Views of the
Orchard House Neighborhood
Photos by Curt Roseman, 2004
Here are two views of Orchard House, at 2807
Orchard Avenue. It is a large craftsman-style
house built in the early 20th
Century. On the first floor are rooms shared by
all residents, including large dining and living
rooms, a kitchen outfitted with all necessary
accoutrements, a laundry room, and a small
bathroom. On the second floor are four single
bedrooms, two bedrooms that can be used as
singles or doubles, and two bathrooms with
showers.
This is a view of our house looking northwest
from 29th Street (the fourth
structure on the left from 29th street).
Orchard House is one of three big houses
sandwiched between two apartment buildings.
Similar juxtapositions of different housing
types and sizes are typical in this high-density
neighborhood, an area that is home to both
students and local residents. Many of the
apartment buildings replaced older, smaller
houses. Unfortunately, some of the apartment
buildings carry uninspiring architectural
styles, such as the “50s motel” style of The
Sands in this photo.
Not all apartment building styles in our
neighborhood are uninspiring. These two photos
show a house and an apartment across 29th
street from one another at the corner of
Orchard. The designers of the apartment
building (on the north side) were sensitive to
their surroundings, having taken a cue from the
large Tudor style house across the street.
Two views along 28th Street just
east of Orchard illustrate more housing types in
our neighborhood. On the south side of the
street are smaller single-family dwellings and
on the north side are large houses, most of
which have been subdivided into apartments.
Did you notice that we have palm trees? And,
yes, the streets are typically lined with parked
cars. Because of competition for street
parking, Orchard House provides parking in the
rear for up to five vehicles.
One long block east of Orchard house, at the
corner of 28th and Hoover, is the
University of Southern California’s Community
House, home to USC’s Office of Civic and
Community Relations (CCR). CCR coordinates a
large number of programs that connect the
University with it
surrounding communities.
The People of
the Orchard House Neighborhood
Curt Roseman, 2004
Orchard House is located near the middle of a
neighborhood that surrounds the University Park
campus of USC. It extends from Martin Luther
King Boulevard on the south to the Santa Monica
freeway on the north, and from Western Avenue on
the west to the Harbor Freeway on the east.
This neighborhood interacts with USC in a
variety of ways. It is the focus of a number of
USC outreach programs, including partnerships
with local schools (some of the programs are
described
here). It also houses thousands of USC
students, both undergraduate and graduate, along
with a large number of USC employees. However,
relatively few faculty members live in the area.
The neighborhood includes about 21,000
housing units and a total population of about
67,000 according to the U. S. Census of 2000
(which includes students living in the area).
The housing stock is quite diverse. About 22
percent of these units are single family,
detached homes, and about 20 percent of them are
large apartment buildings each having 20 or more
units. The remaining 60 percent of housing
units are in smaller apartment buildings or
houses that have been subdivided. Homes with a
historical flavor are common: Almost 30 percent
of the housing units are in structures that were
built before 1940, typically single family
dwellings. Less than 20 percent of housing
units are owner occupied; the neighborhood is
definitely dominated by rental housing. A
substantial variety of living arrangements can
be found here: about 25 percent of households
are occupied by a single person; on the other
hand 22 percent contain five or more people.
The population of the neighborhood is as
diverse as the housing stock. Thousands of
students live in rental apartments or rooms in
big houses. Students are probably the majority
in the few blocks immediately surrounding
Orchard House. In general, this is a
neighborhood of students, working and nonworking
poor, and some middle class families. Just over
50 percent of households in the neighborhood
earn under $20,000 per year, including many
students and many local residents. Only about
ten percent of households earn over $60,000. The
neighborhood also has about 12,000 families with
children under 18, of whom about 30 percent have
incomes below the poverty line. Of about 23,000
employed people over the age of 16, the largest
number (25 percent) work in educational, health,
and social service jobs. Beyond this category
people work in a great variety of occupations
and industries. About 34 percent of residents
over the age of 25 have had less than a 9th
grade education, the majority of them probably
immigrants. On the other hand about 28 percent
have had some college, obviously including many
current USC students.
