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State of California—The Resources Agency Primary #
<br />DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #
<br />CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
<br />of 4 Resource Name: Gabriel House
<br />by Ivan Flores *Date February 21, 2018 ❑x Continuation ❑ Update
<br />*P3a. Description (continued):
<br />dormers are centered above each pair of windows and contain six -light windows. Windows on other elevations are also
<br />wood -framed, double -hung sash. A lunette -shaped gable end vent is visible on the south elevation. Accessed by a poured
<br />concrete driveway, a detached, three -car garage is located along the western (rear) parcel boundary. The garage is one-
<br />story and capped by a moderately -pitched, side -gabled roof. Bordered by a low picket fence, the rectangular parcel is
<br />primarily landscaped with lawn, low trees, and various low vegetation at the deep front setback. The property is in good
<br />condition and retain ample integrity to convey the original design.
<br />*B10. Significance (continued):
<br />Santa Ana was founded by William Spurgeon in 1869 as a speculative town site on part of the Spanish land grant known as
<br />Rancho Santiago de Santa Ana. The civic and commercial core of the community was centered around the intersection of
<br />Main and Fourth Streets. Stimulated by the arrival of the Santa Fe Railroad and incorporation as a city in 1886, and
<br />selection as the seat of the newly created County of Orange in 1889, the city grew outwards, with residential neighborhoods
<br />developing to the north, south, and east of the city center. Agricultural uses predominated in the outlying areas, with
<br />cultivated fields and orchards dotted with widely scattered farmhouses.
<br />The Gabriel House is located in Floral Park, a neighborhood northwest of downtown Santa Ana bounded by West
<br />Seventeenth Street, North Flower Street, Riverside Drive, and Broadway. Groves of oranges, avocados, and walnuts and
<br />widely scattered ranch houses characterized this area before 1920. Developer and builder Allison Honer (1897-1981),
<br />credited as the subdivider and builder of a major portion of northwest Santa Ana, arrived in Santa Ana from Beaver Falls,
<br />New York in 1922 (Talbert, pages 353-356). "Before nightfall on the day of his arrival, Mr. Honer purchased a parcel of land.
<br />And that month, he began building custom homes in Santa Ana" (Orange County Register September 15, 1981). The parcel
<br />chosen became the Floral Park subdivision between Seventeenth Street and Santiago Creek. "When built in the 19208, the
<br />Floral Park homes were the most lavish and expensive in the area. They sold for about $45,000 each" (Orange County
<br />Register September 15, 1981). Revival architecture in a wide variety of romantic styles was celebrated in the 1920s and
<br />1930s and Floral Park showcased examples of the English Tudor, French Norman, Spanish Colonial, and Colonial Revival.
<br />The Allison Honer Construction Company went on to complete such notable projects as the 1935 Art Deco styled Old Santa
<br />Ana City Hall, the EI Toro Marine Base during World War 11, and the 1960 Honer Shopping Plaza. Honer lived in the
<br />neighborhood he had helped to create, at 615 West Santa Clara Avenue. In the late 1920s and 1930s, another builder, Roy
<br />Roscoe Russell (1881-1965), continued developing the groves of Floral Park. An early Russell project was his 1928
<br />subdivision of Victoria Drive between West Nineteenth Street and West Santa Clara Avenue. The homes were quite grand
<br />and displayed various revival styles, including Russell's own large, Colonial Revival mansion at 2009 Victoria Drive. In the
<br />early post World War It years, Floral Park continued its development as numerous, smaller, single-family houses were built.
<br />Continuing in the Floral Park tradition, they were mostly revival in style. In the 1950s, low, horizontal Ranch Style houses
<br />completed the growth of Floral Park. Today (2018) Floral Park maintains its identity as the premier neighborhood of Santa
<br />Ana, historically home to many affluent and prominent citizens.
<br />The Gabriel House qualifies for listing in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Properties under Criterion 1 for its
<br />representation of the distinguishing characteristics of the Cape Cod variant of the Colonial Revival style. Additionally, the
<br />house has been categorized as "Contributive" because it contributes to the "overall character and history" of the Floral Park
<br />neighborhood and "is a good example of period architecture" representing the Cape Cod style in Santa Ana (Municipal
<br />Code, Section 30-2.2). Character defining features of the Gabriel House that should be preserved include, but may not be
<br />limited to: materials and finishes (siding, wood trim, brick); roof configuration, materials, and treatment; massing and
<br />composition; fenestration (doors and windows); and architectural detailing (dormers, window shutters, pilasters).
<br />DPR 523L
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