HISTORICAL NOMINATION of the Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House 1965 Sunset Blvd. ~ Mission Hills Neighborhood San Diego, California
Ronald V. May, RPA Kiley Wallace Legacy 106, Inc. P.O. Box 15967 San Diego, CA 92175 (858) 459-0326 (760) 704-7373 www.legacy106.com March 2017
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HISTORIC HOUSE RESEARCH Ronald V. May, RPA, President and Principal Investigator Kiley Wallace, Vice President and Architectural Historian P.O. Box 15967 • San Diego, CA 92175 Phone (858) 459-0326 • http://www.legacy106.com
“At-a-Glance” Report Summary Property Information & Applicable Criteria
Resource Type: Building / single family residence Resource Name (per HRB naming policy): The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House Resource Address: 1965 Sunset Blvd., San Diego CA, 92103 (Mission Hills community) APN: 443-580-02-00 Requesting Mills Act? Y N Date of Construction: 1912 Architect/Builder: Martin V. Melhorn (already considered a Master Builder). Prior Resource Address (if relocated): Date of Relocation:
Applicant’s Name: Ronald V. May, RPA & Kiley Wallace Owner’s Name: Daryl Fick & Hoan Nguyen Address: Legacy 106, Inc. Address: 1965 Sunset Blvd. P.O. Box 15967 San Diego, CA 92175 San Diego, CA 92103 Phone #: (858) 459-0326 and (760) 704-7373 Phone #: (619) 261-0398 & (619) 708-5635 Email: [email protected] & Email: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
The resource is being nominated for designation as a historical resource under: HRB Criterion A as a special element of the City’s, a community’s or a neighborhood’s historical development archaeological development cultural development social development economic development political development aesthetic development engineering development landscaping development architectural development for the following reason(s):
HRB Criterion B for its association with _____who is significant in local, state or national history for the following reason(s): ______
HRB Criterion C as a good/excellent example of Craftsman American Foursquare.
HRB Criterion D as a notable work of Martin V. Melhorn , a Master Builder Previously established as a Master Proposed as a Master
HRB Criterion E as a property which has been determined eligible by the National Park Service for listing on the National Register of Historic Places or is listed or has been determined eligible by the State Historical Preservation Office for listing on the State Register of Historical Resources. HRB Criterion F as a contributing resource to the Historical District.
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“At-a-Glance” Report Summary Required Forms and Documentation
Check Yes or No, indicating whether or not the following required documentation has been provided:
Report Copies Y N Provide one copy of the Historical Resource Research Report, stapled at the corner
Department of Parks and Recreation Forms Y N Primary Record (523a) Y N BSO Record (523b) Y N Archaeological Record (523c) (if applicable) Y N District Record (523d) (if applicable) Y N Location Map (523j) (if applicable) Y N Sketch Map (523k) (if applicable) Y N Continuation Sheet (523l)
Attachment A Attachment B Y N Assessor’s Record Y N Chain of Title Y N Notice of Completion Y N Directory Search Y N Water / Sewer Records Y N Deed from Date of Construction Y N Building Permits Y N Previous Survey Forms
Attachment C Attachment D Y N City SD 800 Scale Eng Maps Y N Historical and Transitional Photos Y N USGS Maps Y N Current Photos of North Elevation Y N Original Subdivision Map Y N Current Photos of East Elevation Y N 1886/1887 Sanborn Y N Current Photos of South Elevation Y N 1906 Sanborn Y N Current Photos of West Elevation Y N 1921 Sanborn Y N 1940 Sanborn Y N 1950 Sanborn Y N 1956 Sanborn
Attachment E Attachment F Y N Criterion A Documentation Y N Bibliography Y N Criterion B Documentation Y N Criterion C Documentation Y N Criterion D Documentation Y N Criterion E Documentation Y N Criterion F Documentation
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State of California – The Resources Agency Primary # ______DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ______PRIMARY RECORD Trinomial ______NRHP Status Code 3S Other Listings ______Review Code _____ Reviewer ______Date ______
Page 3 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
P1. Other Identifier: 1965 Sunset Blvd., San Diego, CA 92103
*P2. Location: Not for Publication Unrestricted *a. County: San Diego and (P2b and P2c or P2d. Attach a Location Map as necessary.) *b. USGS 7.5' Quad: La Jolla Date: 2015 T ; R ; ¼ of ¼ of Sec ; M.D. B.M. c. Address: 1965 Sunset Blvd. City: San Diego Zip: 92103 d. UTM: Zone: 11 ; mE/ mN (G.P.S.)
e. Other Locational Data: (e.g., parcel #, directions to resource, elevation, etc.) Elevation: 380 feet Legal Description: The West one half 1/2 of Lot Two in Block Six of Inspiration Heights, in the City of San Diego, County of San Diego, State of California, according to amended map of Block Six of said Inspiration Heights, No. 1282, filed in the Office of the County Recorder of said San Diego County, August 29, 1910. It is Tax Assessor’s Parcel Number (APN #) 443-580-02-00.
*P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries) This house is an excellent two story example of both the Craftsman and American Foursquare architectural styles and was built in 1912. It is a large single-family residence in the Inspiration Heights area of the Mission Hills neighborhood. The (front) north elevation faces Sunset Boulevard with a low pitched pyramidal hipped roof on the second level and matching first floor hipped porch roof. The home has two full stories and utilizes a vertical rectangular form. The house has a large full width covered front porch with large square stucco columns. The home was surveyed as part of the 2007 Uptown Reconnaissance Survey and is shown as a potential contributing historic resource in the Craftsman architectural style and was assigned a status code 5D3. (See Continuation Sheet.)
*P3b. Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes) (HP2) Single family property *P4. Resources Present: Building Structure Object Site District Element of District
P5b. Description of Photo: (View, date, accession #) View of north elevation. Photo by Dan Soderberg, February 2017.
*P6. Date Constructed/Age and Sources: Historic Prehistoric Both Lot and block book - first assessed for taxes in 1912. Notice of Completion is dated February 14, 1912. Residential building record date of construction1913. 1927 historical aerial photo shows the rear of the home
*P7. Owner and Address: Daryl Fick and Hoan Nguyen 1965 Sunset Blvd. San Diego, CA 92103
*P8. Recorded by: (Name, affiliation, and address) Ronald V. May, RPA, and Kiley Wallace, Legacy 106, Inc., P.O. Box 15967, San Diego, CA 92175 *P9. Date Recorded: March 2017 *P10. Survey Type: (Describe) Intensive *P11. Report Citation: (Cite survey report and other sources, or enter "none.") Historical Nomination of The Henry and Mary Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House, San Diego, California for the City of San Diego, Historical Resources Board, by Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace, Legacy 106, Inc., March 2017. Legacy 106, Inc. is indebted to Alexandra Wallace and Dan Soderberg for extensive research, and other assistance with the preparation of this report. *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 *Required Information 4 State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
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Page 4 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
*P3a. Description: (Describe resource and its major elements. Include design, materials, condition, alterations, size, setting, and boundaries) (Continued): (See Attachment D, Photographs)
The subject property at 1965 Sunset Blvd. is a large two-story Craftsman style home with a low pitched pyramidal hipped roof and matching full width hipped roof front porch. The home features decorative stucco on the first level and split wooden shingles on the upper level. The home also utilizes prominent triangular knee braces supporting intersecting beams supporting wide unenclosed eaves with extending rafter tails seen on all elevations. The house has a linear form and compound plan with a small rear addition. It has a detached two car garage at the rear.
This is an excellent example of a Craftsman style American Foursquare home. The two-story house features the character defining features indicative of a Craftsman style home. The home has a low pitched roof and a low pitched hipped roof covering the full width front porch. The roof system has multiple elaborations including exposed rafter tails, horizontal support beams and triangular pyramidal knee bracing design. The partial width front porch is supported by rectangular stucco columns which continue to ground level. Exposed eaves extend widely from the roof.
The home is wood frame construction and features stucco on the first level. Split cedar shingles are used on the second floor while clapboard wall surfacing is used on the first floor. This exterior finishing is consistent elsewhere throughout unless noted. A natural brick square end chimney with stucco base climbs the south side of the home. Windows and doors are light green painted wood unless otherwise noted.
The Craftsman Architectural Style - 1905-1930, also sometimes referred to as the American Arts and Crafts style, became popular in the early 1900's from about 1905-1930, especially in California. While the style shared an appreciation of hand craftsmanship and organic detailing with its European counterpart, the American version is usually differentiated from the English Arts and Crafts style (which highly influenced it) by its extensive use of wood, low pitched roofline and sometimes Asian inspiration. The style grew to become an independent western movement in American architecture, and quickly spread nationwide by way of magazines and plan pattern books. This house is an excellent example of this style in the American Foursquare form.
Many important architects and designers of the style, like Pasadena architects Greene and Greene, and designer and furniture maker Gustav Stickley, showed their appreciation of natural materials like wood, tile, brick and stone while utilizing human craftsmanship to create designs in direct opposition to the mass production and machine made designs of the recent Industrial Revolution. Craftsman style homes often used natural earth-tone colors. Wooden details were very important in the creation of Craftsman homes which usually included built in wooden furniture, doors and stairs in the same highly detailed natural wood aesthetic.
American Foursquare - 1890-1930. The American Foursquare, like the Bungalow or Bungalow Court, is a type of home design more so than a particular style. It was popular throughout the United States just before and after the turn of the century. The two-story square floor plan and box like massing was designed and adapted to many architectural styles including Craftsman, Prairie, Victorian and Colonial Revival. The straightforward and efficient style utilized four walls of equal dimensions and four rooms of similar sizes on the upper level. Other characteristic features of the American Foursquare include a boxy design, pyramidal hipped roof, utilization of bay windows and full width front porch. Although the American Foursquare style often utilized roof dormers on the third level roof to expand attic space, low pitched roof designs such as the subject resource were also designed and did not allow for this usable third level space. Frank Lloyd Wright and other architects designed American Foursquare homes and the
5 State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
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Page 5 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
*P3a. Description (continued):
design was popular in pattern books and from mail order companies such as Sears and Aladdin.
North (Front) Elevation – The main front façade faces Sunset Blvd. to the north and is dominated by the upper level pyramidal hipped roof and large matching full width front porch with triangular knee braces and exposed rafter tails. The large brick chimney with spark arrestor is visible on the right (west) side of the home. The chimney brickwork has a running bond brick system and raked mortar joints and is exposed and unpainted above the roof, painted on the second level and surfaced in stucco on the first level. The house is two story, with a single story full width front entry porch. Common on Craftsman style homes, the low pitched roof of the house utilizes elaborated roof designs. The roof uses newer fireproof concrete roof tiles while the porch has a matching low pitched roof supported by four large square stucco columns. The hipped roof and rafter tails are supported by decorative cross beams and large wooden triangular braces. The extending wooden rafter tails, decorative side beam and triangular knee braces wrap around the home on the upper level and around the sides of the front porch. The upper level is surfaced with wooden shingles while the first level utilizes a thick "cottage cheese" style stucco finish.
From left to right on the shingled second story sits a symmetrical grouping of two three part rectangular wooden windows. These windows have a central fixed window with divided light transom flanked by one over one double hung wooden windows. These windows are single pane and are contained in wooden surrounds with square wooden casings and wooden sills. Below this section is the porch roof with matching open eaves, side beams, and triangular knee joints. The hipped roof front porch is supported by large square columns which continue from the roof eave all the way to the ground. The large square porch piers supports are surfaced by stucco matching the home. The large full width front porch has a raised concrete floor with front and side facing concrete stairs and concrete stoups with concrete square capping. On the front porch to the left, a red painted three solid wooden door with three beveled glazed upper panels and three rectangular beveled glazed lower panels. To the right a wide tripartite window matches the upper level windows with fixed central window with multi-lite transom and flanking one over one double hung windows. This large three part rectangular wooden window grouping is centered on the façade, with wooden sill and lacking the rectangular wooden casings seen on the shingle surfaced upper level.
West (Side) Elevation – The exterior brick chimney pierces the hipped roofline to the front (left) side of this elevation and is topped with a metal spark arrestor above the chimney top. The rectangular running bond brick chimney is visible above the two story roofline and continues down the side of the home with sloped stucco covered base on the first level that matches the surfacing on the first floor. The chimney stucco also matches the stucco piers on the front porch. The west elevation continues the hipped roof and exposed roof rafters, with horizontal support beam and triangular wooden braces. The wall surfacing matches all other elevations with square split cedar shingles on the second floor and cottage cheese style stucco surfacing on the first floor. On the second floor, a rectangular wood double hung window sits to the left of the chimney. The window has a wood jamb, sill and casing matching the other windows. To the right of the chimney is a slightly shorter one over one double hung window, then a two window grouping with rectangular wood double hung windows and fixed window with nine light transom near the rear corner.
On the first floor from left to right, the side of the hipped roof front porch is visible with exposed eave and decorative knee braces which protrude to the front and sides. To the right, on the main house the end chimney is flanked by nine light fixed wooden windows. To the right of the chimney and flanking windows is a small squared projecting bay window with shed roof. Within this protruding bay window the two side windows are fixed while the a single French door with flanking wooden windows facing the side deck. The small bay window is shown on the 1921 and other Sanborn maps. These rectangular French door and
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State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI#
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Page 6 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
*P3a. Description (continued):
side windows have wooden casings.
To the right, the original sun porch seen in the 1927 historic photo and Sanborn maps was expanded and walled in at the rear.
South (Rear) Elevation – This rear elevation displays the rear of the original pyramidal hipped roof with an extending original sun room that is shown on 1921 Sanborn map and 1927 historic photo appears to have had a gable roof added over the original low pitched shed roof. It is possible this upper story sun room may have originally been a sleeping porch. The upper level has open eaves, exposed roof rafters and decorative wooden knee braces matching those seen on the rest of the home. On the upper level, to the left (east) a wide three part rectangular window grouping with fixed central window and flanking one over one double wooden hung windows. The central fixed wooden window has a Craftsman style nine light true divided light upper transom as previously described on the front elevation. On the upper level to the right, the sun room is surrounded by sliding rectangular one-over-one wooden windows with six wooden window sets facing the rear. From the second level to the first level the beltline transitions from wood shingle to stucco below. The first level extends out with a low pitched roof that shelters the lower level with added rear additions and rear deck. The rear section of the rear façade of the home is outside of the public view.
Double French wooden doors connect the house with the rear patio deck area. The rear patio area is an elevated wood section above wood beams with latticework screens covering below. This rear patio deck section has a simple wooden railing and stairs connecting to the rear lower brick patio. The ground plane is mostly flat in the rear yard and the rear patio connects to the detached rear garage.
East (Side) Elevation – This portion of the house faces the neighboring property to the east. This façade is topped with a hipped roof and open eaves and exposed rafter tails. As with the front and other side elevation horizontal beams decorative knee bracing support the eaves and open roof rafters. The surfacing matches other elevations with and wooden shingles on the upper level and stucco on the first level. Below the eaves, on the second level which is surfaced in wooden rectangular split shingles, four rectangular one over one double hung wooden windows are seen with large fixed window near the rear corner with nine light upper transom. These windows all have wooden sills and painted wooden casings matching the other original windows.
On the first level façade from front to back (right to left). To the right is the extending front porch with hipped roof and horizontal roof beams and exposed rafters that wrapping around the front of the home. The side of the rectangular stucco columns support the porch with exposed rafters and eaves. On the lower level of the main house, beneath the second level beltline, the house surfacing is stucco with inset windows matching the rest of the home. To the front (right), a nine light fixed rectangular window matches the fixed windows flanking the chimney on the other side elevation. To the left, a small rectangular Craftsman style nine light wooden window is seen near the center of the elevation. Near the rear corner, a grouping of four vertical rectangular windows is seen. To the left, the gable covered rear addition is offset and set back behind the original home.
Detached Garage - It is unclear if the detached two car garage has been rebuilt or modified from the unattached "carriage house" style garage seen on 1921 Sanborn maps, which was also shown pushed back into the rear yard facing the rear alley.
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State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI# CONTI NUATION SHEET Trinomial
Page 7 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
*P3a. Description (continued):
Interior Architectural Features (for reference only.) - The home's interior exhibits custom built-in shelving and boxed ceiling beams. Original doors, window moldings, knobs and fixtures are found throughout the house. Interior items are not proposed for inclusion in the historic nomination.
Landscaping / Yard Setting – The front yard has an array of large trees and hedges along with other landscaping in front with grass covering most of the lawn on each side of the straight concrete walkway. The landscaping in front complements the Craftsman residential style of the house and is consistent with the design seen in historic aerial photos with turf in front. This straight sidewalk is scored and travels from the sidewalk through the yard up three stairs to the front porch. The home features multiple hedges, grass and other landscaping on the side and rear elevations. The neighboring houses exhibit similar building and landscape setbacks.
Large Front Tree – The large tree in front of the home is believed to be a Blue Atlas Cedar (Cedrus atlantica 'Glauca'). The tree is an evergreen conifer with an irregular stepped cloud like outline and form. The large ornamental tree was examined by tree specialist and Mission Hills Nursery owner Fausto Palafox and is estimated to be approximately 60-80 years old and is a slow growing species overall. If recommended by the Historic Resources Staff and Board, the owners are amenable to including this large specimen tree in the proposed historical designation to preserve the tree in the future.
8 State of California – The Resources Agency Primary # ______DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI # ______
BUILDING, STRUCTURE, AND OBJECT RECORD
Page 8 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
B1. Historic Name: 1965 Sunset Blvd. B2. Common Name: 1965 Sunset Blvd. B3. Original Use: Single Family Property B4. Present Use: Single Family Property *B5. Architectural Style: Craftsman / American Foursquare *B6. Construction History: (Construction date, alterations, and date of alterations) The Notice of Completion is dated February 14, 1912 and property owner H.H. Nelson hired the Bay City Construction Company (headed by Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn) to build 1965 Sunset Blvd. The lot and block book shows that the home was first assessed for taxes in 1912. The residential building record estimated date of construction is 1913. A 1927 historical aerial photo shows the rear of the home. No water or sewer permits were found. The following building permits were found on record at the City of San Diego and other research: Plumbing and building permits published in the San Diego Evening Tribune show some plumbing work that was completed in May 1925. Permit #22088 is for a rear bathroom and was added December 20, 1946. Permit #L12564 is for "built up roofing" and is dated September 7, 1976. Permit #CS00003 and Plan File # A-108778-95 are for a rear sun room addition and are dated December 1, 1995, December 21, 1995 and January 2, 1996. The resource was identified as a Craftsman style contributing resource in the 2007 Uptown Reconnaissance Survey by IS Architecture and given a status code "5D3: Appears to be a contributor to a geographic district that appears eligible for local designation through survey evaluation." The home was brought to the Design Assistance Subcommittee (DAS) on February 3, 2016 and examined because of the concrete roof tiles added by a past owner. (See Continuation Sheet).