This is an international place. In the year
2000 almost 30,000 (or 43 percent) of
neighborhood residents were immigrants to the
United States. About 12,600 of them immigrated
before 1980, whereas 6,700 of them immigrated
within the previous five years. The more recent
immigrants probably include most of the
international students living in the area. The
neighborhood is multilingual: English is the
primary language spoken at home in 37 percent of
the households; Spanish in 50 percent; and Asian
and Pacific Island languages in just over 8
percent.
Ethnic diversity also characterizes the
neighborhood. Up to the 1950s the residential
population was largely White, mainly because
African Americans and Latinos were literally
forced, through both legal and informal means,
to live in restricted areas. When legal
restrictions were partially lifted from the late
1940s through the 1960s, African Americans moved
into this area in large numbers, becoming the
majority by 1970. During the same period,
Whites had opportunities to suburbanize,
opportunities not afforded to African
Americans. Since then, large numbers of
Latinos, mostly immigrants from Central America
and Mexico, have been moving into the area.
Today, the population is about 57 percent
Latino, 21 percent African American, 11 percent
White; and 8 percent Asian or Pacific Islanders.
Maps and charts showing these and other
population characteristics of the USC
neighborhood (in addition to USC’s Health
Sciences neighborhood and a larger area of
central Los Angeles), can be found on line in
the
Atlas of USC Neighborhoods: People and Community
A Walking
Tour of Some Historically Significant Areas in
North University Park
(Tour Starts at Orchard House and ends at Adams
and Figueroa)
Curt and Libby Roseman, 2004
Beginning in the 1890s, the
West Adams neighborhood, west of Figueroa and
just north of Orchard House, became a desired
residential district for the elite of Los
Angeles. Under two miles from the center of Los
Angeles, this area became connected to downtown
by horse drawn streetcar in 1890, then the
electric streetcar in 1900. Proximity to the
University (which had been established in 1880)
added appeal to this area, which soon became
“Millionaires’ Row.” Names of prominent Los
Angeles people became attached to city streets,
schools, communities, and institutions. They
include: Figueroa, Pico, Foshay, Doheny,
Toberman, Widney, Severance, Pepperdine, and
Murphy. California’s most distinguished
architects were employed to design homes,
churches, and other buildings. Although most of
the elite in this area were White Anglos, some
African American and Asian professionals
(doctors, lawyers, teachers, actors) lived on
Adams west of Hoover.
By mid-twentieth century,
the elite status of the neighborhood had
diminished. Most residents were of middle or
lower income, and some of the large mansions had
been converted from residential to institutional
uses. Beginning in the 1980s, increased
recognition was given to the architectural
significance of the neighborhood and many
buildings—plus some neighborhoods—were given
special historical designations by the city and
the federal government.
On the Tour:
John C. Harrison Home,
1160 West 27th Street:
Date of Construction: circa 1891
This is a prime example of
Queen Anne Victorian Style, a dominant style for
large houses built between 1880 and 1900 through
the Midwestern and western parts of the United
States. It is the largest surviving house in
the Miller and Harriott Tract.
Miller and Herriott
Tract house, 1163 West 27th Street:
Date of Construction: 1890.
A survivor of the original tract
houses designed by the architectural firm of
Bradbeer and Ferris.
West Adams Gardens,
1158-1176 West Adams Boulevard:
Photo: Blaine Jones
Date of Construction: 1920
Architects: L.A. Smith. Seven, two-story
residential buildings in a Tudor Revival Style
(a prominent style of the early Twentieth
Century).
A. E. Kelly Residence,
1140 West Adams Boulevard:
Date of Construction: 1890s. This
two-and-one-half story building was constructed
in the Queen Anne Victorian style.
Sunshine Mission,
southwest corner of Adams and Hoover:
What is now known as the
Sunshine Mission was built as a home in 1894,
and was once one of the most elegant homes in
the city. Over the years it has had a rich and
varied "career." It has served as the Froebel
Institute, a fashionable girls school, and a
dormitory for USC students. It was used by the
military in World War II, has been part of the
Foursquare Gospel Church, and is now a women’s
shelter.
