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State of California—The Resources Agency Primary#
<br />DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI #
<br />CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
<br />Page 3 of 3 Resource Name: Edwards House
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<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 on the Intersection of Main
<br />and Fourth Streets. Stimulated by the arrival of the Santa Fe Railroad and incorporation as a city in 1886, and selection as
<br />the seat of the newly created County of Orange in 1889, the city grew outwards, with residential neighborhoods developing
<br />to the north, south, and east of the city center. Agricultural uses predominated in the outlying areas, with cultivated fields
<br />and orchards dotted with widely scattered farmhouses.
<br />The Edwards 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
<br />parcel chosen became the Floral Park subdivision between Seventeenth Street and Santiago Creek. "When built in the
<br />1920s, the Floral Park homes were the most lavish and expensive in the area. They sold for about $45,000 each" (Orange
<br />County Register, September 15, 1981). Revival architecture In a wide variety of romantic styles was celebrated in the 1920s
<br />and 1930s; Floral Park showcased examples of the English Tudor, French Norman, Spanish Colonial, and Colonial Revival
<br />styles. The Allison Honer Construction Company went on to complete such notable projects as the 1935 Art Deco -styled
<br />Old Santa Ana City Hall, the EI Toro Marine Base during World War II, and the 1960 Honer Shopping Plaza. Honer lived in
<br />the neighborhood he had helped create, at 615 West Santa Clara Avenue.
<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 II 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
<br />Its identity as the premier neighborhood of Santa Ana, historically home to many affluent and prominent citizens.
<br />The Dr, Edwards House qualifies for listing in the Santa Ana Register of Historical Properties under Criterion 1 for Its
<br />characteristics of the Spanish Colonial Revival style of architecture. Additionally, the house has been categorized as
<br />"Contributive" because it is a "good example of period architecture". Character defining features of the Dr. Edwards House
<br />that should be preserved include, but may not be limited to, exterior materials including stucco, clay roof tiles, original
<br />windows, tower feature, original front entry door, massing, and articulation.
<br />*B12. References (continued):
<br />Harris, Cyril M. American Architecture: An Illustrated Encyclopedia. New York, WW Norton, 1998.
<br />Marsh, Diann, Santa Ana An Illustrated History. 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 />Whiffen, Marcus. American Architecture Since 1780. Cambridge; MIT Press, 1969.
<br />Armor, Samuel. History of Orange County, Los Angeles: History Record Company, 1921, page 989.
<br />Park Santiago Neighborhood Association. "The Gingerbread Land Holiday Home Tour, 1999." Brochure.
<br />Richard, Maureen McClintock. "People Behind Places: Enderle Center." Orange County Genealogical Society Quarterly,
<br />December 1993, pages 4-7.
<br />Santa Ana and Orange County Directories, 1905.1930.
<br />Historic Maps, Santa Ana History Room, 1912, 1923, 1932, and 1955.
<br />Ancestry.com
<br />Newspapers.com
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<br />(This space reserved for official comments.)
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