HomeMy WebLinkAbout031209_Template-LevengoodHouse_1205SBirch.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 _4_ Resource name(s) or number (assigned by recorder) Levengood House
P1. Other Identifier:
*P2. Location: Not for Publication Unrestricted *a. County Orange County
*b. USGS 7.5’ Quad TCA 1667 Date:
*c. Address 1205 South Birch Street City Santa Ana Zip 92707
*e. Other Locational Data: Assessor’s Parcel Number 013-152-02 TR 921 LOT 31
*P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries.)
Substantially intact and enhanced by its landscaping, this is an example of a modestly sized Spanish Colonial Revival home.
The tiled roof is cross-gabled and moderately pitched over the front of the building, while the rear of the house is flat-roofed
and circled by a tile-edged parapet. Smooth stucco covers the exterior of the building. Clay pipe vents pierce the gable
ends. A porch is recessed beneath the side gable on the north half the façade. Wooden posts with carved brackets support
the roof overhang and a waist high stucco wall encloses the porch space. A tripartite window and the entry open onto the
porch. In an unusual departure from a standard Spanish roof configuration, a small, front gabled dormer is located above the
porch. The southern half of the façade contains a large, picture window, to which an aluminum canopy has been added,
offset to the south and a tall, slender window to the north. A three-sided bay projects from the south elevation. Although re-
roofed, the house retains its design integrity.
*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 2003
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and
Sources: historic
1929/ Source: City of Santa Ana
Building Permits
*P7. Owner and Address:
Brian A. and Lisa Bist
1205 South Birch Street
Santa Ana, CA 92707
*P8. Recorded by:
Leslie J. Heumann
SAIC
35 S. Raymond Ave. # 204
Pasadena, CA 91105
*P9. Date Recorded:
October 1, 2003
*P10. Survey Type:
Intensive Survey
*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 4 *NRHP Status Code_5S1_________________________
*Resource Name or #: Levengood House
B1. Historic Name: Levengood 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.
July 5, 1930. Residence and garage.
June 11, 1943. Reroof.
October 6, 1952. Reroof residence.
June 26, 1986. Wood patio deck, spa.
February 8, 1990. Reroof house and garage.
*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 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 Levengood House is architecturally significant as a representative example of the Spanish Colonial Revival style, one of
many that characterize the Wilshire Square neighborhood. The house and garage were constructed in 1930 at a cost of
$3,650.00 for Mrs. Mary Leavengood, who had occupied the residence by 1931. The house remained in the Levengood
family until at least 1952, according to city building permits. According the 1991 Wilshire Square Home Tour brochure, Mary
Levengood was the widow of Frank Levengood, a farmer who struck oil in his bean fields. Mrs. Levengood raised her
granddaughter in this house, and lived here until she died in the late 1950s. She also built the house next door, on the
corner, for her son.
(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 4 of 4.)
B13. Remarks:
*B14. Evaluator: Leslie J. Heumann
*Date of Evaluation: October 1, 2003
DPR 523B (1/95) *Required information
Sketch Map
(This space reserved for official comments.)
Levengood House
1205 S. Birch Street
State of California The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________________
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________________
CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial _____________________________________________
Page 3_ of 4_ Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Levengood House
*Recorded by Leslie J. Heumann, SAIC *Date October 1, 2003 ⌧ 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
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 Levengood 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 Fairview 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 neighborhood. 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 Levengood 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 combination of stucco walls and tiled roof and
treatment of the patio with its rustic wood posts exhibited on the house are typical features of the Spanish Colonial Revival
and demonstrate that the style could be used effectively on both large as well as relatively modest homes. 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 an illustration of the Spanish Colonial Revival style. Character defining
exterior features of the Levengood House that should be preserved include, but may not be limited to: materials and
finishes (stucco, wood, tile); roof configuration and treatment; massing and composition; original doors and windows; porch;
and architectural detailing (porch posts, brackets, and beam).
State of California The Resources Agency Primary # _____________________________________________
DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ________________________________________________
CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial _____________________________________________
Page 4_ of 4_ Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Levengood House
*Recorded by Leslie J. Heumann, SAIC *Date October 1, 2003 ⌧ Continuation 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