*B7. Moved? No Yes Unknown Date: Original Location: *B8. Related Features: B9a. Architect: Unknown b. Builder: Bay City Construction Company / Martin V. Melhorn *B10. Significance: Theme: Residential architecture Area: Inspiration Heights (San Diego)
Period of Significance: 1912 Property Type: Single-Family Property Applicable Criteria: C and D (Discuss importance in terms of historical or architectural context as defined by theme, period, and geographic scope. Also address integrity.) The home is significant under two criteria. The home is significant under Criterion "C” as an excellent example of Craftsman style architecture by established Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn in the Mission Hills neighborhood of San Diego. The home is also significant under Criterion “D” as an excellent and important surviving example of Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn's work. The Period of Significance, 1912, encompasses the date of construction of the home. This house is well maintained and has excellent integrity within the public view. (See Continuation Sheet.)
B11. Additional Resource Attributes: (List attributes and codes) none
*B12. References: (See Continuation Sheet)
B13. Remarks: none *B14. Evaluator: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace N *Date of Evaluation: March 2017
(This space reserved for official comments.)
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State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI# CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
Page 9 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
*B10. Significance (continued):
Criterion A: Exemplifies or reflects special elements of the City’s, a community’s or a neighborhood’s historical, archaeological, cultural, social, economic, political, aesthetic, engineering, landscaping or architectural development.
Although the house reflects and contributes to our understanding of San Diego's architectural development, the Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House was not found to rise to the level of exemplifying special elements of the community's historical, archaeological, cultural, social, economic, political, aesthetic, engineering, landscaping or architectural development. The following discussion provides the background for that conclusion.
The Mission Hills and Inspiration Heights neighborhoods have long been favorites of study for researchers interested in San Diego’s neighborhood development, architecture, and urban planning. In 2004, Melanie Macchio wrote a synthesis of famed urban planner John Nolen’s influence on the street patterns of Mission Hills and Inspiration Heights. She won the 2004 Marc Tarasuck Award in that year’s San Diego Historical Society’s Institute of History, and they published her paper in the Journal of San Diego History in 2006:
In 1909, Johnston Heights was re-subdivided and named Inspiration Heights. (49) The earlier gridiron pattern planned for Johnston Heights was redrawn with more curvilinear streets that respected the hierarchy proposed by Nolen. Several of the planned street names which had reflected the original developers’ names – Johnston Avenue, Dunkirk Avenue, Jerome Avenue, William Street, and Leverett Street – were not included in the new plan. Instead, the newly drawn streets were named Orizaba Avenue, Bandini Street, Bay View Avenue, Alameda Drive, and Loma Pass, following Nolen’s suggestion that planners recall the city’s history and utilize the Spanish language. Alameda Drive and Orizaba Avenue, both main corridors, were drawn at eighty-feet wide, while the remaining streets were only fifty-feet wide. Miller Street and Bay View Avenue (Couts Street north of Orizaba Avenue) widen as they approach Sunset Boulevard, one of the area’s main thoroughfares.
. . . At first, Inspiration Heights lacked alleys, unlike the neighboring Mission Hills. The planners created no alleys when they drew the 1909 subdivision. In 1910, however, blocks one through six were again re-subdivided to create alleys in blocks two and six. (51) This third major re-subdivision of the Inspiration Heights made it almost indistinguishable from the Mission Hills subdivision. Both communities reflected Nolen’s recommendations.” (Macchio 2004, pp. 147-148)
Henry James Johnston. Researchers into this topic are referred to Jerry MacMullen’s 1959 Journal of San Diego History article, “The Orizaba – and Johnston Heights,” as well as numerous historical nominations and studies by historians Alexander Bevil, Kathleen Flanigan, and Beth Montes, to name only a few. In addition, architect Ione Stiegler surveyed the area as part of the “DRAFT Uptown Historic Architectural and Cultural Landscape Reconnaissance Survey,” which was presented to the City of San Diego Historical Resources Board in March 2007. Although the City did not adopt the survey, it includes extensive detail about Mission Hills in general, and the Inspiration Heights community in particular. Stiegler proposed an Inspiration Heights Geographic District, which contains of approximately 82 percent eligible contributing structures.
1913 Kate O. Sessions, Plaintiff and Respondent, vs. H. L. Miller, Executor of the last will of Sarah Johnston Cox, deceased and substituted in place of the said Sarah Johnston Cox, Defendant and Appellant. In the District Court of Appeal, State of California. Stearns & Sweet, Attorneys for Defendant and Appellant, Luce & Luce, Attorneys for Plaintiff and Respondent. October 1913 – December 1913. Courtesy Special Collections, San Diego State University Library. Case No. 9322, Civil No. 1442, Folder 8.
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Page 10 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
*B10. Significance - Criterion A (continued):
Johnston Heights, Harry Leverett Miller, and transition into Inspiration Heights. As mentioned, Inspiration Heights is one of the oldest family-owned tracts in San Diego, originating with Sarah Johnston Cox Miller’s Johnston Heights Map 204. In these early years before 1900, fruit tree orchards, nurseries, and dry farming dominated the surrounding landscape and the Villa Orizaba is one of the few documented residences on the mesa. Other residences were surely there, but these are poorly understood. 6 Perhaps the most informative primary source of information about the anticipated, but unrealized development of Johnston Heights can be found in the pages of a 1913 Superior Court case, housed in the Special Collections of San Diego State University.7
In Kate O. Sessions, Plaintiff and Respondent, vs. H. L. Miller, Executor of the last will of Sarah Johnston Cox, deceased and substituted in place of the said Sarah Johnston Cox, Defendant and Appellant. Testimony was provided by Cox, owner of Johnson Heights, her son H.L., as well as others such as horticulturalist Sessions, who were involved with the extension of the trolley line and the associated
“Upon Sarah Johnston Cox Miller’s death around 1908, H.L. had the property resurveyed, streets realigned, and then he filed a new map for “Inspiration Heights” in 1909, subsuming his mother’s Johnston Heights Map. He also remodeled the Villa Orizaba from its original Victorian style to the present Prairie style residence. Author MacMullin stated in his 1959 article:
And so Johnston Heights came into being, named by Mrs. Miller for her father. A map on file in the City Engineer's office shows the area as extending for several blocks in a southerly and easterly direction from what now is the intersection of Witherby Street and Sunset Boulevard, which then was designated as Johnston Avenue. Running easterly, the streets were named William, Miller, Leverett, Henry and Howard; Johnston was paralleled on the south by two streets, Dunkirk and Jerome. About in the center of the block bounded by William, Miller, Johnston and Dunkirk, construction was started in the summer of 1887 on a rambling mansion in the wilderness, Villa Orizaba. It is significant that, as carpenters in San Diego began this project, the house's namesake was getting a San Francisco version of "…Down swooped the wreckers like birds of prey, tearing the heart of the ship away."
For many years Orizaba Villa stood in solitary splendor among its cactus and its eucalyptus seedlings, now grown into sizable trees. Gradually, the slowly growing city reached out for Johnston Heights. In 1909 it was re-subdivided as Inspiration Heights by Captain Johnston's grandson, Henry Leverett (sic). Its original street system was widely altered, names were changed, and fine homes began to appear. In a display of sentiment which is all too rare in modern times, Captain Johnston's ship—although not "Ninety- Fathom" himself — was honored. A new street, directly in front of the old villa, became Orizaba Avenue. (MacMullen 1959) The Villa Orizaba, which was remodeled into a Prairie style residence, is a favorite of neighborhood historical home tours (SOHO and Mission Hills Heritage for example), and it is a City of San Diego historical landmark (# 330, [ed- 2036 Orizaba Avenue] 1995).
At first, Inspiration Heights lacked alleys, unlike the neighboring Mission Hills. The planners created no alleys when they drew the 1909 subdivision. In 1910, however, blocks one through six were again re- subdivided to create alleys in blocks two and six. (51) This third major re-subdivision of the Inspiration Heights made it almost indistinguishable from the Mission Hills subdivision. Both communities reflected Nolen’s recommendations.” (Macchio 2004, pp. 147-148)
9 San Diego Union, May 8, 1910. “Building Activity Shows Rapid Growth of Heights: Scores of New Structures Being Erected in University And Normal Districts. MAJORITY PRETTY HOMES. Training School Nearing Completion; Furniture to Be Installed In Few Days.”
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State of California The Resources Agency Primary # DEPARTMENT OF PARKS AND RECREATION HRI# CONTINUATION SHEET Trinomial
Page 11 of 48 *Resource Name or #: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House
*Recorded by: Ronald V. May, RPA and Kiley Wallace *Date: March 2017 Continuation Update
*B10. Significance - Criterion A (continued):
The Inspiration Heights Company announced “Ideal Home Sites for Ideal Homes,” in a half page advertisement in the San Diego Union on June 10, 1910. By then, the developers had installed landscaping, graded the streets “in accord with the contour of the hills,” put in cement sidewalks and curbs, and planted with lawns and palm trees. They promoted the tract’s view lots, exclusiveness, and necessity of residential building restrictions. Most notably, the advertisements state that the neighborhood would be composed of first-class private residences each on a building site at least 100 feet wide and about 150 feet deep. One advertisement announced:
Restrictions Protect You. An exclusive residence district of highest tone is insured by our building restrictions, which absolutely protect each purchaser from any inharmonious or undesirable building feature. Already San Diego is feeling the effects of its growth in the inroads of business places, hotels and apartment houses in older residence sections. This will be apparent in much greater degree as the population increases . . . A large number will be erected before 1915.
Improvements and Accessibility. To those who have not yet visited INSPIRATION HEIGHTS, nor thought about it particularly, the distance from the business center may seem a drawback. But on investigation and reflection this becomes a distinct advantage. Twelve minutes by auto or twenty minutes by street car is decidedly moderate in a CITY, and simply contributes to the exclusiveness for a fine residence section. City people know that such a distance is desirable if one would escape the intrusion of business and insure a strictly high-grade neighborhood.” (San Diego Union, June 19, 1910)
On August 29, 1910, the Millers had filed Map 1282 for their re-subdivision of Blocks 2 and 6 of the original Inspiration Heights Map. As noted by Macchio, the new map for these two blocks created larger lot sizes as well as alleys. While the original map had 12 lots on the block, the new map redrew lot lines to make a total of six lots, with a slight change in their configuration. Block 2 originally had 18 lots and reconfigured to 11 lots. Lot 2 maintained its minimum size of 100 x 100 feet, as did the rest on the block, with some variation.
The deed restrictions for Lot 2 allowed for two private single-family residences to be built on the single lot, with a frontage requirement of 50 feet and a minimum value of $3,500. No apartments, flats, or other business type uses were allowed. The garage, “barn, or other outbuilding,” had a minimum of $200. No male poultry or farm animals were permitted, and no fence, hedge, or wall over four feet tall was to be permitted except on the south line of the property. The final deed restriction limited ownership and residency to those of the Caucasian race, but allowed those “not of the Caucasian race” as domestic servants. This final restriction was declared unconstitutional in 1954 and is no longer included in title transfers in the United States.
10 Large advertisement for the Benson Lumber Company in the San Diego Union, July 9, 1911. Embodied in the “Dick to Dick” Letters. What the Nephew Said About San Diego As He Heard It On the Way Coming Out and His Uncle’s Reply”; and August 28, 1911. “It Happened In San Diego. How a Man With Less Than One Dollar Made Over $15,000 in Eighteen Months. City Offers Many Opportunities To Man of Brains Who Are Willing to Work Hard, Especially In Building Line.” Large advertisements by the M.E. Ellsworth Company, on behalf of M.E. Ellsworth, a carpenter / master builder who arrived in San Diego by way of the West Indies in November, 1909, with under a dollar in his pocket. By 1911, he had built five houses in Mission Hills. The article continues that “In addition, he had also built 12 houses for Nathan Rigdon, who also landed here two years ago broke, and has built 30 houses. From his profit, he has recently finished a $13,000 block. The houses for Rigdon were all sold before completed. He also built all the houses on Ida street between Gette and Washington streets, with the exception of two.” Note that a section of Fort Stockton Drive, east of Sunset, was originally called Getty. The City of San Diego has recognized Rigdon as a Master Builder, and he built several houses similar to the Inspiration Heights homes that are the subject of this study in 1911 – 1912 on the north side of West Lewis Street near the intersection of Fort Stockton Drive.
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By summer 1911, the Inspiration Heights advertisements in the San Diego Union were under the branding of “Going & Mollison, Real Estate, Insurance, Negotiators of Loans for Corporations and Individuals.” The firm was located in the Timken Building, in downtown San Diego. Their advertisement on June 10, 1911 stated:
We have recently secured control of INSPIRATION HEIGHTS, which we consider the finest location for a home in San Diego, or any other city. . . We are selling these lots to people who want fine homes, and the building restrictions are such that they insure an excellent neighborhood. . . There are but a few lots remaining, and it is predicted that they will all be sold within thirty days.
On July 1, 1911, Going & Mollison was advertising “No Finer Homes in All the World” in Inspiration Heights, with the lowest price houses permitted at $3,500 and a few lots that could be sold for $1,860. From Inspiration Heights:
Every ship that enters or departs from San Diego Bay is in full view. . . While this is being written, six of the largest U. S, cruisers, several torpedo boats, gunboats and submarines are in the harbor, and have been for weeks, in addition to the regular shipping. San Diego is now a thriving city, and should have a population of 150,000 in 1915. Remember, the Panama-California Exposition will be held here during that year. (Going & Mollison advertisement, San Diego Union).
Besides Mission Hills, new residences were booming in the Normal Heights and University Heights districts, as the new Normal School was almost completed, and by May of 1910, the furniture was to be installed in a few days.
Further east, the new Kensington Park tract off Adams Avenue was well on its way, following the eastward advance of the electric trolley car line.9 Jerome Winder, Manager and Treasurer of the Benson Lumber Company, famous for its enormous floating log rafts, announced in 1911 with President Frank Lynch, that they had purchased “20,000 acres of the best timber land in the world” in the Oregon forests along the Columbia River, and “one monster 6,000,000 feet Log Rafts (sic) are now on their way down the Pacific Coast” and were to arrive within the next few days.10
In October, 1911, the San Diego newspapers announced that the “Winter Rush of Tourists from Northland Begins”, with visitors eager to escape the cold and snow of the north.11 Boosters throughout San Diego were delighted at the city’s prospects. Extensive advertising by the Chamber of Commerce and testimonials such as the “Dick to Dick” letters were printed across the nation advising those who intended to build to do so soon to house the winter rush of tourists12:
This city is also contemplating an exposition to be held in 1915 to commemorate the completion of the Panama Canal which is attracting a great deal of attention, as this plucky little city has already secured subscriptions to the capital stock of an exposition company to the amount of one million dollars and also bonded the city for another million dollars more, which would mean $50 per capita if the last census was right. . . Unless you come here while Los Angeles is baking, you would not believe it possible for this city so far south to enjoy such cool summers as I have experienced during the past month and which has by reason of the cool ocean breezes made this city cooler than Portland, Me., Boston or Duluth, Minn. It is this wonderful climate which is bringing in thousands of people from Arizona and New Mexico who know how cool it is here, while the interior is like an oven (Except from “A New ‘Dick to Dick’ Letter by the M.E. Ellsworth Company, August 20, 1911, San Diego Union).
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The August 1912 edition of Out West magazine ran one of a sequence of articles of promoters and boosters in various cities across the Southern California. This edition focused on San Diego, in an article “San Diego: The Place of Opportunity. First Pacific U.S. Port North of Panama Invites the World to Her Panama California Exposition 1915 – Entire Year – 1915.” The article, as did all in their series, featured caricature drawings, and depicted “Who’s Who and Why? – Boosting,” and included Charles Oesting, President of the Ammex Motion Picture Manufacturing. Company and insurance and bonds, “Boost for San Diego,” in a spread that included William Kettner, the Democratic candidate for Congress and Major H.R. Fay, the superintendent of the City Water Department.
Intertwined Business Relationships. Business relationships were intertwined between H.L. Miller, Henry Nelson, and a complicated set of relationships between the co-investors in the building firms and other businesses which they formed in this period. One of their co-investors in the western two model houses, John C. Rice, helped market Inspiration Heights for Miller.
A San Diego realtor Rice, with offices at 1419 D Street, had an established and active business by this time. His sister, Lilian Rice, who would become famous as an architect in her own right, was just completing her graduate studies in architecture at Berkeley. John’s advertisements in the classified section of the San Diego Union often took up an entire column with notices of available properties and buildings in locations throughout the city. An advertisement on May 10, 1910 asked:
"Do you know why so many are buying and building at Mission Hills? It’s classy. There’s no other location like it. Seeing is believing. It’s a fine, high location, beautiful marine view, restricted districts, good car service and good soil; large lots. . . W. O. Hardin, Sales Agent, End of Mission Hills Car line. City Offers Many Opportunities To Man of Brains Who Are Willing to Work Hard, Especially In Building Line.”
Large advertisements by the M.E. Ellsworth Company, on behalf of M.E. Ellsworth, a carpenter / master builder who arrived in San Diego by way of the West Indies in November, 1909, with under a dollar in his pocket. By 1911, he had built five houses in Mission Hills. The article continues that:
“In addition, he had also built 12 houses for Nathan Rigdon, who also landed here two years ago broke, and has built 30 houses. From his profit, he has recently finished a $13,000 block. The houses for Rigdon were all sold before completed. He also built all the houses on Ida Street between Getty and Washington streets, with the exception of two.”
The 1911 San Diego City Directory shows that William Hardin’s office of J.C. Rice Real Estate was located in Mission Hills at 1430 West Lewis Street, right along the street car line. On June 30, 1911, Rice partnered with two former Denver, Colorado builders who were newly arrived in San Diego. His partners were Martin V. Melhorn and John J. Wahrenberger, who built the first two marketing houses for Nelson and Miller at 1955 and 1965 Sunset Boulevard. They filed Articles of Incorporation for the Bay City Construction Company with $10,000 in capital stock. They assigned themselves 50 shares each and were the sole owners of the new company. On July 30, 1911, the San Diego Union announced that Rice had made seven realty deals at an aggregate price of $78,700.13 Four lots on Sunset Boulevard in Inspiration Heights were sold for $15,000 to Henry Nelson, who was arranging to erect a house on each lot. The dwellings will cost $5000 and upwards each. The property is described as lots 1 and 2 in block 1 and lots 1 and 2 in block 6, Inspiration Heights.