Second Church of Christ Scientist, 948 W.
Adams Blvd:
Photo: Curtis C. Roseman
Date of Construction: 1908 Architect:
Alfred Rosenheim (who also designed the Cameo
[1910] and Globe [1913] theatres on Broadway in
downtown Los Angeles)
The North University Park and Exposition
Park Walking Tour brochure describes the
architecture of the church as follows: "this
Italian Renaissance-style church, with its six
magnificent Corinthian columns, evokes the
grandeur of the Pantheon. Engineer Albert C.
Martin constructed the church's huge copper-clad
dome, then the world's largest poured concrete
dome. Study the rich details of the exterior
decorations, made of white terra cotta
ornamentation." The columns are forty feet tall,
and the dome, which is seventy feet in diameter,
was constructed through a complex design of
concrete girders and steel trusses. The church
seats more than 1000.
Ezra T. Stimson House,
839 West Adams Boulevard:
Date of Construction: 1901 Architects:
Frederick Roehrig Built for Ezra T. Stimson,
this large Tudor Revival house was declared a
historic-cultural monument in 1989. It is a
companion to the larger Stimson House.
Chalet Apartments, 2375 Scarff Street:
Date of Construction: 1913 Architect(s):
Frank M. Tyler Recognized as a
historic-cultural monument in 1989, the Chalet
Apartments are designed to look like a large
single-family residence, although there are two
floors and 19 units.
Burkhalter Residence,
2309-2311 Scarff Street:
Photo: Blaine Jones
Date of Construction: 1895
Queen Anne Style house built in 1895 as the
residence of Mr. Dennis Burkhalter.
Seyler Residence, 2305 Seyler Residence:
Photo: Blaine Jones
Date of Construction: 1894 Architects:
Abraham M. Edelman Declared, in 1989, this
two-story, Queen-Anne house is typical of both
the period and the area.
Henry J. Reuman
Residence, 925 West 23rd Street:
Date of Construction: circa 1896.
Architect: August Wackerbarth
Originally built as a single residence,
excellent example of the transition between
Colonial Revival and Queen Anne styles of
architecture.
Mount St. Mary’s
College, Doheny Campus, Chester Place:
This campus occupies a 20
acre tract that previously was an exclusive
residential enclave built originally by Judge
Charles Silent. The college’s main campus is
in West Los Angeles. The Chester Place property
was donated by the Doheny family estate in 1962.
Doheny
Mansion, Chester Place:
Architects: Theodore A. Eisen and Sumner P.
Hunt. The Doheny Mansion is the best preserved
and most impressive of the late Victorian
residences remaining in the West Adams district
of Los Angeles. Originally constructed in
1899-1900 for Oliver Posey, it was sold to
Edward L. Doheny in 1901. It is the major
building (Number 8) in the exclusive residential
park known as Chester Place, which was developed
by Doheny. It includes 22 rooms and the first
privately owned elevator in Los Angeles. Many
changes were made over the years during the
occupancy of the Dohenys. In 1906 the family
obtained permission from the Italian government
to copy a room from the Roma Museum. The 1933
earthquake precipitated other changes, including
the addition of steel beams and columns to
replace the original timber construction. The
Dohenys brought many of the trees on the grounds
back from their world travels. Following Mrs.
Doheny's death in 1958 the residence passed to
the Catholic Church in 1962, to became the
Doheny campus of Mount St. Mary's College.
Edward L.
Doheny, Sr. 1856-1935:
In 1892, newly arrived from Wisconsin and almost
broke, Doheny, Sr. struck oil in Los Angeles,
setting off a major land boom. In the process,
Doheny became one of the richest men in America,
and the area became one of the major oil
producers in the world. He was involved in the
Elk Hills scandal, which led to the conviction
of President Harding's Secretary of the Interior
Albert B. Fall on bribery charges. In 1923
Doheny and others persuaded Fall to lease to
them 32,000 acres of federal land near Taft, CA.
