the entrance moved from the tower to the rear of the nave. Other than the addition of the education building and its wing in 1955-1969, the Coxhead design is intact. RESOURCE ATTRIBUTES: (List attributes and codes from Appendix 4 of Instructions for Recording Historical Resources, Office of Historic Preservation.) (HP 16) Religious Building Page 3 of 4 cm\historic\templates\Bush 614 N (Episcopal Ch Messiah) 7/25/01 RESOURCES PRESENT: Building Structure Object Site District Element of District Other MOVED? No Yes Unknown Date: Original Location: STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: (Discuss importance in terms of historical or architectural context as defined by theme, period, geographic scope, and integrity.) Santa Ana was founded by William Spurgeon in 1869 as a speculative townsite on part of the Spanish land grant known as Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana. Early growth and development was stimulated by the arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1878 and the Santa Fe Railroad in 1886. By the end of the 1880s, Santa Ana’s downtown business district was defined by five city blocks of brick commercial buildings on Fourth Street, with the heart of the city at the intersection of Fourth and Main Streets (Thomas, 8:1). Following its incorporation as a city in 1886, Santa Ana was recognized as one of the leading communities in the area in 1889 when it became the seat of the newly created County of Orange. One of the pioneer congregations of Santa Ana, the Episcopal Church of the Messiah constructed its sanctuary in what was then a flower filled meadow adjacent to the commercial district. The church is significant historically as an early focus of Santa Ana life which has operated continuously at this location for well over 100 years. It is of outstanding architectural merit as an example of the work of architect Ernest Coxhead. According to architectural historians David Gebhard and Robert Winter the Church of the Messiah “is his most sophisticated early design” combining “Medieval Gothic, Classical, and late Queen Anne (Shingle style) elements in a single composition” (Gebhard and Winter, 434). Character-defining exterior features of the church which should be preserved include, but are not limited to: configuration; exterior materials and finishes; tower; gables; fenestration (at least two windows are reputedly Tiffany glass); and all decorative elements. SUMMARY/CONCLUSION: This building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 as a contributor to the Downtown Historic District. Under the regulations implementing the California Register of Historical Resources, the building is also listed in the California Register. The church complex satisfies several Criteria (1, for distinguishing architectural characteristics; 2, as the work of a notable architect; and 4, for significant historical association) for inclusion in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Property. Additionally, the property has been categorized as “Landmark” because it “is on the national register,” “is on the state register,” “has historical/cultural significance to the City of Santa Ana,” and “has a unique architectural significance” (Municipal Code, Section 30-2.2). The Episcopal Church of the Messiah is also Orange County Historical Site #3. OWNER AND ADDRESS: Church of the Messiah 614 North Bush Street Santa Ana, CA 92701 Page 4 of 4 cm\historic\templates\Bush 614 N (Episcopal Ch Messiah) 7/25/01 RECORDED BY: (Name, affiliation, and address) Leslie Heumann Science Applications International Corporation 35 S. Raymond Avenue, Suite 204, Pasadena, CA 91105 DATE RECORDED: February 28, 2001 SURVEY TYPE: (Intensive, reconnaissance, or other) Intensive Survey Update REPORT CITATION: (Cite survey report and other sources) Les, Kathleen. “Santa Ana Historic Survey, Final Resources Inventory: Downtown.” May 1980. Thomas, Harold M. “Downtown Santa Ana Historic District” National Register nomination form, 1984. REFERENCES: (List documents, date of publication, and page numbers. May also include oral interviews.) Anderson, Carson. “History of Messiah.” Internet (http://www.edconf.org/messiah/history.html) Gebhard, David & Winter, Robert. Architecture in Los Angeles and Southern California, 1977, p434. Harris, Cyril M. American Architecture: An Illustrated Encyclopedia. New York, WW Norton, 1998. 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 Department of the Interior, 1991. Whiffen, Marcus. American Architecture Since 1780. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1969. EVALUATOR: Leslie J. Heumann DATE OF EVALUATION: February 28, 2001 EXPLANATION OF CODES: • National Register Criteria for Evaluation: (From Appendix 7 of Instructions for Recording Historical Resources, Office of Historic Preservation) C: that embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, or that represent the work of a master, or that possess high artistic values, or that represent a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction. • National Register Status Code: (From Appendix 2 of Instructions for Recording Historical Resources, Office of Historic Preservation) 1D: Contributor to a listed district.