HomeMy WebLinkAboutPleasonton Anholm City Design Standards
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
12 S. Fair Oaks Avenue, Suite 200, Pasadena, CA 91105-1915
Telephone 626-793-2400, Facsimile 626-793-2401
www.historicla.com
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
September 30, 2013
PREPARED FOR
City of San Luis Obispo
990 Palm Street
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
PROJECT SUMMARY
This Citywide Historic Context Statement was prepared at the request of the City of San Luis Obispo,
and was funded by a grant through the Certified Local Government (CLG) program. In October
2012, the City contracted with Historic Resources Group for the preparation of the Historic Context
Statement. It follows the guidance outlined for the development of historic contexts in the Secretary of
the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Archaeology and Historic Preservation, along with National
Register Bulletin 16B: How to Complete the National Register Multiple Property Documentation
Form.
The activity which is the subject of this Historic Context Statement has been financed in part with
Federal funds from the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, through the California
Office of Historic Preservation. However, the contents and opinions do not necessarily reflect the
views or policies of the Department of the Interior or the California Office of Historic Preservation,
nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation
by the Department of the Interior or the California Office of Historic Preservation.
Regulations of the U.S. Department of the Interior strictly prohibit unlawful discrimination in
departmental federally-assisted programs on the basis of race, color, sex, age, disability, or national
origin. Any person who believes he or she has been discriminated against in any program, activity, or
facility operated by a recipient of Federal assistance should write to:
Director, Equal Opportunity Program
U.S. Department of the Interior
National Park Service
P.O. Box 37127
Washington, D.C. 20013-7127
Citywide Historic Context Statement
City of San Luis Obispo
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction 1
Purpose 1
Methodology 2
Historic Preservation Policy 4
Historic Resources Surveys 6
Guidelines for Evaluation 9
Historic Context 11
Introduction 11
Summary of Contexts and Themes 12
Historical Overview 13
Context: Early History 17
Context: Spanish Colonization and Mission San Luis Obispo (1772-1821) 19
Theme: Mission-Era Institutional Development 25
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 26
Theme: Mission-Era Residential Development 28
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 28
Context: Mexican Rule (1822-1846) 31
Theme: Mexican-Era Residential Development 33
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 33
Context: Late 19th Century Americanization & Town Settlement (1846-1900) 35
Theme: Late 19th Century Residential Development 42
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 46
Theme: Late 19th Century Commercial Development 49
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 53
Theme: Late 19th Century Institutional Development 55
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 57
Theme: Late 19th Century Agricultural & Industrial Development 59
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 61
Theme: Late 19th Century Transportation-related Development 63
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 68
Theme: Late 19th Century Ethnic Communities 70
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 72
Context: Early 20th Century Development 74
Theme: Early 20th Century Residential Development 80
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 83
Theme: Early 20th Century Commercial Development 85
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 87
Citywide Historic Context Statement
City of San Luis Obispo
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
Theme: Early 20th Century Civic & Institutional Development 89
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 90
Theme: Early 20th Century Agricultural & Industrial Development 92
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 94
Theme: Early 20th Century Ethnic Communities 96
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 97
Context: The Great Depression & World War II (1930-1945) 98
Theme: Residential Development 1930-1945 103
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 105
Theme: Commercial Development 1930-1945 107
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 107
Theme: Depression-Era Civic & Institutional Development 109
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 110
Theme: Ethnic Communities 1930-1945 112
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 114
Context: Mid-20th Century Growth (1945-1970) 115
Theme: Mid-20th Century Residential Development 118
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 123
Theme: Mid-20th Century Commercial Development 125
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 128
Theme: Mid-20th Century Civic & Institutional Development 130
Property Types & Eligibility Standards 130
Architectural Character 132
Bibliography 154
Appendix A: Evaluation Criteria 158
Appendix B: Properties Listed in the National Register of Historic Places 165
Appendix C: Master List of Historic Resources 166
Appendix D: List of Contributing Historic Resources 171
City of San Luis Obispo Introduction
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
1
INTRODUCTION
The City of San Luis Obispo received a State of California Certified Local Government (CLG) grant
for the period 2012-2013 to prepare a Citywide Historic Context Statement. This project is part of
the City of San Luis Obispo’s ongoing efforts to identify and evaluate potential historic resources.
The Historic Context Statement was developed by Historic Resources Group, including Founding
Principal Christy Johnson McAvoy and Principal Christine Lazzaretto, both of whom meet the
Secretary of the Interior's professional standards.1 Assistance with field work, research, and content was
provided by Robby Aranguren, Planning Associate, and Heather Goers, Architectural Historian.
Coordination of the project was administered by Phil Dunsmore, Senior Planner for the City of San
Luis Obispo, and it was overseen by the City’s Cultural Heritage Committee. Marie Nelson and
Amanda Blosser at the State Office of Historic Preservation served as advisors.
PURPOSE
In order to understand the significance of the historic and architectural resources in the City of San
Luis Obispo, it is necessary to examine those resources within a series of contexts. The purpose of a
historic context statement is to place built resources in the appropriate historic, social, and architectural
context, the relationship between an area’s physical environment and its broader history can be
established.
A historic context statement analyzes the historical development of a community according to
guidelines written by the National Park Service and specified in National Register Bulletin 16A: How
1 Federal Register, Vol. 48, No. 190, p. 44738-44739, September 29, 1983.
View of downtown San Luis Obispo, 2012. Source: Historic Resources Group.
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to Complete the National Register Registration Form and Nation Register Bulletin 24: Guidelines for
Local Surveys. Bulletin 16A describes a historic context as follows:
Historic context is information about historic trends and properties grouped by an important
theme in pre-history or history of a community, state, or the nation during a particular period
of time. Because historic contexts are organized by theme, place, and time, they link historic
properties to important historic trends. In this way, they provide a framework for determining
the significance of a property.2
A historic context statement is linked with tangible built resources through the concept of “property
type,” which is a grouping of individual properties based on shared physical or associative
characteristics.3
This historic context is not intended to be a comprehensive history of the City of San Luis Obispo.
Rather, its purpose is to highlight trends and patterns critical to the understanding of the built
environment. It identifies the various historical factors that shaped the development of the area,
including historic activities or events, important people, building types, architectural styles, and
materials, and patterns of physical development. The historic context provides a framework for the
continuing process of identifying historic, architectural, and cultural resources in the City. It is meant to
serve as a guide to enable citizens, planners, and decision-makers to evaluate the relative significance
and integrity of individual properties.
Specific examples referred to in this context statement are included solely to illustrate physical and
associative characteristics of each resource type. Exclusion from the context statement does not
diminish the significance of any individual resource.
METHODOLOGY
The first phase of the project involved collecting and reviewing existing documentation. Several
surveys and studies have been conducted in the City of San Luis Obispo which included historic
overviews of the City. In particular, the 19th and early 20th centuries have been well documented.
These previous studies largely formed the basis for the discussion of these periods in this context
statement.
Background information in this report on state and national trends that generally influenced the
development of San Luis Obispo were borrowed and tailored for this report. Additional research was
conducted as needed in City archives housed in the Community Development Department, at the
History Center of San Luis Obispo County, and through a literature review of sources documenting
the history of the area.
2 National Park Service, “National Register Bulletin 16A: How to Complete the National Register Registration Form,” Washington, DC: U.S.
Department of the Interior, National Park Service, 1997.
3 National Park Service, “National Register Bulletin 24: Guidelines for Local Surveys,” Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior,
National Park Service, 1977; revised 1985.
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This historic context was developed with the assistance of the City’s Cultural Heritage Committee, and
included a public outreach component. Progress updates were provided by City staff to the Cultural
Heritage Committee throughout the process, providing the opportunity for Committee members to
provide direction and feedback. Two public workshops were conducted at critical stages of the project.
The first workshop included a discussion of the major periods of development, with attendees
providing additional background information, along with property- and neighborhood-specific details
related to each period. At the second workshop, members of the community were updated on the
progress of the project, and a discussion of eligibility criteria and integrity thresholds was held.
Information gathered from the Committee and the public workshops was used in the development of
the historic context.
A citywide street-by-street reconnaissance survey was undertaken to inform the historic context.
Particular attention was given to buildings and neighborhoods from the post-World War II period, as
this aspect of the City’s history has not been studied as rigorously as earlier periods. In addition,
properties included on the City’s Master List of Historic Resources (individual buildings and historic
districts) were reviewed in order to determine the overall integrity thresholds of recognized resources,
and to have a better understanding of the population of properties from each period that have already
been designated by the City. Properties that are illustrated within this historic context are meant to
serve as examples of a particular context, theme, property type, or architectural style; exclusion of a
property from the historic context is not an indication that it is not eligible for historic designation.
Community Workshop, February 2013. Source: Historic Resources Group.
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HISTORIC PRESERVATION POLICY
This Historic Context Statement is part of ongoing historic preservation efforts in the City of San Luis
Obispo. The City of San Luis Obispo has an active historic preservation program, and historic
preservation is included throughout City policy. Historic Preservation has been part of City policy
since the 1980s, when the City established the first set of Historic Preservation Policies; the policy
document was soon followed by a City historic resources survey and the formulation of the first
historic districts. In 2010, the City adopted a Historic Preservation Ordinance and updated the Historic
Preservation Guidelines in an effort to stimulate preservation and provide design guidance for new
development. In 2012, the City of San Luis Obispo became a Certified Local Government (CLG).
The CLG program is a preservation partnership between local, state, and national governments
focused on promoting historic preservation at the grass roots level. The program is jointly administered
by the National Park Service (NPS) and the State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPOs) in each state,
with each local community working through a certification process to become recognized as a
Certified CLG. CLGs then become active partners in the Federal Historic Preservation Program and
the opportunities it provides.
Historic preservation is one of many community goals in the General Plan, which was adopted in
2006. It is part of the community’s core values and identity. To help ensure the City’s valuable and
finite historic resources will continue to enhance the lives of San Luis Obispo generations to come, the
City Council has adopted several documents that help protect these resources. In addition to the
Historic Preservation Guidelines and the Historic Preservation Ordinance discussed above, these
documents include:
General Plan Conservation and Open Space Element, adopted by Council Resolution No.
9785 (2006 Series) – Updates citywide policies and programs regarding identification and
treatment of cultural resources.
Archaeological Resource Preservation Program Guidelines, adopted by Council Resolution No.
10120 (2009 Series) – Updates procedures to be used for the protection of sub-surface
cultural resources, both historic and pre-historic features.
Community Design Guidelines, adopted by Council Resolution No. 9391 (2002 Series) and
updated in 2004, 2007, and 2010 – Establishes site and architectural design standards for
development projects, including projects involving historic resources and historic districts, and
demolitions.
Demolition and Moving of Buildings – Appendix Chapter 2, Chapter 201 General, San Luis
Obispo Municipal Code – Establishes procedures and requirements for the relocation or
demolition of historic buildings.
Safety Assessment Placards – Buildings and Construction Title 15.48, San Luis Obispo
Municipal Code – Establishes procedures and requirements for post-disaster actions.
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San Luis Obispo Zoning Regulations, Chapter 17.54 – Establishes the Historical Preservation
Overlay Zone (H) and describes its purposes and application, allowed uses and property
development standards.
Lithograph of San Luis Obispo, 1865.
Source: Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley.
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HISTORIC RESOURCES SURVEYS
There have been several historic resources surveys documenting the cultural and architectural
resources of San Luis Obispo. The first occurred in 1982-1983, when the Cultural Heritage
Committee completed an architectural and photographic survey that recorded over 2,000 pre-1941
buildings, sites, and objects within the City. This survey is referred to as Historical Resources Survey I.
The surveyed properties were located primarily near the central downtown core. The goals of the
survey included the preparation of a master inventory of cultural resources and the identification of
“parameters for establishing guidelines for preservation issues and themes.”4 Those sites found to be
architecturally or culturally significant formed the basis of the City’s Master List of Historic Resources.
Additionally, the City established three Historic Zoning Districts: the Downtown Commercial District,
the Mill Street District, and the Old Town Neighborhood.
The second study took place in 1987, when the Cultural Heritage Committee initiated Historical
Resources Survey II. For this study, the Committee identified approximately 500 properties that
warranted further research, the majority of which were single-family residences located outside of the
downtown area. Following preliminary fieldwork, the list was refined to 400 properties, which were
evaluated by a qualified historical researcher. The purpose of the evaluation was twofold: 1) to
determine the eligibility of approximately 100 properties for inclusion on the City’s Master List of
Historic Resources and/or nomination to the National Register of Historic Places, and 2) to determine
if any of the 400 initial properties were eligible as contributors to potential Historic Zoning Districts.
At the time, of the 100 properties evaluated by the first criteria, fourteen properties were deemed
eligible for addition to the Master List of Historic Resources. Additionally, one of the properties
satisfied the criteria for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. The remaining 300
properties were evaluated for their potential significance as contributors to future Historic Zoning
Districts, and the report also recommended that the City establish three additional Historic Zoning
Districts: the Little Italy/Railroad District, the Monterey Heights District, and the Mount
Pleasanton/Anholm District. In 1987 a Chinatown Historic District and a Railroad District were also
identified.
In 2006-2007, City staff surveyed two neighborhoods known as East Railroad and Monterey Heights.
As a result of that survey effort, twenty-five properties were added to the list of Contributing Historic
Resources within the East Railroad area, and seven properties were added to the list of Contributing
Historic Resources within Monterey Heights.
In 2011, the Cultural Heritage Commission initiated a survey to update the City’s Historic Resources
Inventory as directed by the Conservation and Open Space Element of the General Plan. Following a
careful evaluation of the most critical areas in the City, the Cultural Heritage Committee selected an
area outside of existing historic districts adjacent to Johnson Avenue between Higuera and Buchon
4 City of San Luis Obispo, “Completion Report: Historic Resources Survey,” July 1983, 9.
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Streets. The surveyed properties date from approximately 1900 to 1925 and occupy the block
between Higuera and Marsh Streets at Johnson Avenue. As a result of this survey effort, fifty-three
properties were added to the City’s list of Contributing Historic Resources.
View of Buchon Street, 2013. Source: City of San Luis Obispo.
View of Monterey Street, 2012. Source: Historic Resources Group.
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Historic Districts Map, courtesy City of San Luis Obispo, 2013.
City of San Luis Obispo Guidelines for Evaluation
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GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATION
A property may be designated as historic by National, State, and local authorities. In order for a
building to qualify for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, the California Register, or as a
local landmark, it must meet one or more identified criteria of significance. The property must also
retain sufficient architectural integrity to continue to evoke the sense of place and time with which it is
historically associated. This Historic Context Statement provides guidance for listing at the federal,
state, and local levels, according to the established criteria and integrity thresholds. In general, a higher
integrity threshold is needed for listing in the National Register of Historic Places; properties that may
not retain sufficient integrity for listing in the National Register may be eligible for the California
Register of for local designation. In addition, properties that have achieved significance within the past
50 years must meet be “exceptionally important” as outlined in National Register Criteria
Consideration G.5
A detailed description of each designation program and the evaluation criteria is included in Appendix
A of this report.
5 National Park Service, “How to Apply the National Register Criteria for Evaluation.”
http://www.nps.gov/nr/publications/bulletins/nrb15/nrb15_7.htm.
Myron Angel House, 714 Buchon Street, 1886-1891.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
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In general, evaluation criteria focus on four overarching concepts:
1. Properties associated with historic events.
2. Properties associated with significant people.
3. Properties that are significant for their design, architectural style, or association with a
significant architect.