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The San Diego Union next reported three listings on August 24, 1911, indicating the Bay City Construction Company was erecting two-story residences in Inspiration Heights valued at $5000. The Los Angeles Builder and Contractor published a similar notice on the same date. Nelson commissioned Bay City Construction Company to erect two prominent Craftsman style houses on Lot 2, and it is possible Nelson made this arrangement through Rice, who also worked with Miller on many of the other key Inspiration Heights lots in 1911. That same year, Bay City Construction Company bought Block 59 of houses with cobblestone chimneys, piers, and balustrades. Nelson’s purchases had secured him four primary lots which faced Sunset Boulevard between Loma Pass and Alameda Drive, as well as further Arnold & Choates subdivision, a half mile east, and developed a number of prominent Craftsman style east to St. James Drive. The two lots in Block 1 encompassed the two corner lots between Alameda and St. James, on the easternmost edge of Inspiration Heights.
Lots 1 and 2 in Block 1 were purchased by Nelson on August 27, 1912, under building contract with Arthur Mowlam. Nelson filed the Notices of Completion for these two houses on February 20, 1913. Alfred J. and Bertha Morganstern purchased Block 6, Lot 3, located to the east on the corner of Alameda Drive and Sunset Boulevard, in June of 1911. Their Walter Keller-built brick house next door to 1955 Sunset Blvd., was positioned at an angle facing east, but it was not completed until July of 1913. Although that house is now a City of San Diego Historical Landmark, number 557, all four of the houses Nelson had built facing Sunset Boulevard were completed before it. In 1912, Morganstern became partners in a law firm with Charles A. A. McGee, who purchased 1915 Sunset in 1913.1
No construction information was found for Block 6 Lot 1, which is the westernmost lot on the block, and faces Sunset Boulevard and Loma Pass. Today, the property is dominated by mature landscaping and an enormous Star Pine tree near the Inspiration Heights and Loma Pass pillar. The Nelsons sold the lot to Elmer O. Lutz in January of 1913, suggesting that it was part of their investment, but not the building plan for this area of Inspiration Heights. Nelson sold Lot 6 to James Dawes on March 7, 1912, and an undated aerial photograph from the San Diego Historical Society shows an elaborate garden was created on Lot 6, which to date has not received any discussion in the historical literature of the block or tract. Perhaps a future study will elaborate on this early feature of the block. Nelson does not appear to have been involved with the house that eventually developed on that lot.17 Title information was also examined for all of the houses on Block 2, which is located south of Sheridan and east of Alameda Drive and is part of
Inspiration Heights Map 1282. It was established from this source that John S. Graves filed the Notice of Completion (NOC) on Lot 6 in July, 1913, and Orlando Giannini filed the NOC on Lot 8 a month earlier.18 Graves then filed the NOC on Block 2 Lot 4 in March of 1914. Nelson does not appear to have purchased any of the lots in Block 2, however, both Graves and Giannini filed Notices of Completion for houses there in 1913 and 1914.
Silent Film Industry C-Investments. In a further twist of relationships, on August 16, 1911, the San Diego Union announced the formation of the Ammex Motion Picture Manufacturing Company in an article “Big Motion Picture Plant is To Be Established in San Diego. Local Men Are Chief Promoters of Company to Be Incorporated. C. W. Oesting is President.” Nelson was vice-president, F.D. Halliday was Treasurer,
11 See San Diego Union, October 22, 1911, “Winter Rush of Tourists From Northland Begins. Steamship Governor Brings 53 First Class Passengers from Seattle. But one-return ticket. San Diego Gets Two to Every Five That Disembarked at Ports Near Los Angeles.” 12 See San Diego Union, August 20, 1911. “A New ‘Dick to Dick’ Letter; What a New York Banker, Now in San Diego, Wrote After Looking Situation Over Carefully. Tells “Dick” That He Could Not Do Better Than Settle Here and Buy a Home in San Diego Which is Destined to Be a Big City."
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and C.W. Fait was the plant’s general manager. H.L. Miller was a prominent investor, with $50,000 contributed to the endeavor.21 In November, 1911, Nelson, as Chairman, and Winder of the Benson Lumber Company as Secretary, filed Articles to increase the capital stock of the Independent Stone Company from $10,000 to $40,000, under their leadership and that of fellow directors Lyman J. Gage, A.E. Newton, and C.W. Oesting. The Independent Stone Company’s focus was to engage in business associated with the mining and processing of rock and stone quarries. Their primary operation was located in Spring Valley where they had their quarry, felsite crushing plant, and filling storage bins.22 The men became the five directors of the board and sole stock holders, appointed for the first year until directors or trustees were to be elected. All of the men stated their residences as San Diego. G.E. Gabrielson had 25 shares and L.G. Gabrielson had one. Callahan and Winder both had 11 ½ shares. Nelson owned controlling interest with 51 shares and was identified as the president and chairman of the corporation.23 One source from 1916 describes the company as Independent Stone Company.
National Bank Building, Geo. L. Parker, president, L.J. Rice, secretary. This company produces crushed stone for concrete and sand for the same purpose and for general building operations. The stone quarry is southwest of Spring Valley station on the west side of the track. The crushing plant is on the east side of the railroad at the same point. The rock is a fine grained felsites which forms a hill immediately north of Lemon Grove, rising some 300 feet above the mesa level. The production of crushed stone is 75,000 tons per year…” (www.quarriesandbeyond.org). Jerome Winder, worked as general manager of Benson Lumber Company, and Leo G. Gabrielson was associated with Benson as well. Z. Freeman Callahan, another junior shareholder, worked as president and general manager of Callahan Construction Company with offices in the Marston Building. Benson Lumber Company owned a sawmill at the shore of San Diego Bay that received enormous rafts of rough cut timber logs floated down in rafts from the State of Washington, which provided the raw materials for construction work all around San Diego.
Thus, Nelson was a co-director of the Independent Stone Company and AMMEX with Winder of the Benson Lumber Company and Oesting. The actual role of Nelson with Independent Stone is not known, as his involvement as president and chairman is well documented in 1911 and 1912, but not in subsequent years. In fact, George L. Parker assumed the presidency after Nelson, as indicated in subsequent San Diego city directory listings. Curiously, Nelson’s involvement with Ammex also appears in the 1911-1912 time frame, but not later.
Ammex Motion Picture Manufacturing Company. The San Diego Union announced the opening of the American Motion Picture Manufacturing Company, which was better known as Ammex, on August 6, 191124. Articles of Incorporation for the formation of a company to establish a moving picture plant in San Diego have been drawn and will be filed today. The officers will be Charles Oesting, president, and F.D. Halliday of the Globe mills, treasurer. One of the board of directors will be Henry H. Nelson, who before his advent in San Diego three years ago was manager of the New York News and business manager of the New York Sun.
Active in the physical management of the plant will be F. W. Randolph, who has wide experience in this particular line of work, and Robert M. Foot, who understands the business. The company will be known as the Ammex Motion Picture Manufacturing Company. A stock company of actors, to remain here permanently, and a force of moving picture operatives and attaches strong enough to bring the total number of employees (sic) up to thirty or forty, will also be hired. It is the intention of the management to make this stock company one of the strongest in the country and none but the best actors will be employed.
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Author Blaine P. Lamb explained in “Silent Film Making in San Diego, 1898-1912,” that by 1911, three companies had become well established on the west coast.25 San Diego attracted a number of film entrepreneurs, and small companies arose to use backdrops such as Mission San Diego, Presidio Hill, Point Loma, and even the empty hills of the Kensington area as backdrops. Ammex Company was one of these enterprises, with two films of note, Trail of Guilt, from August 28, 1912, and Memory of Ashes, October 3, 1912.26 In “Filming San Diego: Hollywood’s Backlot, 1898-2002,” then San Diego Historical Society Curator of Photographs, Gregory L. Williams, stated in a 2002 Journal of San Diego History article about early silent films and the exposition in San Diego:
During Flying A’s tenure in La Mesa and prior to the 1915 Exposition several film companies came to San Diego to attempt to open a studio or film movies. Many companies saw Flying A’s success and wanted to exploit what Flying A was as the “beautiful El Cajon Valley way down on the edge of Southern California.” These included Ammex Motion Picture Manufacturing Company founded in 1911. Praising the climate and pure water and planning to make westerns, Ammex promised San Diegans a major motion picture “plant.” The company even signed a deal with the government of Baja California to exclusively produce films in northern Mexico. Eventually just a few films came out of Ammex’s Studio. They included The Trial of Guilt and Ashes of Memory.
In San Diego, on the south, the Ammex Company has been operating, but now is resting for a time. From all indications Southern California, now known as the Mecca of the “Movies,” still is in its infancy as a motion-picture field. It is freely predicted by manufacturers that the film colony will increase fully 500 per cent during the next few years. Author David Bordwell, in his book The Classical Hollywood Cinema, divided up the structure of the United States film industry between 1896 to 1960 into various periods, with advertisement on October 8, 1911, “Motion Picture Talk No. 2, Growth of the Motion Picture Business,” and in particular, October 14, 1911, “Motion Picture Talk No. 8, Why You Should Invest in This Company,” which lists Chas. W. Oesting, President, Henry H. Nelson, Vice-President, F.D. Halliday, Sec’y. Treas, and Jerome Winder, Director, and also identifies the company as the “American” Motion Picture Manufacturing Company. The era from 1896 to 1909 representing an era of competition in production, exhibition, and distribution at odds with patent infringement suits for the equipment. In particular, Thomas Edison’s patent infringement suits in protection of his motion picture camera design sent shockwaves through the industry. Distribution of film and exhibition fees dominated the industry, and trade organizations arose in the period 1909 through 1912, giving rise to the “independents.”
AMMEX was one of this growing body of unlicensed film manufacturers. In 1912, the Film Supply Company of America was created to distribute the products of the independents. This distribution alliance was an integral part of the emerging film industry, which from 1912 to 1918 saw an economic struggle between the licensed and independent manufacturers. In 1913, Warners’ Feature Company was one of the first to provide regularized release of feature films, followed in the spring of 1914 by Famous Players, Jesse L. Lasky Feature Film Company, and Paramount. The directors had secured a “mechanical man,” who was to take the photographs, and “will be one of the best, if not the best, in his line in the country.” The company planned for thirty employees, and a stock company of actors to remain here permanently, along with a “force of moving picture operatives and attaches.” Besides moving pictures, the company also intended to offer its services to do “any work in its line that offers, especially for advertising purposes,” according to the August 16, 1911, San Diego Union article:
Millions Will See Pictures. San Diego will derive great benefit from the enterprise in an advertising way. Moving pictures are one of the greatest advertising mediums a town can have. Eighteen million people view the motion pictures in this country every week, and a large percentage of these will see the pictures put out by the Ammex company. With the name of the city on every title flash, it can easily be understood how prominently those pictures will bring the
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name of San Diego before the American public. The enterprise will be a money-maker for the town, inasmuch as all the money it will bring will be from the outside and what comes here will remain, either in the form of salaries for the employees or profits for the projectors….The promoters not only expect to do as good work as is produced by any other company in the country, but to do it more cheaply, owing to a climatic condition which will enable the staff to work about 350 days in the year. This fact alone will make the new enterprise a good advertisement for San Diego, putting aside the other considerations already suggested.
Another article in the San Diego Union on October 6, 1911 announced, “Motion Pictures to be Made at National,” “Factory at National City Secured by Ammex Motion Picture Company,” announced that the firm had secured a three-year lease (with an option to buy) on the old National Bank building, or the Kimball Block, in National City, and would begin operations on November 19, 1911. The firm would be “the only institution, with the one exception, on the Pacific coast that turns out the finished films ready for the producer.” Their production capacity was to include photography, developing, printing, and selling the motion pictures. The company knew the value of advertising, and throughout October, 1911, they ran a series of numbered advertisements called “Motion Picture Talks.” Number 2 explained the growth of the motion picture business, replacing the “old-time nickelodeon” with modern up-to-date theatres. They explained that advertising opportunities had just been scratched, with railroads, chambers of commerce’s, and businesses recognizing the value of motion pictures:
As a whole, the business is in its infancy, the theatrical trade is growing by leaps and bounds, and new fields are constantly being opened. Has it ever occurred to you that the motion picture has absolutely displaced the melodrama, is rapidly making inroads in the vaudeville business, and bids fair later to grow to such perfection that it will be a large extent displace even higher grades of amusement. (San Diego Union, October 3, 1911)
Their final installment was Number 8, which ran in the October 14, 1911 edition of the San Diego Union. They explained that the intent of the advertisement was to interest a few of the “prominent men of the city” to invest, and that they had been successful in the plan, raising a little less than half the capital required for their plans. “In fact, with the funds we now have, the company is assured ultimate success, though under slower and less ambitious operations than are desired.” They claimed they had kept their expenses within 8 percent and believed that the entire sum they required would be raised within the next three or four weeks, and likely less:
The company will engage in a very highly profitable business, it is headed by men of known standing and ability, and has been and will continue to be conducted in a clean, economical and businesslike manner. If you have funds for which you are seeking investment, we believe this is an opportunity which warrants your careful investigation and consideration. We will be glad to give you any further particulars you desire.
The advertisement was signed by Chas. W. Oesting, President, Henry H. Nelson, Vice-President, F.D. Halliday, Secretary Treasurer, and Jerome Winder, Director, under the heading of the “American Motion Picture Manufacturing Company.”
This house also has a prominent location on Sunset Boulevard. In addition, the design makes ample use of half embedded timber and brick embellishments. Based on this, perhaps the best word to describe Nelson would be “capitalist.” Despite Nelson’s prominent involvement with Ammex and the Independent Stone Company in 1911 and 1912, as well as his ambitious building project in Inspiration Heights, with business affiliation with H.L. Miller, little personal information could be found about Nelson. No direct birth
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or death records were found. As for Nelson’s business partners, Charles William Oesting, who served as the president of Ammex and a director on the Independent Stone Company, worked primarily in the insurance and bond business in San Diego. He also served as the president of the State Board of Harbor Commissioners for the Bay of San Diego for twelve years. He was a member of the Cuyamaca Club, Coronado Country Club, and Point Loma Golf Club, according to the 1913 edition of Who’s Who in the Pacific Southwest.
The 1911 San Diego directory listed Leo G. Gabrielson as a solicitor with the Benson Lumber Company and Gabriel E. Gabrielson as a teaming contractor. Z. Freeman Callahan did not list an occupation, but he resided at Dale and Thorn Streets in the community of East San Diego (now South Park). A.E. Newton was not listed in that year’s directory. Fred D. Halliday was the secretary treasurer of the San Diego Grain & Milling Company, or Globe Mills. Winder and Gabrielson’s close involvement with the Benson Lumber Company is the only affiliation with these partners that has a possible direct connection with the construction of Nelson’s 1955 Sunset Boulevard house, or the others he had built in Inspiration Heights at this time. However, if that relationship benefited Nelson with materials or other terms in this building plan, no direct evidence was found to that effect.
Perhaps the most astonishing investor in the group was Lyman J. Gage, who served as the First President of the National Bank of Chicago, President of the Board of Directors of the World’s Columbian Exposition, 1893, and was the Secretary of the Treasury under President McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt. Gage had come to San Diego in 1906, and was a Point Loma resident in a home built under the direction of architect Walter Keller, who, interestingly, was the designer of the house next door to 1955 Sunset Boulevard. Gage was instrumental in the affairs of the 1915 San Diego-Panama Exposition and in 1911, he and another San Diegan, Alfred Robinson, joined forces for the improvement of San Diego Harbor.
An article in the San Diego Union on October 15, 1911, explained how the two were working together as part of the Civic Association, of which Robinson was president at the time. It is possible that Oesting’s involvement with the Harbor Commission was another common business bond for these partners.
On December 19, 1916, Harry L. Miller and his daughter Jean E. Miller partnered with the San Diego Savings Bank and Martin V. Melhorn, owner of the Alberta Security Company, a local building firm that had been developing housing in San Diego since 1912.5 They filed the Map for the re-subdivision and Merrill T. Miller notarized the document. The Common Council of the City of San Diego approved it on December 24, 1917 and the City Clerk recorded it on December 27, 1917.The chain of title shows Jean E. Miller and the Alberta Security Company together deeded all 12 Lots of Block 7 to Harry L. Miller, her father. Ownership of the tract was shifting as Harry died, and his probate was filed in June of 1920. His estate distributed to his sons Johnston and Merrill and presumably their sister Jean (although her name was not listed on the chain of title). They, in turn, became the grantors for the development of this resubdivision of Inspiration Heights
As a little background to the importance of the Miller children, the reader needs to know that their great grandfather ferried passengers, cargo, and news between San Francisco and San Diego in the late nineteenth century and bought the area which we now call Inspiration Heights in 1869. Captain Henry James Johnston died before he could achieve his dreams with this property. His daughter, Sarah Johnston (Cox) Miller, moved to San Diego and built a Victorian building known as the Villa Orizaba, and planted the surrounding land for agricultural uses. She filed a map for Johnston Heights but did not develop it. Upon her death, her son, Harry Leverett Miller, filed a new map for Inspiration Heights. His children, Johnston, Merrill, and Jean Miller, were involved in the further resubdivision of Blocks 7, 8, 9, and 10. The Villa Orizaba, which
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was remodeled into a Prairie style residence, is a favorite of neighborhood historical home tours (SOHO and Mission Hills Heritage for example), and it is a City of San Diego historical landmark (# 330, 1995).
In 1921, Johnston and his wife Letha A. lived nearby at 2001 Sunset Boulevard. He worked as the assistant cashier at the First National Bank. Merrill was the department manager at the same bank and he also lived at 2001 Sunset with his brother and sister-in-law, and their mother Mary, who was Harry Levertt’s widow. (MacMullen 1959) The 1930 U.S. Census shows Merrill lived at 2020 Orizaba Street with his wife Hester and their two young sons, and he was working as a salesman for investment securities. (Ancestry.com)
And so Johnston Heights came into being, named by Mrs. Miller for her father. A map on file in the city Engineer's office shows the area as extending for several blocks in a southerly and easterly direction from what now is the intersection of Witherby Street and Sunset Boulevard, which then was designated as Johnston Avenue. Running easterly, the streets were named William, Miller, Leverett, Henry and Howard; Johnston was paralleled on the south by two streets, Dunkirk and Jerome. About in the center of the block bounded by William, Miller, Johnston and Dunkirk, construction was started in the summer of 1887 on a rambling mansion in the wilderness, Villa Orizaba. It is significant that, as carpenters in San Diego began this project, the house's namesake was getting a San Francisco version of "…Down swooped the wreckers like birds of prey, tearing the heart of the ship away."
