HomeMy WebLinkAbout060508_Template-RLewisHouse_1110SBirch.pdfState of California ¾ 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 _4_ Resource name(s) or number (assigned by recorder) R. Lewis House P1. Other Identifier:
*P2. Location: oNot for Publication nUnrestricted *a. County Orange County
*b. USGS 7.5’ Quad TCA0054 Date:
*c. Address 1110 South Birch Street City Santa Ana Zip 92707
*e. Other Locational Data: Assessor’s Parcel Number 013-141-10
*P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries.)
Clad in smooth textured stucco, this modest one -story residence displays the typical characteristics of the Spanish Colonial
Revival style. A red tiled, cross-gabled roof with shallow eaves caps the building. The focal point o f the façade is a
prominent front-gabled wing, projecting from the façade’s north half. Centered below the gable apex, which is accented with
three pipe vents, a large picture window is deeply recessed within a parabolic arch. Uneven rakes top the front gable, which
extends on the north side to shelter wing wall pierced by an arched opening. Located at the intersection of the front and side
gables, the south -facing entry consists of a decoratively paneled wood door with a small square window, screened behind
spindlework. The porch, elevated two steps above ground level, extends to the south in front of the side-gabled wing and is
enclosed by a low, stucco-clad wall. Two pairs of six-over-one, double -hung sash windows with wood frames overlook the
porch space . Fenestration on the side elevations echoes the pattern on the façade, with wood-framed windows in a variety of
configurations. An attached, stucco-clad chimney marks the north elevation . On the south elevation, a tile-clad shed roof
shelters a secondary entrance. Alterations to the house include the additions of a wood pergola above the front porch and
metal window screens. The residence, while modest, is otherwise intact.
*P3b. Resource Attributes: (list attributes and codes) HP2. Single-family Property
*P4. Resources Present: nBuilding oStructure oObject oSite oDistrict oElement of District oOther
P5b. Photo: (view and date)
East elevation
April 2008
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and
Sources: nhistoric
1930/Source: City of Santa Ana
Building Permits
*P7. Owner and Address:
Alejo G. Velarde
1110 S. Birch St.
Santa Ana, CA 92707
*P8. Recorded by:
*P9. Date Recorded:
May 8, 2008
*P10. Survey Type:
Intensive Survey *P11. Report Citation: (Cite survey
report and other sources, or enter “none”)
None.
*Attachments: oNone oLocation Map oSketch Map nContinuation Sheet nBuilding, Structure, and Object Record
oArchaeological Record oDistrict Record oLinear Feature Record oMilling Station Record oRock Art Record
oArtifact Record oPhotograph Record o Other (list)
DPR 523A (1/95) *Required information
P5a. Photo
State of California ¾ The Resources Agency Primary #__________________________________________
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#______________________________________________
BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND O BJECT RECORD
Page 2 of 4 *NRHP Status Code _5S1_________________________
*Resource Name or #: R. Lewis House B1. Historic Name: R. Lewis 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 1930.
August 28, 1930 . Residence and garage , $4,000.
June 24, 1982. Open lattice patio cover, $880.
October 22, 1993. Re-roof with tear off, built-up, 12 square feet, $2,010.
*B7. Moved? n No o Yes o 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 1920-1954 Property Type: Single-family Residence Applicable Criteria: C
(Discuss importance in terms of historical or architectural context as defined by theme, period, and geographic scope. Also address integrity)
The Lewis House is architecturally significant as a characteristic and intact example of a modestly sized Spanish Col onial
Revival home. According to the original building permit, the home was constructed in 1930 for Richard G. Lewis and his wife
Grace for an estimated cost of $4,000. Lewis, a welder, operated Oil Field Welding, located on Main Street in Huntington
Beach; Lewis’s co-owner was Harry A. Loy, who lived at 1232 South Cypress Avenue in Madison Park . The Lewises owned
1110 South Birch Street until the early 1940s. By 1945, ownership had shifted, when Edward S. Goodner, a real estate
broker with Bank of America, and his wife Mary resided in the property. The Goodners remained until at least 1954.
Occupancy shifted at least twice in the next decade, with Reverend Harry Owen, a missionary with China Inland Mission, and
his wife Marguerite, residing in the hom e by 1956. Six years later, in 1962, Thomas O’Loughlin, an engineer, and his wife
Jean occupied the property, which has since changed hands on several occasions.
(See Continuation Sheet 3 of 4.)
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 4.)
B13. Remarks:
*B14. Evaluator: Leslie J. Heumann
*Date of Evaluation: May 8, 2008
DPR 523B (1/95) *Required information
Sketch Map
(This space reserved for official comments.)