4. Properties that have potential archaeological significance.6
There are currently nine properties in the City of San Luis Obispo which are listed in the National
Register of Historic Places. Those properties are included in Appendix B. There are approximately 183
properties designated in the City’s Master List of Historic Resources; those properties are included in
Appendix C.7 There are approximately 573 properties included in the City’s List of Contributing
Historic Resources; those properties are included in Appendix D.8
6 An archaeological study is outside of the scope of this project.
7 City of San Luis Obispo, “Master List of Historic Resources,” March 2012.
8 City of San Luis Obispo, “List of Contributing Historic Resources,” January 2013.
Tribune Republic Building, 1763 Santa Barbara Avenue, 1873. Listed in the National
Register of Historic Places in 1993 for its association with the early newspaper business
and the railroad industry in San Luis Obispo.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
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HISTORIC CONTEXT
INTRODUCTION
The City of San Luis Obispo has a rich and varied history. This historic context provides a broad-brush
historical overview of the overarching forces that shaped land use patterns and development of the
built environment of the City of San Luis Obispo. It is not meant as a complete historical narrative of
the City, but instead provides a framework for the identification and evaluation of historic resources.
Much of the history contained here is drawn from existing narratives, particularly of the City’s early
development which has been well documented by previous studies. Within each context is an
identification of the relevant themes associated with that context; a description of the associated
property types; a discussion of the relevant criteria and integrity considerations; and specific eligibility
standards.
The overarching goal of the historic context statement is to serve as a planning tool that will assist City
staff and officials, residents, and interested stakeholders identify those properties that tell the story of
San Luis Obispo and contribute to the architectural, cultural, or social history of the City. San Luis
Obispo retains important properties from each significant period of development, from the earliest
built resources associated with the establishment of Mission San Luis Obispo, through post-World War
II expansion and growth. Properties represent the City’s residential, commercial, institutional,
industrial/agricultural, and civic growth throughout history. There are numerous properties that are
significant as excellent or rare examples of a particular architectural style, or as the work of a master
Mission San Luis Obispo, 751 Palm Street, as it appeared in 1865.
Photo by C.E. Watkins, 1865. Source: California Views, The Pat Hathaway
Photo Collection.
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architect. Properties may be significant under multiple contexts, but only need to meet criteria under
one context or theme in order to be eligible for designation.
Summary of Contexts & Themes
For purposes of this historic context, seven broad historical periods in the history of San Luis Obispo
are identified:
Early History
Spanish Colonization and Mission San Luis Obispo (1772-1821)
Mexican Rule (1822-1846)
Late 19th Century Americanization and Town Settlement (1846-1900)
Early 20th Century Development (1900-1929)
The Great Depression and World War II (1930-1945)
Mid-20th Century Growth (1945-1970)
Within each broad time period, the following themes are discussed relative to the development of the
built environment in San Luis Obispo:
Residential Development
Commercial Development
Civic & Institutional Development
Agricultural & Industrial Development
Transportation-related Development
Ethnic Communities
Southern Pacific Depot, 1011 Railroad Avenue, 1943.
Photo 2012; source Historic Resources Group.
Postcard of Monterey Street, 1930s.
Source: historyinslocounty.org.
Carnegie Library, 696 Monterey Street, 1905.
Photo c. 1905. Photo Source: historyinsanluisobispocounty.org.
Dallidet Adobe, 1185 Pacific Street, c. 1860.
Date of photograph unknown. Photo Source: San Luis
Obispo County Historical Society.
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HISTORICAL OVERVIEW
San Luis Obispo is located in the Central Coast region of California, approximately 200 miles north of
Los Angeles and 230 miles south of San Francisco. The area is naturally bounded by the Pacific Ocean
to the west and the Santa Lucia mountain range to the north, east, and south. These mountains are
also the source of the San Luis Obispo Creek, which runs through the city of San Luis Obispo and
empties into the Pacific Ocean at Avila Beach. The creek flows along the Nine Sisters, a chain of
volcanic peaks which originates in San Luis Obispo and extends west to the Pacific Ocean. The chain
of hills forms the dominant scenic backdrop to nearly all parts of the city. The serpentine ridge that
extends southeast from Cerro San Luis Mountain is flanked on the south side by the wetlands of
Laguna Lake, much of which is preserved by the City today as a wildlife preserve. The topography of
the surrounding mountain ranges forms a natural barrier that generally restricted the development of
San Luis Obispo to the flatlands around San Luis Obispo Creek.
The area was first settled by the native Chumash tribe, who established a network of villages along the
creek. The region was not substantially explored by Europeans until the Spanish colonization of Alta
California beginning in 1769. In 1772, Father Junipero Serra founded Mission San Luis Obispo de
Tolosa on the banks of the nearby San Luis Obispo Creek. The establishment of the mission would
ultimately have a devastating effect on local native cultures. The majority of the Chumash were
conscripted into service for the mission, becoming church neophytes and effectively ending their
traditional way of life. Diseases brought to the area from Europe, along with the significant changes to
the culture resulted in a significant decrease in the Native American population during the mission era.
The Mission, however, prospered and soon became self-sufficient, establishing vineyards and orchards
and cultivating the surrounding land for agriculture. Due to its isolated location, the mission became a
Map of San Luis Obispo County, 1874.
Source: UCLA, Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library.
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convenient stopover for those traveling between missions to the north and south, and the settlement
soon established itself as a regional market center.
From the late 1700s through the mid-eighteenth century, Spanish and Mexican ranchos had extended
across the county. The California Land Act of 1851 prompted a dramatic shift in the residential
development of San Luis Obispo during the mid-19th century. Surrounding ranchos were subdivided
into smaller parcels of land, forcing many rural landowners to migrate into the city. In 1850, California
was admitted to the Union, and in 1868 San Luis Obispo was officially designated as the county seat.
From the early days of missionary settlement, the development of San Luis Obispo has been
intimately connected with the surrounding landscape. The first settlements in the area were located
near the San Luis Obispo Creek, whose tributaries provided a framework for the town’s early housing
and gardens. The surrounding landscape was largely dedicated to agricultural pursuits, including crops
and vineyards cultivated by the mission and later by the adjacent ranchos. Construction materials for
early mission buildings and residences, including thatch, wood, and adobe bricks, all originated from
local sources. As the community surrounding the mission grew, the demand for construction materials
increased and the variety of materials expanded in kind. While the development of San Luis Obispo’s
first commercial brickyard in the late 1800s replaced the earlier use of adobe bricks, quarries were
developed in the surrounding areas to mine quartz, sandstone, and other rock for commercial
construction. Agricultural activities in the surrounding landscape also evolved in the late 1800s.
Vineyards, once abandoned following the secularization of the mission, were revived and a significant
regional winemaking industry subsequently flourished.
Following a major drought in 1862-1864, cultivation of the surrounding land shifted from cash crops
to cattle, and a booming regional dairy industry was soon established. San Luis Obispo continued to
grow throughout the second half of the 19th century as improvements in transportation increased
access to the isolated area and created a direct connection to the coastal maritime industries.
Stagecoach routes were first introduced in the 1860s and railroad lines were extended throughout the
1890s, allowing the area to serve as a regional hub for both trade and tourism. With the arrival of the
Southern Pacific Railroad in the late 1890s the town and the local environs expanded into a
burgeoning county. In the early 19th century San Luis Obispo served as a center of trade and travel in
central California with the arrival of the railroad, the development of the Union Oil of California’s
(Unocal) oil fields, and the tremendous agricultural and dairy industries.
In 1901, the California Polytechnic Institute was established in San
Luis Obispo. The presence of Cal Poly, its focus on vocational and
agricultural training, and its growing influence on the community
significantly impacted the development of San Luis Obispo
throughout the 20th century. Another significant influence on the
central coast was William Randolph Hearst and his San Simeon
Ranch, commonly referred to as Hearst Castle. The development of
these two conspicuous landmarks, in addition to the historic Mission
San Luis Obispo, served to stimulate the regional economy and
influenced the growth in and around San Luis Obispo.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, c. 1901.
Source: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo,
Robert Kennedy Library.
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In the 20th century, the advent of the automobile made it possible to expand development in San Luis
Obispo beyond the central city. City services, utilities, and roads were also expanded and improved
during this period to meet the needs of the growing city. Tourism, and in particular automobile
tourism, continued to play a role in the area’s development in the 20th century.
While the economy slowed nationwide during the 1930s due to the Great Depression, the economic
effects on San Luis Obispo were mitigated by the establishment of Camp San Luis Obispo, a military
training camp. The creation of the camp caused a sudden and dramatic increase in population in the
area, which influenced the development of San Luis Obispo throughout the mid-century. As training
activity increased in preparation for World War II, more soldiers and their families moved to the area,
and many returned after the war to settle permanently. San Luis Obispo evolved dramatically in
response to the sudden and significant postwar demand for single-family housing in the 1950s and
1960s. Annexations expanded the city’s boundaries and large residential subdivisions were
constructed outside the city center.
Madonna Inn, 100 Madonna Road, 1961-1969.
Source: madonnainn.com.
Milestone Mo-tel under construction, 2223 Monterey Street, 1924.
Source: Huntington Library, San Marino.
Camp San Luis Obispo, 1928.
Photo 1940s; source San Luis Obispo Tribune.
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Map indicating subdivisions recorded in San Luis Obispo from 19th century to 1965. Source: San Luis Obispo GIS data.
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CONTEXT: EARLY HISTORY
The earliest development of San Luis Obispo was influenced by the Native American populations
who lived in the area, including the Chumash and Salinan tribes. At the time of European contact,
there were nearly 3,000 Salinans living in approximately 20 villages throughout San Luis Obispo
County and Southern Monterey County. While the Salinans used boats to traverse the region's
network of inland waterways, unlike the Chumash the Salinans were not a maritime culture. Instead,
they primarily hunted a wide variety of land mammals, caught fish and birds, and gathered acorns,
berries, and wild grasses.
The term Chumash initially applied to the people living on Santa Cruz Island, but it now refers to the
entire linguistic and ethnic group of societies that occupied the coast between San Luis Obispo and
northwestern Los Angeles County, including the Santa Barbara Channel Islands, and inland to the
western edge of the San Joaquin Valley. Neighboring groups included the Salinan to the north, the
southern Valley Yokuts and Tataviam to the east, and the Gabrielino (Tongva) to the south.9
9 “Excelaron Project Environmental Impact Report,” January 2012, 4.5-1.
Source: Handbook of North American Indians.
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Specifically, the San Luis Obispo area was occupied by the Obispeño Chumash, which was the
northernmost of the Chumash people in California.10
The mild climate and abundant resources led to one of the most densely populated areas in
California’s pre-history.11 The Chumash village near San Luis Obispo was called Tilhini, which means
“forgotten ones.” There were at one time over 20,000 Chumash living along the California
coastline. The prehistoric and historic Chumash were a maritime culture, using long wooden canoes
called tomols to fish and travel between different villages along the Pacific coast. The Chumash were
a hunter-gatherer tribe, and even though they were sedentary, they did not farm the land.12
The establishment of Mission San Luis Obispo in 1772 had a devastating effect on the local native
populations. The dissolution of their culture alienated them from their traditional subsistence patterns,
and the introduction of European diseases decimated the population. The development of agriculture
and growth of livestock grazing in the area made it increasingly difficult for the Chumash to maintain
their traditional hunter-gatherer lifestyle. Most Chumash eventually submitted to the Spanish and were
incorporated into the mission system, although there were some who fled and became refugees living
with other tribes. In 1803, the Native neophyte population at Mission San Luis Obispo reached its
peak at 919; by 1804 most of the Native villages had been abandoned and the Obispeño that
remained in the area were living at the Mission or one of its outposts.13
With the secularization of the missions in 1834, traditional Chumash lands were divided among land
grants to private owners. By this time, the Native population had decreased to 170 Chumash living at
the mission.14 In 1901, land near Mission Santa Ynez was deeded to the U.S. government for a 127-
acre reservation; this is the sole remaining Chumash reservation, with a population of less than 200
people.15
Early History: Associated Property Types, Integrity Considerations
& Eligibility Standards
There are no known built resources from San Luis Obispo’s Early History (Native American) period.
However, archaeological artifacts discovered from this period are likely to yield information about the
life and culture of the Chumash and neighboring Native American Cultures. The study of
archaeological resources is outside of the scope of this project.
10 Wendy M. Nettles, “The Copelands Project: Neophytes, Shopkeepers, and the Soiled Doves of San Luis Obispo,” October 2006, 53.
11 City of San Luis Obispo, “Historic Preservation Program Guidelines,” November 2010, 2.
12 “The Chumash Indians.” Website: http://www.chumashindian.com/. Accessed March 2013.
13 Wendy M. Nettles, ““The Copelands Project: Neophytes, Shopkeepers, and the Soiled Doves of San Luis Obispo,” October 2006, 53.
14 Nettles, “The Copelands Project,” 54.
15 “Excelaron Project Environmental Impact Report,” January 2012, 4.5-1.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
19
CONTEXT: SPANISH COLONIZATION AND MISSION SAN
LUIS OBISPO (1772-1821)
Spain was the first European nation to achieve a foothold in present-day California. Spanish explorers
came to California in the early sixteenth century, and as early as 1542 entered the bay of San Luis
Obispo. In 1697, the Order of Jesus, the Jesuits, was given a license to enter the peninsula of Lower
California and establish missions for the conversion of the Indians to the Catholic faith. They were
given ecclesiastic, military, and civil authority, and for seventy years the Jesuits were undisturbed in
their labors of founding missions. In 1767, Charles the Third of Spain, grown jealous of the political
power of the Jesuits, determined to supplant them, and in April, 1767, issued a decree ordering their
expulsion from all parts of his dominions.16 From that point, the Order of Dominicans was to have
charge of the Lower California missions, and the Franciscans were to establish missions in Alta
California. In 1769, King Charles III formally authorized the Franciscan missionaries to begin the
settlement of Alta California, naming Don Gaspar de Portola as emissary, assisted by Father Junipero
Serra.17
The Spanish typically sent small groups of soldiers and clergy to colonize a new land, establish
missions to convert the indigenous people to Catholicism, and teach them agriculture and animal
16 Annie L. Morrison and John H. Haydon, History of San Luis Obispo County and Environs, California, with Biographical Sketches of the
Leading Men and Women of the County and Environs Who Have Been Identified with the Growth and Development of the Section from
the Early Days to the Present History, Los Angeles: Historic Record Company, 1917, 24.
17 Myron Angel, History of San Luis Obispo County with Illustrations. Oakland, CA: Thompson & West, 1883. Reprinted by Fresno Valley
Publishers, CA, 1979, 19.
Mission San Luis Obispo, lithograph, 1865.
Source: San Luis Obispo County Historic Lithographs Collection, Cal Poly San
Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
20
husbandry. In theory, the missions were mandated to occupy and make the land fruitful for the
benefit of the Native Californians, but in reality the proliferation of the missions in California meant an
end to the traditional way of life of the Native Americans who lived there.18
By design, the Spanish settlements were intended to have three components: a mission to serve as a
religious and cultural center, from which to Christianize native peoples; a military presidio; and a
commercial pueblo. In reality, few of the settlements developed a fully functional pueblo, particularly
those in present-day Northern California, in large part because Spain forbade trade with foreign
powers, undercutting the potential for commerce.19
The architectural style of the missions was developed by Serra and the other Franciscan missionaries,
who drew on the architectural traditions of Old Spain. California’s climate and geography, as well as
the limited construction expertise of the Native Americans who were enlisted to carry out the plans,
also impacted aesthetic choices. General characteristics include a picturesque composition, frank
expression of functional elements, large expanses of blank walls marked by ornamentation at a few
crucial points such as around openings, and a prominent tower and dome.