... For many years Orizaba Villa stood in solitary splendor among its cactus and its eucalyptus seedlings, now grown into sizable trees. Gradually, the slowly growing city reached out for Johnston Heights. In 1909 it was re-subdivided as Inspiration Heights by Captain Johnston's grandson, Henry Leverett. Its original street system was widely altered, names were changed, and fine homes began to appear. In a display of sentiment which is all too rare in modern times, Captain Johnston's ship—although not "Ninety-Fathom" himself—was honored. A new street, directly in front of the old villa, became Orizaba Avenue. (MacMullen 1959)
By 1924, more families were getting automobiles and wealthier residents, such as the Brocketts, could easily motor back and forth from downtown and Inspiration Heights. In terms of representing special elements of the Inspiration Heights’ neighborhood development, an Indian Mogul influenced Prairie style house was designed for the Brocketts in 1917 by Martin Melhorn at 3917 Alameda Drive. Harry L. Miller, who created Inspiration Heights, approved this distinctive look to the neighborhood. Miller and co-investor Henry Nelson, invested heavily in the silent film industry during promotional marketing of Inspiration Heights and Master Architect Richard Requa designed several British-Indian Mogul style buildings at the Hollywood Krotona Colony, which influenced silent film industry movie sets in the 1920s. These historical influences created the unique Inspiration Heights neighborhood look that distinguishes it from surrounding neighborhoods. The Miller family authorized the shift to what Master Architect Richard Requa termed the “Southern California Style” in the early 1920s. The more complex Spanish Eclectic style that emerged following Requa’s 1926 and 1928 trips to Spain and the Mediterranean are also distinct from this pre-1926 Southern California style home.
The chain of title shows Jean E. Miller and the Alberta Security Company together deeded all 12 Lots of Block 7 to Harry L. Miller, her father. Ownership of the tract was shifting as Harry died, and his probate was filed in June of 1920. His estate distributed to his sons Johnston and Merrill and presumably their sister Jean (although her name was not listed on the chain of title). They, in turn, became the grantors for the development of this re-subdivision of Inspiration Heights.
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*B10. Significance - Criterion A (continued):
Thus, because the Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House does not add new information to the understanding of the development of Inspiration Heights and Mission Hills, there is insufficient information to conclude that it merits designation under Criterion A.
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*B10. Significance - Criterion B:
Criterion B: Is identified with persons or events significant in local, state, or national history. A summary of the individuals associated with this property is provided along with a conclusion regarding their significance under Criterion B.
Based on the research found and evidence presented in this report, Legacy 106 concludes that the Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House at 1965 Sunset Blvd. does not have significant associations with significant individuals to qualify for nomination under Criterion B.
Irma G. Bailey and G.A. Bailey Owners, February 1912 to March 1912
As mentioned previously in the Criterion A discussion, Henry Nelson filed a Notice of Completion for the subject property on February 14, 1912 and then sold the house to G.A. and Irma G. Bailey the same day. The Baileys did not reside in the home, but immediately sold it to Rev. William H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit the same day the purchased it. The 1911 directory listed George A. Bailey as the proprietor of the Hotel Kingston, at 1161 5th Ave. in downtown San Diego. The 1915 directory shows that Irma and George lived at 3319 1st Ave. and owned Post & Bailey, a real estate investment partnership with E.H. Post. Post & Bailey invested heavily in downtown real estate.
Insufficient information was found about Irma G. Bailey and G.A. Bailey to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Rev. William H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit Owners, 1912 to 1920 Residents, 1912 to 1916
William H. Geistweit, Jr. & Harold Geistweit (sons of Rev. Geistweit and wife Sarah) Residents, 1912 to 1916
In February 1912, Rev. William H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit purchased the newly completed home at 1965 Sunset Blvd. from Irma G. Bailey and G.A. Bailey. The Geistweit family, including sons William Jr. and Harold, resided in the home until 1916. However, Rev. and Sarah owned the home until 1920. They rented the home out from 1917 to 1919, during which time they lived in St. Louis. Rev. William H. Geistweit was a Baptist minister and held pastorates in several cities across the U.S. Thus, the Geistweit family moved frequently. Additionally, he was an author of religious themed books and wrote hymns.
On October 24, 1857, William Henry Geistweit was born in Jonestown, Pennsylvania to a Pennsylvania Dutch father and a French Huguenot mother. As a young adult, he learned the trade of printing, eventually becoming an editor. Rev. Geistweit was affiliated with two religious periodicals, the Sunday School Times and the Baptist Union.
In 1881, Rev. Geistweit wed Mary E. Nichols, his first wife and they eventually had three sons, Alfred, William Jr. and Harold. In 1885, Rev. Geistweit was ordained as pastor of the Linden Baptist Church in Camden, New Jersey (San Diego Union, March 13, 1936). In that city he was also the general secretary
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*B10. Significance - Criterion B (continued): of the Camden Association of the YMCA for two years. During his time in Camden, Rev. Geistweit published two collections of hymns he wrote. Melodious Sonnets was published in 1885, and On Joyful Wing: A Book of Praise and Song was published in 1886. The Geistweits remained in Camden until 1890, and then moved to Minneapolis where they stayed until 1896.
Rev. Geistweit served as a pastor in Galesburg, Illinois from 1897 to 1899, and then the family relocated in Chicago. Mary passed away in 1903, and Rev. Geistweit married Sarah Jane Geer in 1905. She was born in June 1864. Records differ as to the place of her birth. Some mention that she was born in Watab, Minnesota. However, according to her obituary, Sarah was born in New York and traveled westward to Minnesota by oxcart with her parents (San Diego Union, October 25, 1951). Her obituary also states that after her marriage, Sarah was active with teaching Sunday School, and that she started the Christian Home Makers' Movement within the Baptist Church.
According to his biography on the website hymntime.com, Rev. Geistweit wrote several books in the early 1900's, including:
The Ministry of Song, with Mrs. L. J. P. Bishop (Chicago, Illinois: Baptist Young People’s Union of America, 1900) Mary’s Story, 1904 Heart Talks on Every Day Themes for Every Day People, 1904 The Young Christian and His Bible, 1906 Present Needs in Young People’s Work, 1909
From 1907 to 1910 the family lived in Peoria, Illinois, and in 1911 moved to 2230 2nd Ave. in San Diego's Banker's Hill neighborhood. In February 1912, the Geistweits purchased the newly completed home at 1965 Sunset Blvd. from Irma G. Bailey and G.A. Bailey. In San Diego, Rev. Geistweit led the First Baptist Church and helped to build the White Temple at 10th Ave. and E St., which the Church occupied for at least 40 years. The building still stands and looks much as it originally did, but the interior has since been converted into lofts. The family, including adult sons William Jr. and Harold, resided in the home until 1916. However, Rev. Geistweit and Sarah owned the home until 1920. They rented it out from 1917 to 1919, during which time they lived in St. Louis.
Rev. Geistweit's ministry brought he and Sarah to Dayton, Ohio from 1923 to 1929. According to the 1930 U.S. Census, the couple lived in Los Angeles, and he was still employed as a minister. His final pastorate was in Alhambra, California in 1932. Rev. William H. Geistweit died in San Diego on March 11, 1936, and Sarah passed away on October 24, 1951.
Rev. Geistweit had three sons with his first wife, Mary: Alfred (1882-1933), William Jr. (1892-1979) and Harold (1895-1981). Only William Jr. and Harold resided at 1965 Sunset Blvd.
Dr. William Henry Geistweit, Jr. was born in Minneapolis in 1892 and lived at 1965 Sunset Blvd. with his parents and brother from 1912 to 1916 and graduated from San Diego High School. Dr. Geistweit then graduated with a bachelor's degree from the University of Redlands.
According to his World War I draft registration cards from 1917, William Jr. was unmarried and living in San Francisco, where he was a junior medical student at Stanford University. By 1920 he had graduated with his medical degree from Washington University in Missouri was an intern at the Missouri Baptist
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Sanitarium in St. Louis. He moved back to San Diego in 1922, and according to that year's city directory, he lived at the YMCA downtown and worked as a physician specializing in the ear, nose and throat.
On December 14, 1923, Dr. Geistweit married Gertrude Pearson, originally of the Oak Park section of Chicago. They wed at the First Baptist Church in San Diego, which his father led during the family's time at 1965 Sunset Blvd. Gertrude had previously worked as an American relief worker and missionary in the Anatolian region of Turkey (San Diego Evening Tribune, December 13, 1923). After the wedding the couple briefly settled at 2928 1st Ave., her family home, before moving to their newly completed home at 4480 Hermosa Way in Mission Hills. In 1929 they moved to 3212 Bancroft St. in North Park and moved often in the years following.
Dr. William H. Geistweit Jr. died in San Diego on June 14, 1979. According to his obituary, he was editor of the county Medical Society's monthly bulletin for several years and was active in working with San Diego's youth (San Diego Union, June 17, 1979). He also served as secretary of the University of Redlands executive board for 43 years.
Insufficient information was found about Rev. William H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit, William H. Geistweit, Jr. or Harold Geistweit to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Christine Hedman Resident, 1912
Christine Hedman, a domestic for the Geistweit family, is listed in the San Diego city directories as a resident of the subject property in 1912 only. By 1916 she resided at 3853 3rd Ave. Further information about her could not be located.
Insufficient information was found about Christine Hedman to determine she was historically significant for her association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Bessie M. Symonds Resident, 1913 to 1916
According to the San Diego city directories, Bessie M. Symonds resided with the Geistweit family at the subject property from 1913 to 1916. In 1913 and 1914 she was a student at the San Diego State Normal School in the University Heights neighborhood, and in 1915 and 1916 she worked as a teacher. Further information about Bessie could not be located.
Insufficient information was found about Bessie M. Symonds to determine she was historically significant for her association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Katherine Bohn Resident, 1915 and 1916
In 1915 and 1916, Katherine Bohn, a student, resided at 1965 Sunset Blvd. with the Geistweit family. Further information about her could not be located.
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*B10. Significance - Criterion B (continued):
Insufficient information was found about Katherine Bohn to determine she was historically significant for her association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Oswald Speir and Maud P. Speir Residents, 1919
Oswald Speir and his wife Maud lived at 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1919 only. They presumably rented the home from the owners Rev. William H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit. According to the 1919 San Diego city directory, Oswald was the vice president of the Pacific Marine and Construction Company, which built and repaired ships.
A native of New Orleans, Oswald Speir was born on August 18, 1864. His father Adolphus was a silversmith, while mother Mary (Coley) Speir was a housewife and tended to her five children. Oswald grew up in Brooklyn, New York. Oswald studied architecture briefly in New York but the death of his father forced him to abandon his studies and find work to support his mother and younger siblings. He found work with the Perth Amboy Terra Cotta Company and quickly climbed the ranks to become a sales manager. The company manufactured bricks and a myriad of other molded architectural elements, including art tiles and gargoyles. During Speir's tenure with the company, their products were frequently used by prominent architects Stanford White and Charles Follen McKim. According to Oswald Speir's obituary published in the April 1921 issue of The Architect and Engineer:
He was, therefore—strange as this may sound—one of the pioneers of our modern terra-cotta industry; and the splendid development of this industry is due in no small measure to his own efforts and contributions as he rose in the ranks of his company.
Oswald married Maud Phillips in Brooklyn on October 6, 1891. She was a New York City native born in July 1868. According to the 1900 U.S. Census, the couple lived in Perth Amboy, New Jersey and had three children. The census list's Oswald's occupation as manager of a terra cotta company. By 1910 the Speir family lived in Berkeley, California and they lived in the San Francisco Bay Area until approximately 1916 when they moved to Pasadena. In 1919 only they rented 1965 Sunset Blvd. and that year's San Diego city directory lists Oswald's occupation as vice president of the Pacific Marine and Construction Company. The short-lived company, formed in 1918, operated at the foot of 32nd Street and built two concrete ships, the Cuyamaca and San Pascual. It went out of business around 1920.
After their brief time in San Diego, the Speirs moved back to New York and Oswald served as secretary of the National Terra Cotta Society (The American Architect, January-June 1921). On February 2, 1921, Oswald died suddenly while aboard a train en route to Chicago. An obituary in the March 1921 issue of the Journal of the American Institute of Architects said of him:
Many architects will attest not only his generous cooperation, but his wide knowledge of the material [terra cotta] in which he believed so wholly. His influence is visible from Madison Square Garden in New York City to innumerable buildings along the Pacific Coast.
Insufficient information was found about Oswald Speir and Maud P. Speir to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
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*B10. Significance - Criterion B (continued):
Mrs. Ellen Engstrom Resident, 1919
In 1919 only, Mrs. Ellen Engstrom resided at 1965 Sunset Blvd., along with Oswald Speir and Maud P. Speir. That year's San Diego city directory lists Mrs. Engstrom's occupation as a "domestic."
A native of Sweden, Ellen Engstrom was born around 1887 and came to the United States in 1902. Little else about her early life could be located. She lived at the subject property in 1919 only. According to the 1920 U.S. Census, Ellen lived at the New Palace Hotel on 5th Ave. in downtown San Diego, and was employed there as a pastry chef. Further information about her could not be located.
Insufficient information was found about Mrs. Ellen Engstrom to determine she was historically significant for her association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
E.A. Edmonds Company Owner, 1920 to 1921
From 1920 to 1921, the E.A. Edmonds Company, a real estate, loans, insurance, and investment business, held title to 1965 Sunset Blvd. The company was headed by Edward A. Edmonds.
Edward was born in Mason, Michigan on May 2, 1868, the son of Reverend L.M. and Mary E. Thorpe Edmonds, and attended Albion College where he was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. His early residences followed the appointments of his father according to the Methodist Conference. After graduation in 1889, he and Gertrude Cannon married in 1896 in Vicksburg, Michigan at a formal ceremony with 400 guests in attendance.
Shortly after their marriage, Edward became the youngest man ever to be elected to the Wisconsin legislature and then became chairman of the state central committee in Wisconsin. His anniversary writeup states he was active and prominent in Wisconsin state and also national politics for many years, serving as a trustee of the Lawrence College in Appleton, Wisconsin and a regent to the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
Edmonds’ line of business was primarily paper manufacturing, with general interests in lumber and timber. In 1903, they moved to Rhinelander, Wisconsin, where he became the manager of the Rhinelander Paper Company, which in 1904 built a paper and pulp plant. The Edmonds family remained there for several years until they retired to Appleton in 1907, where they purchased a “handsome residence.” (History of Outagamie County)
Edward and Gertrude Edmonds came to San Diego in 1913 with their two daughters Maxine and Beatrice. He became the executive manager of several paper mills. His family distinguished him as a friend of President Taft who frequently invited Edmonds to the White House as a guest. He declined the Republican nomination for governor of Wisconsin but served eight years a regent of the University of Wisconsin.
Edward built the Broadway Theater in 1914 and bought extensive property holdings in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Imperial Valley. He and Gertrude were members of the First Methodist Church. He was a member of the University Club, Cuyamaca Club, the Amphion, and Fine Arts Society. He was also a thirty-second degree Mason and belonged to the Elks. The Stanford School of Humanities & Sciences
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has an endowed Edward Ames Edmonds Professorship in Economics in his honor. The couple were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
In 1927, the San Diego directory listings began to list Edward as the president of the E.A. Edmonds Company, with William S. Phillips as secretary for their real estate, loans, insurance, and investment business. They were located in the Edmonds Building at 953-955 8th. These listings continued for a decade.
Edward and Gertrude celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary in November, 1946. By then they had moved to 2321 Pine Street in Mission Hills, shortly after moving from home at 4240 Arguello Way. Edward died at the age of 86 in 1954. Gertrude died on her 86th birthday, April 10, 1954, at her home at 3637 Curtis Street. Her obituary states she was a prominent club woman in San Diego. She was a member of the Wednesday Club, the University Woman’s Club, and the Fine Arts Society. The daughters later married, to become Mrs. Gage Brenneman and Mrs. Theodore Gildred, of Mexico City. At the time of their golden anniversary, the couple had four grandchildren.
Insufficient information was found about the E.A. Edmonds Company to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Dr. Kosciusko W. Constantine and Mary Constantine Residents, 1920
Dr. Kosciusko W. Constantine, an ophthalmologist, and his wife Mary Constantine resided at 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1920 only. They presumably rented the home from the E.A. Edmonds Company, a real estate investment firm.
On July 23, 1877, Kosciusko Walker Constantine was born in Birmingham, Alabama. He attended medical school at Johns Hopkins University and graduated as a physician specializing in ophthalmology. In 1905, the year he graduated, Dr. Constantine wed Mary Byrd Trigg, a Virginia native born in the early 1880's. They eventually had five children. The Constantine family resided in Birmingham both before and after their brief time in San Diego in 1920. Upon his retirement in the mid-1940's, Dr. Constantine and his wife moved to Palm Beach, Florida, where he passed way in April 1961. Further information about the Constantines could not be located.
Insufficient information was found about Dr. Kosciusko W. Constantine and Mary Constantine to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Howard W. Johnson and Esther Clare Johnson Owners, 1921 to 1923
Howard W. Johnson and Esther Claire Johnson owned 1965 Sunset Blvd. from 1921 to 1923. They did not reside in the home, but instead rented it to the McDowell family. In the 1920's, the Johnson family lived in Lemon Grove, where they were poultry farmers.
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On June 22, 1880, Howard White Johnson was born in Chicago. His father Frank Asbury Johnson was a lawyer, and mother Annie was a housewife. Around 1913, Howard and his parents moved to Lemon Grove. In June 1917 he married Esther Clare McFarland in her sister's Glendale, California home (San Diego Evening Tribune, June 26, 1917). Esther was born in Michigan on September 20, 1881. The couple's only child, Howard Jr., was born in 1921. That same year, the Johnsons purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd., presumably as a rental property as they never lived there. They lived in Lemon Grove, where they operated a poultry farm, but by 1930 had moved to La Mesa and owned a plant nursery there.
According to his World War II draft registration cards from 1942, Howard and Esther lived at 7410 El Cajon Blvd. in La Mesa. Howard passed away in San Diego on March 5, 1945. According to his obituary in the March 8, 1945 issue of the San Diego Union, he still operated a plant nursery at the time of his passing. After his death, Esther operated the nursery, located at 4759 68th St. in La Mesa, with her son Howard Jr. She passed away in June 1950.
