The Important Architecture of the Hill, Past and Present

by Diana Barnwell & James Dunham

Houses on Mt. Washington – the Hill – have always been characterized by a fierce independence of spirit and celebration of place.

These houses came later than on the flatlands below – due primarily to the difficult logistics of building on the often precipitous hillside slopes. Many of the earlier dwellings were tiny houses built by those who were to live in them, fulfilling that persistent dream of a home of one’s own. Some were “get-away” cottages for film industry folk and others were large and elegant structures.

Some of the more prominent ones date from the first building boom at the turn of the last century and are dated to as early as 1909.

Perhaps the greatest catalyst for this early development was the construction and opening, in 1910, of the former Mt. Washington Hotel, now the world headquarters of the Self Realization Fellowship. The product of the efforts of Robert Marsh and part of the original subdivision on the top of Mount Washington, which was filed in 1907 by Robert Marsh & Co. of Los Angeles. Marsh, then 33 years of age, was a major player in the local real estate scene and Mount Washington was his most ambitious project. Marsh was greatly responsible for the beginnings of an exclusive community at the top of the hill.

Designed by Meyer and Holler, the hotel’s red barrel tiles and parapets are characteristics of the Mission Revival style. One form of access was from a 2,900 foot long cable inclined street railway from Marmion Way to Hotel at the top.

After a brief but brilliant run as one of the suburban playgrounds for film stars and glitterati of the era, the hotel was closed in 1916, and in 1925, Paramahansa Yogananda purchased it for the international headquarters of the Self-Realization Fellowship.

Prominent among existing examples of other architecture of this period are:

1909: 834 Rome Drive (Judge R. Holtby Myers)
Architect: J.F. Kavenaugh
“This Craftsman home…features a symmetrical front entry and asymmetrical sides. The bottom portion of the house is covered with long barn shingles. The upper portion has shorter shingles. This house has the strong horizontal elements characteristic of the Craftsman style.” *

1909: 815 Elyria Drive (J.B. Merrill Residence)
Architect: Unknown
“One of the first three houses built on top of Mount Washington, this shingle-style Craftsman was designed to accommodate a large pipe organ. Mr. Merrill was an accomplished musician and hosted lavish parties and gave concerts to entertain his guests. (The organ was removed in the 1920s when the largest window in the living room was installed.) Materials to build the house were hauled up the hill by mule team. Unusual features include the inglenook and the obtuse-angled second wing. The current owners have furnished the house with authentic period art and furniture.” **

1909: 878 Rome Drive
Architect: Unknown
“Prairie style architecture is relatively rare in Los Angeles. The Prairie style and the Craftsman style emerged at the more-or-less same time and share some similarities such as square cut beams, wide front doors and lack of ornamental decoration. …the Prairie style was developed in the American Midwest. Much of Frank Lloyd Wright’s early work was in this style.

“The almost flat roof and large roof overhang of this house displays a strong sense of horizontal which is characteristic of the Prairie style. The wooden belt course tying the top of the windows together provides another strong horizontal line. The balconies also have horizontal wood trim with another belt course above the lower windows.” *

1909: 3880 San Rafael Avenue (Hotel Mt. Washington; now, Self-Realization Fellowship. See introductory material above.) *

1911: 4163 Sea View Lane (Minster Residence)
Architect: Unknown
“One of the first houses built on Mt. Washington, this Craftsman-style house was used as a sanitarium by its first owner…with a view of Eagle Rock and Occidental College. Joseph Minster, who purchased the house in 1920, was a Los Angeles Times reporter and the former editor/publisher of Gourmet Magazine. Minster did much to improve the area, including paving San Rafael Avenue after his car slid off the road in the rain. He became known as the ‘Mayor of Mt. Washington,’ and referred to himself as the ‘one-eyed minster.’ The house is 4,125 sq. ft., which includes a 1,700 sq. ft. basement, and a full kitchen downstairs.” **

1920 - 1953:
The building of homes continued throughout the early and middle of the lasts century and the eclectic and artistic nature of the people attracted to living on The Hill also attracted cutting edge and adventurous architects of these periods. Architects, including Harwell
Hamilton Harris, Richard Neutra, John Lautner, Gregory Ain, A. Quincy Jones and James DeLong, are among them.