18 Dorothy Krell, The California Missions. Menlo Park, CA: Sunset Books, 1979, 35.
19 City and County of San Francisco Planning Department, “City within a City: Historic Context Statement for San Francisco’s Mission
District,” November, 2007.
Map of El Camino Real.
Source: UCLA, Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young
Research Library
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
21
There were ultimately twenty-one missions established in California: the first was Mission San Diego in
1769, and the last was Mission San Francisco Solana in Sonoma in 1823. The missions were linked by
El Camino Real (“The Royal Road” or “The King’s Highway”) which spanned the 600 miles from San
Diego to Sonoma. In order to survive, the missions relied on each other for resources and supplies,
and therefore they were typically located about thirty miles apart, or one day’s journey on horseback.
Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa was founded on September 1, 1772.20 The mission was originally
established near Arroyo de la Huerta Viejo21 (later Brizzolara or Stenner Creek), which flows into San
Luis Obispo Creek (near present day Dana Street), and initially consisted of a few shelters made of
brush. By 1776, the Mission was relocated to its present-day site due to repeated flooding. The
Mission was constructed in the traditional plaza configuration, enclosed to the outside world. The
church and other related buildings were originally made of adobe, tulle, and logs, making them
susceptible to fires.
In 1776, the Mission suffered the first of three devastating fires that were attributed to outside attacks.
The first fire destroyed nearly the entire Mission complex, with only the church building and granary
escaping damage. The repeated assaults led to experimentation with clay roof tiles that were widely
employed in traditional Spanish architecture. Mission San Luis Obispo was the first Mission to employ
tile roofing, which could be made on site. The improved roof material proved so successful that soon
all of the California missions followed suit.22
In 1793, the church and convento wing, where priests resided, was constructed of adobe bricks made
on site by local Chumash people. The convento wing also featured a portico with eleven columns,
depicting the twelve Apostles minus Judas. By 1800, additional buildings had been constructed to
provide housing, storage facilities, and a water-powered mill.
20 Mission San Luis Obispo was the fifth mission chronologically in the chain of 21 missions in the state.
21 Arroyo de la Huerta Viejo refers to the “Old Garden” which was located in near what is now the 700 block of Broad Street; Broad Street
was originally known as Garden Street.
22 George Wharton James, The Old Franciscan Missions of California. Boston, MA: Little, Brown & Company, 1919, 119.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
22
By 1794, the church and most of the related buildings were completed. In 1810, the Mexican War for
Independence broke out, leaving the missions with little funding from Spain to aid in their
development. However, by that time, all of the California missions were virtually self-sufficient, and
the Mission San Luis Obispo in particular had become prosperous enough to not only support itself
but to fund additional expansions as well.
Between 1810 and 1820, the Mission site grew to include cabins, mill wheels, and a granary. The
quadrangle was also completed and the portico on the convento wing was renovated, changing the
shape of the adobe columns from their original square profile to a round column. In 1820, the
Mission’s bells were installed. Mission San Luis Obispo’s combination of belfry and vestibule is unique
among California missions.
Plot Plan Mission San Luis Obispo.
Source: Historic American Buildings Survey, 1936.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
23
Mission San Luis Obispo flourished from the beginning, and it became one of the most industrious
and prosperous of all the missions.23 In 1774 and 1776, expeditions led by Juan Bautista de Anza
came through San Luis Obispo, en route to establishing a land route from Sonora, Mexico to
Monterey. The explorers were welcomed at the Mission, and reported the fertile lands and pretty
fields in the region.
The area surrounding the Mission grew and flourished during this period as well. Orchards and
vineyards were established, and the land cultivated for agriculture. Other adobe structures were
constructed, and by 1805 there were approximately forty residential structures and a hospital in San
Luis Obispo.24 The Mission also included a cemetery, which has had three locations in its history. The
original cemetery was located immediately outside the Mission quadrangle. The second location
fronted Higuera Street, at the end of Carmel and Pacific Streets, and was active after 1860. In 1877,
the city passed a law prohibiting burials inside the city limits, and the current Mission Cemetery at
Bridge Street and Higuera Street opened that same year.
23 W.W. Robinson, The Story of San Luis Obispo County. Los Angeles, CA: Title Insurance and Trust Company, 1957, 8.
24 Paul Tritenbach, San Luis Obispo Discoveries. San Luis Obispo, CA: Excellence Press, 1989, 12.
Images reflecting the changes in appearance of Mission San Luis Obispo over time.
Left Image: c. 1909; source: Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley.
Right Image: No Date; source Bancroft Library, University of California Berkeley.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
24
Mission San Luis Obispo and related outbuildings. Source: California Missions Resource Center.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
25
THEME: MISSION-ERA INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The establishment of the Mission had a profound effect on the development of San Luis Obispo and
the surrounding region. The missions were self-sufficient communities, and each included a church,
residences, and support facilities.
In the 1820s, the Mission’s prosperity began to decline and the buildings began to fall into disrepair,
aided by heavy rains and insufficient funding and manpower to rebuild. An earthquake in 1830 also
caused substantial damage. The front of the Mission Church had to be taken down for fear of
collapse, and by 1832 the belfry had already been demolished by rains and had to be reconstructed
(this time, of masonry). The decay of the Mission was further compounded by the takeover of the
Mission by the Mexican government after the Secularization Act in 1834, which rendered all mission
lands property of Mexico and subject to disposition. Mission lands were often sold; if not, they were
used for any purpose deemed necessary by the Mexican government. The San Luis Obispo Mission’s
convento wing served for a time as a school, as well as a jail and the first county courthouse.
San Luis Obispo was first planned on a Spanish Grid according to the Laws of the Indies, which were
the body of laws and regulations issued by Spain for the governance of its colonies outside Europe.
The laws were intended to guide the creation of new communities established by Spanish settlers and
missionaries and contained highly detailed regulations on the location, configuration, and construction
of settlements. The regulations were based on classical principles of architecture and planning and
San Luis Obispo Street Grid. Source: Adrianna Jordan, The Historical Influence of the Railroads on Urban Development
and Future Economic Potential in San Luis Obispo, online version p.33.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
26
called for a plan featuring a central plaza surrounded by a rectilinear grid of streets oriented to the
prevailing winds. As a result, communities constructed according to the laws are frequently situated on
a diagonal orientation rather than a true north-south orientation. In San Luis Obispo, the community
was first planned around the Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, which served as the town's central
plaza, and surrounding streets were constructed on an angle. Although the city center has expanded
over time and later development conforms to a rectilinear street grid, the historic core retains its
original plan and reflects the influence of these early principles.
Mission Era Institutional Development: Associated Property Types,
Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Institution
It is unlikely that any other extant structure or portion of a structure directly associated with the
Mission will be discovered. Remnant structures, landscape or hardscape features such as retaining
walls, and other infrastructure that was constructed as part of the Mission should also be considered
and evaluated under this theme. These include mission wall foundations and subterranean remnants
of the Mission orchard wall.25
Regardless of integrity, any extant property or feature would undoubtedly be considered a
resource under Criterion A/1/B.2 for its association with the historic events of Spanish mission
settlement in San Luis Obispo.26
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a resource must:
date from the period of significance; and
have a known association with Mission San Luis Obispo.
25 It is reported that some remnant features were identified near Broad Street at Highway 101 in a parking lot for the Mission Garden
Apartments.
26 Resources throughout the document are evaluated using National Register, California Register, and local criteria. Letters and numbers
associated with designation criteria are listed according to National Register, California Register, and local conventions (for example Criterion
A/1/B.2 refers to National Register Criterion A, California Register Criterion 1, and local Criterion B.2, all which refer to historic events).
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
27
Extant Examples
Mission San Luis Obispo, 751 Palm Street, 1812.
Photo 2012; source Historic Resources Group.
Mission San Luis Obispo Detail Views.
Photos 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
28
THEME: MISSION-ERA RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
The Mission and surrounding settlement was the first populated area in San Luis Obispo County.27
Residential properties from this period are primarily adobe construction undertaken by local Chumash
people. In 1991, the Getty Conservation Institute compiled a list of approximately 350 extant adobes,
out of more than 2,000 that were estimated to have been constructed in California.28 In the ensuing
thirty years, which include the Northridge Earthquake in 1994, additional adobe structures have been
lost. Most adobe structures in the Southwest have been abandoned, and only those that have had
continuous care have survived. Many of the surviving adobes are in ruins, or heavily altered, and
therefore do not retain their authenticity or historic integrity. San Luis Obispo has a collection of
extant adobes dating from the mission era through the late 19th century.
Mission-Era Residential Development: Associated Property Types,
Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Single-family Residence
San Luis Obispo has a small population of single-family residences that date to the Mission era.
A residential property from this period may be significant:
As a rare example of residential development associated with the Mission era; and as a rare
representation of the earliest European settlement in San Luis Obispo – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As a rare extant property that has a known association with an individual from the Spanish
settlement era, such as a Franciscan priest or Spanish official – Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person). Since
this property type is extremely rare, any property associated with such a person will likely be the
only local representation of the person’s influence or achievements.
As a rare remaining example of adobe construction from the period; any remaining examples
from this period would likely be individually significant as an example of this theme due to the
rarity of type – Criterion C/3/A.1, A.2 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Mission-era Residential Development theme.
Properties from this period are extremely rare and represent the earliest European settlement in San
Luis Obispo; therefore, a greater degree of alteration is acceptable and extant examples would likely
27 City of San Luis Obispo, “Completion Report: Historic Resources Survey,” July 1983, 16.
28 Steade R. Craigo, ‘‘To Do No Harm: Conserving, Preserving, and Maintaining Historic Adobe Structures.’’ Getty Conservation Institute:
http://www.getty.edu/conservation/publications_resources/pdf_publications/pdf/gsap_part2d.pdf. Accessed March 2013.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
29
retain eligibility for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, the California Register, and as
local landmarks.
Residential properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
A residential property significant under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design,
feeling, and association in order to convey the historic association with a significant person.
Residential properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain
integrity of location, materials, workmanship, and feeling. In general, the adobe walls should
remain largely intact, and the residence should retain the majority of the character-defining
features associated with an adobe structure of its age. Alterations that are consistent with upgrades
typically seen in early adobe structures, including later wood frame additions and replacement
windows within original window openings, are acceptable. It is expected that the setting will have
been compromised by later development.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a resource must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of adobe construction; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
Extant Examples
Mancilla/Freitas Adobe, 868 Chorro Street, c. 1800-1850. Photo 2014; source City of San Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Spanish Colonization/Mission Era
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
30
La Loma Adobe, 1590 Lizzie Street, 1780. Photo 2011; source San Luis Obispo Tribune.
Sauer-Adams Adobe, 964 Chorro Street, c. 1800; second story added 1860. Photo 2013; source City of San
Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Mexican Rule
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
31
CONTEXT: MEXICAN RULE (1822-1846)
After a long struggle, Mexico won its independence from Spain in 1821, and California land that had
been vested in the name of the King of Spain belonged to Mexico. The power of the priests and the
vast wealth of the missions were coveted by the new government, so steps were immediately taken to
supersede ecclesiastical power with secular authority. In 1824 and 1826, the Mexican government
passed laws suspending the pay of the priests and releasing all Native Americans from slavery. This act
was premature, as the new government was not equipped to handle the aftermath and the existence
of established settlements was threatened. The law was quickly repealed, and many of the Native
peoples were induced to return to the missions.
In the 1830s, there was renewed pressure on the Mexican government to secularize the missions. In
1833, the Mexican Congress passed the Act for the Secularization of the Missions of California, and in
1834 the governor issued orders for its enforcement which would take effect in 1835. This act sought
to do away with the supreme power of the priests, to release the lands held by the missions for
settlement, and to put the missions on the same footing as the parish churches. As a result, between
1834 and 1836 control of the California missions was transferred away from the Church. Lay
administrators, along with appointed parish priests, ran Mission San Luis Obispo from 1835-1845. In
1846, the Mission was sold to Petronillo Rios, ending the Franciscan era.
The secularization act specified that:
To each head of a family and all who were more than twenty years old, though without
families, a plot of ground not more than three hundred yards square nor less than one
hundred yards square was to be given from the mission lands. Sufficient land in common was
to be set aside for watering the cattle. Villages with roads were to be established and
corporation lands designated. Half of the movable property of the missions was to be
distributed to the Native Americans, and one-half of the seeds and roots and one-half of all
implements indispensable for agriculture. The other half of all property mentioned was to be
in the care of an agent, or steward, named by the supreme government, and from the
common mass of property, the expenses of missionary work, the stewards, churches, schools,
cleanliness and health were to be met.29
In the 1830s and 1840s, California governors granted lands for ranchos throughout San Luis Obispo
County, as it was determined that vast mission lands were no longer needed for ranching and
agricultural purposes. Vast grants were given to wealthy families or military officers as a reward for
their service to the Mexican government. However, the conveyance of land from the Mexican
government was a complicated process that took years to formalize. The era of Mexican governance
29 Annie L. Morrison and John H. Haydon, History of San Luis Obispo County and Environs, California, with Biographical Sketches of the
Leading Men and Women of the County and Environs Who Have Been Identified with the Growth and Development of the Section from
the Early Days to the Present History, Los Angeles: Historic Record Company, 1917, 35.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Mexican Rule
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
32
proved to be a short transitional phase lasting less than a generation between the earlier Spanish
mission period and the American settlement period that followed.
During the era of Mexican rule, there were approximately thirty ranchos within San Luis Obispo
County. Several of the owners of surrounding ranchos played significant roles in the development of
the City of San Luis Obispo. Miguel Avila was granted Rancho San Miguelito in 1842, and served as
one of San Luis Obispo’s earliest alcaldes, or municipal magistrates, in 1849. The ranch land extended
to Avila Beach, which now bears his name. William Goodwin Dana was a former Yankee sea captain
who became one of the first settlers of San Luis Obispo outside the mission. He became a Mexican
citizen in order to marry into a prominent Mexican family and was subsequently granted the deed to
Rancho Nipomo in the 1830s. Many of Dana’s thirteen children went on to become prominent
members of San Luis Obispo society. Joaquin Estrada received the grant to Rancho Santa Margarita in
1841 and went on to be elected to San Luis Obispo County’s first Board of Supervisors in 1852, later
serving as County Treasurer.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Mexican Rule
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
33
THEME: MEXICAN-ERA RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
Residential development from this period will largely be associated with the Mexican ranchos. Due to
the relatively narrow time frame, it is not anticipated that there will be a significant number of extant
resources associated with the era of Mexican rule. Residential development during this period largely
followed patterns established during the Mission era, and therefore it is anticipated that resources from
this period will largely consist of single-family properties constructed of adobe and simple, wood-frame
structures.
Mexican-Era Residential Development: Associated Property Types,
Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Single-family Residence
Residential properties from this period are extremely rare, and may be significant:
As a rare extant representation of the early settlement of the region, or for a specific association
with the development of a Mexican rancho – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
For its association with the life of a significant early resident – Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person).
As a rare remaining example of adobe construction or an early wood frame structure; any
remaining examples from this period would likely be individually significant as an example of this
theme – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Mexican-era Residential Development theme.
Properties from this period are rare and represent some of the earliest development in San Luis
Obispo; therefore a greater degree of alteration may be acceptable.
Residential properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
A residential property significant under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design,
feeling, and association in order to convey the historic association with a significant person.