Insufficient information was found about Howard W. Johnson and Esther Clare Johnson to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Nat McDowell and Belle Lane McDowell Residents, 1921 to 1923
Dinah P. Lane (Belle's widowed mother) Resident, 1922 and 1923
From 1921 to 1923, Nat McDowell and his wife Belle Lane McDowell resided at 1965 Sunset Blvd. They presumably rented the home from owners Howard W. Johnson and Esther Clare Johnson, who lived in Lemon Grove. Nat worked in the real estate and insurance industries. Living in the home with Nat and Belle in 1922 and 1923 was Dinah P. Lane, Belle's widowed mother.
Nat Isaiah McDowell was born in Minneapolis, Kansas on November 20, 1871. According to the 1880 U.S. Census, he lived in Republican, Kansas where his father Isaiah was a minister in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Nat married Belle Emma Lane on April 17, 1895. She was originally from Iowa and was born in April 1873.
According to the 1900 U.S. Census, Nat and Belle lived in Starr, Kansas where they were hotel keepers. In 1913, Nat and Belle moved to San Diego from Kansas City, Kansas. The 1914 San Diego city directory indicates that they lived at 1745 Fort Stockton Dr. in the Mission Hills neighborhood, and Nat was a salesman with the J.D. Mollison real estate firm. By 1917 they had moved to 4221 Arden Way, also in Mission Hills, and from 1921 to 1923 they rented 1965 Sunset Blvd. where they lived with Belle's mother Dinah. The following year, they relocated to 4195 Stephens St. and Nat opened his own realty company.
Throughout the rest of the 1920's and 1930's, the McDowells moved frequently around San Diego. Nat passed away in San Diego on May 3, 1942. After his death, Belle was active with several women's and arts organizations in San Diego. She died in Stanislaus County, California on March 10, 1958.
Dinah Palmer (Riddington) Lane, Belle's mother, was born in Northolt, England in April 1837. She immigrated to the United States with her parents in 1840 and in 1856 married Alden Lane in Van Buren,
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Iowa. They eventually had eight children, with Belle being the youngest. The Lane family lived in Jackson, Iowa until moving to Kirwin, Kansas in the early 1870's.
In 1875, Alden Lane committed suicide, and Dinah drew a Civil War Widow's Pension from his time serving with the Iowa Cavalry. After his death she lived with some of her older children in Kansas. By 1910, she lived with her daughter Belle and son-in-law Nat McDowell in Kansas City. Dinah then resided with the couple at 1965 Sunset Blvd. and 4195 Stephens St. Further information about Dinah P. Lane could not be located.
Insufficient information was found about Nat McDowell and Belle Lane McDowell, or Dinah P. Lane, to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Lola M. Trent Owner, March 1923 to April 1923
From March 1923 to April 1923, Lola M. Trent, a widow, owned 1965 Sunset Blvd. There is no evidence that she ever lived in the home. Real estate transactions published in local newspapers indicate that Lola was active in speculation, buying and selling property throughout San Diego.
Lola Mabel (Bingham) Trent was born in Pennsylvania in December 1863 but grew up in Carlisle, Ohio where her parents, Martin and Sarah Bingham, were farmers. When Lola was 17 years old, her mother died. Around that same time, Lola married her first husband who had the surname Moore. Little could be found about him, but they had a daughter named Gertrude in the mid-1880's. It is not known if Lola's first husband passed away or if they divorced, but in December 1896, Lola married Samuel Trent in Cleveland. The 1900 U.S. Census lists them and Lola's teenage daughter Gertrude as residents of Pueblo, Colorado where Samuel worked as a travelling salesman for a wholesale grocery.
Lola and Samuel relocated to San Diego around 1920 and settled at 2102 G Street near the East Village neighborhood. Samuel passed away in January 1921. When Lola purchased and sold the subject property in 1923, she resided at 3104 Dale Street in the North Park neighborhood. She continued to move to various homes in the city until her death in San Diego on May 12, 1937.
Insufficient information was found about Lola M. Trent to determine she was historically significant for her association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
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Harry M. Folsom and Mayme A. Folsom Owners and Residents, 1923 to 1936 (Mayme until 1924)
Katherine D. Folsom (second wife of Harry M. Folsom) Owner and Resident, 1925 to 1936
Harriet Folsom (daughter of Harry and Mayme) Possible Resident, 1923 to 1934
Harry Folsom Jr. Resident, 1931 to 1934
Harry M. Folsom and Mayme A. Folsom purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1923. During that time, Harry worked as a managing director for the Brunswig Drug Company. Mayme passed away in 1924, and Harry remarried the following year to a woman named Katherine Dawson. Harry and Mayme's two adult children, Harriet and Harry Jr., also resided in the home for part of the time.
Harry Melville Weston Folsom, a native of Sheridan, Illinois, was born on June 16, 1877. His parents, Theodore Melville Folsom and Emily Frances (Weston) Folsom, died before Harry was ten years old. He was then raised by his grandparents in Sheridan. Harry's paternal grandfather, Orange Ferris Folsom, was a druggist in Sheridan, and it is perhaps from him that Harry became interested in that industry.
At the age of twenty-one, Harry wed Mayme Agnes Guhl in Chicago, her home city. The couple moved to San Diego around 1915 and settled at 4316 Sierra Vista in the Mission Hills neighborhood. The 1915 San Diego city directory indicates that Harry was employed as a salesman with the Brunswig Drug Company. The Folsoms lived at the Sierra Vista home until 1923 when they purchased and moved into 1965 Sunset Blvd. with their three children: Marian, Harriet, and Harry Jr. By that time Harry had been promoted to a managing director with Brunswig Drug Co.
In September 1924, Mayme passed away suddenly at the age of 44. On Christmas Day of 1925, Harry wed Katherine Dawson in Chula Vista. They lived at the subject property until they sold it in 1936. The couple then moved to Pasadena. Harry died in Pasadena on November 11, 1958.
Harriet Folsom Hawley, the daughter of Harry and Mayme, was born in Illinois on June 4, 1907. For unknown reasons, the San Diego city directory lists Harriett Folsom as a resident of 1965 Sunset Blvd. even after her 1927 marriage to Thomas Hawley, a draftsman for the City Operations Department. Thomas was the nephew of George M. Hawley, who played a key role in the development of Normal Heights and North Park.
Despite being listed as a resident of the subject property after her marriage, Harriet is also listed in 1927 and later directories as Harriett Hawley, residing with her husband Thomas, at locations other than 1965 Sunset Blvd. For example, in 1927 they are listed as residents of 2604 El Cajon Blvd. The following year they moved to 2102 Meade Ave., where they remained until at least 1930. By the mid-1940's, Harriet and Thomas lived in Burlingame near San Francisco. They then moved to San Mateo, where Harriet passed away on June 1, 1988.
Insufficient information was found about Harry M. Folsom and Mayme A. Folsom, Katherine A. Folsom, Harriet Folsom or Harry Folsom Jr. to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
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*B10. Significance - Criterion B (continued):
Ray M. Harris and Carrie A. Harris Owners, 1936 to 1944 Residents, 1936 to 1940
In January 1936, Ray M. Harris, an attorney, and his wife Carrie A. Harris purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. Sadly, he passed away in a Los Angeles hospital three months later. Carrie remained in the home though 1940, and then rented it out until selling it in 1944. In 1940, Ray's daughter Maxine and her husband Dwight lived in the home with Carrie.
Ray was born in Ligonier, Indiana in November 1873 but grew up in Nebraska. His father James E. Harris was one of Nebraska's first lieutenant governors and later served as superintendent of the Nebraska Institute for the Blind (San Diego Union, April 30, 1936).
A graduate of the University of Nebraska, Ray began his law career in David City, Nebraska. Around 1909, Ray married Caroline "Carrie" A. Quade in Nebraska, and they moved to San Diego around 1912. The 1914 San Diego city directory indicates that he and Carrie lived at 1052 23rd St. in the Golden Hill neighborhood, and he had a law practice located downtown. Ray and Carrie's only child, Ida Maxine, was born in January 1915. By 1920, the Harris family lived at 415 E. 1st St. in National City, and Ray was that town's city attorney. Ray and Carrie remained in their National City home until purchasing 1965 Sunset Blvd. in early 1936. Ray passed away in a Los Angeles hospital three months later. Carrie remained in the subject property through 1940.
In 1942, Carrie remarried to Timothy Allen Stevenson and because 1965 Sunset Blvd. was occupied by renters, they resided at the Cresmar Apartments at 3953 Centre Street in Hillcrest (San Diego Union, October 25, 1942). Carrie passed away in San Diego in May 1959.
Insufficient information was found about Ray M. Harris and Carrie A. Harris to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Dwight E. Stanford and Maxine H. Stanford Residents, 1940
In 1940 only, Dwight E. Stanford and Maxine H. Stanford resided at 1965 Sunset Blvd., along with the widowed homeowner Carrie A. Harris. Carrie was Maxine's mother and Dwight's mother-in-law. Maxine's parents purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1936, but her father Ray died later that same year. Her mother Carrie owned the home until 1944, but only occupied it from 1936 to 1940, renting it out until selling it 1944. Dwight was an attorney and from 1939 to 1951 served as dean of the Balboa Law College, a school his brother founded. Dwight was a descendant of Leland Stanford (1824-1893), the founder of Stanford University. On his paternal side, Dwight's great-grandfather was a cousin of the school's founder (San Diego Union, November 29, 1963).
A native San Diegan, Dwight Edmund Stanford was born on April 16, 1914. His parents, Ira Edmund Stanford and Ida Ghent Stanford, moved to San Diego from Nebraska in 1906. In Lincoln, Nebraska, Ira had been a teacher, principal, and school superintendent. In San Diego, Dwight's parents were dairy farmers and Ira later started a general contracting business. Dwight grew up in homes on Linwood Street and State Street in the south Mission Hills / Middletown area of San Diego.
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In 1936 Dwight graduated from San Diego State College (now San Diego State University) and that same year earned a law degree from Balboa University by attending evening classes (San Diego Union- Tribune, March 22, 2010). Despite already being admitted to the California State Bar, Dwight attended Stanford University where he earned a master's degree in political science in 1937. In September of that year he formed a law firm with his brother Leland Ghent Stanford.
Also in 1937, Dwight married Ida Maxine Harris (who typically was known by her middle name) and they eventually had two children, Ray and Gail. Maxine was born in California on January 30, 1915 to Ray M. Harris and Caroline A. "Carrie" Harris. Maxine graduated with a master's degree from the University of Southern California in 1936. At USC, Maxine was active with the Pi Beta Phi sorority and was president of Pi Beta Phi, a national dramatic sorority (San Diego Union, March 23, 1936). In the late 1930's, Dwight and Maxine resided at 1612 Upas Street in the Marston Hills neighborhood and 4036 Jackdaw Street in Mission Hills.
By 1940, the year Dwight and Maxine lived at 1965 Sunset Blvd., he was serving as the dean of Balboa Law College, a school founded in 1924 by his brother Leland. The school moved to a larger campus on Point Loma and in 1952 changed its name to California Western University. The school's branch for legal studies, the California Western School of Law, opened a location on Cedar St. downtown in 1973. After various name changes and mergers over the years, California Western University eventually became Alliant International University.
Dwight and Maxine were philanthropists in their later years. Dwight was active with the Boy Scouts of America and served as president of its San Diego Area Council. He and Maxine, along with several others, co-founded the Mataguay Scout Ranch in the foothills of the Laguna Mountains. In 1990 he made a $250,000 endowment to his alma mater, San Diego State University, creating the Dwight Stanford Professor of American Foreign Relations chair at that school. He was chairman of COMBO, a fundraising organization for the arts in San Diego County, and founded the San Diego Foundation, an umbrella organization that included several charitable groups including the United Way (Ibid.).
After their brief time at 1965 Sunset Blvd., the Stanfords moved nearby to 1859 Sheridan. Maxine passed away in 1972, and the following year Dwight married Fern S. Sample. He retired from practicing law in 1976. He and Fern eventually moved to Rancho Santa Fe. Although he was in his 90's, Dwight read four to six books per month and frequently authored essays in which he analyzed and expressed his opinions on a variety of subjects, including quantum mechanics, which he became interested in when already in his 80's (San Diego Union-Tribune, March 22, 2010). Dwight passed away on March 8, 2010 at the age of 95.
Although Dwight E. Stanford was a prominent and influential in the realm of San Diego law schools, his time at 1965 Sunset Blvd. was brief, totaling only one year in 1940, and there are other properties that would better represent the most productive period of his life. Therefore, insufficient information was found about Dwight E. Stanford and Maxine H. Stanford to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
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Lydia A. Burrowes Resident, 1941 to 1943
Mary A. Burrowes Resident, 1941
From 1941 to 1943, Lydia A. Burrowes, a widow, lived at 1965 Sunset Blvd. She presumably rented the home from owner Carrie Harris. Lydia's adult daughter Mary Adele Burrowes is listed in the 1941 San Diego city directory as residing in the home with Lydia.
A native of Minnesota, Lydia Adelaide (Propp) Burrowes was born on November 25, 1883. According to the 1900 U.S. Census, Lydia and her older sister Sarah lived in Park Rapids, Minnesota where they worked as servants in a household. Around 1907, Lydia married Charles McAlpine Burrowes. They appear in the 1910 U.S. Census as residing in Portland, Oregon where Charles worked as an ad writer. They also had an infant son at that time, named Richard.
The Burrowes family moved to San Francisco in 1915, and their daughter Mary Adele was born there that same year. The Burrowes were residents of Glendale by 1930. They moved to San Diego around 1934 and settled at 4263 Jefferson Ave. (since renamed Alder Drive) in Kensington.
In May 1939, Lydia's husband passed away in San Diego. His obituary states that at the time of his death, he was employed as an assistant manager of the San Diego Club (San Diego Union, May 3, 1939). According to the 1940 U.S. Census, Lydia and Mary lived at 4584 Granger St. in the Sunset Cliffs neighborhood, and Mary did clerical work for the San Diego Club. Mary wed John Curtis Sorrell in November 1941 and moved out of the subject property.
Interestingly, in 1943 Lydia purchased 1955 Sunset Blvd., the home next to the subject property. She owned the home until 1945 and during that time rented rooms to five different people. Her daughter Mary and son-in-law John lived there in 1944 and 1945 with their son John Jr. Lydia then moved to 3951 Centre St. in the Hillcrest neighborhood and passed away in San Diego on March 14, 1946. Mary died in Glendale in 1979.
Insufficient information was found about Lydia A. Burrowes or Mary A. Burrowes to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Lt. Edmund E. Fahey and Grace A. Fahey Owners and Residents, 1944 to 1945
In 1944, Coast Guard pilot Lt. Edmund Eugene Fahey and wife Grace A. Fahey purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. They occupied the home until selling it the following year. Lt. Fahey was born in Pennsylvania on May 17, 1908 to Bernard and Mary Fahey. According to the 1910 U.S. Census, Fahey lived in Wilkes- Barre with his parents and three older siblings. His father Bernard was employed there as a boiler maker for a stream railroad. By 1920, the Faheys lived in Oneonta, New York and moved to Binghamton, New York around 1923.
In August 1927, Edmund E. Fahey was appointed a Coast Guard cadet. He attended the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut and was commissioned an ensign in May 1930. He
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married Grace Avery in Port Chester, New York on November 27, 1931. She was a Connecticut native born in April 1913.
By 1935, Edmund was promoted to the rank of lieutenant. Around that same time, and he and Grace relocated to New Jersey, as Lt. Fahey was stationed at the air station in Cape May. They moved to Biloxi, Mississippi in 1937 and to San Diego in 1944. The Faheys purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1944, lived there, and sold it the following year. They retired to Florida, and on March 7, 1978, Lt. Fahey died in Pinellas County, Florida. He is interred at Arlington National Cemetery. Grace eventually remarried to a man named Thaddeus Spaulding Haynes, and they lived in Connecticut. She passed away there in December 1995.
Insufficient information was found about Edmund E. Fahey and Grace A. Fahey to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Samuel Smith and Eleanor Smith Floyd P. Berman and Mildred Berman Hyman Weitzman and Lucille S. Weitzman Co-Owners, 1945 to 1946
From 1945 to 1946, the subject property was co-owned by three married couples: Samuel Smith and Eleanor Smith, Floyd P. Berman and Mildred Berman, and Hyman Weitzman and Lucille S. Weitzman. There is no indication that any of them resided in the home.
Insufficient information was found about Samuel Smith and Eleanor Smith, Floyd P. Berman and Mildred Berman, or Hyman Weitzman and Lucille S. Weitzman to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Mary B. Frazer Owner, 1946 to 1947 Resident, 1947 to 1950
From 1946 to 1947, widow Mary B. Frazer owned 1965 Sunset Blvd. In 1947 she signed ownership of the home over to the First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego, however, the San Diego city directories indicate that she remained in the home until 1950. From 1952 to 1974, the home was occupied by Mary's brother, Dudley C. Benton, and his wife Hazel.
Mary was born in North Dakota in 1880 to John D. Benton, a lawyer who later became a real estate agent, and Arlone Benton. Mary came to San Diego with her parents and siblings from North Dakota around 1912. She was head of the art department at San Diego State College for several years. Under her leadership, that department developed into one of the most highly respected on the west coast (San Diego Union, May 14, 1933).
In May 1933, Mary wed Frederick Frazer, twenty-five years her senior, in California. Immediately Following the wedding, they went to live in Syracuse, New York but several local newspapers indicate that they frequently spent winters visiting family and friends in San Diego and elsewhere in Southern California. Frederick's father established the Frazer & Jones iron foundry in Syracuse in 1845, and
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Frederick served as its president until he passed away in 1938 at the age of 83. The company is still in business today.
Mary moved back to San Diego not long after his death and resided at 4667 Harvey Rd. in University Heights in 1945. The following year she purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. For unknown reasons she sold the home to the First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego, but remained living in it through 1950. The bank held title to the subject property until 1974. From 1952 to 1974, the home was occupied by Mary's brother, Dudley C. Benton, and his wife Hazel, while Mary moved to an apartment at 2366 Front Street. Mary died in San Diego in August 1970, and further information about her could not be located.
Insufficient information was found about Mary B. Frazer to determine she was historically significant for her association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego Owners, 1947 to 1974
Mary B. Frazer, who had purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1945, sold the home to the First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego in 1947. The bank retained ownership of the home until 1974. Mary remained in the home until 1950, and her brother Dudley C. Benton lived there with his wife Hazel from 1952 to 1974. The Bentons presumably rented the home from the bank. The First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego was formed on September 1, 1927 following the merger of the First National Bank of San Diego and the First Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego. The bank's main branch was located downtown at 5th Ave. and Broadway, but also had locations in East San Diego, North Park, Coronado, La Jolla, and La Mesa. By the time title of the home transferred to new owners in 1974, the bank had again been renamed due to mergers and was known as the Southern California First National Bank.
