HomeMy WebLinkAbout030102_Template-HillisHouse_1816NHeliotrope.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) Hillis House
P1. Other Identifier:
*P2. Location: Not for Publication Unrestricted *a. County Orange County
*b. USGS 7.5’ Quad TCA 0054 Date:
*c. Address 1816 North Heliotrope Drive City Santa Ana Zip 92706
*e. Other Locational Data: Assessor’s Parcel Number 002-094-01; TR 748 LOT 35, LOT 24 N ½ THEREOF.
*P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries.)
Located on the southwest corner of Heliotrope Drive and Nineteenth Street, this is a generously scaled home in the Spanish
Colonial Revival style. The asymmetrically massed house consists of a two-story, side-gabled, west (rear) wing and a one-
story, front-gabled, east wing. Red clay tiles clad the shallowly overhanging roofs. Stucco covers the exteriors. Windows
are primarily flat-headed, three-light, double casements, some with generous reveals, others with none. Notable features of
the design include a tapered chimney attached to the façade, a wooden balcony at the northeast corner of the two-story wing,
and a cantilevered second story overhang accented by wooden corbels on the north elevation. Decorative features include
an inset tile panel on the chimney face and wooden shutters that adorn some windows. The main entry is located beneath
the balcony and consists of an elaborately paneled wood door set within an archway flanked by chamfered pilasters. Another
entry, also arched, leads to a former courtyard space, now enclosed, south of the chimney. Lush, Mediterranean plantings
enhance the property, which also contains a one-story garage/guest house in the rear. An impressive deodar cedar tree
shades the Heliotrope Drive setback. Other than the courtyard enclosure, the home is unaltered and is in excellent condition.
*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)
North and east elevations
December 2002
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and
Sources: historic
1930/Source: Building Permit
*P7. Owner and Address:
Herlihy Trust
1816 North Heliotrope Drive
Santa Ana, CA 92706
*P8. Recorded by:
Leslie J. Heumann
SAIC
35 S. Raymond Ave. # 204
Pasadena, CA 91105
*P9. Date Recorded:
January 2, 2003
*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 *NRHP Status Code_3S__________________________
*Resource Name or #: Hillis House
B1. Historic Name: Hillis 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.
February 28, 1930. Residence and garage.
August 28, 1933. Addition.
September 13, 2000. Construct lath house.
*B7. Moved? No Yes Unknown Date:__________ Original Location:_____________________________
*B8. Related Features:
Garage, deodar cedar tree.
B9a. Architect: Unknown b. Builder: Ball and Honer
*B10. Significance: Theme Residential Architecture Area Santa Ana
Period of Significance: circa 1888-1953 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 Hillis House is architecturally significant as a characteristic example of the comfortably sized and fashionably detailed
revival styled homes that were built in Floral Park during the 1920s and 1930s. This Spanish styled home was apparently built
on speculation by developers Ball and Honer, using in-house designers. The 1930 cost of construction for the eight-room
house was $10,000, a large sum at the time. By 1931, Cloyd C. Hillis, his wife Carrie S. Hillis, and Jack C. Hillis, a student,
had taken possession. Cloyd Hillis was the manager of the Orange County Fruit Exchange.
(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: January 2, 2003
DPR 523B (1/95) *Required information
Sketch Map
(This space reserved for official comments.)
Hillis House
1816 North Heliotrope Drive
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) Hillis House
*Recorded by Leslie J. Heumann *Date January 2, 2003 ⌧ Continuation Update
DPR 523L
*B10. Significance (continued):
The Hillis 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 (2003) Floral Park maintains its
identity as the premier neighborhood of Santa Ana, historically home to many affluent and prominent citizens.
The Hillis House qualifies for listing in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Property under Criterion 1 for its exemplification of
the distinguishing characteristics of the Spanish Colonial Revival. Notable in this regard are the asymmetrical massing, the
use of stucco and tile, and the incorporation of arches, a balcony, and a corbelled overhang into the design. The house also
contributes to the historic character of Floral Park through its age, style, scale, and historic association with an important
member of the local business community. Additionally, the house has been categorized as “Landmark” for its unique
architectural significance as an intact and substantial interpretation of the Spanish Colonial Revival style. All original exterior
features of the Hillis House are considered character-defining and should be preserved, including, but not limited to:
materials and finishes; roof configuration, materials, and detailing; massing; windows and doors; balcony; chimney;
architectural details such as corbels, arches, wing wall, tile panel, pierced stucco grille, wrought ironwork; garage; and
original landscape features such as the deodar cedar tree.
*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.
“Alison Honer Dies at 84,” The Santa Ana Journal, September 21, 1981.
“Builder of Honer Plaza Dies,” Orange County Register, September 15, 1981.
“History of Floral Park.” http://www.floral-park.com/page2.html
Talbert, Thomas (editor-in-chief). Historical Volume and Reference Works Including Biological Sketches of Leading Citizens,
Volume I. Whittier, Historical Publishers, 1963.
Santa Ana City Directory, 1931.