Residential properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain
integrity of location, materials, workmanship, and feeling. Any remaining examples of adobe
construction from this period with fair integrity would likely be eligible. In general, the adobe walls
should remain largely intact and the residence should retain the majority of the character-defining
features associated with an adobe structure of its age. Alterations that are consistent with upgrades
typically seen in early adobe structures, including later additions constructed with wood framing
and replacement windows within original window openings, are acceptable. It is expected that the
setting will have been compromised by later development.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Mexican Rule
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
34
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of adobe construction; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
Extant Examples
Andrews Adobe, 1451 Andrews Street, 1830.
Photo date unknown; source San Luis Obispo County Regional Photograph Collection, Cal Poly
Special Collections.
Detail of Andrews Adobe, 1451
Andrews Street, 1830.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis
Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
35
CONTEXT: LATE 19TH CENTURY AMERICANIZATION &
TOWN SETTLEMENT (1846-1900)
The Mexican-American War took place between 1846 and 1848. In the years preceding the war, the
United States, fueled by new technological breakthroughs and inspired by the concept of "manifest
destiny," confidently expanded its territories westward. A border skirmish along the Rio Grande in the
wake of the U.S. annexation of Texas started the fighting, which was quickly followed by a series of
U.S. victories. Fighting continued until September of 1847; the war ended in 1848 with the Treaty of
Guadalupe-Hidalgo. As a result of the Treaty, Mexico ceded nearly half of its territory to the United
States, including resource-rich California, while promising that existing Mexican land divisions,
including the ranchos, would be respected.
In 1850, the California territory became a state. That same year, the County of San Luis Obispo was
established as one of the State’s original 27 counties, with a population of 300 people.30 In 1868, San
Luis Obispo was confirmed as the County seat. The City’s population at that time was 600 residents
living within one square mile of the town center.31 The City of San Luis Obispo was incorporated in
1876.
30 Robinson, The Story of San Luis Obispo County.
31 City of San Luis Obispo, “Completion Report: Historic Resources Survey,” July, 1983, 18.
Map of San Luis Obispo, 1877.
Map Maker: E.S. Glover. Source: raremaps.com
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
36
In 1851, Congress passed the California Land Act, which created a three-member commission
charged with reviewing all land claims and settling disputes of land ownership between settlers and
Mexican landowners, many of whom had been gifted parcels of land by the Spanish and Mexican
governments. Unless landowners could present evidence supporting their claim to the land within two
years, the property would automatically pass into the public domain. However, making a claim for
land was an expensive and lengthy process which most Mexican landowners could ill afford.
Hampered by the vague and informal systems of record-keeping used in the past, many Mexican
landowners were bankrupted by the legal process or compelled to cede the land to their attorney as
payment for services rendered in fighting the land claim. The implementation of the Land Act served
as one of the catalysts for a “fracturing of rural lands into smaller parcels and the increase of rural in-
migration into the City of San Luis Obispo.”32
Mission San Luis Obispo was claimed by John Wilson by right of purchase, but Bishop Joseph
Alemany petitioned the government to return approximately 52.72 acres of former mission land to
the Church. In 1855, the United States Land Commission upheld the Church’s claim, and the Church
re-established ownership of the remaining buildings, cemeteries, and gardens associated with the
Mission.33 All other acreage previously farmed by the Mission was divided into ranchos, none of which
are located within the present City boundary. In 1874, the portion of Mission lands south of the creek
was laid out in town lots and sold.
This change in ownership marked a period of dramatic transformation for the Mission, and renovation
efforts began in 1872 to repair and “modernize” the Mission buildings. Due to extensive earthquake
damage, however, the Church’s portico and belfry could not be saved. The colonnade marking the
convento wing was also demolished, and both the convento wing and the church were clad in
wooden clapboard siding. A new “New England” style belfry was also added and parts of the tile roof
were covered in shingles. In 1893, the Church was also enlarged with an annex situated north of the
Nave and constructed of concrete and brick.
Agricultural development during this period was centered around activity on the ranchos. The
prosperous ranchos began to decline in the 1850s as a result of the Land Act; this decline continued
into the 1860s when the region suffered a severe drought that lasted from 1862 to 1864. Many of
the cattle ranches were forced to sell as a result of the drought, and the primary agricultural activity
began to shift to dairy farming. At the same time, the many of the land grant families were forced to
sell their land to European-American entrepreneurs who saw opportunity in the region during this
period.
As a result, by the late 1860s the population of San Luis Obispo expanded and housing demand
outweighed supply.34 Significant civic improvements included the construction of the first bridge across
32 City of San Luis Obispo, “Draft Historical and Architectural Conservation Element,” n.d., 11.
33 Robinson, The Story of San Luis Obispo County, 8.
34 Nettles, “The Copeland Project,” 55.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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37
San Luis Obispo Creek in 1868, followed by bridges across Mill, Court, Morro, Chorro, Nipomo, and
Broad Streets by 1871. The City also installed sidewalks and planted street trees. To meet the
increased demand for housing, additional tracts of land were purchased and improved, and new
subdivisions became part of the City. By the early 1880s, there were approximately 3,000 people
living within the City limits.35 By this time, gas and water works had been installed and a fire company
organized, and several bonds had been issued to erect town buildings. In 1872, Dr. Hays, C. W. Dana,
and M. Benrino obtained a franchise for water works; the next year A. M. Loomis and Alfred Walker
bought the franchise and started to work on improvements. A small reservoir was built on Murray Hill,
about a mile and a half north of the town, and water was brought in a flume from the upper San Luis
Creek. In 1874, the San Luis Obispo Water Company was formed. In 1876, a large reservoir was built
in the Stenner Creek canyon.36 In the late 19th century, the City embarked on significant upgrades to
the sewer system, which previously had largely been accommodated by San Luis Obispo Creek. In
1892, a sewer system was installed, which was upgraded in 1899. At the same time, the City
embarked on improvements to San Luis Obispo Creek. Concrete retaining walls were added to help
control the creek, allowing for the expansion of commercial development along Higuera Street.
35 Myron Angel, History of San Luis Obispo County. Oakland, CA: Thompson and West, 1883.
36 Subsequent reservoirs were built to increase capacity in the mid-1880s and again in 1910.
Port San Luis Obispo Lighthouse, Signal Building, and Keeper’s Dwelling.
Photo date unknown; source Coast Guard Museum Northwest.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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During the late 1870s, improvements in transportation and coastal access influenced the development
of San Luis Obispo. Construction began on the Point San Luis Lighthouse in 1889, and it was
officially put into service and lit for the first time on June 30, 1890. The lighthouse operated
continuously for the next eighty years; the site notably served as a radio listening station during World
War II.37 During this period, expansion of rail service through the region resulted in growth in what
had been a relatively isolated area. In 1894, the southbound extension of the Southern Pacific
Railroad was completed. A passenger depot was established across town from the Pacific Coast Depot
near the Southern Pacific Railroad main line. The railroad operated until 1942.
There was an influx of new residential, commercial, and civic development in the late 1870s and
1880s. Transportation improvements continued in the 1890s, with the southbound extension of the
Southern Pacific Railroad. Institutional development during this period included the establishment of
the first newspapers in the region. The first newspaper published in the county was The Pioneer of
San Luis Obispo. The editor and owner was Rome G. Vickars, and the first issue was January 4, 1868.
The Pioneer was a Democratic paper, so the Republicans founded the rival San Luis Obispo Tribune
in 1869 under the ownership of H. S. Rembaugh & Company. In 1880, publisher H.H. Doyle
debuted The Mirror from offices on Court Street between Higuera and Monterey Streets, which were
later used by The Breeze Publishing Company. The Telegram was first published in 1905.
37 In 1974, the lighthouse was closed by the United States Coast Guard, and the site was abandoned and fell into disrepair. In 1992, the
Point San Luis Harbor District acquired the site from the United States government, with the understanding that the lighthouse would be
restored and opened to the public. In 1995, the nonprofit Point San Luis Lighthouse Keepers was formed to assist in the restoration of the
lighthouse.
Port San Luis Obispo Lighthouse.
Photo date unknown; source Coast Guard Museum
Northwest.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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39
Due to the presence of the Mission San Luis Obispo and the recent adoption of San Luis Obispo as
the County Seat, the town had become the focal point for economic and administrative activity in the
region. Many of its prominent early residents were active in civic and government affairs. One of San
Luis Obispo’s most influential early residents was Charles H. Johnson, a successful San Francisco
mercantile owner who relocated to San Luis Obispo in 1856. He first worked as Inspector of Customs
for the Port San Luis before being elected to the California State Assembly in 1860. When the town
government of San Luis Obispo was organized in 1859, he was elected president of the Board of
Trustees. Johnson was also a devoted historian of San Luis Obispo history, frequently writing and
lecturing on the early days of the county. Many of the significant early histories of San Luis Obispo
draw heavily from his work.
Several of pioneer William Goodwin Dana’s children became active in the civic affairs of San Luis
Obispo during this time. Charles William Dana served in multiple elected offices including the
California State Assembly, the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors, and as mayor of San
Luis Obispo in 1881. William Charles Dana served as County Treasurer and was active in the San
Luis Obispo Republican party. Businessman Samuel A. Pollard, son-in-law of William Dana, also
served at times as County Recorder, County Clerk, Justice of the Peace, and County Administrator.
He was later elected Chairman of the county’s first Board of Supervisors and also served as the
county’s first postmaster.
Other influential pioneers included Myron Angel, a historian and journalist who wrote several early
regional histories; he was also one of the earliest and most vocal supporters of the effort to establish
the California Polytechnic School in San Luis Obispo. J. P. Andrews, an entrepreneurial rancher, made
View of Southern Pacific Railroad coming through Cuesta Grade, 1937.
Source: San Luis Obispo Tribune.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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his fortune during the drought of 1862-1864 and later went on to open the Andrews Hotel in 1886,
and the Andrews Bank in 1894. Pierre Hypolite Dallidet constructed the Dallidet adobe in 1859 and
was also the first commercial vintner on the central coast, producing wine for the mission community.
Walter Murray was an attorney, a district court judge, and co-founder of the San Luis Obispo Tribune;
he was also instrumental in forming the Vigilance Committee in 1858 to combat the county’s rampant
crime rates. Chauncey Phillips was a tax collector who co-founded San Luis Obispo’s first bank (later
known as the Bank of San Luis Obispo) in 1871 and served as its manager. Following his retirement
from the banking industry, he became a prominent real estate developer and was instrumental in
lobbying Southern Pacific Railroad to extend the line into San Luis Obispo. William Shipsey was an
attorney and notary who first served as the City Attorney before being elected mayor in 1900. During
his term as mayor, Shipsey revamped the bankrupt City’s finances and spearheaded efforts to locate
the California Polytechnic School in San Luis Obispo.
Early retailers and businessmen included brothers George and Andrew Sauer, who operated the A.
Sauer & Company grocery and bakery. The three Sinsheimer brothers, Bernard, Henry, and A. Z., also
operated a mercantile in a distinctive building on Monterey Street. William Sandercock operated a
drayage company, Sandercock Transfer Company, which delivered freight for the Pacific Coast
Railway and made deliveries to local businesses. German immigrant George Kluver founded the
Kluver & Sons Pioneer Cigar Factory, marketing the company’s own “Pioneer” brand of cigars. Kluver
held one of the earliest federal permits to manufacture cigars in California.
Left mage: Sandercock Transfer Building, 856 Higuera Street, 1890. Right image: Kluver Cigar Factory, 726 Higuera, 1897.
Both photos 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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41
There were several key individuals who played significant roles in the growing transportation industry
in San Luis Obispo County. John Harford founded the People’s Wharf at Avila Beach in 1869 and
later established the larger Port Harford at Point San Luis, which featured a horse-drawn railway for
transport. Charles Goodall, Christopher Nelson, and George Perkins formed the Pacific Coast Steam
Ship Company, which was instrumental in developing local railways within San Luis Obispo County.
The company also operated a fleet of steamships which made regular stops at Avila Beach for freight
and passengers.
Harford Pier, 1870s.
Source: Santa Maria Times.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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42
THEME: LATE 19TH CENTURY RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
Residential properties constructed in the last decades of the 19th century represent San Luis Obispo’s
establishment as a City. When the county was first organized, San Luis Obispo was the only
settlement in it, with a few small adobe buildings clustered around the Mission. By the early 1850s,
the main road running through the San Luis Obispo pueblo ran northeast to southwest, crossing San
Luis Obispo Creek below the Mission, at the end of what is now Dana Street. The pueblo became
part of the earliest neighborhoods during Americanization in the late 19th century. Neighborhoods
from this period are located close to the downtown commercial center, and many have already been
recognized by the City as historic districts.
Although adobe construction was still common, by the 1860s, wood frame construction was
becoming more prevalent. Although San Luis Obispo has a collection of high style residences
constructed in the late 19th century, most wood frame residences in San Luis Obispo during this
period were being designed within the vernacular vocabulary. The Mission Orchard Tract, which was
laid out in 1888 on land that originally belonged to the mission, is an example of a late 19th century
neighborhood largely developed with more modest housing, including cottages and Folk Victorian
examples. This period also saw the construction of prominent residences erected in architectural styles
representative of the period. Captain W. G. Dana erected the first frame building in the county on
Snyder House, 1406 Morro Street, 1885.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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43
Monterey Street from material brought from Chile. Captain John Wilson soon after erected a two-
story frame building on the lot where the public library now stands.
Railroad workers settled in San Luis Obispo and became the impetus for new residential development
in the city in the late 1880s. Although many workers opted to live in downtown San Luis Obispo,
development in general shifted towards the eastern and southern boundaries of the city and focused
on tracts adjacent to the Southern Pacific right-of-way. The Loomis, McBride, and Homestead tracts,
developed in 1887, were especially popular with railroad workers due to their proximity to the
Southern Pacific rail yard and service facilities.38
As railroad activity expanded toward the end of the 19th century, the needs of the growing employee
population sparked a demand for increased worker housing. The neighborhoods immediately adjacent
to the railroad station were developed with relatively modest single-family residences to accommodate
the growing influx of workers.39 A popular area was the Imperial Addition tract, which was developed
in 1891 and was conveniently located near the Southern Pacific roundhouse. The neighborhood
eventually became known as “Little Italy” due to the high concentration of Italian railroad workers
who resided there.
In order to continue railroad expansion during this period, many prominent land-holders along the
railroad route granted rights-of-way; this included the Dana family in San Luis Obispo. Establishing a
right-of-way for the railroad significantly impacted the landscape of San Luis Obispo. While many new
subdivisions were developed, existing subdivisions were drastically altered and streets and other access
routes were destroyed to create at-grade crossings. The existing configuration of the city was essentially
cut in half, and several subdivisions had to be re-platted, including the Central Addition and the
Loomis tract.
38 Hemalata Dandekar and Adrianna Jordan, “The Railroads and San Luis Obispo’s Urban Form,” Focus, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Volume
XVII, 2010, 48.
39 Robert Pavlik, “A Railroad Runs through It: The San Luis Obispo Southern Pacific Railroad Historic District,” n.d. Website:
http://www.heritageshared.org/docs/essays/roadscholars/roadscholars.html. Accessed March 2013.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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1. Phillips Addition (1874)
2. Deleissigues Tract (1876)
3. Buena Vista Tract (1885)
4. Loomis Tract (1887)
5. Deleissigues Subdivision (1887)
6. McBride Tract (1887)
7. Homestead Tract (1887)
8. Hathway Addition (1887)
9. Buena Vista Addition (1887)
10. Fairview Addition (1887)
11. Deleissigues Addition (Block 5)
(1887)
12. Central Addition (1888)
13. Maymont Addition (1889)
14. Schwartz Addition (1889)
15. South Side Addition (1891)
16. Imperial Addition (1891)
Map showing land annexations along the proposed right-of-way for the Southern Pacific Railroad, 1874-
1891.
