News of the Arroyo
Title: | History in the making - 6 Pasadena dwellings, 2 districts nominated for national registry |
Subtitle: | |
Date: | 2003-11-14 |
Summary: | November 14, 2003 - Two Arroyo districts are nominated for the National Registry of Historic Places for their stunning architecture and neighborhood charm. |
Author: | Cindy Chang, Staff Writer |
Publication: | Pasadena Star News |
Content: | PASADENA -- When the Ware family moved to Pasadena from Chicago in the early 20th century, they commissioned famed local architects Charles and Henry Greene to design their new home. The Wares didn\'t want the exterior to have the classic Craftsman detailing of the Gamble House, or the Greene and Greene that stood directly across the street from their lot on Bellefontaine Street in southwest Pasadena. Their new house was to be in the English Tudor style, like their house back in Chicago, exposed half- timbers and all. The Greene brothers obliged. But the inside of the house shows an unmistakable Craftsman influence, from the light fixtures in the oak-paneled dining room to the redwood trim in the living room. Now the Henry Ware House, completed in 1913, is one of six Pasadena houses and two historic districts nominated last week by a state agency for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. \"The reason it\'s considered on a national level is that it\'s designed by Greene and Greene but it\'s somewhat unusual for their style,\' said Sue Mossman, executive director of Pasadena Heritage. \"It\'s still Craftsman, but it\'s more English in feeling.\' The Ware House was the only one of the Pasadena nominations to require a vote by the agency, the California Historical Resources Commission. The others had already been approved two years ago, but Pasadena city officials held up the nominations in order to polish the accompanying documentation. \"Pasadena is blessed with lots of historical resources, and Greene and Greene is among the finest,\' said Claire Bogaard, a former executive director of Pasadena Heritage who is one of the California Historical Resources Commission\'s nine members. The other Pasadena houses are a 1911 Craftsman on Elliott Drive designed by Arthur Heineman; a 1914 Craftsman on North Chester Avenue by John Jurgenson; a 1913 Craftsman on Loma Vista Street; an 1896 Victorian on North Los Robles Avenue; and a 1913 English-influenced Craftsman by Sylvanus Marston on Prospect Boulevard. One of the historic districts, the Arroyo Terrace district west of North Orange Grove Boulevard near Brookside Park, contains several Greene and Greene houses. The other historic district, the Lower Arroyo Seco district, was also nominated for its Craftsman architecture. The nominations still need to be approved by the National Park Service, though such approvals are rarely denied. Pasadena already has 84 listings among the nearly 77,000 on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Gamble House, the Rose Bowl and the Colorado Street Bridge. Owners of listed homes are eligible for federal assistance in rehabilitating their homes, but the registry does not impose any restrictions on how they may use their properties. Kathleen Thorne-Thomsen and her former husband, an architect, bought the Ware house 20 years ago from descendants of Henry Ware. Aside from a few coats of paint and some plumbing and electrical work, little has been altered over the house\'s 90-year history. \"My husband was a modern architect, and he wanted a house that he could renovate in his own way, but he couldn\'t do it with this house,\' Thorne-Thomsen said. Thorne-Thomsen, a graphic artist and children\'s book author, lives in the 5,169-square-foot house with her two grown sons and three cats. Cindy Chang can be reached at (626) 578-6300, Ext. 4586, or by e-mail at cindy.chang@sgvn.com. |
Url: |