Hale House (Los Angeles, California)

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Hale House in 2008.

The Hale House is a Victorian-style house built in 1885 in Highland Park in northeast Los Angeles , California . In 1966, the building was declared a cultural monument and on September 22, 1972, it was entered as a monument in the National Register of Historic Places , after it was successfully relocated to the Heritage Square Museum in 1970 . The Hale House and other old buildings can be viewed there for a fee.

Early years

The Hale House was built in the 1880s by contractor George W. Morgan at the foot of Mount Washington . The house originally stood at 4501 North Pasadena Avenue (now Figueroa Street ) but was moved to 4425 North Pasadena before the Hales acquired it. Construction costs at the time were less than $ 4,000 .

The house was bought by James and Bessie Hale in 1901. The Hales separated a few years later and the house remained with Bessie. She ran a guesthouse in the building until the late 1950s and lived there until her death at the age of 97 in 1966.

Later relocation of the house

The niece Hales, who inherited the house, wanted to get rid of it as soon as possible. When it became known that the house would be demolished and a modern gas station would be built instead, the Los Angeles Heritage Commission temporarily halted the demolition by declaring the building a Historic-Cultural Monument in 1966 (HCM # 40). Columnist Jack Smith of the Los Angeles Times advocated the preservation of the "faded old house" and characterized it as one of the few remaining from the "age of frolic". Smith wrote:

“The house has been called 'picturesque-eclectic,' which means that its architect took a pinch from here and a fleur-de-lis from there and brought it all together with romantic carefree. ... Because of its eclectic nature, the Hale House is said to combine many of the architectural achievements of the late 19th century in one piece. "

Hale's niece agreed to sell the house for a dollar if a move could be made. In July 1970, the house was lifted from its foundation and moved to the nearby Heritage Square Museum in Highland Park. It cost $ 10,300 to move, plus $ 3,000 to lift electrical wiring so the house could move underneath. Jack Smith, who had campaigned for the preservation of the house, described the nightly transport of the house. Accordingly, the crowd burst into jubilation when the transport was finished without the chimneys collapsing.

Shortly afterwards, the house was used as a set for a film in which the house depicted a house bombed in a war. Later, the house was restored, with the cost to more than 300,000 US dollars totaled.

architecture

Detail view of the front facade of the house

The architecture of the house has been described as Queen Anne , Eastlake , Carpenter Gothic , picturesque and eclectic " and as " a capricious old gingerbread house " . Jack Smith reports of a neighbor who said: " What architecture! This old house? It's a mishmash . " Smith agreed to this, but called it " a wonderful old mishmash " . Whatever the exact style may be, the building with its ornate brick fireplaces, stained glass windows, wood carvings and a corner tower with a copper fleur-de-lis a flawless Example of the craftsmanship and design of the Victorian era.

The building is a clapboard-clad wooden frame construction, which is emphasized on the sides with fishscale-like shingles. There are cast plaster decorations around the main windows on the eastern facade and on the pediment triangle. At the northeast corner is a veranda with turned wooden pillars with curved wooden hoods and milled railing pillars. The roof is decorated with ornate iron railing and brick chimneys with incised geometric details and cantilevers at the top. At the southeast corner on the second floor there is a turret with a window.

In a 1966 report to the Los Angeles City Heritage Commission, Raymond Girvigian, chairman of the American Institute of Architects ' Southern California Committee on Historic Buildings, attested that the building was "exuberant in ornamentation and detail without any academic rules based on borrowed architectural styles and forms of the past that are mixed in an untamed but often inventive and enchanting way with a high level of craftsmanship ”. In its decision to declare Hale House a Historic Monument, the Commission noted:

“This picturesque building is an excellent example of the late Victorian era in Los Angeles. Its primary meaning is that it perhaps best embodies the essence or most typical features of this historical style in a single example. The building has decorative wood carvings inside and out, which is becoming increasingly rare. The chimney is characteristic of the tall Victorian 'town house' of the time, and the quality of workmanship rivals that of the best-built houses in old Bunker Hill. "

During the renovation of the house, color samples of the original painting were found, which were used to mix the color for the repainting of the facade. The interior of the building has been restored to what it probably looked like in the 1890s.

See also

Web links

Commons : Hale House  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Entry in the National Register Information System . National Park Service , accessed May 23, 2016
  2. ↑ a b c James and Bessie Hale House ( English ) Heritage Square Museum. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
  3. ↑ a b c d Marita Hernandez: Restoration Is Clip-Clopping Along Slow Going at Heritage Square , Los Angeles Times. April 16, 1985. 
  4. ↑ a b c d e John Bryan: Carpenter's Gothic: Victorian Style (English) (PDF), Los Angeles Herald-Examiner. June 25, 1966. 
  5. ↑ a b c d Ridgely Cummings: Bessie Hale home declared historic monument by board (English) , Highland Park News-Herald. June 30, 1966. Retrieved July 14, 2008. 
  6. ↑ Los Angeles Department of City Planning: Historic - Cultural Monuments (HCM) Listing: City Declared Monuments ( English , PDF; 134 kB) City of Los Angeles. Retrieved July 14, 2008.
  7. ^ A b Jack Smith: 'May Day' for an Old House , Los Angeles Times. 2nd June 1970. 
  8. ↑ Jack Smith: 'May Day' for an Old House (English) , Los Angeles Times. June 2, 1970. “ The house has been called 'picturesque eclectic,' meaning its designer took a scroll from here and a fleur-de-lis from there and put everything together with romantic abandon. ... Because of its eclectic nature, the Hale house is said to embody, in one package, many architectural inventions of the late 19th century, that buoyant and capricious era. " 
  9. ↑ Heritage Square: Approve second house meeting (English) . November 1, 1970. 
  10. ^ A b Jack Smith: Memento a Very Moving Experience (English) , Los Angeles Times. July 15, 1970. 
  11. ^ Ridgely Cummings: Bessie Hale home declared historic monument by board (English) , Highland Park News-Herald. June 30, 1966. Retrieved July 14, 2008. " Exuberance in ornamentation and detailing without academic rules, based on borrowed styles and forms of the past but mixed in unrestrained though often inventive and charming ways and fine craftsmanship. " 
  12. ^ Ridgely Cummings: Bessie Hale home declared historic monument by board (English) , Highland Park News-Herald. June 30, 1966. Retrieved July 14, 2008. " This picturesque structure is an outstanding example of the late Victorian period in Los Angeles. Its prime significance is that it perhaps best embodies the essence of, or the most typical features of, this historical style in one given example. The building incorporates the ornate carving of wood, both inside and out, that is almost disappearing. The chimney is characteristic of the high Victorian 'town house' of the period, and the workmanship compares with that of the best built mansions on the old Bunker Hill. " 

Coordinates: 34 ° 5 ′ 17.6 "  N , 118 ° 12 ′ 28.6"  W.