Source: Adrianna Jordan, The Historical Influence of the Railroads on Urban Development and Future Economic
Potential in San Luis Obispo, online version, p. 35.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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Most residences constructed in San Luis Obispo during this period were examples of vernacular
hipped roof cottages or Neo-classical cottages. There are also examples of more elaborate, high style
residences, although they are not the most prevalent type during this period.
In 1875, San Luis Obispo attorney De Guy Cooper wrote:
We can boast of some very fine private residences. Heretofore, the style of architecture has
been of a rather primitive nature; but latterly there has been a marked improvement in this
particular area, and buildings erected within the past year have been of a better nature, and of
a more permanent character.40
Residents who were building more opulent homes during this period often chose styles that were
popular in other parts of the country, including Queen Anne, Eastlake, and Italianate styles. These
large two- and three-story homes often had elaborate scrollwork and other decorative details. They
were constructed beginning in the 1870s, and these styles remained popular until the turn of the 20th
century. Local architects associated with this period include William Evans, Hilamon Spencer Laird,
W.C. Phillips, and Alfred Walker.41
40 De Guy Cooper, “Resources of San Luis Obispo County,” reprinted in A Vast Pictorial Domain: San Luis Obispo County in the 1870s,
1993, 17. Quoted in Robert C. Pavlik, “Historical Architectural Survey Report for the Cuesta Grade Project,” California Department of
Transportation, October 1994.
41 The vernacular nature of most residential development during this period indicates that most homes were designed without the use of an
architect. The architect identified in this section is based on information available in existing surveys; additional research should be conducted
to identify other architects from this period.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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46
Late 19th Century Residential Development: Associated Property
Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Single-family Residence; Historic District
A residential property from this period may be significant:
As an increasingly rare example of late-19th century residential development -- Criterion A/1/B.2
(Event).
For its association with a significant person in San Luis Obispo’s early history -- Criterion B/2/B.1
(Person).
As a rare remaining example of adobe residential construction -- Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
As a good or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with the period -- Criterion
C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
A collection of residences from this period that are linked geographically may be eligible as a
historic district.
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Late 19th Century Residential Development
theme.
Residential properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
A residential property significant under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design,
feeling, and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a significant
person.
Residential properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain
integrity of location, materials, workmanship, and feeling. Any remaining examples of adobe
construction from this period with fair integrity would likely be eligible. In general, the adobe walls
should remain largely intact and the residence should retain the majority of the character-defining
features associated with an adobe structure of its age. Alterations that are consistent with upgrades
typically seen in early adobe structures, including later additions constructed with wood framing
and replacement windows within original window openings, are acceptable. It is expected that the
setting will have been compromised by later development. Wood frame buildings from this period
should retain good integrity, although minor alterations are acceptable.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
Extant Examples
Hays-Latimer Adobe, 642 Monterey Street, 1860.
Left image: Date unknown; source Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Special Collections.
Right image: 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Dallidet Adobe, 1185 Pacific Avenue, 1860.
Left image: Date unknown; source San Luis Obispo County Historical Society.
Right image: 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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Railroad Cottage, 1127 George Street, 1900.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Baker House, 1636 Morro Street, 1900.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Righetti House, 1314 Palm Street, 1877.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo. Anderson House, 532 Dana Street, 1898.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Mancilla/Freitas Adobe, 868 Chorro Street, c. 1800-
1850. Photo of rehabilitation 2014; source City of San Luis
Obispo.
Rosa Butron Adobe, 466 Dana Street, 1860.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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THEME: LATE 19TH CENTURY COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT
There was no formal plan established for the growth of San Luis Obispo during the Mission era. The
original Spanish pueblo conformed to the Laws of the Indies and the natural topography, and
commercial development generally grew outward from the Mission. During this period, Monterey
Street developed as a transportation corridor and commercial thoroughfare.42 In 1850, William Hutton
was authorized to survey and layout the town of San Luis Obispo in an American grid pattern.43 By
the 1880s, Sanborn Fire Insurance maps document significant commercial development along
Higuera, Monterey, and Chorro Streets.
42 Myron Angel, History of San Luis Obispo County. Oakland, CA: Thompson and West, 1883.
43 Nettles, “The Copeland Project,” 54.
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map, 1886.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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During this period significant financial institutions were established in San Luis Obispo. The first was
the Bank of San Luis Obispo in 1871; its permanent home was constructed on the northeast corner of
Monterey and Court Streets in 1881. The Commercial Bank was organized in March, 1888. Its first
location was on Monterey Street; in 1899, it moved to the southeast corner of Chorro and Higuera
Streets. Other significant commercial ventures were established during this period by some of San Luis
Obispo’s most prominent residents. J.P. Andrews constructed a second hotel in downtown San Luis
Obispo following the fire at the original Andrews Hotel. He also established a bank on the corner of
Monterey and Osos Street which was constructed of brick, with granite and terracotta details. The
Sinsheimer Brothers was founded in 1876 by Bernard and Henry Sinsheimer. The Sinsheimer Brothers
building was completed in December of 1884. The first floor was a general store dealing in dry goods,
groceries, and clothing; offices were housed at the rear of the building and on the second floor.
Bank of San Luis Obispo, Monterey and Court Streets, 1881.
Photo c. 1890; source San Luis Obispo County Historical Society.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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Andrews Bank Building, 998 Monterey, 1894.
Left image: Date unknown; source Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Special Collections.
Right image: 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
On April 18, 1886, the Andrews Hotel burned to the ground along with the Bank of San Luis Obispo,
the post office, the town's principal livery stable, and a number of small shops and offices. As a result
of the loss of the Andrews Hotel, the newly formed California Southern Hotel Company constructed
the grand Ramona Hotel in 1888 to provide accommodations for railroad passengers. The financial
panic of 1893 and the depression that followed it impacted the railroad and the commercial
development in San Luis Obispo. After reorganizing its management, the hotel reopened in 1895 to
great fanfare. In1905, the Ramona Hotel was completely destroyed by fire.
Sinsheimer Brothers, 849 Monterey Street, 1884.
Photo c. early 20th century; source Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Special Collections.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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According to historic Sanborn maps, a series of brothels, known as "female boarding houses," were
constructed on Morro Street near Palm Street sometime between 1874 and 1886. The buildings were
owned by Mrs. Nancy Emeline Call, a widow who began to invest in real estate following her
husband Silas Call's death in 1880. Although it is unclear if Mrs. Call knew that her tenants were
engaging in prostitution, proprietors of the houses were frequently arrested for liquor offenses and the
properties were regularly cited in the local newspaper. By 1895, the Progressive movement had begun
to take hold in San Luis Obispo and there was growing opposition to the operation of the houses only
one block north of Monterey Street, the town's main thoroughfare. Mrs. Call herself was arrested
twice in 1895 and charged with knowingly renting houses for purposes of prostitution; she was found
guilty at the first trial and was acquitted at the second. By 1900, citizens began to petition the San
Luis Obispo City Council to close down the brothels, and Sanborn maps confirm that the female
boarding houses were demolished by 1903.
Commercial development during this period was in a transitional state: there were still modest adobes
being constructed, along with the grand railroad hotels and more elaborate banks and other businesses
that were populating the commercial core. Wood frame and brick construction were becoming more
prevalent, and more elaborate details and materials were used. Commercial architectural styles
represented in San Luis Obispo during this period include Commercial Vernacular, Italianate, and
Romanesque Revival. Local architects associated with this period include William Evans, Hilamon
Spencer Laird, W.C. Phillips, and Alfred Walker.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
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Late 19th Century Commercial Development: Associated Property
Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Commercial Building; Historic District
Examples of commercial buildings from this period may include markets, hotels, and low-rise
storefront buildings. Examples range from modest one-story commercial storefronts, many with
pioneer “false fronts,” to more elaborate two-story banks and hotels. The commercial center continued
to grow along with the City’s population. Commercial buildings constructed during this period are
located within the downtown center and represent some of the earliest extant commercial buildings
that represent the establishment of San Luis Obispo as a City.
A commercial property from this period may be significant:
As a rare, intact example of late 19th century commercial development – Criterion A/1/B.2
(Event).
For its association with the city's original commercial core – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As a rare remaining example of adobe commercial construction – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
As a good or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with the period – Criterion
C/3/A.1/A.2 (Design/Construction).
A collection of commercial buildings from this period that are linked geographically may be
eligible as a historic district.
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Late 19th Century Commercial Development
theme.
Commercial properties from this period eligible under Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
Commercial properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should
retain integrity of location, materials, workmanship, and feeling. Any remaining examples of adobe
construction from this period with fair integrity would likely be eligible. In general, the adobe walls
should remain largely intact and the building should retain the majority of the character-defining
features associated with an adobe structure of its age.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
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Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of its style and/or method of construction; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
Extant Examples
Goldtree Block-Hotel Wineman, 849 Higuera Street,
1883. Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Call Hotel, 1703 Santa Barbara Street, 1895.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Sinsheimer Brothers, 849 Monterey Street, 1884.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Dughi Building, 1029 Chorro Street, 1885.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
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THEME: LATE 19TH CENTURY CIVIC & INSTITUTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
During this period, the City’s civic and institutional development began in earnest. Prior to this period,
rooms in the Mission served a wide variety of civic functions, including jails, court, and barracks. San
Luis Obispo was the location of the first public school in the County, which was established in the
early 1850s and originally housed in the Mission. The first official post office in the county was
established at San Luis Obispo in 1856, with Alexander Murray as postmaster. In 1871, Walter
Murray, editor of the San Luis Obispo Tribune opined that:
…beyond a good jail44 we really have nothing to show for the large revenue annually drawn
from the taxpayers. San Luis Obispo should be possessed of a decent courthouse, yet when
the county and district court happen in session together, one or the other has to go
gerrymandering about town to find a room to sit in. This was the case last month and
doubtless will be again. The old adobe building called a courthouse is a marvel of
repulsiveness, and that court room with its wretched appointments is a disgrace to the
county.45
As a result of Murray’s editorial, and with the support of other progressive citizens, in 1872 County
supervisors allocated funds for a courthouse and jail. J. P. Andrews and Ernest Cerf donated the land
for the construction of a courthouse. The San Luis Obispo Water Company was established in 1874.
Water was transported by a 2-mile open flume that brought water to the City’s reservoir; from there it
was distributed to properties in the town center via pipes that ran beneath the primary streets in the
City.
44 Located on Palm Street.
45 San Luis Obispo Tribune, 1871.
San Luis Obispo County Courthouse
with Andrews Hotel in background,
Osos and Monterey Streets, 1873.
Photo 1915; source Cal Poly San Luis
Obispo Special Collections.
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56
Numerous social and fraternal institutions were established during this period. The Oddfellows Hall
was constructed on the southwest corner of Monterey and Court Streets between 1870 and 1874.
The Masonic lodge was organized in San Luis Obispo in 1861. The first I. O. O. F. lodge in the county
was instituted in 1870 and named Chorro Lodge. A Rebekah Lodge was established in 1877. The first
hospital was completed in 1878, and the original City Hall was constructed in 1879.46
Other institutions established during this period include the included the Methodist Episcopal Church,
constructed in 1873 on Garden Street, which was the first Protestant church in the county.47 In 1874,
the first Presbyterian services were held in San Luis Obispo; a church was erected in 1884 on the
corner or Morro and Marsh Streets.48
In the fall of 1876, Mission School, which later became known as the Court School was constructed
on the corner Mill and Santa Rosa Streets, on land donated by J.P. Andrews specifically for the
construction of a school. That same year, the Convent School, operated by the Sisters of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary, was established on ground that was once part of the Mission lands.
46 Despite the proliferation of social and fraternal institutions during this period, it appears that the Oddfellows Hall may
be the earliest extant property associated with the City’s social and fraternal institutional development during this period.
47 Morrison and Haydon, History of San Luis Obispo County and Environs, 128.
48 This building was later moved to the adjoining lot and was used for social meetings, and Sunday school; in 1905 a
new church building was constructed.
Court School, Mill and Santa Rosa Streets, 1876. Photo 1917; source Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Special Collections.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Late 19th Century
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Late 19th Century Civic & Institutional Development: Associated
Property Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Civic or Institutional Building or Structure
Examples of civic and institutional buildings from this period include courthouses, post offices, libraries,
schools, a sanitarium, and buildings associated with public infrastructure agencies such as those
providing power and water. Non-governmental institutional buildings include churches, meeting halls,
and other buildings associated with social organizations. Civic and institutional buildings from this
period represent some of the earliest institutional development in San Luis Obispo, and represent the
establishment of San Luis Obispo as a City and the County seat.
A civic or institutional property from this period may be significant:
As a rare example of civic or institutional development from the period; for its association with an
important religious, social, cultural, or civic institution – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As a good or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with its period – Criterion
C/3/A.1, A.2 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Late 19th Century Civic & Institutional
Development theme.
Civic and institutional properties significant under Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity of
location, design, feeling, and association.
Civic and institutional properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction)
should retain integrity of location, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of its architectural style and/or method of
construction; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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For listing in the National Register of Historic Places, religious properties must meet Criteria
Consideration A, which states that a religious property is eligible if it derives its primary
significance from architectural or artistic distinction or historical importance.49
Extant Examples
49 National Register Bulletin 15.
St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, 1344 Nipomo Street, 1873.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Hageman Sanitarium, 1716 Osos Street, 1885.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
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THEME: LATE 19TH CENTURY AGRICULTURAL & INDUSTRIAL
DEVELOPMENT
The Mexican ranchos were used for farming and raising cattle, a tradition that continued as Americans
settled in the area in the late 19th century. San Luis Obispo County was an important agricultural
center in California, with farming, including vineyards, and ranching forming a significant part of the
local economy. In 1858, a French Army “soldier of fortune” named Pierre Hippolyte Dallidet settled in
San Luis Obispo. He built an adobe home on the grounds of the Mission San Luis Obispo and
purchased the failing vines of the Mission San Miguel Arcangel. Dallidet is credited with revitalizing
the wine industry in San Luis Obispo County that had begun during the Mission era.50
Wool, flour, and dairy products were important income-producers for the region, and beans were also
a valuable crop, grown primarily to the south of the city. However, wheat and barley were the most
significant agricultural crops for the region in the late 1800s. Several mills were constructed to process
the grains from nearby ranchos and increase the area’s cultivation of wheat. Production increased with
50 Dallidet’s adobe home and its restoration was the impetus for the foundation of the San Luis Obispo County Historical Society in 1953.
Source: “History of the San Luis Obispo County Historical Society,” website (http://www.slochs.org/history.asp). Accessed January 2013.
Long/Bonetti Ranch, 3897 South Higuera Street, established 1880.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
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the introduction of steam-powered mills in the 1870s. Significant local mills included the Chorro Mill,
an early water-powered commercial mill, and the Eagle Mill, a steam-powered mill which produced
both flour and barley. The Pacific Coast Railway provided access for shipping these products to other
markets, enabling the local economy during this period.
A severe drought in 1862 marked a dramatic shift in the agricultural development of San Luis Obispo.
