Form No. 10-300 (Rev. 10-74) Theme: Americans at Work Subtheme: Science and Invention UNITED STATtS DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR' NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOWTO COMPLETE NATIONAL REGISTER FORMS _________TYPE ALL ENTRIES - COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS________ NAME HISTORIC EDWIN POWELL HUBBLE HOUSE AND/OR COM, [LOCATION STREET & NUMBER 1340 tfoodstock Road _NOT FOR PUBLICATION CITY. TOWN CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT San Marino VICINITY OF 24th STATE CODE COUNTY CODE California 06 b0S ANGELES 037 HCLASSIFI c ATI ON CATEGORY OWNERSHIP STATUS PRESENT USE —DISTRICT —PUBLIC .^OCCUPIED —AGRICULTURE —MUSEUM X_BUILDING(S) ^-PRIVATE —UNOCCUPIED —COMMERCIAL —PARK —STRUCTURE —BOTH *8»_ WORK IN PROGRESS —EDUCATIONAL X_ PRIVATE RESIDENCE —SITE PUBLIC ACQUISITION ACCESSIBLE —ENTERTAINMENT —RELIGIOUS —OBJECT _ IN PROCESS —YES: RESTRICTED —GOVERNMENT —SCIENTIFIC —BEING CONSIDERED — YES: UNRESTRICTED —INDUSTRIAL —TRANSPORTATION JCNO —MILITARY —OTHER: OWNER OF PROPERTY NAME Mr. and Mrs. Robert Molino STREETS. NUMBER 1340 Woodstock Road CITY. TOWN STATE San Marino VICINITY OF California LOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION COURTHOUSE. REGISTRY OF DEEDS,ETC. Hall of Records STREET* NUMBER 320 Temple Street CITY. TOWN STATE Los Angeles California REPRESENTATION IN EXISTING SURVEYS TITLE None DATE — FEDERAL —STATE —COUNTY —LOCAL DEPOSITORY FOR SURVEY RECORDS CITY. TOWN STATE [DESCRIPTION CONDITION CHECK ONE CHECK ONE JX-EXCELLENT _DETERIORATED JflJNALTERED .XORIGINAL SITE —GOOD _RUINS _ALTERED _MOVED DATE. _FAIR _UNEXPOSED DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE The Edwin Powell Hubble House is located in San Marino, California. The building is a two story stucco single family residence. It was constructed in 1925. The architect, Joseph Kucera, designed many residential homes in the Los Angeles area. Although the house is an excellent example of 1920's so-called California Mission Style, it does not appear to be of national architectural significance. On the first floor are an entry hall, living room, dining room, library, kitchen, maid's room, and bath. The second floor contains two bedrooms and a bath. No alterations, either to the exterior or to the interior, have been made since the Hubble period. The house possesses full integrity and is very well maintained. Thirteen Forty Woodstock Road was the home of Edwin Powell Hubble from 1925 until his death, in 1953. The house remained in the family until approximately 1973, when it was purchased by Mr. and Mrs. Robert Mollno, the present owners. The house continues to function as a single family residence. 1 SIGNIFICANCE PERIOD AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE - CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW —PREHISTORIC _ARCHEOLOGY-PREHISTORIC _COMMUNITY PLANNING —LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE —RELIGION — 1400-1499 _ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC _CONSERVATION _LAW ^.SCIENCE —1500-1599 —AGRICULTURE _ECONOMICS —LITERATURE _SCULPTURE —1600-1699 _ARCHITECTURE —EDUCATION —MILITARY —SOCIAL/HUMANITARIAN —1700-1799 _ART —ENGINEERING —MUSIC _THEATER — 1800-1899 _COMMERCE —EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT _PHILOSOPHY —TRANSPORTATION X-1900- _COMMUNICATIONS _INDUSTRY —POLITICS/GOVERNMENT _OTHER (SPECIFY) _INVENTION SPECIFIC DATES 1925-1953 BUiLPiR/ARCHiTECT Joseph. Kucera STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE Astronomy, the most ancient of sciences, found fertile soil in the United states. Throughout the 19th century American astronomers such as Nathaniel Bowditch, William Cranch Bond, Asaph Hall, and Edward Charles Pickering earned international recognition. During the first decades of this century the quality of American observatories and the men who worked in them made the United States a world leader in astronomy. Henrietta Leavitt, Henry Norris Russell, Harlow Shapley, and George Ellory Hale were among the astronomers whose discoveries between 1900 and 1925 transformed our understanding of the universe. Edwin Powell Hubble, the discoverer of extragalactic nebulae, also belonged to this elite group. "Edwin Powell Hubble," a colleague wrote, "by his inspired use of the largest telescope of his time, the 100 inch reflector of the Mt. Wilson observatory, revolutionized our knowledge of the size, structure, and properties of the universe. Indeed he advanced the astronomical horizon on the universe by steps relatively as large in his time as those taken by Galileo in his studies of the solar system and by the Herschels in their investigation of our own Milky Way stellar system." Life Edwin Powell Hubble was born November 20, 1889, while his parents were visiting relatives in Marshfield, Missouri. He grew up in Wheaton, Illinois, where his father was an insurance executive. Hubble was one of nine children. His father, either