Insufficient information was found about the First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Dudley C. Benton and Hazel G. Benton Residents, 1952 to 1974
Dudley C. Benton and Hazel G. Benton lived at 1965 Sunset Blvd. from 1952 to 1974, the year Dudley passed way. They presumably rented it from the First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego, who held title from 1947 to 1974. Dudley was the younger brother of Mary B. Frazer, who owned 1965 Sunset Blvd. from 1946 to 1947.
Dudley worked a variety of jobs during his life. Over the years, he had worked as a cattle rancher, real estate agent, and was president of the New Pedrara Onyx Company, which mined onyx in Mexico and other Latin American countries. He had also been a partner in an import/export house. During World War II, he worked as an office manager for a construction company that built piers and sea walls in San Diego Bay for the Navy. In 1949 he fell ill and was forced into retirement (Princeton Alumni Weekly, Vol. 74).
A native of Fargo, North Dakota, Dudley Chester Benton was born in June 1887 to John D. Benton, a lawyer, and wife Arlone. Dudley graduated from Princeton University around 1910. Around 1912, Dudley's
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parents and sister Mary moved to San Diego. In October 1913, Dudley married Hazel Gress in her home state of Minnesota. They eventually had two children, John and Elizabeth. The 1915 San Diego city directory indicates that the Bentons lived at 2929 Front Street, with Dudley working as a real estate agent.
According to Dudley's World War I draft registration cards from 1917, he resided with Hazel and their two children at 235 Quince Street in Banker's Hill. The cards list his occupation as a self-employed rancher based in Imperial Valley. By 1930, the Benton family lived at 2945 2nd Ave. in Banker's Hill and Dudley was still a real estate agent. In 1952, he and Hazel moved into 1965 Sunset Blvd., where they remained as renters until Dudley passed away on February 12, 1974. Hazel then moved into a local rest home where she passed away in July 1980. Her obituary states that she was a member and past president of the Zlac Rowing Club (San Diego Union, August 1, 1980).
Insufficient information was found about Dudley C. Benton and Hazel G. Benton to determine they were historically significant for their association with 1965 Sunset Blvd. under Criterion B.
Based on the research found and evidence presented in this report, Legacy 106, Inc. concludes that The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House at 1965 Sunset Blvd. does not have significant associations with significant individuals to qualify for nomination under Criterion B.
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Criterion “C” Embodies distinctive characteristics of a style, type, period, or method of construction or is a valuable example of the use of indigenous materials or craftsmanship.
The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House is an excellent example of a Craftsman style home. The home exemplifies the Craftsman architectural heritage of Inspiration Heights.
This is an excellent example of a Craftsman style American Foursquare home. The house features the character defining features indicative of a Craftsman style home. The home has a low pitched hipped pyramidal roof and a matching low pitched hipped roof covering the front porch. The roof system has multiple elaborations including exposed rafter tails, exposed decorative horizontal beams and triangular pyramidal knee bracing. The full width front porch is supported by rectangular stucco columns which continue to ground level. The original brick and stucco end chimney continues to provides heat to the home. The home is wood frame construction and features stucco on the first level. Split wood shingles are used on the second floor. Wooden fixed and double hung windows and doors are light green painted wood unless otherwise noted. Exposed open wide eaves extend out from the roof.
This Craftsman style, also sometimes referred to as the American Arts and Crafts style, became popular in the early 1900s from about 1905-1930 especially in California. While the style shared an appreciation of hand craftsmanship and organic forms with its European counterpart, the American version is usually differentiated from the English Arts and Crafts style (which highly influenced it) by its extensive use of wood, low pitched rooflines and sometimes Asian inspiration. The American Arts and Crafts style grew to become an independent western movement in American architecture, and quickly spread nationwide by way of magazines and plan pattern books. The 19th century British Arts & Crafts Movement is reflected in the earliest Craftsman style houses in San Diego, but dropped out of the designs by the end of World War I. This house is an excellent example of this style in the American Foursquare form.
Many important architects and designers of the style, like Pasadena architects Greene and Greene, and designer and furniture maker Gustav Stickley showed their love of natural materials like wood, tile, brick and stone while utilizing human craftsmanship to create designs in direct opposition to the mass production and machine made designs of the Industrial Revolution. Craftsman style homes often used Natural earth-tone colors. Details were very important in the creation of Craftsman homes which usually included built in wooden furniture, doors and stairs in the same highly detailed natural wood aesthetic.
The architecturally defining features that are supportive of historic landmarking are:
1. The full width front porch supported by stucco columns which continue to the ground level; 2. The decorative stucco on the first floor and wood split shingles surfacing on the upper level; 3. The horizontal wood beltline between the second and first floors separating surfacing materials on all elevations; 4. The raised concrete porch with low pitched hipped roof; 5. The decorative triangular knee braces seen around the home; 6. The moderately overhanging roof eaves; 7. The exposed wooden rafter tails with straight cut ends; 8. The wood double hung and fixed windows; 9. The Craftsman style front door with six rectangular beveled gazed panels; 10. The large running bond rectangular brick end chimney with stucco surfaced base; 11. The fixed Craftsman style windows with nine light upper transom; 12. The rear second level sun room; 13. The symmetrical front façade; 14. The three sided rectangular bay window; 15. The straight scored concrete front walkway;
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*B10. Significance - Criterion C (continued):
The following are architectural changes that cause integrity loss:
The rear gable roof added over the rear sunroom and shed roof covered single story rear addition which is shown in photos and site plan attachment A5 (not in the public view) The newer concrete roof tiles from what appears to have been wooden shingles. The change of roof materials is a widespread and accepted alteration for fireproofing purposes. The tiles appear to simulate the thick overlapping wood shingle texture seen in the 1927 historic photos.
Architectural Integrity Analysis. The following is an analysis of the integrity of the home's architecture.
Location. Location is the place where the historic property was constructed or the place where the historic event occurred
Based on comparison with the residential building records, historic aerial photos, Sanborn Fire Insurance maps and other research, the resource is shown to be in its original location at 1965 Sunset Blvd. The House has excellent integrity of Location.
Design. Design is the combination of elements that create the form, plan, space, structure, and style of a property. Changes that create a false sense of historical development, such as adding conjectural features or elements from other historic properties, will not be undertaken.
The house is an excellent example of a two story Craftsman style Foursquare home built in 1912. The home embodies the distinctive characteristics of the Craftsman style through the retention of character defining features of the style such as the hipped roof with widely overhanging eaves, decorative roof beams and knee braces under gables, exposed roof rafters, full width front porch and rectangular stucco columns that continue to ground level. The resource retains its stucco first level surfacing and wood shingles on the upper level. These and other character defining details and features are all present.
Analysis of historic aerial photos , building records and examination of the resource at 1965 Sunset Blvd. reveals the front (north) side facing Sunset and both side elevations closely match the original design of the house. The rear addition and the rear deck along the South side is single story not visible from the public view. Although this rear addition and the addition of concrete roof tiles instead of wood shingles do represent a loss of integrity within the public view, the home still displays sufficient integrity of design, and the addition does not impact the home's integrity of design, materials, workmanship or feeling to such an extent that the home no longer embodies the distinctive characteristics of its original Craftsman Style. This is an excellent example of a Craftsman home designed and built by Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn's Bay City Construction Company. The Design element of this home is excellent.
Setting. Setting is the physical environment of a historic property. The setting is the larger area or environment in which a historic property is located. It may be an urban, suburban, or rural neighborhood or a natural landscape in which buildings have been constructed. The relationship of buildings to each other, setbacks, fence patterns, views, driveways and walkways, and street trees together create the character of a district or neighborhood.
The setting is that of an early San Diego Street car suburb with large houses along the main boulevard. The development and streets are designed for pedestrians with separated sidewalk and landscaping barrier. The street and side setback of the house matches the historic neighborhood.
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The front open lawn is divided by the scored concrete walkway. The street along Sunset conveys the era and setting of when the home was originally built. The house has excellent integrity of Setting.
Materials. Materials are the physical elements that were combined or deposited during a particular period of time and in a particular pattern or configuration to form a historic property. The Standards state that deteriorated historic features shall be repaired rather than replaced. Where the severity of deterioration requires replacement of a distinctive feature, the new feature shall match the old in design, color, texture, and other visual qualities and, where possible, materials. Replacement of missing features shall be substantiated by documentary, physical, or pictorial evidence.
The resource retains its stucco and wood split shingle surfacing. The sandy stucco surfacing is seen on the first level and split cedar shingles are seen on the second level. Original overhanging wooden eaves and rafter tails are retained. Some wooden triangular brackets appear to have been replaced in kind.
The home features original true divided light wooden fixed and double hung windows. New thick roof tiles replace what appears to have been wooden shingles. The change of roof materials is a widespread and accepted alteration for fireproofing purposes. The tiles appear to simulate the thick overlapping wood shingle texture seen in the 1927 historic photos. The brick chimney match the historical photos and appear mostly original. The side facing bay window matches the shape and location seen on the Sanborn maps. At the front door, the paneled and beveled glazed front door appears original and displays excellent quality finishing. The raised front porch entryway with raised concrete floor is also retained. The original scored concrete walkway also appears intact along with the front steps appears original to the home. There are no significant changes to the materials within the public view. As noted throughout this analysis, the Materials aspect of Integrity of this home is good.
Workmanship. Workmanship is the physical evidence of the crafts of a particular culture or people during any given period in history or prehistory.
The craftsmanship exhibited in this house represents skilled construction techniques. In particular, the skills in creating the stucco surfacing and decorative brickwork is high quality. As noted above, the wood and carpentry of wooden split shingled wall surfaces, original wooden windows and roof elaborations shows high quality workmanship. Shingled wall surfacing terminates at perfect beveled corners on the home. Masonry workmanship is seen in laying of the brick with uniform mortar joints. The Workmanship aspect of Integrity is excellent.
Feeling. Feeling is a property's expression of the aesthetic or historic sense of a particular period of time.
This 1912 Craftsman residence in its present excellent original condition is well preserved and imparts the visitor with a realistic sense and feeling for the turn of the century historical Inspiration Heights neighborhood. The home was custom designed by Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn's Bay City Construction Company. The home blends in well with historic older neighboring properties in Inspiration Heights. The feeling of an early Craftsman home and the 1910-1920 era are retained. The Feeling aspect of Integrity is excellent.
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Association. Association is the direct link between an important historic event or person and a historic property.
The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House at 1965 Sunset Blvd. is closely associated with and represents the work of Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn and the Bay City Construction Company. However, research for this nomination did not find a direct link or association with other important events or persons with this property
Conclusion: The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House meets six of seven aspects of integrity and can be said to have excellent architectural integrity for historical designation. Legacy 106, Inc. recommends the house for historical designation under Criterion C.
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*B10. Significance - Criterion D:
Criterion “D” Is representative of a notable work of a master builder, designer, architect, engineer, landscape architect, interior designer, artist or craftsman.
In 1912, Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn's Bay City Construction Company constructed the two-story Craftsman / American Foursquare style residence at 1965 Sunset Blvd. To understand this house, it is necessary to take a look its place in the progression of Martin Melhorn's “body of work” – that is, the other houses he built prior to this one. As is the case with an artist, for example, it is helpful to look at the paintings and sculptures created before a particular piece, to help understand the artist’s progression in design, materials, form, and shape, as well as the location where the artist has chosen to place a particular piece for display to be viewed to the desired advantage. Because Martin V. Melhorn is considered to be a Master Builder, the Historical Resources Board has twenty Historical Landmark designations that recognize his work. These include:
Historical Landmark # 1005, the 1911 John and Emilie Wahrenberger/Martin V. Melhorn House (Craftsman style) at 1329 Fort Stockton Drive in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 790, the 1912 Tudor Rodgers/Martin V. Melhorn House (Craftsman style) at 4060 Alameda Drive in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 978, the 1912 Henry Nelson/Martin V. Melhorn Spec House #1 (Craftsman style) at 1955 Sunset Blvd. in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 318, the 1913 Melhorn-King Residence at 1302 Washington Place (Craftsman bungalow) in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 780, the 1914 Alberta Security Company/Martin V. Melhorn Spec House #1 (Craftsman style) at 1201 West Arbor Drive in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 1164, the 1914 Nancy Johnson and Richard Carter/Martin V. Melhorn House (Craftsman style) at 3916 Alameda Place in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 1120, the 1917 Alberta Security Company/Martin V. Melhorn Spec House #4 at 3917 Alameda Drive (Prairie style) in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 489, the 1918 Joseph S. Mack House (Craftsman style) at 3932 Alameda Place in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 1122, the 1919 Alberta Security Co. / Martin V. Melhorn Spec House #3 at 4019 Hawk Street (Craftsman bungalow) in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 1230, the 1920 Alberta Security Company/Martin V. Melhorn Spec House #5 (Dutch Colonial Revival style) at 4774 Panorama Drive in University Heights. Historical Landmark # 583, the 1921 Neil Brown / Martin V. Melhorn House (eyebrow bungalow) at 4195 Palmetto Way in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 823, the 1921 Franklin and Helen Boulter/Martin V. Melhorn House (Craftsman bungalow) at 4119 Palmetto Way in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 997, the 1922 Emma Spargle Chanter/Martin V. Melhorn House (Craftsman bungalow) at 4139 Palmetto Way in Mission Hills.
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Historical Landmark # 888, the 1923 Alberta Security Company/Martin V. Melhorn Spec House #2 (Prairie style) at 4144 Lark Street in Mission Hills.
Historical Landmark # 1238, the 1923 Alberta Security Company/Martin V. Melhorn Spec House #6 (Mission Revival style) at 1003 Alberta Place in Mission Hills. Historical Landmark # 822-72, a 1923 Spanish Eclectic home at 1731 West Lewis Street in Mission Hills. This home is not individually named, as it was historically designated as part of the Fort Stockton Line Historic District. Historical Landmark # 822-73, a 1923 Craftsman bungalow at 1732 West Lewis Street in Mission Hills. This home is not individually named, as it was historically designated as part of the Fort Stockton Line Historic District. Historical Landmark # 822-61, a 1924 Craftsman bungalow at 2281 Pine Street in Mission Hills. This home is not individually named, as it was historically designated as part of the Fort Stockton Line Historic District. Historical Landmark # 822-08, a 1926 Spanish Eclectic home at 1811 Fort Stockton Drive in Mission Hills. This home is not individually named, as it was historically designated as part of the Fort Stockton Line Historic District. Historical Landmark # 424, the 1925-1927 Shirley Ann Place Historical District, in the North Park community, south of Washington Street (2000). Melhorn completed some of these homes with the help of his son, William B. Melhorn, with whom he formed the Alberta Security Company. However, the majority of the homes were constructed by William after Martin's death in August 1925.
Each of these designations represents a different point in Martin V. Melhorn’s career, as he evolved through a series of three companies that he owned between 1911 and his death in 1925. He became the patriarch of a construction dynasty that has lasted four generations. The best overall source of information on the Melhorn building industry is from the research conducted by local historian Alexander Bevil as part of his 1993 investigation for his nomination of the Melhorn-King residence. Bevil interviewed William Melhorn’s son, Martin "Marty" W. Melhorn, and conducted a detailed interview that provides specific information that is no longer available from family members.
Since Bevil’s interviews, Marty developed Alzheimer’s disease and could no longer recall the family’s history. As part of Legacy 106, Inc.’s 2003 research for the Neil Brown / Martin V. Melhorn House, Ronald V. May interviewed Jerry McHenry, a fourth generation Melhorn family member and current chief executive officer of Melhorn Construction Company in National City. McHenry authorized copying of surviving building plans, photographs, and Martin V. Melhorn’s leather notebook from M.V. Melhorn & Son for historic research.
Resource Naming Description. The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House at 1965 Sunset Blvd. was built for property owners Henry and Lavina Nelson who hired Master Builder Martin Melhorn and his Bay City Construction Company as seen on the February 14, 1912 Notice of Completion. This home was likely not built as an investment or speculation house. Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn ran the Bay City Construction Company from approximately 1911-1916 based on research. Martin V. Melhorn died in August 1925 and his son Master Builder William B. Melhorn took over the company. Martin V. Melhorn was the main designer for the Bay City Construction during this period. This is why the home is recommended named after first owners Henry and Lavina Nelson and Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn.
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The subject resource appears to be a very large and more high style and detailed example of the work of Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn. The home is an American foursquare home built in the Craftsman style Please see below description of stages of Martin V. Melhorn's design and building career.
The subject resource built in February 1912 is one of the earliest examples of Martin Melhorn's work as a builder after he moved to San Diego in 1911. The home is also unique as the only example of an American Foursquare home built by him. It shows that he was utilizing symmetrical vernacular forms which he may have brought from his previous work in Colorado and Nebraska. Melhorn incorporated the Craftsman style and architectural features into this American Foursquare home and it is representative of Melhorn's work while being an individual and unique example of some of his earliest work when he was likely experimenting with different designs and forms.
Bay City Construction Company (1911 to 1916)
Martin V. Melhorn and John Wahrenberger joined with San Diego realtor John C. Rice on July 1, 1911 to incorporate as Bay City Construction Company (San Diego History Center, Box 21, File 5, #2463). Melhorn, Wahrenberger, and Rice each owned fifty shares of the company. The purpose of the corporation was to conduct all manner of real estate transactions, subdivide land, and construct buildings and public improvements.
Previous studies of the Bay City Construction Company have not addressed the three men who formed the company and their roles in its activities. Melhorn was listed in the directories as president, and Wahrenberger as the secretary-treasurer. Rice’s role, however, had not previously been identified as a partner in the firm until Legacy 106, Inc. studied a residence at 1201 West Arbor Drive in 2005.
Alberta Security Company (1913-1917)
The discovery of John Clinton Rice’s involvement with Bay City Construction Company is interesting because of his own family and work. His sister was Lillian C. Rice, a Master Architect well known for her architectural work in Rancho Santa Fe. His wife, Miriam, was a granddaughter of President Ulysses S. Grant. These connections and his own business savvy no doubt helped him in his work a realtor in San Diego and surrounding cities. He was an all around sportsman in golf, marksmanship and drove racecars with the famous Barney Oldfield. Rice also served as president of Rice-Landmark Company in 1911 with an office in the U.S. Grant Hotel (Directory 1911).
Master Architect Walter S. Keller designed and built a three-story, 75-room, brick store and hotel for Rice at the northwest corner of 8th and “E” Street. (Obituaries, February 24 and 25, 1960, San Diego Union and Tribune) To date, Rice’s role in the Bay City Construction Company is little understood, but it does beg some interesting questions about the associations between the partners.