The drought lasted for three years, killing most of the rancheros’ cattle and destroying the majority of
the crops grown in the region. Many rancheros could not afford to replenish their livestock and
replant their crops and many sold their ranch land at a loss to dairy farmers seeking grazing land for
their herds. The first dairy farmers to capitalize on the deal were the Steele Brothers, who moved their
herd from Marin County to the Corral de Piedra rancho in 1864. A dairy boom was ignited and
several prominent creameries and cheese factories were established in San Luis Obispo. Many of these
operations continued to flourish throughout the early 1900s.
The Pacific Coast Railway provided access for shipping agricultural products to other markets, enabling
the local economy during this period. As San Luis Obispo continued to grow throughout the mid-
1800s, industrialization began to play a more important role in the economy of the city. Several
commercial mills were established in the second half of the century that processed grains and wood.
The first mill outside the mission was constructed by the Branch Brothers around 1854. The grist mill
was located on the Arroyo Grande and processed grain from the southern ranchos. As San Luis
Obispo was the only major settlement in the area, many ranchers would bring their grains into the city
to be milled, at times traveling from up to forty miles away.
In 1868, Pollard, Childs, & Sauer constructed the El Chorro mill, a water-powered mill with a much
greater capacity than the Arroyo Grande, which the proprietors hoped would encourage wheat
cultivation in the region. In the 1870s, the introduction of local railroad lines allowed for crops to be
transported to the coast for trans-regional trade, and the demand for wheat production continued to
grow, along with the production of other grains. At the same time, recent technological innovations
allowed new mills to be designed using steam power, which allowed for a more efficient method of
milling and did not require the mill to be located near a water source. The technology was widely
adopted in San Luis Obispo in response to the increased demand for milling, and by 1883 there were
two water-powered grist mills in the city, four steam-powered grist mills, and two steam-powered
sawmills. Sawmills, including the Pacific Steam Sawmill, were introduced in San Luis Obispo as early
as 1869 to meet the building and construction needs of the city's growing population. Both the grist
and sawmilling industries continued to flourish throughout the late 1800s as rail transport and coastal
access expanded the market for regional goods.
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Late 19th Century Agricultural & Industrial Development:
Associated Property Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility
Standards
Property Types
Resources may consist of remnant rancho properties, along with grain and other warehouses, mills,
and other industrial types, and farmhouses and related outbuildings. Agricultural and industrial
resources from this period may be eligible under several 19th century themes.
A property associated with agricultural and industrial development during this period may be
significant:
As a rare example of early agricultural or industrial development in San Luis Obispo – Criterion
A/1/B.2 (Event).
As a rare example of adobe construction, or a good example of a vernacular, wood frame
farmhouse or industrial structure – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Late 19th Century Agricultural & Industrial
Development theme. Due to the rarity of type, a greater degree of alteration may be acceptable.
Agricultural properties significant under Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity of
location, design, feeling, and association. Remnant outbuildings may remain eligible in the absence
of the original farmhouse or other related buildings.
Agricultural properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should
retain integrity of location, design, materials, workmanship, and feeling. In general, the exterior
should be relatively unaltered, and the building should retain the majority of the character-defining
features associated its style and/or construction method. It is expected that the setting may have
been compromised by later development.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of its style and/or method of construction; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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Extant Examples
Long-Bonetti Ranch, 1880, 3897 South Higuera Street. Photo 2012; source Oasis Associates.
Barn at Froom Ranch. Photo 2013; source City of San Luis
Obispo.
Barn on Granada Drive. Photo 2013; source City of San Luis
Obispo.
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THEME: LATE 19TH CENTURY TRANSPORTATION-RELATED
DEVELOPMENT
There were significant advances in transportation during this period, enabling the local economy and
allowing for increased access to the region. Transportation-related development was centered on the
completion of the rail lines from northern and southern California through San Luis Obispo,
improvements to the harbor, the construction of roadways, including a road through the Cuesta Pass
in 1876, and the implementation of the streetcar system downtown. The horse-drawn street car
system was established in 1887, which provided important access between the Southern Pacific
Depot, downtown hotels such as the Ramona Hotel, and the Pacific Coast Railway.
Although San Luis Obispo had gained prominence as a regional hub for civic and economic activity by
the mid-1800s, the area’s overall economic growth was restricted due to its geographical isolation.
Due to the surrounding mountain ranges, transportation for goods and passengers was limited to
horseback, stagecoach, and wagon. In the 1850s and 1860s, wharfs were established at Avila Beach,
facilitating the transport of goods via steamship. However, the region still lacked an efficient method of
ground transportation to connect the economic activities of the coast with those further inland. In
1873, businessman John Harford organized the San Luis Obispo Railroad Company, which established
a new wharf, Point Harford, at Point San Luis and constructed a narrow-gauge, horse-powered railroad
connecting the new wharf to the mouth of San Luis Obispo Creek. The local railroad, which was
constructed on a 30-inch gauge, was one of the first narrow-gauge railroads in the state. The
Southern Pacific Railroad, Horseshoe Curve near San Luis Obispo.
Source: City of San Luis Obispo Profile, epondunk.com.
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development of the railroad and the growth of the harbor are intimately connected, as the new rail
line allowed farmers access to steamships for the export of goods.
In 1874, Harford’s facilities, including the railroad, were purchased by the Pacific Coast S. S.
Company. The Pacific Coast Company re-graded the land and relocated the railroad closer to the
water, constructing a new, wider-gauge track that could accommodate a steam engine. The company
also extended the new track all the way from Point Harford to San Luis Obispo, where a new rail
depot was constructed at the southwest corner of Higuera and South Streets. Completed in 1876, the
extension of the local line ended the land locking of San Luis Obispo’s economy, opening the area to
trans-regional trade with other ports along the California coast and increasing the marketability of the
region’s agricultural products. In 1881, the road was extended to Arroyo Grande; in April, 1882, it
reached Santa Maria, which was then called Central City; in October, 1882, it reached Los Alamos;
and in 1883 it was built to Los Olivos.
Map of the 30-inch gauge Horse Rail Road and 36-inch Narrow Gauge Railroad at Avila.
Source: Ships and Narrow Gauge Rails: The Story of the Pacific Coast Company.
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The Pacific Coast Depot was established at the lower end of Higuera Street in the 1870s. As a result,
the area around the depot was developed with other railroad-related facilities, including storage
facilities, freight sheds, and lumber yards. Despite having a major impact through the Central Coast
Region, the Pacific Coast Railway was a relatively small operation. It could not match the resources of
larger competitors and the company did not offer a direct link to major trade centers, such as San
Francisco or Los Angeles. The railroad’s reliance on an increasingly obsolete, non-standard gauge rail
also hastened the demise of the company, as it could not connect with other railroads using the
standard gauge, such as the Southern Pacific Railroad. Following the completion of the trans-
continental railroad in 1869 and the merger with Central Pacific Railroad in 1870, the Southern
Pacific Railroad dominated the California landscape, with a network of railways stretching across the
state.
By 1886, the Southern Pacific Railroad terminated at Santa Margarita, just north of San Luis Obispo.
For many years, expansion into San Luis Obispo was considered unlikely due to the costly and
dangerous prospect of constructing tracks across the Cuesta Grade, which called for the construction
of seven tunnels, a horseshoe curve, and a long steel trestle across Stenner Creek Canyon. However,
prominent San Luis Obispo businessmen formed a Board of Trade and lobbied strongly for a track
extension into the city.
Southern Pacific Trestle Bridge across Stenner Creek. Photo date unknown; source Cal Poly Special Collections.
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Although an agreement between the Southern Pacific Company and San Luis Obispo was not
officially reached until 1890, the prospect of the railroad’s expansion was enough to spur speculative
land development across the city throughout the late 1880s. In 1888, Southern Pacific began to
purchase land for a depot and machine shops as well as acquire property for a railway right-of-way
through the city. The Andrews Hotel, the Ramona Hotel, and the Central Addition subdivision in
which they were located were speculative ventures based purely on the arrival of the Southern Pacific
Railroad, which created an “instant tourism industry” in San Luis Obispo.51 The upscale Ramona Hotel
in particular relied heavily upon the presence of the railroad, constructing its own Southern Pacific
Train Depot. The hotels’ successes were short-lived: the Andrews Hotel was completely destroyed by
fire only seven months after opening in 1886; the Ramona Hotel, which opened in 1888, also burned
to the ground in 1905, although its depot remains.52
51 Dandekar and Jordan, “The Railroads and San Luis Obispo’s Urban Form,” 50.
52 The Ramona Hotel and its grounds originally occupied an entire City block bounded by what is now Higuera, Marsh, Johnson, and Pepper
Streets. When the Ramona Hotel was destroyed, the property was subdivided into residential lots.
Hotel Ramona, 1888. Photo 1905; source Cal Poly Special Collections.
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Construction on the extension of the Southern Pacific Railroad began in 1892 and was completed in
1894. The depot, roundhouse, and other facilities were completed by 1895. The first steam engine
arrived in San Luis Obispo on May 5, 1894, finally linking the city to San Francisco. At the same time,
the road from the south was underway, and on March 31, 1901trains could finally run all the way
from San Francisco to Los Angeles. The arrival of the railroad transformed the landscape of the city,
shifting the city’s economic center away from the historic core.53
Although there were numerous buildings and structures associated with the development of the
railroad in San Luis Obispo, remnant examples are increasingly rare. The Pacific Coast Railway grain
warehouse is the lone surviving building from the company’s headquarters. The building was the trans-
shipment port from farm wagon to local narrow gauge trains which led to steamer wharves at Port
Harford (now known as Port San Luis/Avila Beach). The grain storage warehouse was in continuous
use by the Pacific Coast Railway from its construction in the late 19th century through the closure of
the railroad in 1942. It is the only remaining grain storage warehouse in San Luis Obispo.
53 Dandekar and Jordan, “The Railroads and San Luis Obispo’s Urban Form,” 51.
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Late 19th Century Transportation-Related Development: Associated
Property Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Industrial Building
Examples of properties associated with railroad development during this period include rail stations
and their ancillary buildings, warehouses, rail yards, rail lines, and rail spurs. Some early industrial
buildings that were constructed in immediate proximity to rail lines and designed to take advantage of
rail technology may also be significant under this theme.
A property associated with transportation-related development during this period may be significant:
As a rare, intact example of railroad development from the late 19th century – Criterion A/1/ B.2
(Event).
As an industrial property directly associated with the development of the railroad in the area (e.g.
railroad warehouse) – Criterion A/1/ B.2 (Event).
As a rare or unique property type associated with the railroad – C/3/A.1, A.2
(Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Transportation-related Development theme. Early
railroad properties are increasingly rare, so a greater degree of alteration may be acceptable.
Transportation-related development significant under Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
Transportation-related development significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction) should retain integrity of location, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of its style and/or method of construction; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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Extant Examples
Southern Pacific Railroad Warehouse, 1940 Santa Barbara Avenue, c. 1895.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Pacific Coast Railway Company Grain Warehouse, 65 Higuera Street, late 19
th century.
Image on left: Unknown date before reconstruction; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Image on right: 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
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THEME: LATE 19TH CENTURY ETHNIC COMMUNITIES
In the late 19th century, several ethnic communities were established in San Luis Obispo, particularly
as work on the railroads increased. European groups, including Italian, Swiss-Italian, Scottish, Irish, and
Welsh settled in the area. The Imperial Addition tract, which was developed in 1891, and
conveniently located near the Southern Pacific roundhouse, eventually became known as “Little Italy”
due to the high concentration of Italian railroad workers who resided there. There was also a
Portuguese community who were part of the fishing industry at Morro Bay.
Chinese settlement in San Luis Obispo began during this period as well. Starting with the early years
of rail transport in the region, the development of the railroad and the extension of the track to San
Luis Obispo significantly influenced the growth of the city, particularly for the city’s Chinese
population. Most of the construction workers who laid the extension of the track were Chinese
immigrants recruited by Ah Louis, an early San Luis Obispo businessman and civic leader in the
Chinese community.
Ah Louis Store, 800 Palm Street, 1874. Photo c. 1900-1910; source Cal Poly Special Collections.
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Ah Louis would have a profound influence on the development of San Luis Obispo. Louis began
labor contracting in 1873, providing workers to build the railroad from Avila to Port Harford; he also
provided workers to help construct the Pacific Coast Railroad, and by 1877 he was bidding on road-
building contracts. In 1884, Louis contracted the Chinese labor that constructed the original railroad
tunnels through the Cuesta Grade for the Southern Pacific Railroad, a job that took ten years to
complete.54 The Ah Louis Store, which first opened in 1874, was the first Chinese commercial
establishment in the County. In 1885, Louis constructed a new store on the corner of Palm and
Chorro Streets which was at the center of the local Chinese community, serving as bank, supply
center, and employment office.
For the Pacific Coast Railroad, Louis recruited 160 Chinese Americans who traveled from San
Francisco via schooner.55 Many of the workers settled in San Luis Obispo’s growing Chinatown
neighborhood. As railroad lines were extended and the need for additional infrastructure increased,
Chinese laborers became the primary workforce for transportation construction. By 1870, San Luis
Obispo County contained the largest population of Chinese immigrants in the state.56
Properties associated with San Luis Obispo’s late 19th century ethnic communities are rare. Remaining
extant examples have largely already been identified as potential historic resources on the City’s
Master List or Contributing List, including eleven properties that were identified in 2008 for their
historic association with the local Italian community. A Chinatown Historic District was established in
1995 to recognize the important contributions of the Chinese community to the City’s history and
development. As originally developed, Chinatown is an enclave within the Downtown Historic
District, and extends one block along both sides of Palm Street between Chorro and Morro Streets.
Properties significant under the Ethnic Communities theme may also be associated with other
identified development themes.
54 “A History of Chinese Americans in California: Historic Sites,” from Five Views: An Ethnic Historic Site Survey for California. Available
online: http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/5views/5views3h2.htm. Accessed January 2013.
55 “Chinese History in SLO,” http://www.calpoly.edu/~aloh/garden/history.html. Accessed January 2013.
56 “Chinese History in SLO.”
Ah Louis advertisement, 1875.
Source San Luis Obispo Tribune.
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Late 19th Century Ethnic Communities: Associated Property Types,
Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Resources associated with ethnic communities during this period are extremely rare and may be
eligible under several 19th century themes. Properties may consist of single-family homes, churches,
meeting halls, and small neighborhood commercial buildings.
Property Types
Single-family residence; Multi-family residence; Commercial building; Institutional building; Historic
District
A property associated with an ethnic community during this period may be significant:
As a rare and recognizable remnant of a historic ethnic neighborhood – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As the gathering place of an important ethnic social, cultural, or religious institution – Criterion
A/1/B.2 (Event).
For its association with a person or event important to the history of a particular ethnic group
Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person).
As a good or rare example of a particular building type associated with an important ethnic group
– Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
A collection of properties associated with a specific ethnic group that are linked geographically
may be eligible as a historic district.
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Ethnic Communities theme. Properties associated
with important ethnic groups in San Luis Obispo’s history are rare, and therefore a greater degree of
alteration may be acceptable.
Properties that are eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity of location,
design, feeling, and association.
Properties that are eligible under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design,
feeling, and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a significant
person.
Properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain integrity of
location, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
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Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of its style and/or method of construction; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
Extant Examples
Ah Louis Store, 800 Palm Street, 1884. Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
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CONTEXT: EARLY 20TH CENTURY DEVELOPMENT (1900-1929)
In the early 20th century, the development of San Luis Obispo was characterized by three major
factors: the introduction of the Southern Pacific Railroad line, the founding of California Polytechnic
School, and the widespread use of the automobile. The former factors spurred a considerable increase
in population, but it was the latter factor – the automobile – that allowed urban planners to respond
to the increased population growth by expanding development outside of the central city. By 1920,
the City population had grown to 5,805 residents.57
In 1901, the California State Legislature authorized “An Act to Establish the California Polytechnic
School,” with the express stipulation that the school focus on agricultural and vocational training.