from pedagogical conviction or simply to avoid family chaos, was a strong disciplinarian, a trait which Hubble fondly remembered. After attending public schools Hubble in 1906 entered the University of Chicago. At Chicago he studied the liberal arts and excelled in sports. Indeed his boxing skills were such that Chicago cognoscenti of the manly art suggested he turn professional. After graduating from Chicago in 1910, Hubble spent three years in the United Kingdom as a Rhodes scholar. Although he would later become a world famous astronomer, Hubble at Queens College, Oxford, studied Roman and English law. In 1913 he returned to the United iN.V. Myall, "Edwin Powell Hubble," National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoirs. 41, (New York, 1970), p. ITS'.———————————————-————*—*———— QMAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES Jaffee, Bernard. Men of Science in America (New York, 1956). N.V. Myall. "Edwin Powell Bubble", National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoirs, 41, (New York, 1970). New York Times, September 28, 1953. Charles A. Whitney. The Discovery of Our Galaxy, (New York, 1971). DGEOGRAPHICAL DATA ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY less than one acre UTM REFERENCES A|\.\| ZONE EASTING NORTHING ZONE EASTING NORTHING C| , | I I .I . I I .1.1 . I Dl . I I I . 1 . I I . I . I . I VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION LIST ALL STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES STATE CODE COUNTY CODE STATE CODE COUNTY ' CODE FORM PREPARED BY NAME/TITLE James Sheire, Historian______________ ORGANIZATION DATE Historic Sites Survey f National Park Service_________7/9/76___________________ STREET & NUMBER TELEPHONE 1100 L Street, N.W._____________________________202-523-5464_________ CITY OR TOWN STATE Washington. D.C. 20240___________________________________________ STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER CERTIFICATION THE EVALUATED SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PROPERTY WITHIN THE STATE IS: NATIONAL__ STATE___ LOCAL___ As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665). I hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according teethe criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service. FEDERAL REPRESENTATIVE SIGNATURE TITLE DATE FOR HPSUSi ONLY 1 HEfiEBY CERTIFY THAT THIS PROPERTY IS INCLUBED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER DATE Op-CmR, OFFICE OF ARCH6O10GY A*iO HISTORIC PRESERVATION - ' ' . '"•>, • ' - ..•••.:".' DATE Form No. 10-300a (Rev. 10-741 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT Ol THE IN 11 RIOR FOR NPS USE ONLY NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RECEIVED NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY - NOMINATION FORM DATE ENTERED CONTINUATION SHEET Hubble House ITEM NUMBER g PAGE 2______________ States and moved to Louisville, Kentucky, where he passed the bar examination and began practicing law. Hubble's period as a lawyer was very brief. He did not enjoy the work of a practicing attorney and in 1914 he returned to the University of Chicago to study for a PhD in astronomy. Hubble was an outstanding graduate student. Working with the 40 inch refracting telescope at the Yerkes Observatory, he quickly assimilated the knowledge and methodology of his new discipline. In 1917 Hubble received his PhD. When Hubble graduated from Chicago, George Ellory Hale offered him a position at the Mt. Wilson Observatory in California. Hale, one of the country's foremost astronomers, was the guiding spirit behind the Carnegie Institution's construction of the Mt. Wilson facility. As of 1917 its 100 inch reflecting telescope was the finest astronomical instrument in the United States. To be selected for a position on the Mt. Wilson staff was an honor. Unfortunately, events prevented Hubble from accepting Hale'* offer. In 1917 the United States entered World War I. Hubble immediately enlisted. Commissioned a captain in the 343rd Infantry, 86th Division, Hubble accompanied his outfit to France. In 1918, he was promoted to major. Hubble was wounded during the last days of the war in November 1918 and did not return to the United States until the summer of 1919. After his discharge Hubble proceeded to Pasadena, California, to resume his career in astronomy. From 1919 to his death in 1953, the California Institute of Technology and the two observatories associated with the school, Mt. Wilson and Mt. Palomar, were Hubble's spiritual and intellectual home. During these years he made the major contributions to astronomy for which he is remembered. In addition, with George Ellory Hale, Hubble was a major actor in the conception and construction of the giant 200 inch Palomar reflecting telescope. Begun in 1938 and completed in 1948 after World War II, this telescope was the most powerful in the world. The Mt. Palomar Observatory with the 200 inch telescope and its companion 48 inch