1110 S. Birch St.
013-141-10
State of California ¾ The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________________
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________________
CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial _____________________________________________
Page 3_ of 4_ Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Lewis House
*Recorded by Leslie J. Heumann and Deborah Howell -Ardila *Date May 8, 2008 x Continuation o 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
initially 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 Lewis House is located in Wilshire Square, a neighborhood located south of the city center and bounded by West
McFadden Avenue on the north, West Edinger Avenue on the south, South Main Street on the east, and South Flower
Street on the west. This area remained agricultural in use into the early twentieth century, the landscape dotted with walnut
and orange groves. The 1912 plat map of Santa Ana showed South Main Street and Fa irview Avenue (now McFadden
Avenue) as the only streets in the area, with the majority of the property held by a few landowners: N. Palmer, H. K.
Hanson, O’Brien, and Lewis.
Development of Wilshire Square began circa 1923, when newspaper advertisements for newly subdivided lots costing
between $635.00 and $1,875.00 boasted “five foot sidewalks, curbs, electricity, gas, sewer, city water and ornamental trees”
(Santa Ana Register, April 12, 1923). By 1923, all of Flower, Garnsey, Van Ness, Ross, and Borchard and portions of the
remaining streets had been laid out. Lathrop Junior High School, designed by architect Frederick Eley in 1921 (demolished
circa 1970), was constructed on the southwest corner of Fairview and Main and became an anchor of the neighb orhood. In
1925, over 65 homes had been built in Wilshire Square, according to a count of addresses listed in the city directories. A
1927 map indicated that the area was zoned for single -family residences, except the east side of Sycamore, which was set
aside for “courts and apartments,” apparently as a buffer for the “neighborhood business” zone on South Main Street. By
1930, maps of the City showed that, with the exception of a gap between Borchard and Edinger Avenues on Birch,
Broadway, and Sycamore, all the streets in Wilshire Square were in place. Mapped by the Sanborn Company between
1931 and 1940, the neighborhood was substantially developed prior to the beginning of World War II.
Built in three phases, Wilshire Square primarily showcases the revival architectural styles popular during the first phase,
circa 1923 to 1931, when 326 homes were built: variations of the Tudor Revival, the Spanish Colonial Revival, and the
Colonial Revival. A handful of Craftsman bungalows completed the picture. A second phase, from 1935 to 1942, marked
the recovery from the Great Depression and the war preparation years, and resulted in another 171 homes. The post World
War II building boom added 91 homes, many in the newly popular California Ranch style. Enhanced by the canopies of
mature trees that line many of the streets, Wilshire Square developed as a middle class neighborhood of white and blue
collar workers. Homes were both owner and speculator built, and, regardless of style, are unified by their one -story height,
scale, common setbacks, and the placement of detached garages in the rear of each property. Retaining these qualities
today (2003), the neighborhood was recognized for excellence in urban design by the Orange County Chapter of the
American Institute of Architects in 1997.
The R. Lewis House qualifies for listing in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Properties under Criterion 1, as a building
with the “distinguishing characteristics of an architectural style or period.” The Spanish Colonial Revival residence reflects
several signature features of the style: smooth stucco exterior, a red tile roof, arched openings, and a patio. Additionally,
the house has been categorized as “Contributive” because it “contributes to the overall character and history” of Wilshire
Square and “is a good example of period architecture” as a n intact example of the Spanish Colonial Revival style.
Character-defining exterior features of the Lewis House that should be preserved include, but may not be limited to:
materials and finishes (stucco and tile); roof configuration and treatment; massing and composition; original doors and
windows; patio and wood entry; and chimney.
State of California ¾ The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________________
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________________
CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial _____________________________________________
Page 4_ of 4_ Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Lewis House
*Recorded by Leslie J. Heumann and Deborah Howell -Ardila *Date May 8, 2008 x Continuation o Update
DPR 523L
*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.
Historic maps in the collection of the History Room of the Santa Ana Public Library.
Santa Ana and Orange County Directories, 1905 -1931.
Santa Ana Register, April 12, 1923.
“Vintage Santa Ana Right On Track.” The Register, January 13, 1990.
“Neighbors Gear Up For Big Project.” Los Angeles Times, August 6, 1992.
“Neighborliness Lives On Wilshire Square’s Streets.” Los Angeles Times, October 5, 1996.
“Wilshire Square—A Profile in Pride of Ownership.” City Line, July/August 2001.
Wilshire Square Neighborhood Association, Home Tour Brochures, 1989 -1994.
www.wilshiresquare.com
www.geocities.com/Heartland/3383/aia.htm