Construction began in early 1903, and in October of that year, California Polytechnic opened its
doors to welcome the first students. Initially, the school offered a secondary-level, three-year Course of
Study. By 1904, enrollment at the school had already tripled from twenty students to sixty. Enrollment
57 United States Census Data.
Panorama of San Luis Obispo from Terrace Hill, 1907. Source Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Special
Collections.
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at the school continued to increase, and by the end of its first decade Cal Poly’s student body had
grown to 176 students. The 1910s proved to be a challenging time for the school, as the compulsory
military training and the Selective Service Act saw 147 students join the armed services. Enrollment
dipped as many students went off to war, and those who remained behind participated in war relief
projects.
In the years following World War I, many veterans relocated to the area to take advantage of Cal
Poly’s vocational training. Faced with growing enrollment after the war, Cal Poly focused primarily on
developing its academic plan. The Course of Study program was extended from three years to four
years, and an Academic Department for college preparatory work was added to the original
Agriculture, Mechanics, and Household Arts Departments. In 1921, however, the school’s board of
trustees was disbanded and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction assumed direct supervision
of the institution. Although a course of study in printing was introduced in 1923, drastic budget cuts
that same year reduced the available programs to agriculture, mechanics, and printing. Classes were
not restored in other departments until 1926.
Carnegie Library, 696 Monterey Street, 1905. Photo date unknown; source carnegielibraries.org
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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Other important advancements during this period include the establishment of a Carnegie Library in
1904 (completed in 1905). Designed by architect William Weeks, the library was located adjacent to
the Mission. William Weeks was the most prolific designer of Carnegie libraries in California,
responsible for twenty-two libraries throughout the state, eighteen of which are extant.58 Weeks
designed numerous buildings in San Luis Obispo, including the original campus of the Polytechnic
School.
The Southern Pacific Railroad continued to thrive in San Luis Obispo through the early years of the
20th century, diversifying the economy and expanding the city’s potential trade market. The railroad
company constructed some of its most significant buildings during this era, including the Signal Repair
Shop and the Transportation Company Building. By the 1920s, however, railroad activity began to
decline due to the advent of the automobile as well as advances in technology for commercial
transportation, such as refrigerated trucks. Americans embraced the freedom and personal mobility
that accompanied traveling by car, and the creation of the interstate freeway system increased access
and created more direct travel routes.
In 1915, the first state highway came through San Luis Obispo County. During this period,
automobile tourism became popular in California. Early automobile tourists camped along the
roadside on the outskirts of towns. Auto camping as an idyllic, anti-establishment pursuit was over by
World War I, as farmers, schools and other property owners grew tired of the increasing numbers of
tourists who camped for free on their land, creating pollution, damaging property, stealing produce,
and leaving trash and debris in their wake. In response, municipal camps were established to capture
the romantic essence of the roadside camps, while offering more conveniences and amenities. These
municipal camps were also short-lived, as increasing numbers of motorists overwhelmed the sites, and
more affluent travelers sought upgraded accommodations.
58 “By Architect - Who Built the Libraries,” website (http://www.carnegie-libraries.org/california/architect/index.html). Accessed January
2013.
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In the early 1920s, Southern California-based architect Arthur Heineman proposed a solution for the
automobile traveler that would become the roadside motel. Based on the concept of the bungalow
court, Heineman proposed eighteen motels from San Diego to Seattle, each approximately one day’s
drive apart. The motels would be located on the outskirts of the cities, with easy access on and off the
main highways along the Pacific coast. This new venture would be called the Milestone Mo-tel, based
on the term “motor hotel.” San Luis Obispo was selected as the inaugural site, as it was a logical
stopover between Los Angeles and San Francisco.59 The Milestone Mo-tel was situated on the
northern end of San Luis Obispo, immediately off of the Pacific Coast Highway. Mission Revival
imagery was co-opted for the motel to “recapitulate to a marked degree the history of the Franciscan
Friars and the early lore of California.”60 A 1925 article in Pacific Travel announcing the construction
of the Milestone Mo-tel directly tied the route of the missionaries with the location of the motels:
If Junipero Serra is looking down today on the California he loved so well, he is noting the fact
that King’s Highway, with its old missions a day’s horseback ride apart, has become a
thoroughfare for teeming millions, and that along this shining pathway through an earthly
59 “Milestone Company to Build San Jose Motel,” Mercury News (November 24, 1925). There are also photographs in the collection of the
Greene and Greene Archive of signs announcing the impending arrival of the motel in various cities.
60 Charles Estey, “Hotel for Motorists,” Pacific Coast Travel, October 1925.
Milestone Mo-tel, 2223 Monterey Street, 1925. Photo c. 1925; source Huntington Library, San Marino.
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Paradise there is now being established a chain of remarkable hotels for motorists, which has
been given the names ‘Milestone Mo-tels.61
In 1920, a fire in the Mission Church Sacristy broke out which destroyed most of the Mission roof.
The structures themselves were saved by the original oak rafters, which prevented the adobe walls
from caving in. In 1925, Father Daniel Keenan established La Fiesta de las Flores (“Festival of the
Flowers”), a community celebration intended to raise funds to repair the Mission’s roof. La Fiesta
became an annual fundraising event which continued for seventy years until 1995.
The funds raised during the early years of La Fiesta helped renovate the Church in 1933 when, under
the stewardship of Father John Harnett, the Church was restored to its original Spanish-style
appearance. The wooden clapboard siding was removed, and the Mission roof was replaced with clay
tile. The original portico and belfry were reconstructed of reinforced concrete and plaster, and in
1937, the colonnade lining the convento was rebuilt to resemble the original. A final addition made to
extend the annex in 1948 was funded by the Hearst Foundation, a longtime supporter of La Fiesta.
During the 1920s newly paved roads, affordable cars, aggressive promotional campaigns directed at
tourists, and new roadside conveniences (including gas stations, auto camps, and the “motel”) were a
boon to seaside communities and kept local boosters optimistic. The leading San Luis Obispo
newspaper carried the hopeful masthead, “California’s Next Big City.”62
With the city’s government firmly established, influence in San Luis Obispo in the early 20th century
shifted to those individuals who operated businesses in the city or were involved in community affairs.
One of the city’s earliest 20th-century businessmen was W. H. Schulze, who opened the W. H. Schulze
Haberdashery in 1904 as one of the first tenants of the Johnson commercial block; Schulze continued
to operate his store for the next forty years. East Coast dairyman August Jensen opened the Central
Creamery in 1910. In 1912, Italian immigrant David Muzio and Italian-Swiss immigrant Fernando
Chiesa constructed a building to house Muzio’s Grocery and Chiesa’s Restaurant. Entrepreneur
Jefferson Anderson operated the men’s clothing company J. L. Anderson before closing the store to
build the upscale Anderson Hotel in 1923. A. F. Fitzgerald, the president of the San Luis Brick
Company, was also involved with several local oil companies, as well as serving as president of the
Chamber of Commerce and lobbying to establish the California Polytechnic School.
61 Pacific Coast Travel.
62 Dick Miller, “History in the SLO Lane: An Overview of California’s Central Coast.” Available online:
http://www.heritageshared.org/docs/essays/slohistory.html. Accessed January 2013.
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Other individuals active in civic affairs during this period included Benjamin Brooks, who was an
esteemed journalist and owner/editor the San Luis Obispo Tribune from 1886 to 1922. Dr. Richard
Bradbury was a prominent local physician who established the Bradbury Sanitarium next door to his
personal residence. Another successful doctor, William Stover, constructed the San Luis Obispo
Sanitarium around 1912 and later served as mayor. Grace Barneberg, early president of the ladies’
Monday Club, was instrumental in expanding the organization and securing the services of architect
Julia Morgan to design the organization’s new clubhouse. In 1925, Father Daniel Keenan established
“La Fiesta de las Flores,” a community celebration to raise funds for the restoration of the mission that
continued annually for the next seventy years.
Muzio’s Grocery, 868 Monterey Street, 1912. Muzio’s moved from its
original location to a new storefront in the Wineman Hotel on Higuera
Street in 2010; it has since closed. Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
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Pacific Ready Cut Homes, Style #85.
THEME: EARLY 20TH CENTURY RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
San Luis Obispo’s population continued to grow in the early 20th century. Residences from this period
range from small, vernacular cottages to more elaborate two-story residences. There are few examples
of multi-family residential development in the City. Toward the end of this period there was an
increasing accommodation for the automobile. A prominent example of this is the J.J. Dunne House
on Benton Way, which was constructed in 1927 when the area was considered suburban. Dunne was
a local car dealer, and he had his house and garage constructed to accommodate several automobiles.
During this period, residential architecture began to shift from the Victorian-era styles imported from
the east and new regional styles began to emerge. In California, the most notable new residential
architecture was inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement and the development of the California
bungalow, which was a simple, garden-oriented house uniquely suited for the climate and lifestyle of
the region.
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Designs for the bungalow were promulgated throughout the country through popular magazines like
House Beautiful, Good Housekeeping, and Ladies Home Journal. Pattern books with a wide variety of
bungalow designs and complete mail order house kits soon followed, allowing the style to spread
quickly across the country. The three largest manufacturers of kit homes in the United States were
Aladdin, Sears, and Pacific Ready Cut Homes, which was based in Los Angeles. Kit homes were sold
from 1908 until 1940. Shipped by boxcar, each kit contained framing members and all architectural
details.
Architectural styles during this period are more eclectic than those represented in the late 19th century.
Residential architecture from this period in San Luis Obispo includes American Colonial Revival,
Mediterranean Revival, Craftsman, Spanish Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, and Storybook. The
dominant type of single-family residence in the early 20th century is the one-story bungalow. Some
Craftsman houses in San Luis Obispo feature clinker brick. Named for the distinctive sound they
make when banged together, clinker bricks are the result of wet bricks placed too close to the fire.
Overbaking produced rich, warm colors as well that ran the gamut from reds, yellows, and oranges to
deep, flash-burned browns, purples, and blacks. In the early 20th century clinkers became popular
when avant-garde architects started building houses with them precisely because they were so unusual.
During the Arts & Crafts era, clinker bricks were used to create visual interest in focal points such as
chimneys, porch supports, and garden walls. There are examples of clinker brick in Monterey Heights
and near Broad and Chorro. A prominent example is the 1928 Faulstich House, constructed for Paul
and Mary Faulstich of the Faulstich Brothers brickyard.
Dunne House, 59 Benton Way, 1927. Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
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There are intact residential neighborhoods that developed during this period. While some are located in
proximity to downtown, during this period neighborhoods also developed in what was considered the
outskirts at that time, in areas newly accessible by the automobile. One example is found along Murray
Street. Murray Street is a wide street with a center median with mature landscaping. Houses in the
neighborhood were constructed in the 1920s and are primarily one-story; architectural styles include
several Period Revival styles and some Minimal Traditional examples.
Architects whose work is represented in San Luis Obispo during this period include: Abrahms &
Simms, Santa Barbara; E.D. Bray; John Chapek; Orville Clark; W.H. Crias, W.E. Erkes, San Francisco;
G.A. Meuss-Dorffer, San Francisco; G.M. Eastman; Thorton Fitzhugh; John Davis Hatch; Alfred and
Arthur Heineman, Los Angeles; J.P. Kremple; Fred Logan; Charles McKenzie, San Francisco; Parkinson
& Bergstrom; Righetti & Headman, San Francisco; William H. Weeks; James Wetmore; and K.C. Wilson.
Context View, Murray Street. Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
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Early 20th Century Residential Development: Associated Property
Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Single-family Residence; Multi-family Residence; Historic District
A residential property from this period may be significant:
As an excellent example of turn-of-the-20th-century residential development in San Luis Obispo –
Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As a rare example of multi-family residential development or an excellent example of a particular
multi-family residential property type from the period – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event); C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
For its association with a significant person in local history – Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person).
As an excellent or rare local example of particular architectural style – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction). Houses with a proven association to a specific kit home model may also be
eligible under this criterion.
A collection of residences from this period that are linked geographically may be eligible as a
historic district.
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Early 20th Century Residential Development
theme. There are numerous extant residential properties from this period, so potentially eligible
resources should have a high level of integrity.
Residential properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
A residential property significant under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design,
feeling, and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a significant
person.
Residential properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain
integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display the significant character-defining features of the property type or architectural style; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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Extant Examples
Muscio House, 1330 Mill Street, 1909.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Crossett House, 896 Buchon, 1914. Photo 2013; source City of San
Luis Obispo.
Sandercock House, 535 Islay Street, 1910.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Payne House, 1144 Palm Street, 1911. Photo 2013; source
City of San Luis Obispo.
Righetti Apartments, 1305 Palm Street, 1929. Photo 2013;
source City of San Luis Obispo.
Faulstich House, 2243 Santa Ynez, 1928. Photo 2013; source
City of San Luis Obispo.
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THEME: EARLY 20TH CENTURY COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT
During the early 20th century, the commercial center continued to flourish, and there were numerous
commercial enterprises established during this period. Improvements in the downtown area included
the paving of streets and the replacement of the original wood bridges over the creek with a series of
concrete bridges. By this period, the downtown commercial core had grown significantly, and there
were numerous commercial establishments organized on several business blocks; the downtown
commercial core is recognized by the City as a historic district. Commercial development continued
particularly in the years between World War I and the arrival of the Great Depression. This period also
saw a marked increase in automobile use; by 1916 there were five service stations in San Luis Obispo,
and by the 1920s all the major roads in town had been paved.63 During this period liveries and
alleyways in the original downtown core were converted to accommodate the automobile.
Development directly tied to the automobile occurred in the early 1920s, with the establishment of
the Exposition Park Race Track whose one-mile course was billed as the fastest in the world.
63 City of San Luis Obispo, “Completion Report: Historic Resources Survey,” July, 1983, 22.
Higuera Street, c. 1907. Source Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Special Collections.
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Architectural styles represented include Mission Revival, Mediterranean Revival, and Spanish Colonial
Revival. There are modest vernacular commercial buildings that may have minimal stylistic detailing
and do not represent a particular style. Architects whose work is represented in San Luis Obispo during
this period include: Abrahms & Simms, Santa Barbara; E.D. Bray; John Chapek; Orville Clark; W.H.
Crias, W.E. Erkes; San Francisco; G.A. Meuss-Dorffer, San Francisco; G.M. Eastman; Thorton Fitzhugh;
John Davis Hatch; Alfred and Arthur Heineman, Los Angeles; J.P. Kremple; Fred Logan; Charles
McKenzie, San Francisco; Parkinson & Bergstrom; Righetti & Headman, San Francisco; William H.
Weeks; James Wetmore; and K.C. Wilson.
Exposition Park Race Track, 1923.
Left image: 1923, Right image: Filming in 1926; source for both Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Special Collections.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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Early 20th Century Commercial Development: Associated Property
Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Commercial building; one- and two-story commercial block; hotels; low-rise storefront buildings;
historic district
A commercial property from this period may be significant:
As an intact example of early 20th century commercial development; for its association with the
City’s original commercial core; or for its direct association with as automobile-related
development in San Luis Obispo – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
For its association with a significant person in San Luis Obispo’s early history – Criterion B/2/B.1
(Person).
