By JODI SUMMERS
(Editor’s note: This is the second installment in a series about the historically-landmarked properties in Santa Monica).
In 1973, the Santa Monica Pier was slated for demolition. A group of residents called “Save the Santa Monica Bay” convinced the City Council that the pier was an important piece of local history worthy of preservation. The council then created the “Historic Site Committee” to developed standards and procedures for historic preservation. This led to the Santa Monica Historic Preservation Ordinance of 1976 and grew into the Landmarks Commission. We continue on our tour of landmarked properties, this week north of Wilshire Boulevard, near the beach. 401 Ocean Ave. Architect Robert Farquhar has done many prestigious buildings in the Los Angeles area, including the William Andrews Clarke Memorial Library, the Pasadena Museum of History and the California Club. This two-story residence combines elements of the Colonial Revival and Craftsman Style for attorney Henry Weyse. 321 Palisades Beach Road (a.k.a. 415 PCH) William Randolph Hearst might have been the first media mogul of the 20th Century. In his day, Hearst owned 28 major newspapers and 18 magazines, as well as radio stations and movie companies. One of the richest men in America, in the 1920s Hearst built San Simeon Castle. The architect was Julia Morgan, the first noted female architect in California. Morgan also designed this Santa Monica beach house that Hearst built for movie star Marion Davies. In 1956, all but this north guest house was demolished. It is now owned by the city. ■ A. McFadden residence, 1923 317 Georgina Ave. This Spanish Colonial revival typifies the early 20th Century architectural style of the North of Montana Avenue neighborhood. The property was owned by Austin McFadden, local entrepreneur, and operator of the Bon Ton Ball Room at Lick Pier. The Lick Pier at Navy Street opened on Easter weekend, 1922 and featured the 22,000 square-foot Bon Ton Ballroom, a Zip roller coaster, a Dodge’em, Caterpillar and Captive Aeroplane rides. ■ The Palama, 1922 211 Alta Ave. Two rows of mirror image building are typical of the bungalow courts of the 1920s and 1930s — a period of smaller scale multiple family housing. This fine example of the California bungalow court is nicely detailed. All six units show a mixture of Colonial and Craftsman Styles. ■ Vanity Fair Apartments, 1935 822 Third St. Definitive Streamline Moderne — an evolved version of Art Deco which takes the design elements and strips them down into curves and lines. These distinctive apartment buildings were designed by Carl Henderson, a businessman from Iowa who was known for his success with the Santa Monica Packard Agency before turning to real estate. ■ Cedar Deodara tree 918 Fifth St. This early 20th Century tree was planted at a point in time in which new species of huge trees were meant to provide shade for many years. This 100-plus-year-old tree has not been pruned, manicured or trimmed. The naturally shaped cedar tree is a reminder of the horticulturist active in the city early in the 20th Century. ■ Turn of the 20th Century cottage, 1906 954 Fifth St.
Cottages like this one were popular in Southern California from the late 1890s through the 1910s. This was one of the initial buildings constructed with the original town of Santa Monica boundaries. Details include a hipped rough, double hung sash doors, exposed rafter tails and bay windows. ■ Sovereign Apartments/Hotel 205 Washington Ave. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, at the corner of Washington and Second Street, the Sovereign Hotel was built in 1929. Five stories, with 130 rooms, it was designed by the firm of Meyer- Radon. The property is a showpiece of Spanish Colonial Revival form and detail. Record has it this property was once owned by C.A. Hamilton, the owner of the concessions at Yellowstone Park. ■ Miramar Moreton Bay Fig Tree Ocean Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard This 80-foot tall Moreton Bay Fig Tree is California’s second largest. Rumor has it that this tree came into being when an Australian sailor, with no money to pay for his drinks in a bar, paid the bartender with a sapling. The bartender gave the sapling to the wife of one of the city’s founders, Sen. John Percival Jones. She gave it go her gardener to plant in the yard of their home. ■ Charmont Apartments 330 California Ave. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, between 1920 and 1930, the population of Los Angeles County grew from 936,434 to 2,208,492 — and people wanted to live by the beach. Necessity led to a golden age of apartment architecture, as exemplified by the Charmont Apartments. This lavish mid-rise residential building was designed by Max Meltzmann in a unique blend of Mediterranean Revival and Art Deco style, and features a motif of chevron points and distinctive tilework. (For your real estate needs, , or call (310) 309- 4219).
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 21, 2004. Read the original PDF.