1942: 4234 Sea View Lane (The Birtcher-Share House)
Architect: Harwell Hamilton Harris
“A consummate example of early American Modernism, the house is influenced by the work of Frank Lloyd Wright as well as Harris’s close associations with Neutra and Schindler. Harris’ houses of this period were also greatly influenced by his interest in Japan (though he never went there). The Birtcher-Share house offers a bold and rather severe presence…Although all of Harris’ houses of this period share fundamental characteristics, this one is unique in the streamlined smoothness of its cornices…which overland the lightly structured walls…This architect and this first Modern house on the small street established the tone for subsequent structures and continues to do so today. A new wing is being added…A swimming pool and a series of interconnected ponds are also being added…” ***

1947: 932 Rome Drive (The Mauer House)
Architect: John Lautner
“This home was architect John Lautner’s third residential commission and features an irregular floor plan, large expanses of glass, and an industrial roof framing system that allowed the rafters to be installed before the walls.” *

1947: 4260 Sea View Lane (The Wolford House)
Architect: James De Long
“…[T]he first independent architectural commission of James De Long, AIA, a former apprentice of Frank Lloyd Wright and Taliesin Fellow from 1946 to 1947…Only 1,000 sq. ft., this…is one of two, side-by-side De Long houses on this tiny street…the simple and elegant scheme displays a peaceful serenity…Extensive use of mitered glass panes optimizes the intimate relationship between the interior and exterior living spaces. The special inside cutting required for the large panes of glass in both the living room and bedroom could not be accomplished by local glaziers at the time so De Long enlisted the aid of Pittsburgh Plate Glass. The work was done in and shipped from Pittsburgh without incident and the panes remain in place today.” *

1948: 735 Rome Drive (The Pilot House)
Architect: A. Quincy Jones
“This home demonstrates how odd shaped, or difficult, lots can be built on. A. Quincy Jones and a group of architects formed Mutual Housing Association to bring ‘quality homes to the masses.’ 500 units were planned, and 150 homes were built in the Crestwood Hills development in Brentwood. This ‘Pilot House’ is of plywood construction supported on steel piers and beams. The windows are canted as a design feature and also to eliminate inside reflection.” *

1952-53 [1951?]: 4252 Sea View Lane (The Scholfield House)
Architect: James De Long
"Scholfield was a real estate broker whose ownership of much of the land on [--and early vision for] this end of Sea View Lane…Scholfield also worked closely with famed horticulturist Theodore Payne in planning the landscaping which still surrounds the house.

“As an apprentice to Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin, De Long carried Wright’s influence but developed his own deeply personal design sense so beautifully rendered in this 779 square foot house…this house remains as it was built, except for minor repairs and alterations in the kitchen…
“James De Long, AIA, was born in nearby Eagle Rock and until recently called Mt. Washington home…De Long went on to become a Taliesin Fellow during 1946-1947 and subsequently Editorial Director of House Beautiful from 1963 to 1974.” ***

1954 - 2000

1964: Mount Washington-West
Architect: Unknown
“In 1964 Ray Watt filed Tract 27907 which consisted of a 232-home development called Mt. Washington-West [off of Division Street]. Watt designed six different floor plans which, when reversed, gave 12 variations. The homes were priced from $37,500. This development is the only large scale postwar housing built within the peaceful canyons of Mount Washington.” *

1987 (originally, Turn of the Century): 1300 Block of Killarney Avenue (The Hood Residence)
Architect: Louis Easton [attributed]
This Craftsman home is famous, perhaps, for its survival as much as for it notable architect. Originally existing in Los Angeles on South Kingsley, it was moved in the early 1950s to the bottom of Elyria Canyon where, according to locals, it had been lived in by Hollywood cowboy actors, etc, and, then, for some reason abandoned to nature and gangs. It was discovered and recovered in the late 1980’s by Connie Hood.

It was recovered by being pulled and tugged, for a second time, from the bottom of the Canyon to Killarney Avenue, the street above, where it was finally rehabilitated. Ms. Hood’s story of the home’s discovery and recovery is told in first person by her in a couple of articles appearing in a local magazine.

1998: 3736 Mayfair Drive (The Schmalix Residence)
Architect: Fung + Blatt, Highland Park
This “Modern” residence utilizes structural steel, as well as off-the-shelf industrial components to make it both a residence (2,300 sq. ft.) and studio (1,100 sq. ft.) for the owner who is a well-known Austrian painter. The composition, sitting on a 20,000 sq. ft. lot, consists of three structures, including an art studio and living quarters with spectacular views. According to the architects, the “Schmalix Residence also pays homage to the vernacular housing and industrial buildings down below. Its details, however, find commonality in the spirit and attitude of the Craftsman Tradition.”     ** (as well as architects’ brochure)

2000: 4169 Sea View Lane
Architect: Holly Bieniewski
This fairly new home was designed in the International/early Modern style, guided by the Chinese practice of feng shui. The desire to retain the site’s natural features as well as the owner’s childhood memories, both of other spaces and in her family’s Chinatown restaurant, informed the creative approach and use of finishes. A huge Pepper tree was incorporated in one of the deck designs. Environmentally responsible and non-toxic building materials were used whenever possible.***

There is much more to be discovered and celebrated on the Hill. But there is also the need to protect what is here. What is also “important” about the architecture on Mount Washington is that the best of it exists in a context that relates to the environment. The best of the architects and builders – past and present – knew this.

*Highland Park Heritage Trust Tour Brochure, May 2, 1998
**Highland Park Heritage Trust Tour Brochure, June 10, 2000
***The Modern Arroyo Tour, September, 2001