Memorandum P.O. Box 542 Long Beach, CA 562.500.9451 HISTORICS@AOL.COM To: Scott Albright, City of Santa Monica Date: 04/22/2013 From: Jan Ostashay, Principal OAC Re: PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 st Place, Santa Monica, California Overview At the request of the City of Santa Monica Planning & Community Development Department, City Planning Division, Ostashay & Associates Consulting (OAC) has conducted a preliminary historical resources assessment for the property referenced above. As part of the scope of work, we have performed a site visit as well as reviewed relevant background material on the property, including building permits, city directory information, Sanborn Fire Insurance maps, tax assessor data, census records, and other archival files associated with the property, its builder, and previous occupants. The property has not been previously identified or evaluated for historical significance; therefore, it is not listed as a designated City of Santa Monica Landmark nor is it included in the City s Historic Resources Inventory. Background Information According to the original building permit dated May 21, 1936 and the county tax assessor records, the subject property was built in 1936 on lot 16 of block 8 of the Tract number 4389. Constructed at a cost of approximately $4,700, the single family residence was built for Robert B. Leitch by local contractor M.S. Jepsen. The one story, wood frame structure sits on a parcel measuring roughly 192 feet by 65 feet. With an irregular footprint, the Spanish Colonial Revival style dwelling is situated at the southeast corner of 21 st Place and Carlyle Avenue. The house features semi smooth stucco sheathed exterior walls; wood frame multi pane casement windows with wood sills and casings on all elevations; woodframe French doors; tripartite windows with flanking casements; a complex gable roof covered with red clay tiles and overhanging eaves with exposed rafter tails; canale details in the north gable apex; stuccoed chimney flue with brick cap detail; and a façade (west elevation) dominated by a small recessed arched shape arcade that semi encloses the front porch area, which contains two pairs of French doors, an irregular patterned scored concrete floor, and the centrally located wood panel front entry door with peek a boo opening. A stucco covered, arched shape wing wall extends out from 1
PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 ST Place, Santa Monica, CA the south side of the house (at the southwest corner) and acts as an optional gateway to the side yard and backyard. A detached, wood frame garage is set along Carlyle Avenue and is designed in the same style as the house with similar materials. The garage structure is also sheathed in stucco and has a side facing tile capped roof, a large multi panel garage door, and pedestrian entry from the backyard. Providing substantial privacy, a high red brick perimeter wall frames the back half of the parcel (though the wall portion along the alley is sheathed in stucco). Landscaping includes highgrowing shrubs, mature succulents, and other plants in the front yard that act as a privacy screen from the public right of way; a low rise stone block base wall lining the front and side yard along the sidewalks; a manicured backyard; and a mature palm tree, probably planted with the house was built, also in the backyard along the southern parcel boundary. The exterior of the property has undergone very little modifications over the years as most of the historic fabric is still intact and only one other building permit is on file with the City. Dated from June 2000, the work on the permit is described as a bath and kitchen remodel valued at $9,500 (re pipe, rewire, and relocate electrical service). This interior work did not affect the exterior of the building or those portions that are visible from the public right of way. In assessing the property s historical integrity, the dwelling retains its original location, design, material, workmanship, feeling, setting, and association. As stated above, the original owner was Robert B. Leitch. Leitch and his wife Isabella had the house built for them and their growing family. Born in Illinois in 1898, Robert Benjamin Leitch moved from his parents home in Idaho to Santa Monica in the mid 1920s to find work as a school teacher. There he met his wife and married. They were living at 2540 5 th Street in 1927 with their baby Isabella B. Leitch. At that time, Robert Leitch was teaching at John Adams Jr. High School. By early 1936, Mr. and Mrs. Leitch had two children, Isabella (8 years old) and Beverly (6 years old) and were living at 502 14 th Street (the 1936 city directory gives their address as 502 11 th Street while the building permit for the subject property lists their address as 502 14 th Street). Nonetheless, Robert was now teaching at Lincoln Jr. High School in Santa Monica and Isabella was a housewife and mother. The details are not clear, but it appears that Mrs. Leitch died unexpectedly in the late 1930s (roughly 1939) leaving Robert Leitch a widow and caring for his two children on his own. 1 He continued to reside at 401 21 st Place, rear his children there, and teach at Lincoln Jr. High School. Robert Leitch eventually remarried, and he and his new wife Frasquita (Francis) lived in the house for several decades. Mr. Leitch continued to teach for many more years before retiring. There is no clear date of Robert Leitch s passing though city directory information has him listed at 401 21 st Place up through the 1990s. 2 Francis Leitch passed away in 1999 in San Jose. 3 The builder of the property at 401 21 st Place was Morris Senior Jepsen, a local building contractor. Born in 1898, Jepsen emigrated from Denmark in the mid 1920s with his wife Minnie. According to his immigration papers, it was at that time he changed his name from Senius Marinus Jepsen to 1 Concluded from information obtained from city directory listings, census records, and death records. 2 Social Security Death Records; California Death Index files. 3 Ibid. 2
PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 ST Place, Santa Monica, CA Morris Senior Jepsen. 4 Morris and Minnie ultimately settled in Santa Monica where he started work as a carpenter and builder. Prior to the mid 1930s, the Jepsens lived at 537 14 th Street in Santa Monica. At the time, they lived just a few doors down from Robert and Isabella Leitch. They eventually moved to 710 21 st Place, a residence that Morris built in 1929. Morris continued his building contracting trade for several more years, though it appears that he never quite rose to the prominence that the other more prosperous builders had in town. 5 Similar to the faith of Isabella Leitch, Mrs. Jepsen passed away in the late 1930s, leaving Morris a widow. He eventually remarried and relocated elsewhere in Santa Monica. Morris Jepsen passed away in 1987 in Santa Monica. 6 Significance Evaluation and Conclusion In evaluating the potential historical and architectural importance of this property, no information was uncovered during this preliminary assessment that identified any notable associations with historic events or patterns of development or trends important in national, state, or local history. In addition, no evidence was discovered to associate the subject property with any historic personages important in our past. Information regarding Robert B. Leitch, Isabella K. Leitch, or their children did not suggest that these individuals played any vital or crucial role in the history of the community, state or nation. Similarly with the Frasquita Leitch, the current research data did not reveal any information to indicate historical significance or notability. As for architectural merit, while the property is reflective of the Spanish Colonial Revival style it is a building type that was especially characteristic of Santa Monica during the 1920s and 1930s, and was somewhat prevalent in the immediate neighborhood. Though the single family dwelling under review contains architectural characteristics that are associated with a particular style and period they are considered typical and common to the Spanish Colonial Revival vocabulary. There appears to be better representative examples of this particular style found along this street and elsewhere in the city that embody finer distinguishing architectural characteristics valuable to a study of a period, style, or method of construction. Such examples include the Spanish Colonial Revival one story, singlefamily dwellings at 236, 355, 359, 528, and 622 21 st Place. In addition, it does not appear that the property satisfies the criterion for association with a master or notable architect, designer, or builder. According to the original building permit, the dwelling was designed by local contractor Morris S. Jepsen. In reviewing the historic context statements prepared for the City over the years as part of their city wide survey efforts and in reviewing additional data collected on Jepsen as part of this assessment, no information was uncovered to recognize Jepsen as a notable or master builder or designer. While he did do some construction work in the City, his name and body of work are not prevalent and widely or commonly recognized to warrant consideration as a master builder/designer. In review past survey work information only one other property, 710 21 st Place, was identify with Jepsen. Therefore, it does not appear that the subject property located at 4 U.S. Naturalization Records for Morris S. Jepsen (formerly Senius Marinus Jepsen). 5 Santa Monica Historical Resource Inventory, 1985 1986 Final Report, p. 49. 6 Social Security Death Records; California Death Index files. 3
PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 ST Place, Santa Monica, CA 401 21 st Street meets the local criterion for association with a master or notable architect, builder, or designer. It interesting to note; however, that there are a number of Cecil A. Gale designed homes in the area that would probably be better suited for further investigation as potential historic local landmarks. And finally, in consideration of the property as part of a potential grouping of resources comprised of similar property types, the immediate area has been severely compromised by the infill of incompatible new construction and the inappropriate alterations of existing structures. Any sense of unity or significant concentration and continuity of dwellings united historically or aesthetically by plan or physical development has been lost by these unsuitable changes. Therefore, in conclusion, further investigation into the subject property s historical and/or architectural significance as a potential City of Santa Monica Landmark is not warranted nor recommended. The property does not appear to satisfy any of the City s landmark criteria to be recognized as a local landmark or historic resource. 4
PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 ST Place, Santa Monica, CA ATTACHMENT A: BUILDING PERMIT HISTORY 5
PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 ST Place, Santa Monica, CA ATTACHMENT B: TAX ASSESSOR MAPS 8
PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 ST Place, Santa Monica, CA ATTACHMENT C: SANBORN FIRE INSURANCE MAP, 1950 paste-up 11
PRELIMINARY HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT: 401 21 ST Place, Santa Monica, CA ATTACHMENT D: PHOTOGRAPHS, 2013 13
Photo 1: Front (west) elevation, looking southeast Photo 2: Front porch details, looking east
Photo 3: Context view at the intersection of 21 st Place and Carlyle Avenue, looking southeast Photo 4: Steps off Carlyle Avenue to access front porch, main entry door, and lawn area
Photo 5: Wing wall off south wall at southwest corner of dwelling, looking southeast Photo 6: South side of dwelling with mature palm tree in view at backyard, looking east
Photo 7: North side of subject property with succulent landscaping elements, looking southeast Photo 8: North side of subject property as seen from across Carlyle Avenue, looking southwest
Photo 9: Garage (north side) in foreground with dwelling in background, looking west Photo 10: Perimeter wall along alley at sidewalk, looking southwest
OSTASHAY & ASSOCIATES CONSULTING PO BOX 542 LONG BEACH, CA 90801 562.500.9451