Perhaps one of the more shrewd businessmen at the time, Melhorn created his own financing company to ensure that his clients continued paying on construction loans for several years after completion of the project. Melhorn joined with W.F. McCoy and George L. Mayne to incorporate Alberta Security Company on August 1, 1913 (San Diego Historical Society, Box 27, File 3, #3022). He named the company in honor of his wife, Alberta. (Bevil 1993). The August 1, 1913 California Articles of Incorporation for Alberta Security Company lists Martin V. Melhorn as owning 40 shares, W.F. McCoy owing five shares, and George L. Mayne owning another five shares. The stated purpose of the company was to conduct real estate development, construction, subdivision of land, mortgage, lease, or operate gas, lighting, or power
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plants, wharves or wharf franchises and other property transactions. Mayne worked as secretary and treasurer of the West Coast Hotel Company, Inc. and W.F. McCoy was vice president. Mayne, McCoy, and F.E. James owned the New Palace Hotel located at 5th and Elm in the downtown business district.
Like Forrest Hieatt, Melhorn also bought property by the block in the early years of the Mission Hills subdivision’ development, in addition to scattered individual lots. His earliest residential work involves Block 59 of the neighboring Arnold & Choate’s addition, just a few blocks east of the intersection of Sunset and Fort Stockton Drives. Bay City Construction Company bought the block in 1911 and proceeded to build out all the lots between 1912 and 1915 in the Craftsman style. The project also included the house at 1309 Fort Stockton Drive, which Melhorn built for his own family (Bevil 1993). The best preserved example of a Block 59 Bay City Construction Company house is the Melhorn-King Bungalow, which is now City of San Diego, Historic Landmark No. 318, located at 1302 Washington Place on the corner of W. Washington and Ingalls. Another corner Bay City Construction Company/Melhorn bungalow of note on Block 59 is at the northeast intersection of Fort Stockton and Lark Street.
Melhorn acquired some lots and built speculation houses to be used as collateral for loans to build other houses. These “collateral houses” were rented through Alberta Security Company as another part of the income stream and to ensure long-term maintenance. If a client defaulted, Alberta Security Company would simply get the property back and resell it to someone else. Melhorn also worked with furniture and appliance outfitters and landscapers to help the new homeowners complete their homes.
After incorporation in 1913, Alberta Security Company acquired and sold land and financed construction of Bay City Construction Company projects. Eventually, all speculation houses were sold off to homebuyers. As the Block 59 project progressed, Martin and Alberta Melhorn moved into 1109 Getti (Fort Stockton Dr.) in 1912. Two years later, the City of San Diego changed the street name and his 1914 address became 1309 Fort Stockton. The Melhorns lived at that location from 1911 to 1920. Those included the most productive years in their association with John J. Wahrenberger. He moved into 1101 “H” Street in 1911 and listed himself as secretary of Bay City Construction Company in the directory.
Records from 1912 listed in the Los Angeles Building and Contractor reveal Bay City Construction Company built more than custom homes. The following is a list of over $150,000 worth of construction projects Bay City Construction Company built:
1. W. R. Syfert hired them to build a three-story, reinforced concrete and hollow clay tile store and hotel on State, between “D” and “E” Streets for $20,000 (Los Angeles Building and Contractor July 12, 1912: 13,23).
2. Mary E. Ready hired Bay City Construction to build a three-story plaster apartment for $25,000 at 705 25th Street (Los Angeles Building and Contractor September 12, 1912:18,25).
3. Under their ownership, Bay City Construction Company built a six-room cottage at 1109 Washington for $3,000 and another house at 4120 Ingalls for $3,000 (Los Angeles Building and Contractor September 26, 1912:24).
4. Omer C. Thompson hired Bay City Construction Company to build a 90-room, three-story apartment building with basement at 1213-1219 “E” Street, for $50,000 They also built an apartment complex for Thompson at 1230 12th Street (Los Angeles Building and Contractor)
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William Wahrenberger probably worked as an apprentice carpenter for his father on a variety of projects. In 1912, William went to work as a draftsman for Master Architect William Sterling Hebbard, but listed his residence at 1129 Getti (Fort Stockton) with his parents (Directory 1912). In 1913, William simply listed himself as a draftsman (Directory 1913). Both Alberta Security Company and Bay City Construction Company listed 522 “B” Street as their address in 1914. The Wahrenbergers’ Getti address became 1329 Fort Stockton in 1914.
The Seifert – Melhorn house on West Arbor appears to have been built in the last years of the Bay City Construction Company’s formal existence. After 1916, the company did not appear in the city directories, and Martin Melhorn evolved his business away from craftsman style buildings. In 1915, Bay City Construction Company relocated to 635 Broadway in the downtown business district (Directory 1915). Dramatic changes began in 1916, when Bay City Construction Company disappears from annual listings in the city directories (Directory 1916). No dissolution papers were filed for the company and yet it does not appear to be viable.
William B. Melhorn listed himself as a clerk, but still resided with his parents at 1309 Fort Stockton (Directory 1916). Martin listed his occupation as real estate with Alberta Security Company. John J. and Emilie E. Wahrenberger relocated to 212 Lewis in 1916 and John simply listed real estate as his occupation, but with no affiliation.
The Alberta Security Company ended in 1917, when Martin V. Melhorn changed the directory listing to president, manager, and builder. Although no dissolution papers were filed for the Alberta Security Company, neither the Bay City Construction Company nor Alberta Security Company were listed in the city directory in 1918. It is possible that the death of John Wahrenberger changed the nature of the Melhorn’s business. The Wahrenbergers' son did not seem to ever partner with the Melhorns, but went on to create his own business and his designs continued to reflect the Melhorn and Wahrenberger style of Craftsman houses through World War I.
Researcher Allen Hazard who lives on Sunset Drive in Mission Hills has identified fifteen Mission Hills houses built by Melhorn and Wahrenberger during this 1911-1916 time period (Personal Communication). Using City of San Diego water and sewer permits he has shared this information:
Arnold and Choate’s Addition Block 59, located between Fort Stockton Drive and West Washington Place (1912-1915). Of the twelve house on Block 59, Alberta and Martin moved into 1309 Fort Stockton during that period. 1302 West Washington Place, (1913), Historically Designated, #318 1201 West Arbor Drive, “Seifert-Melhorn House” (1914) 2128 Pine Street (1915)
However, based on the sample published in the Los Angeles Builder and Contractor in 1912, Bay City Construction Company built a diverse range of building styles in other communities during this time period. In general, and based on the Mission Hills architecture, Melhorn and Wahrenberger designed and built classic Arts & Crafts Movement Craftsman style houses in Mission Hills during this era.
From the family home, the Wahrenbergers' son, William, began to list himself as a building contractor (Directory 1916). He finally developed the third lot at 4277 Trias in 1917 that would become his home (Beth Montes Personal Communication). He built two Craftsman style houses on Trias Street and bought a third lot (Beth Montes Personal Communication). Apparently, he worked as a carpenter with his father after Bay
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City Construction Company dissolved in 1916 and continued until John died on April 26, 1918 (Ibid). William worked as a building contractor for a long fifty-five year career and died December 30, 1969 at the age of 73 (San Diego Union, December 30, 1969). His wife, Grace Wahrenberger, died in 1976 at age 65 (San Diego Union, April 11, 1976).
Martin V. Melhorn Investments (1916-1922)
Martin V. Melhorn shifted from the carpentry-oriented Craftsman style to greater use of stucco in Prairie style houses after 1916. He often designed two story houses with wide windows and broad horizontal visor overhangs that shaded the upstairs windows. During this era, he experimented with modern construction materials, pre-constructed doors and windows, and manufactured appliances that could be installed to heat and make life more comfortable and convenient.
When Martin and Alberta moved into 1740 Fort Stockton in 1920, the U.S. Census that year listed him as age 54 and Alberta 48. It is possible that their move into 1740 Fort Stockton marked a shift in both their business and personal lifestyle. From 1918 to 1919, Melhorn simply listed his occupation in the directory as “investments” at 1015 7th (Directory 1920), although he continued to experiment with Prairie and other dramatic architectural styles during this period. Based on simple observation of the street view of the Mission Hills houses produced by Melhorn during this important period of his career, he toyed with larger dimensions, larger rooms, and worked with orienting windows and French doors to capture greater sunlight throughout the houses.
Meanwhile, Alberta and Martin’s son William had graduated from San Diego High School and attended Stanford University. During the earlier phases of his father’s construction experience, William avoided the building industry. He worked in gas stations and later sold automotive parts and services. This would not change until 1922, when he and his wife joined with Martin to form a family-oriented company, Martin V. Melhorn & Son, which has survived four generations to this day.
In 1914, William had listed himself as a student at Kelsey-Jenney Commercial College and residing with his parents (Directory 1914). During the First World War, he enlisted in the United States Army and promoted to the rank of captain, although his postings and war record has not been discovered and he apparently mustered out at the end of the war. In 1919, he listed his employment at Mission Hills Service Station (Directory 1919). The following year, he married Lillian and they moved into 1623 West Lewis. He listed his occupation as auto accessories. In 1921, they moved to 1863 Sunset Boulevard. This address is only a few minutes walking distance to his parents’ house at the intersection of Lewis, Fort Stockton and Sunset Drive.
During this period, Martin directed construction of fourteen Mission Hills houses that Hazard (Personal Communication) has documented using water and sewer permit applications:
4263 Hermosa Way (1916) 4024 St. James Place (1916) 1845 Sunset Blvd (1917) 1740 Fort Stockton Road (1919) 3917 Alameda Drive (1918) 3932 Alameda Place (1918) 4144 Lark Street (1918) 2128 Pine Street (1918) 3945 Alameda Drive (1920)
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4105 Palmetto Way (1921), destroyed 4119 Palmetto Way (1921) 4127 Palmetto Way (1921) 4139 Palmetto Way (1921) 4145 Palmetto Way (1921)
Other research indicates Melhorn probably built houses in other communities in the 1916-1918 period, but this has yet to be quantified.
M.V. Melhorn & Son (1922-1926)
In 1922, the Melhorn business took a dramatic turn. Martin and William Melhorn formed M.V. Melhorn & Son (Directory 1922). Everything changed at that point in time, when Martin and Alberta moved out of 1740 Fort Stockton to relocate to 3845 Hawk, south of Washington Street.
William and Lillian first moved to 1783 Sunset Boulevard in 1922 and then 3826 Hawk in 1923 (Directory 1922, 1923). The new company set up shop at 4009 Hawk near Alberta Place and all four Melhorns listed their occupations with the company. This turning point is significant as the beginning of the family-owned company. The family orientation assumed greater significance when they built their own subdivisions and named the streets. Alberta Place was named in honor of Martin’s wife and William’s mother. Shirley Ann Place was built in honor of William’s daughter. In 1926, William and Lillian would relocate to 1012 Alberta Place.
During the period while Martin and William worked together, they built at least sixteen houses in Mission Hills, based on Hazard’s research (Personal Communication):
2221 Hickory Street (1922) 4195 Palmetto Way (1922), Historically Designated, #583 4072 Stephens Street (1922) 4078 Stephens Street (1922) 4146 Stephens Street (1922) 1726 West Montecito Way (1922) 1768 West Montecito Way (1922) 4106 Randolph Street (1923), destroyed 4114 Randolph Street (1923) 4128 Randolph Street (1923), second story added 4112 Sierra Vista (1923) 4216 Sierra Vista (1923) 1752 West Montecito Way (1923) 1761 West Montecito Way (1923) 1508 West Lewis (1923), severely altered 1717 West Lewis Street (1923), altered
After Martin died in 1925, William continued to operate his building contracting operation out of 4009 Hawk (Directory 1925-1926). He listed a real estate office at 931 West Washington in 1927 and then changed the listing to building contractor in 1929. A family photograph shows Wm. B. Melhorn Construction on a building in the 1920s, but the address remains unknown. It might be 931 West Washington, but that location is now occupied by a more modern building.
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The probate records located in the Superior Court in downtown San Diego indicate at least forty houses and commercial buildings were under construction at the time of his death. At least two of his creditors filed suit soon thereafter. To pay construction crews for carpentry, plaster work, concrete work, and other building specialties on jobs in University Heights, North Park, and South Park in 1926, Alberta filed papers to urge the court to appoint William as special administrator of the estate. The court approved the appointment, but required detailed accounting during the probate. This enabled William to continue construction work, settle debts, and reply to the lawsuits as president of the company. At that point in time, M.V. Melhorn and Son changed unofficially to Wm. B. Melhorn Construction.
William B. Melhorn Company (1926-1956)
The 30-year era of Wm. B. Melhorn Company is reflected in a change from residential housing to commercial construction projects. William found those larger building jobs to be more lucrative and better suited to his organizational skills. This shift also served the company well during the Great Depression years, as the larger corporations were better suited to obtaining construction loans. The architectural styles ranged from Spanish Eclectic through the mid 1930s to Art Deco up to World War II in the 1940s and through the Mid Century Modern styles of the post World War II era.
Examples of Wm. B. Melhorn Company projects between 1926 and 1956 include Mission Hills Plumbing (now L.B. Powers Plumbing); Burnett’s Furniture; Dryer’s Furniture; Standard Furniture Company; Lloyd’s Furniture; San Diego Burglar Alarm Company; San Diego Electric Company Showroom; United States Savings, San Diego Branch; Arcade Building; Grand Rapids Home Furnishing Company; Van’s Market; Hotel Knickerbocker; Christian Science Church of Coronado; La Jolla High School; V.A. Turner Plumbing; Allied Food Stores; Kalmia Apartments; Carrell’s Drug Store; The Modern Furniture Store; Morrison Stores of Los Angeles; Moorsteen Manufacturing Company; Globe Furniture Company; and Monterey Apartments.
Melhorn Construction Company (1956-present)
At their 30-year anniversary of Wm. B. Melhorn Company, the family changed the name to Melhorn Construction Company. They incorporated in 1956 and shifted their emphasis to include highway construction and capital improvements, as well as the commercial buildings. William retired in 1958 and handed the reins of the corporation over to his son, Martin “Marty” W. Melhorn. (Bevil interviewed him concerning the history of the company). Marty served as vice president, manager, and eventually chief executive officer. William passed away in 1969 (San Diego Union, April 3, 1969). William’s daughter, Shirley McHenry, had a son named Jerry McHenry, who served as chief executive officer of Melhorn Construction Company and it is he who Legacy 106, Inc. interviewed in 2003. In 2005, Melhorn Construction Company closed its offices on San Diego Avenue in Old Town and relocated to National City, where they continue to operate to this day.
Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn created this house during his era of independent design and construction, following dissolution of the Bay City Construction Company in 1916 and the death of his former partner, John J. Wahrenberger.
The house is important for two reasons. First, it contributes to understanding Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn’s independent building and design skills that he developed between 1916 and 1922. After dissolution of the Bay City Construction Company in 1916, Melhorn had the opportunity to experiment with designs and building materials that his former partnership had not attempted. During this era,
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Melhorn created a body of works that encompassed both residential and commercial structures. He left a legacy of built structures in Mission Hills that helps define the character of the community. Second, the house is important simply for its architecture, as it is an excellent example of a Mission Revival home.
Although the mechanism of their bond is not yet known, Martin and Alberta Melhorn knew fellow carpenter John J. Wahrenberger while in Denver and when he came to San Diego they became business partners. Wahrenberger family lore has them in San Diego as early as 1910 (Beth Montes, Personal Communication), a year earlier than the Melhorns' arrival. More research has been done on the Wahrenbergers' son, also named William, primarily by researcher Beth Montes, for the homes he built in San Diego after he formed his own company. A number of William Wahrenberger’s homes in Mission Hills (Trias Street) are now City of San Diego Historical Landmarks. His father’s work, however, has not been studied and as yet is unexplored for its relationship with Martin Melhorn and the Bay City Construction Company. This study adds new information about his role in San Diego.
The Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House at 1965 Sunset Blvd. was constructed in 1912 in the Craftsman / American Foursquare architectural style. The proposed Henry and Lavina Nelson / Martin V. Melhorn House is a unique and notable design of recognized Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn. The resource is representative of the notable work of Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn and has a very high level of integrity.
HRB Criterion E National Register of Historic Places listing or eligibility.
Criterion E does not apply to this property.
HRB Criterion F as a contributing resource to the _____ Historical District.
Criterion F does not apply to this property.
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A.1 Assessor’s Building Record
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A.1 Assessor’s Building Record
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A.2 Notice of Completion
The Notice of Completion states that property owner H.H. Nelson hired the Bay City Construction Company to build 1965 Sunset Blvd. The home was actually completed on February 14, 1912.
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A.3 Water and Sewer Record The only record that could be located is a sewer stop-up record.
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A.4 Building / Construction Permits The permits on this page are for a 1925 addition. The original building permits from 1911-1912 could not be located.
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A.4 Building / Construction Permits Continued on next page
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A.4 Building / Construction Permits Continued from previous page
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A.4 Building / Construction Permits
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A.4 Building / Construction Permits
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A.4 Building / Construction Permits
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A.4 Building / Construction Permits
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A.5 Site Plan with Footprint Taken from the Residential Building Record
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A.6 County Lot and Block Book Page The completed property was first assessed to W.H. Geistweit in 1912.
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A.7 Previous Survey Forms 1965 Sunset Blvd. is identified as an unaltered Craftsman/Prairie style home in the Uptown Historic Architectural and Cultural Landscape Reconnaissance Survey, 2007, by IS Architecture. It was assigned status code 5D3: "Appears to be a contributor to a geographic district that appears eligible for local designation through survey evaluation. For purposes of the Land Development Code 45 year review, this property needs a research report to determine its potential historical significance." Note that the date of construction is incorrectly given as 1918.
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A.7 Previous Survey Forms 1965 Sunset Blvd. is shown as a contributing resource in the Craftsman style in the 2007 Uptown Reconnaissance Survey by IS Architecture.
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Attachment B Ownership and Occupant Information
B.1 – Chain of Title B.2 – Directory Search of Occupants B.3 – Deed from the Date of Construction
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B.1 Chain of Title 1965 Sunset Blvd., San Diego, CA 92103 APN # 443-580-02-00
Instrument Date Grantor to Grantee, Recording Date, Book Number, Page Number
July 6, 1911 H.L. Miller and Mary M. Miller to Henry H. Nelson, recorded July 7, 1911, Deed Book 522, Page 230.
February 14, 1912 Notice of Completion. H.H. Nelson entered into a contract with the Bay City Construction Company for the construction of the subject property. It was actually completed on February 14, 1912. Recorded February 14, 1912, Miscellaneous Book 38, Page 474.
