HISTORICAL NOMINATION OF THE William F. and Leta B. Gernandt House -------. b the A. M. Southard Co. 5002 CANTERBURY DRIVE flmiiJm~-~iiaiiUrG ~KENSINGTON Mnchine Cuttini Sa ve• 2<Y:'0 Ronald V. May, RPA Legacy 106, Inc. P.O. Box 15967 Legacy San Diego, CA 92 17 5 www.legacy1 06.com 106,.c (619) 269-3924 HISTORIC HOUSE RESEARCH Legacy Historical Landmark and Mills Act Assistance 1061NC. P.O. Box 15967 • San Diego, CA 92175 Phone; Fax (619J 269-3924 • www.legacy106.com Executive Fact Sheet Resource Name: The William F. and Leta B. Gemandt House Resource Address: 5002 Canterbury Drive, San Diego, CA 92116 Community: Kensington, Council District 3 Requesting Mills Act? Yes~ No Applicant's Ronald V. May, RPA Owner's Suresh and Tara Name: Legacy 106, Inc. Name: Rangarajan Address: P.O. Box 15967 Address: 5002 Canterbury Drive San Diego, CA 92175 San Diego, CA 92116 Phone#: (619) 269-3924 Phone#: (619) 546-8549 E-Mail: legacy1 06inc @aol.com Resource Type: Building I Single-family property APN: 440-330 - 1000 Legal Description: Lot 30 in Block 16 of Kensington Manor Unit 2, Map 1861 Date of Construction: 1926 Architect: William F. Gemandt Builder: A. M. Southard Co. Architectural Style: Spanish Eclectic- Southern California Style Applicable Criteria: "C" Architecture Prior Resource Address: 3947 Canterbury Dr. and 5032 Canterbury Dr. Explanation: 3947 was the address in builder's 1926 advertisement 5032 was the address from 1927-1929 per the city directory 5002 was used from 1930 to present Keywords: Kensington Manor, Pacific Ready-Cut, Machine-Cut System, Spanish Eclectic, Southern California Style, Gernandt, Southard, Southern California Mortgage Co., Lessick, Lee, Scroggs, Young /J.C 1 MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN CULTURAL RESOURCES ASSOCIATION © 2006 Legacy 106, Inc. 2 Historical Nomination of the William F. and Leta B. Gernandt House Executive Summary This nomination of the William F. and Leta B. Gemandt House concerns a one-story stucco over wood frame structure on a concrete foundation located at 5002 Canterbury Drive in the community of Kensington. The house to the immediate south, the Cora M. and Cora Lee Wells House, was built by the same builder, but a year later, and that house is now San Diego Historical Landmark No. 619 under Criteria c, Architecture. The Gemandt House is also important under Criteria "c" for its Spanish Eclectic architecture. It is as an excellent example of the style and it retains its critical elements of integrity. The A. M. Southard Company built this house in 1926 at the request of renowned mid-west architect William Frederic Gemandt, who came with his wife Leta to San Diego to retire. Their son, John William Gemandt, had worked for Alfred M. Southard for several years as his superintendent of construction while Southard held the area affiliation of the Pacific Ready-Cut Building Company out of Los Angeles. Southard had recently given up his affiliation with Pacific Ready-Cut to transform his company. His strategy changed from high quality ready-cut provided plans and materials to an on-site "machine-cut system," which reduced carpentry waste and costs by using portable electrical saws. This innovation allowed Southard to maintain his high production standards and pass the savings on to his customers. Southard also created his own independent fmancial branch to offer mortgage loans as well as in-house service of expert architects who could draw plans in a variety of architectural styles to suit the client. Of particular significance under Criteria "c," is the fact that Southard implemented a new change in construction technology at this critical point in time, which revolutionized his building process. Just as the change from hand-sawn lumber to factory-cut lumber was a major technological innovation, the ability to transport electric table-saws to each construction site and then custom machine cut the lumber quickly to specification as needed was also a significant change in house construction. This house and the technological change adopted by Southard represents the fulcrum or turning point for the entire technology of house construction in that time period. We cannot over emphasize the importance of being able to place a portable electric powered machine cut saw on the construction site. A master carpenter would then measure every location of wood and custom cut it to fit that particular need in a more time-efficient manner. Before the development of portable table saws and the introduction of electrical power to a construction site, everything was either cut by a handsaw or shipped in as pre-manufactured materials. Since this house was one of the first built by Southard in his period of independence from Pacific Ready-Cut Homes, it thus represents an important step in the evolution of house construction technology. It was a significant endorsement of the companies' quality and methods that two architects had chosen the A. M. Southard Company to build the homes they had designed for their personal residences. William Gemandt was one of those architects. Additionally, William's son, John, also had the Southard Company build his home on Mississippi Street, so that both generations of Gemandts lived in new Southard-built homes. Thus, the Gemandt House contributes to a better understanding of the architectural development of the Kensington community in the mid 1920s. Legqcy 3 106. Historical Nomination of the William F. and Leta B. Gernandt House Table of Contents Executive Fact Sheet ................................................................................................................. 2 Executive Summary ...................................................................................................... ............ 3 Table of Contents ....................................................................................................................... 4 DPR 532a Department of Parks and Recreation Primary Record Form ................................... 5 DPR 532b Department of Parks and Recreation BSO Record Form ........................................ 7 Site Location, The Thomas Guide .......................................................................................... 13 Criteria ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. ... .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. ... .. ... 14 Architecture .. ... .. .. .. ... .. .. ... .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 15 Integrity Evaluation ................................................................................................................ 16 Contemporary Photographs ........................................... ..... .................................................... 20 Architectural Evaluation ......................................................................................................... 26 Historical Aerial Photographs ...................................... ........................................................... 30 Historical House Photographs ................................................................................................ 32 Historical Maps - Sanborn Fire Insurance Map .............................................. ....................... 40 Historical Maps- c. 1930 Ritchfield Map ............................................................................. 41 Chain ofTitle ..................................................... ..................................................................... 42 Chronological Directory Listing ............................................................................................. 43 Historical Context for the Community - Kensington Manor Unit 2 ...................................... 44 Kensington Manor Contest ................................................................................................. 46 Why is the Restricted Development Historically Significant? ......................................... 49 Canyon Lot Preferences ........................... .......................................................................... 52 Historical Context for the Builder .......................................................................................... 53 Alfred M. Southard and Julia Southard ............................................................................. 53 Pacific Ready-Cut Homes Agent ....................................................................................... 54 A.M. Southard's Independence from Pacific Ready-Cut Homes, Inc ............................... 60 On-Site Machine-Cut Lumber ............................................................................................ 70 John "Jack" William Gemandt .......................................................................................... 74 Historical Context for the Architect ........................................................................................ 76 William Frederic Gemandt ............................................................................................... 76 Nebraska National Register Listings for William Frederic Gemandt ................................ 77 1910 U.S. Census Gemandt Family .................................................................................. 80 Subsequent Owner Information .. ............................................................... ............................. 83 Charles and Anna Lessick (1929-1939) ............................................................................. 83 John T. and Nellie Lee (1940-1942) ..................................................................................