A Senate investigation revealed that Doheny had
given Fall a $100,000 loan. Fall was convicted
of accepting a bribe, but Doheny, who said it
was just a friendly loan, was acquitted of
giving one. The Dohenys became Los Angeles'
major philanthropists, often for Catholic
organizations. The family funded the
construction of the magnificent
St. Vincent
de Paul Church in 1925. The Edward L.
Doheny, Jr. Memorial Library at USC was
constructed in 1932 with a gift of $1.1 million.
Mrs. Doheny also gave her rare book collection
to St. John's Seminary in Camarillo. From: La
Botz, Don. Edward L. Doheny: Petroleum,
Power, and Politics in the United States and
Mexico. New York: Praeger, 1991.
Colonel John E. Stearns
home. 27 St. James Park:
Date of Construction: 1900. Architect: John
Parkinson. A classical Revival house designed
by prolific architect John Parkinson (also
designer of the Coliseum, City Hall, several USC
campus buildings, and many other LA buildings).
Stimson House, 2421 S. Figueroa
Street:
This mansion was constructed in 1891 by
architect Carrol A. Brown as the home of retired
Chicago lumberman Thomas Douglas Stimson. The
family continued to occupy the home until it was
sold to Alfred Solano in 1907; that family sold
it to Edward R. Maier of the Maier Brewing
Company in 1918. After his death in the 1940s
the house served as a USC fraternity house until
purchased by Mrs. Carrie Estelle Doheny in 1948,
who then donated it to the Sisters of St. Joseph
of Carondelet. The Sisters operate the Doheny
campus of Mount St. Mary's College. It is not
open to the public.
St. Vincent de Paul Roman Catholic Church,
621 West Adams:
Photo: Geoffrey DeVerteuil
Date of Construction: 1923-5. Architect:
Albert C. Martin (who also designed the Million
Dollar Theatre building in downtown Los
Angeles—1918). This church sits at a 45 degree
angle to the intersection of Adams and Figueroa,
as instructed by donors Edward and Estelle
Doheny, in order to ensure high visibility.
According to the North University Park and
Exposition Park Walking Tour brochure, the
church is "the finest example of Churrigueresque
architecture in Los Angeles . . .[it] reflects
the late Baroque ecclesiastical style popular in
18th-century colonial Mexico. Its plain concrete
and plaster walls feature exuberant doorways. An
elaborate frontpiece of Indiana limestone,
carved with floriated designs and sculpted
figures, beacons (beckons?) the faithful."
Over eighty percent of the parishioners are
Hispanic, according to Fathers Ruiz and Cargo.
North of the church and the Stimson House is St.
Vincent’s school.
Automobile Association of Southern
California, 2601 South Figueroa:
Photo: Curtis C. Roseman
Date of Construction: 1921. Architect: Hunt
and Burns, Roland E. Coate. Until recently, this
three-story Spanish Colonial Revival office
building served as the headquarters for the
largest Automobile Club in the country. The
building reflects the importance of the
automobile to Southern California. A century
old Moreton Bay fig tree is placed at the
Figueroa street entrance. Its drive-through
courtyard displays plaques from each California
county, and the interior rotunda features
terrazzo tile imported from Mexico. In many
ways, the building is a counterpart to Bullock's
Wilshire (now the Southwestern University Law
Library) on Wilshire Blvd. noted as the first
automobile-oriented department store. The
Bullocks building is about the same distance
from downtown Los Angeles as is the Automobile
Association.
St. John’s Episcopal Church, 514 W. Adams
Blvd:
Date of Construction: 1922-23.
Architect: Pierpont and Walter S. Davis.
Modeled after an eleventh century Romanesque
church in Toscanella, Italy, this is an
excellent example of ecclesiastical architecture
of the 1920's as practiced by a major firm.
Architectural delights abound, including the
facade as well as the polychrome ceiling,
inspired by San Miniato al Monte in Florence.