February 14, 1912 Henry H. Nelson and Lavina Nelson to Irma G. Bailey and G.A. Bailey, recorded February 14, 1912, Deed Book 545, Page 301.
March 7, 1912 Irma G. Bailey and G.A. Bailey to W.H. Geistweit, recorded March 8, 1912, Deed Book 547, Page 425.
June 18, 1920 W.H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit to F.A. Edmonds Company, recorded July 28, 1920, Deed Book 824, Page 81.
March 5, 1921 E.A. Edmonds Company (a corporation) to Howard W. Johnson, recorded March 11, 1921, Deed Book 843, Page 248.
March 6, 1923 Howard W. Johnson and Esther Claire Johnson to Lola M. Trent, recorded March 8, 1923, Deed Book 926, Page 333.
April 12, 1923 Lola M. Trent to Harry M. Folsom and Mayme A. Folsom, recorded April 27, 1923, Deed Book 939, Page 97.
March 13, 1928 Harry M. Folsom and Katherine A. Folsom to M.E. Merrill (a single person), recorded March 13, 1928, Deed Book 1392, Page 481.
March 13, 1928 M.E. Merrill (a single person) to Harry M. Folsom and Katherine A. Folsom, recorded March 13, 1928, Deed Book 1392, Page 482.
January 30, 1936 Harry M. Folsom and Katherine A. Folsom to Ray M. Harris and Carrie A. Harris, recorded February 4, 1936, Official Records Book 463, Page 376.
January 31, 1944 Carrie A. Harris to Edmund E. Fahey and Grace A. Fahey, recorded March 1, 1944, Official Records Book 1639, Page 223.
March 15, 1945 Edmund E. Fahey and Grace A. Fahey to Samuel Smith and Eleanor Smith (husband and wife as joint tenants, as to an undivided one third interest); Floyd P. Berman and Mildred Berman (husband and wife as joint tenants, as to an undivided one third interest); and Hyman Weitzman and Lucille S. Weitzman (husband and wife as joint tenants, as to an undivided one third interest), recorded April 14, 1945, Official Records Book 1857, Page 131.
67
B.1 Chain of Title - Continued
November 18, 1946 Samuel Smith and Eleanor Smith (husband and wife), and Floyd P. Berman and Mildred Berman (husband and wife), and Hyman Weitzman and Lucille S. Weitzman to Mary B. Frazer (a widow), recorded December 3, 1946, Official Records Book 2285, Page 295.
March 25, 1947 Mary B. Frazer (a widow) to The First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego, recorded March 27, 1947, Document # 33427, Book 2365, Page 348.
August 6, 1974 Southern California First National Bank (formerly the First National Trust and Savings Bank of San Diego) to Stephen Bellon (as to an undivided one-fourth interest), Dennis Bellon (as to an undivided one-fourth interest), and John A. Benton (as to an undivided one-half interest), recorded August 6, 1974, Document # 74-212476.
July 30, 1975 Dennis Bellon and Stephen Bellon to John A. Benton and Mariella F. Benton (husband and wife as joint tenants), recorded August 5, 1975, Document # 75- 205125.
August 4, 1975 John A. Benton to John A. Benton and Mariella F. Benton (husband and wife as joint tenants), recorded August 12, 1975, Document # 75-213353.
September 29, 1976 John A. Benton and Mariella F. Benton (husband and wife) to Thomas R. Adams and Maria C. Adams, recorded December 6, 1976, Document # 76-406231.
March 4, 1981 Thomas R. Adams and Maria C. Adams (husband and wife as joint tenants) to Thomas R. Adams and Maria C. Adams (as trustees under that declaration of trust dated January 5, 1979), recorded March 10, 1981, Document # 81-072814.
April 22, 1983 Thomas R. Adams and Maria C. Adams (as trustees under that declaration of trust dated January 5, 1979) to Daniel M. Gibbs and Lois M. Seed (husband and wife as community property), recorded May 25, 1983, Document # 83-173192.
November 17, 1983 Daniel M. Gibbs and Lois M. Seed (husband and wife as community property) to Daniel M. Gibbs and Lois M. Seed (Co-Trustees, U.T.D. November 17, 1983), recorded November 18, 1983, Document # 83-420955.
November 7, 1986 Daniel M. Gibbs and Lois M. Seed (Co-Trustees, U.T.D. November 17, 1983) to H. Paul Kondrick and Linda J. Kondrick (husband and wife as community property), recorded February 3, 1987, Document # 87-061847.
July 27, 2015 H. Paul Kondrick and Linda J. Kondrick (husband and wife as community property) to Daryl B. Fick, Jr. and Hoan K. Nguyen (husband and wife as joint tenants), recorded July 30, 2015, Document # 2015-0401240.
68
B.2 Directory Search of Occupants Note: The home was originally addressed as 345 Sunset Blvd. It was readdressed as 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1914. Date Reverse portion of directory Main portion of directory 1912 Geistweit Wm H Rev, pastor First Baptist Church, h 345 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H Jr, student, r 345 Sunset blvd. Hedman Christine, domestic 345 Sunset blvd. 1913 Geistweit Harold, student, r 345 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H Rev, pastor First Baptist Church, h 345 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm M jr, student, r 345 Sunset blvd. Symonds Bessie, student, r 345 Sunset blvd. Bohn Katherine, housekeeper, 345 Sunset blvd. 1914 Geistweit Harold N, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H Rev (Sarah G), pastor First Baptist Ch, h 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H Jr, student, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Symonds Bessie M, student State Normal School, r 1965 Sunset blvd. 1915 Bohn Katherine, student, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Harold N, student, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H Rev (Sarah G) pastor First Baptist Ch, h 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H Jr, student, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Symonds Bessie M, tchr, r 1965 Sunset blvd. 1916 Bohn Katherine E, student, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Harold N, student, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H Rev (Sarah G), pastor First Baptist Ch, h 1965 Sunset blvd. Geistweit Wm H jr, student, r 1965 Sunset blvd. Symonds Bessy M, tchr, r 1965 Sunset blvd. 1917 No listing. 1918 No listing. 1919 Engstrom Ellen Mrs, domestic 1965 Sunset blvd Speir Oswald (Maud P), v-pres Pac Marine & Const Co, h 1965 Sunset blvd. 1920 Constantine K W (Mary), oculist, 1007 5th rm 928, h 1965 Sunset blvd 1921 Mcdowell Nat (Belle Lane) Real Estate and Insurance, 912 3d, h 1965 Sunset blvd 1922 Lane Dinah P (wid Alden) r 1965 Sunset blvd McDowell Nat (Belle Lane) Real Estate and Insurance, 912 3d, h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1923 Lane Dinah P (wid Alden) r 1965 Sunset blvd McDowell Nat (Belle Lane) real estate 912 3d h 1965 Sunset blvd 1924 Folsom Harry M (Mayme A) mgr Brunswig Drug Co h 1965 Sunset blvd 1925 Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1926 Folsom H M Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1927 Folsom H M Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Kath r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1928 Folsom H M Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1929 Folsom H M (o) Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1930 Folsom H M (o) Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r 1965 Sunset Blvd
69
1931 Folsom H M (o) Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harry M Jr. r Sunset Blvd 1932 Folsom H M (o) Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r Sunset Blvd Folsom Harry M Jr. clerk, Brunswig Drug Co. r Sunset Blvd 1933 Folsom H M (o) Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r Sunset Blvd Folsom Harry M Jr. credit manager, Brunswig Drug Co. r Sunset Blvd 1934 Folsom H M (o) Folsom Harry M manager, Brunswig Drug Co. h 1965 Sunset Blvd Folsom Harriet r Sunset Blvd Folsom Harry M Jr. credit manager, Brunswig Drug Co. r Sunset Blvd 1935 Harris R M (o) Harris Ray M lawyer h 1965 Sunset Blvd Harris Carrie r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1936 Harris R M (o) Harris Ray M lawyer h 1965 Sunset Blvd Harris Carrie r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1937 Harris R M (o) Harris Ray M lawyer h 1965 Sunset Blvd Harris Carrie r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1938 Harris, C A Mrs (o) Harris Carrie A (wid R M) h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1939 Harris, C A Mrs (o) Harris Carrie A (wid R M) h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1940 Harris, C A Mrs. (o) Harris Carrie A (wid R M) h 1965 Sunset Blvd Stanford Dwight E dean, Balboa Law College and lawyer h 1965 Sunset Blvd Stanford Maxine H r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1941 Burrowes, L A (Mrs.) Burrowes Lydia A (wid C M) h 1965 Sunset Blvd Burrowes, Mary A stenographer r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1942 Burrowes L A (Mrs.) Burrowes Lydia A (wid C M) h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1943 Burrowes L A (Mrs.) Burrowes Lydia A (wid C M) h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1944- Fahye Edw Fahye Edward US Navy h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1945 1946 Directory not published this year 1947- Frazer M B Mrs (o) Frazer Mary B (wid Fred K) h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1948 1949 Directory not published this year 1950 Frazer M B Mrs (o) Frazer Mary B (wid Fred K) h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1951 Directory not published this year 1952 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1953- Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1954 Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1955 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1956 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1957 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1958 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1959 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1960 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd
70
1961 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1962 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1963- Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1964 Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1965 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1966 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1967 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1968 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1969- Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd 1970 Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1971 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1972 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1973 Benton Dudley C (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd 1974 Benton, Hazel G (Mrs.) (o) Benton Dudley C retired h 1965 Sunset Blvd Benton Hazel G r 1965 Sunset Blvd
71
B.3 Deed from the Date of Construction H.L. Miller and Mary M. Miller to Henry H. Nelson. Recorded July 7, 1911. Continued on next page.
72
B.3 Deed from the Date of Construction Page 2 of 3.
73
B.3 Deed from the Date of Construction Page 3 of 3.
74
B.3 Deed from the Date of Construction Henry H. Nelson and Lavina Nelson to Irma G. Bailey. Recorded February 14, 1912.
75
B.3 Deed Irma G. Bailey and G.A. Bailey (wife and husband) to W.H. Geistweit. Recorded March 8, 1912.
76
B.3 Deed W.H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit to E.A. Edmonds Company. Recorded July 28, 1920.
77
Attachment C Maps
C.1 — City of San Diego 800 Scale Engineering Map C.2 — Current and Historical USGS Maps C.3 — Original Subdivision Map C.4 — Sanborn Maps 1886/1887 1906 1921 1940 1950 1956
78
C.1 City of San Diego 800 Scale Engineering Map
79
C.2 Current USGS Map - 2015 La Jolla quadrangle 7.5 minute series
80
C.2 Historical USGS Map - 1903
81
C.3 Original Subdivision Map
82
C.3 Tax Assessor's Map
83
C.4 Sanborn Map – 1886/1887
None for this area
84
C.4 Sanborn Map – 1906
None for this area
85
C.4 Sanborn Map – 1921 Volume 3, Map # 391
86
C.4 Sanborn Map – 1940
None for this area
87
C.4 Sanborn Map – 1950 Volume 3, Map # 391
88
C.4 Sanborn Map – 1956 Volume 3, Map # 391
89
Attachment D Photographs
D.1 — Historical Photographs D.2 — Current Photographs
90
D.1 Historical Photographs 1965 Sunset Blvd. is shown in this circa 1927 aerial photo. Courtesy of the San Diego History Center.
91
D.2 Current Photographs - North (front) Elevation Photo this page by Dan Soderberg, February 2017
92
D.2 Current Photographs - North (front) Elevation All other photos by Kiley Wallace, February 2017
93
D.2 Current Photographs - North (front) Elevation
94
D.2 Current Photographs - North (front) Elevation
95
D.2 Current Photographs - West (side) Elevation
96
D.2 Current Photographs - West (side) Elevation
97
D.2 Current Photographs - West (side) Elevation
98
D.2 Current Photographs - South (rear) Elevation
99
D.2 Current Photographs - South (rear) Elevation
100
D.2 Current Photographs - East (side) Elevation
101
D.2 Current Photographs - East (side) Elevation
102
D.2 Current Photographs - East (side) Elevation
103
Attachment E HRB Criteria Supplemental Documentation
E.1 — Criterion A E.2 — Criterion B E.3 — Criterion C E.4 — Criterion D E.5 — Criterion E E.6 — Criterion F
104
E.1 Criterion A – Community History
105
E.1 Criterion A – Community History
106
E.1 Criterion A – Community History Images are taken from a circa 1910 promotional booklet about Inspiration Heights, published by the Inspiration Heights Company.
107
E.1 Criterion A – Community History
108
E.1 Criterion A – Community History Images from an early 1900's promotional booklet about Inspiration Heights, published by the Inspiration Heights Company.
109
E.1 Criterion A – Community History Page 2 of information from Inspiration Heights promotional booklet
110
E.1 Criterion A – Community History Page 3 of information from Inspiration Heights promotional booklet
111
E.1 Criterion A – Community History
In July 1911, Henry H. Nelson purchased four lots on Sunset Boulevard in Inspiration Heights, including lot 2 in block 6, on which 1965 Sunset Blvd. was constructed in 1912.
112
E.1 Criterion A – Community History Henry H. Nelson’s Houses 1955, 1965, 1915, 1905 Sunset Boulevard The two houses at 1955 and 1965 Sunset were the first to be built in Block 6, and also were built a year before the two houses on Sunset on Block 1. (Note: The map is a portion of a composite of two adjacent 1921 Sanborn Fire Insurance maps that were merged to cover this area)
113
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Rev. William H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit Owners, 1912 to 1920 Residents, 1912 to 1916
Rev. Geistweit pictured in his 1904 book, Heart Talks on Every Day Themes for Every Day People. 114
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Rev. William H. Geistweit and Sarah G. Geistweit Owners, 1912 to 1920 Residents, 1912 to 1916
From 1912 to 1916, Rev. Geistweit was the pastor of the newly completed First Baptist Church, located at 906 10th Ave. in the East Village. The building still stands today and appears much as it originally did, but the interior has been converted into loft apartments and offices.
115
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Oswald Speir and Maud P. Speir Residents, 1919
Oswald circa 1890, and Maud's wedding photo from 1891. Courtesy of Ancestry.com
116
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Harry M. Folsom and Mayme A. Folsom Owners and Residents, 1923 to 1936 (Mayme until 1924)
Katherine D. Folsom (second wife of Harry M. Folsom) Owner and Resident with Harry, 1925 to 1936
117
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Harry M. Folsom and Mayme A. Folsom Owners and Residents, 1923 to 1936 (Mayme until 1924)
Katherine D. Folsom (second wife of Harry M. Folsom) Owner and Resident with Harry, 1925 to 1936
118
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Harry M. Folsom and Mayme A. Folsom Owners and Residents, 1923 to 1936 (Mayme until 1924) Katherine D. Folsom (second wife of Harry M. Folsom) Owner and Resident with Harry, 1925 to 1936
119
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Ray M. Harris and Carrie A. Harris Owners, 1936 to 1944 Residents, 1936 to 1940 Ray and Carrie purchased 1965 Sunset Blvd. in January 1936. Sadly, Ray passed away three months later. Carrie remained in the home through 1940 but owned it until 1944.
120
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Dwight E. Stanford and Maxine H. Stanford Residents, 1940 The Stanfords resided at 1965 Sunset Blvd. in 1940 with homeowner Carrie A. Harris, the widowed mother of Maxine.
121
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Dwight E. Stanford and Maxine H. Stanford Residents, 1940
122
E.2 Criterion B – Historic Person Dwight E. Stanford and Maxine H. Stanford Residents, 1940
123
E.3 Criterion C – Architecture Continued on next page
124
E.3 Criterion C – Architecture Continued on next page
125
E.3 Criterion C – Architecture Continued from previous page
126
E.3 Criterion C – Architecture Excerpt from House Styles in America by James C. Massey and Shirley Maxwell, 1996.
127
E.4 Criterion D – Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn / Bay City Construction Company Melhorn's biography in the City of San Diego's Biographies of Established Masters, 2011.
128
E.4 Criterion D – Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn / Bay City Construction Company Article published in the March 2008 issue of the Mission Hills Heritage newsletter. Continued on next page.
129
E.4 Criterion D – Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn / Bay City Construction Company Continued from previous page.
130
E.4 Criterion D – Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn / Bay City Construction Company Article published in the March 2012 issue of the Mission Hills Heritage newsletter.
131
E.4 Criterion D – Master Builder Martin V. Melhorn / Bay City Construction Company Articles of Incorporation for the Bay City Construction Company, June 30, 1911. Courtesy of the San Diego History Center
132 Attachment F Works Cited
F.1 — Provide a list of works cited (bibliography)
133
F.1 Bibliography
Books
Baker, John Milnes 1994 American House Styles - A Concise Guide. New York: W.W. Norton & Company
California Office of Historic Preservation 1996 The California Register of Historic Resources: Regulations for Nomination of Historic Properties. State of California, The Resources Agency, Department of Parks and Recreation
Ching, Francis D.K. 1995 A Visual Dictionary of Architecture. New York: John Wiley & Sons
Crawford, Richard W. 2011 The Way We Were in San Diego. Charleston: The History Press
Hartmann, Glenn D. 1977 Architectural Description Guide: Developed for Use in Preparing Nominations for State and National Registers of Historic Places. Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, Washington State Parks & Recreation Commission, Olympia, Washington
McAlester, Virginia 2013 Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
McGrew, Clarence Alan 1922 City of San Diego and San Diego County, the Birthplace of California. Volume I. Chicago: The American Historical Society.
National Park Service 1985 Historic American Building Survey Guidelines for Preparing Written and Historical Descriptive Data. Division of National Register Programs, Western Regional Office, San Francisco, California
Smith, G.E. Kidder 1996 Source Book of American Architecture. New York: Princeton Architectural Press
Trapp, Kenneth R. 1993 The Arts & Crafts Movement in California - Living the Good Life. Oakland: The Oakland Museum
Walker, Lester 2002 American Homes - An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Domestic Architecture. New York: Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers
Government Documents
City of San Diego Historical Resources Board 2009 Historical Resource Research Report Guidelines and Requirements, Land Development Manual, Historical Resources Guidelines, Appendix E, Part 1.1, Adopted by the Historical Resources Board November 30, 2006, Updated January 24, 2008 and February 9, 2009.
Internet
Ancestry.com, www.ancestry.com (1910, 1920, 1930 and 1940 US Census; California Death Index; Social Security Death Index; genealogical files)
134
Newspapers
Los Angeles Times New York Times San Diego Evening Tribune San Diego Union San Diego Union-Tribune
Thesis
Hennessey, Gregg R. 1977 City Planning, Progressivism, and the Development of San Diego, 1908-1926. Master's Thesis, San Diego State University, Department of History