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<br />State of California - The Resources Agency Primary #
<br />DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #
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<br />CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
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<br />Page ...;L of...;L Resource Name or # (Assigned by recorder) Markel House
<br />*Recorded by Leslie J. Heumann and Deborah Howell-Ardila *Date August 27, 2007 I2S] Continuation 0 Update
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<br />*810. Significance (continued):
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<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 selection
<br />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.
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<br />The Markel House is located in Floral Park, a neighborhood northwest of downtown Santa Ana bounded by East Seventeenth
<br />Street, North Flower Street, Riverside Drive, and Broadway. Groves of oranges, avocados, and walnuts and widely scattered
<br />ranch houses characterized this area before 1920. Developer and builder Allison Honer (1897-1981), credited as the
<br />subdivider and builder of a major portion of northwest Santa Ana, arrived in Santa Ana from Beaver Falls, New York in 1922
<br />(Talbert, pages 353-356). "Before nightfall on the day of his arrival, Mr. Honer purchased a parcel of land. And that month, he
<br />began building custom homes in Santa Ana" (Orange County Register, September 15, 1981). The parcel chosen became the
<br />Floral Park subdivision between Seventeenth Street and Santiago Creek. 'When built in the 1920s, the Floral Park homes
<br />were the most lavish and expensive in the area. They sold for about $45,000 each" (Orange County Register, September 15,
<br />1981). Revival architecture in a wide variety of romantic styles was celebrated in the 1920s and 1930s and Floral Park
<br />showcased examples of the English Tudor, French Norman, Spanish Colonial, and Colonial Revival. The Allison Honer
<br />Construction Company went on to complete such notable projects as the 1935 Art Deco styled Old Santa Ana City Hall, the
<br />EI Toro Marine Base during World War 1/, and the 1960 Honer Shopping Plaza. Honer lived in the neighborhood he had
<br />helped to create, at 615 West Santa Clara Avenue.
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<br />In the late 1920s and 1930s, another builder, Roy Roscoe Russell (1881-1965), continued developing the groves of Floral
<br />Park. An early Russell project was his 1928 subdivision of Victoria Drive between West Nineteenth Street and West Santa
<br />Clara Avenue. The homes were quite grand and displayed various revival styles, including Russell's own large, Colonial
<br />Revival mansion at 2009 Victoria Drive. In the early post World War 1/ years, Floral Park continued its development as
<br />numerous, smaller, single-family houses were built. Continuing in the Floral Park tradition, they were mostly revival in style.
<br />In the 1950s, low, horizontal Ranch Style houses completed the growth of Floral Park. Today (2007) Floral Park maintains its
<br />identity as the premier neighborhood of Santa Ana, historically home to many affluent and prominent citizens.
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<br />The Markel House qualifies for listing in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Properties under Criterion 1 for its
<br />exemplification of the distinguishing characteristics of the Spanish Colonial Revival style. Typical features of this style
<br />illustrated by the house include its low-pitched, red tile roof; wood-framed window marked by prominent, extended wood
<br />lintel; shallow eaves with carved brackets; asymmetrical composition; smooth stucco finish with little applied ornament;
<br />interior patio; and wrought-iron gate. Additionally, the house has been categorized as "Contributive" because it "contributes to
<br />the overall character and history" of Santa Ana, and, as an example of the Spanish Colonial Revival style "is a good example
<br />of period architecture." Character-defining exterior features of the Markel House that should be preserved include, but may
<br />not be limited to, materials and finishes (stucco, wood, and wrought iron); asymmetrical treatment of elements on the faqade;
<br />roof configuration and detailing; original windows and doors where extant; chimney with brick chimney hood; architectural
<br />details such as the diamond-patterned glazed wall tiles.
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<br />*812. References (continued):
<br />Armor, Samuel. Historv of Oranae County. Los Angeles: History Record Company, 1921.
<br />Chain of Title, 2128 N. Greenleaf Street. Available at the Planning Division, Santa Ana City Hall, Santa Ana, CA.
<br />Franklin, Don. "NW Santa Ana History: Roy Russell & Son, Builders." Unsourced article from the Santa Ana History Room
<br />Historic House File, circa 1995.
<br />Harris, Cyril M. American Architecture: An Illustrated Encvclooedia. New York, WW Norton, 1998.
<br />Markel, Louis, Irvine. Letter to Thomas Smalley, 29 January 2001.
<br />Marsh, Diann. Santa Ana. An Illustrated Historv. Encinitas, Heritage Publishing, 1994.
<br />McAlester, Virginia and Lee. A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1984.
<br />National Register Bulletin 16A. "How to Complete the National Register Registration Form." Washington DC: National
<br />Register Branch, National Park Service, US Dept. of the Interior, 1991.
<br />Office of Historic Preservation. "Instructions for Recording Historical Resources." Sacramento: March 1995.
<br />Santa Ana and Orange County Directories, 1930-1962.
<br />Ward, Cynthia, Anaheim. "Markel House Primary Record and Building, Structure and Object Record," July 2007.
<br />Whiffen, Marcus. American Architecture Since 1780. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1969.
<br />"Alison Honer Dies at 84," The Santa Ana Journal. September 21, 1981.
<br />"Builder of Honer Plaza Dies," Oranae County Reaister. September 15, 1981.
<br />"History of Floral Park." htto://www.floral-oark.com/oaae2.html.
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