As an excellent or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with the period,
and/or the work of a significant architect or designer – C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
As a rare intact example of an early commercial property type – C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Early 20th Century Commercial Development
theme. There are numerous extant commercial properties from this period, so eligible examples
should retain a high level of integrity.
Commercial properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity
of location, design, setting, feeling, and association.
A commercial property significant under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of
design, feeling, and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a
significant person.
Commercial properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should
retain integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display the significant character-defining features of the architectural style or property type; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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Extant Examples
Johnson Building, 796 Higuera Street, 1903-1904.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Park/Reidy Hotel, 1815 Osos Street, 1907.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Anderson Hotel, 955 Monterey Street, 1922-1923.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Union Hardware, 1119 Garden Street, 1912.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
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THEME: EARLY 20TH CENTURY CIVIC & INSTITUTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
San Luis Obispo’s role as the County Seat influenced the City’s institutional development. The
establishment of California Polytechnic Institute (now California Polytechnic State University) at the
beginning of the 20th century and its continued growth is an important component of this theme. The
Polytechnic School was the realization of Myron Angel’s vision that was supported by Assemblyman
Warren Johns and Senator S.C. Smith. In 1896, Angel published a letter in the Breeze urging the
establishment of a normal school in San Luis Obispo. After several years of political maneuvering, the
bill to establish a normal school was finally passed in 1901. Land for the school was donated by Mr.
Lowe. Early in 1903 the corner stone of the main building was laid, and in October of that year the
first students were welcomed.
In 1905, a Carnegie Library was constructed in San Luis Obispo, which was the first dedicated library
building in the County. In 1906, a new building for San Luis Obispo High School, which previously
was held in the Court School, was constructed on Marsh Street. Other institutional buildings were
constructed during this period, including a new church for the Methodist Episcopal Congregation on
the corner of Morro and Pacific Streets.
Postcard of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Date unknown; source historyinslocounty.org.
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Early 20th Century Civic & Institutional Development: Associated
Property Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Civic property types include city hall, courthouses, post offices, libraries, schools, and buildings
associated with public infrastructure agencies such as those providing power and water. Non-
governmental institutional buildings include churches, meeting halls, and other buildings associated
with social organizations.
A civic or institutional property from this period may be significant:
As a rare example (first, last remaining, only) of civic or institutional development from the period;
and/or for its association with an important religious, social, cultural, or civic institution – Criterion
A/1/B.2 (Event).
As an excellent or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with its period, and/or
the work of a significant architect or designer – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Early 20th Century Civic & Institutional
Development theme.
Civic and institutional properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should
retain integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
Civic or institutional properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction)
should retain integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display the significant character-defining features of the architectural style or property type; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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Extant Examples
Old Gas Works, 280 Pismo Street, 1902. Photo 2013;
source Historic Resources Group.
Carnegie Library, 696 Monterey Street, 1905. Photo
2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Masonic Temple, 859 Marsh Street, 1913. Photo
2013; source Historic Resources Group.
U.S. Post Office, 893 Marsh Street, 1925. Photo 2013; source
Historic Resources Group.
Stover’s Sanitarium,1160 Marsh Street, 1911.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Powerhouse, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, NE corner
of S. Perimeter and Cuesta Avenue, 1909. Photo
1993; source National Register nomination form.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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THEME: EARLY 20TH CENTURY AGRICULTURAL & INDUSTRIAL
DEVELOPMENT
The development of ranching and agriculture as the region’s main commercial enterprises influenced
the development of San Luis Obispo. In the early 20th century, the primary agricultural crops ranged
from flower seed to winter peas, bush beans, pole beans, and celery. Japanese farmers were
particularly successful with these crops through the 1930s.64
With the United States entrance into World War I in 1917, there was an enormous demand for
agricultural products, which proved an economic boon to Central California. During the War, many
farmers turned to the production of navy beans, since these were subsidized by the War Relief
Administration. Before reliable refrigeration, beans could be shipped to the troops in Europe without
spoiling, and San Louis Obispo County’s economy boomed.
In the early 20th century, oil derricks were erected in the area and drilling for oil began. The most
lucrative oil fields were located south of San Luis Obispo and were controlled by families from outside
of the region, including the Doheny family from Los Angeles. The Producers Transportation Company
represented the largest oil interest in San Luis Obispo County, accommodating the transport of oil
from the Union Oil Company and the Independent Producers Agency via 500 miles of pipeline to the
Port of San Luis. Pumping stations in San Luis Obispo County were located in Shandon, Creston,
Santa Margarita, Tank Farm, Avila and Port San Luis. There was a 250-acre Tank Farm just south of
San Luis Obispo, which was constructed for the storage of oil while it awaited transport to the port for
shipment. The oil business of the Producers Transportation Company made of Port San Luis the
64 Dan and Liz Krieger, “Japanese Odyssey in the Middle Kingdom.”
San Luis Obispo Tank Farm, 1910. Photo date unknown; source slotankfarm.com
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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greatest oil shipping port in the world and provided employment to hundreds of men in the county.
At Port San Luis the Pacific Coast Railway built a special wharf to handle the oil shipments.
Industrial buildings may be associated with agriculture and are likely located in areas with easy access
to transportation corridors, with earlier examples clustered along the railroad. There may be some
remnant agricultural-related buildings and structures, such as remnant chicken coops and other
utilitarian structures.65 There are likely few remaining properties directly associated with the oil
industry, although it had an effect of the development of the area, and in particular the importance of
Port San Luis. There may be some remnant industrial and agricultural properties that were initially
located outside of the City limits but have since been annexed. In the late 19th and early 20th century,
it was illegal to accommodate “noxious” businesses such as brick works and slaughterhouses inside
City limits.
In general, agricultural and industrial properties are not associated with particular architectural styles.
Vernacular industrial buildings of brick and reinforced concrete are the predominate form, and
significance is frequently derived from historic association rather than from aesthetic qualities.
Agricultural and industrial resources from this period may be eligible under several early 20th century
themes.
65 There may be some remnant chicken coops from the 1930s from Yoakum Poultry in the vicinity of Perkins Lane and Rockview.
Channel Commercial Company, 1880 Santa Barbara Avenue, 1912. The Channel
Commercial Company was a wholesale grocery outlet that facilitated shipment of
produce via the railroad. Photo date unknown; source Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Special
Collections.
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Early 20th Century Agricultural & Industrial Development:
Associated Property Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility
Standards
Property Types
Examples of industrial properties from this period include railroad-related warehouses, rail yards, rail
lines, and rail spurs. Other industrial types include grain and other warehouses, ice houses, and other
light industrial types. Agricultural property types include warehouses, farmhouses, and related
outbuildings.
An agricultural or industrial property from this period may be significant:
As a rare, intact example of a particular type of agricultural or industrial development; or for its
association with the development of an important local industry – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As a rare example of a specific agricultural or industrial property type – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
As a property type that has a direct association with the railroad – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Early 20th Century Agricultural and Industrial
Development theme.
Agricultural and industrial properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event)
should retain integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
Agricultural and industrial properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction) should retain integrity of location, design, materials, workmanship, and
feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features of the type; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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Golden State Creamery, 570 Higuera Street, 1910. Photo
2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Harmony Creamery, 991 Nipomo, 1929. Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Channel Commercial Company, 1880 Santa Barbara
Avenue, 1912. Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Extant Examples
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Early 20th Century
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THEME: EARLY 20TH CENTURY ETHNIC COMMUNITIES
In the early 20th century, San Luis Obispo’s population of ethnic communities continued to grow.
There was a significant Japanese population established in the City as early as 1910. From 1910 to
1950, the area roughly bordered by South Street, Brook Street, Higuera Street, and Madonna Road
was known as a nihonmachi, or an area dedicated to providing services for the Japanese community.
Japanese men worked primarily along the Southern Pacific Railroad route as farm laborers, until they
were eventually able to purchase their own land.66 By 1941, two-thirds of the Japanese residents in
San Luis Obispo were Nisei, or American born, and therefore were able to own their own farms.67
During this period there was also a significant Italian and Swiss/Italian population in the City, with
activities centered on the area referred to as “Little Italy.” This area was generally located along Broad
Street, in what was originally part of the Imperial Addition subdivided in the late 1880s. Most of the
men worked for either the Southern Pacific Railroad or the Union Oil Company.68 Among the early
residents of this section of the city were Andrew Yager, a carpenter living at 2231 Broad Street; James
Genovini, a Southern Pacific boilermaker living at 2231 Broad Street; James Margaroli, a Union Oil
truck driver living at 2315 Broad Street; Frederick C. Macha, a Pacific Coast foreman living at 2344
Lawton Avenue; J. D. Duchesi, a Southern Pacific engineer living at 2502 Victoria Avenue; and John
Luini, a Southern Pacific foreman living at 2546 Victoria Avenue.
Properties associated with San Luis Obispo’s early 20th century ethnic communities are rare.
Remaining extant examples have largely already been identified as potential historic resources on the
City’s Master List or Contributing List, including eleven properties that were identified in 2008 for
their historic association with the local Italian community. Properties significant under the Ethnic
Communities theme may also be associated with other identified development themes.
66 Dan and Liz Krieger, “Japanese Odyssey in the Middle Kingdom.”
67 Dan and Liz Krieger, “Japanese Odyssey in the Middle Kingdom.”
68 City of San Luis Obispo Planning Department, “South Broad Street Corridor Planning Area,” Cultural Heritage Committee Staff Report,
October 27, 2008.
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Early 20th Century Ethnic Communities: Associated Property
Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Single-family residence; Multi-family residence; Commercial building; Historic District
An early 20th century property associated with one of San Luis Obispo’s important ethnic groups may
be significant:
As a recognizable remnant of a historic ethnic neighborhood – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As the gathering place of an important ethnic social or religious institution – Criterion A/1/B.2
(Event).
For its association with a person or event important to the history of a particular ethnic group –
Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person).
As a good or rare example of a particular building type associated with an important ethnic group
– Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
A collection of properties associated with a specific ethnic group that are linked geographically
may be eligible as a historic district.
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Ethnic Communities theme. Properties associated
with important ethnic groups in San Luis Obispo’s history are rare, and therefore a greater degree of
alteration may be acceptable.
Properties that are eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity of location, design,
feeling, and association.
Properties that are eligible under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design, feeling,
and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a significant person.
Properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain integrity of
location, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
City of San Luis Obispo Historic Context: Great Depression & WWII
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CONTEXT: THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND WORLD WAR II (1930-
1945)
The stock market crash of 1929 precipitated an economic depression in the United States that would
last until the Second World War. San Luis Obispo County’s agricultural diversity shielded it from the
worst of the Great Depression of the 1930s; however, there was little residential or commercial
growth in the area during this period. The County benefited from the domestic policies of the
administration of U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt – popularly called the “New Deal” – which
marshaled direct government investment to alleviate the problems of poverty, unemployment, and the
disintegration of the American economy during the Great Depression.
The Public Works Administration (PWA), which began in 1933 and the Works Progress (later Work
Projects) Administration (WPA), which began in 1935, funneled significant financial resources to
communities across the United States for the construction of roads, bridges, parks, and civic and
institutional buildings. Through the involvement of these agencies, the County received a new
Courthouse, flood-control projects, and highway improvements. President Roosevelt was at the Grand
Opening of Highway 1 between Morro Bay and Carmel on June 27, 1938. Originally estimated to
cost $1.5 million, the 139-mile section of Highway 1 included 33 bridges and was completed at a cost
of $10 million. The project to build the highway was begun in 1919 and completed in 1937.69
During this period, architect Julia Morgan spent a great deal of time in San Luis Obispo while working
on Hearst Castle in nearby San Simeon.70 In the 1920s, Morgan was commissioned by the local
Monday Club to design a new clubhouse for the rapidly growing membership. Morgan inspected the
lot on Monterey Street that the club had purchased and consented to designing a clubhouse without
charge, in return for Monday Club members arranging her room and board when she came to San
Luis Obispo. The clubhouse was dedicated on May 11, 1934.71
69 “About District 5,” California Department of Transportation. Website: http://www.dot.ca.gov/dist05/paffairs/aboutd5.htm. Accessed June
2013.
70 Julia Morgan designed a playhouse in San Luis Obispo for the driver who took her to San Simeon each day. The house has been relocated
to Mill & Johnson Street and is not visible from the public right-of-way.
71 “The Monday Club, San Luis Obispo, California,” Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Robert E. Kennedy Library. Available online:
http://lib.calpoly.edu/specialcollections/architecture/juliamorgan/monday.html. Accessed March 2013.
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The railroad industry suffered during the Depression, when many Americans could not afford the
luxury of leisure travel. However, World War II drew increased rail traffic on the Southern Pacific as
passengers traveled to visit family members stationed at Camp San Luis Obispo. Despite transporting
record numbers of passengers throughout the 1940s, the Southern Pacific Railway suffered another
decline in the years following World War II, when automobile ownership increased in the postwar
economic boom. Although the company attempted to upgrade their services by replacing steam
locomotives with more efficient diesel engines, the new engines required less maintenance and many
railroad workers were made redundant. As the demand for skilled railroad labor diminished and
ridership declined even further, the area surrounding the now-obsolete Southern Pacific roundhouse
(demolished in 1959) began to transform from railroad to other industrial and warehouse uses.
Cal Poly went through several reorganizations during this period, until 1940 when the school was
granted collegiate status by the California State Board of Education and began to offer Bachelor of
Science degrees in agriculture and engineering. During World War II, the campus played a part in the
war effort by serving as the site of a Naval Flight Preparatory School, which graduated more than
3,600 cadets. By 1945, civilian enrollment had skyrocketed from eighty to just over 800 students,
primarily returning veterans studying under the G.I. Bill. Just four years later, enrollment had increased
to over 2,900 students.
There are several military establishments near San Luis Obispo,
the most significant of which is Camp San Luis Obispo
(formerly Camp Merriam). The site now known as Camp San
Luis Obispo was first established in 1927, when the state of
California secured a 25-year lease for 2,000 acres of ranch land,
known as the Jack Ranch, located along Highway 1. The lease
marked the establishment of a formal training camp for the
California National Guard, which had previously been forced to
Southern Pacific Roundhouse. Photo 1953; source San Luis Obispo County Historical Society.
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conduct their summer training sessions on private ranches, in state parks, or in some cases, on land
belonging to other federal military installations.
Construction began on Camp San Luis Obispo in 1928, and the first official encampment took place
in 1929. That same year, the state exercised its power of eminent domain and purchased the camp
lands it had been leasing up to that point. By 1932, the camp had grown to 5,800 acres and had been
renamed Camp Merriam, after then-Lieutenant Governor Frank F. Merriam, who had campaigned
vigorously for the establishment of the camp while serving as Speaker of the California State
Assembly. The site proved ideal for military training purposes, as it was equidistant to both Los
Angeles and San Francisco, adjacent to both major railroads and a major highway, and featured
rugged terrain that allowed for the creation of realistic military training exercises. Many soldiers
stationed at Camp Merriam (and, later, Camp San Luis Obispo) found the area so appealing that they
returned to settle in the area following their release from active duty.
Activity at Camp Merriam increased sharply in the late 1930s as war broke out across Asia and
Europe. To accommodate the increased training efforts, the camp was divided into an artillery camp
and a separate, larger infantry camp. In 1940, in anticipation of further military engagement, the
United States government exercised its preemptive right to lease Camp Merriam from the state of
California, at which point the site was re-christened as Camp San Luis Obispo in honor of the nearby
Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa.
In 1939, the San Luis Obispo County Regional Airport opened, with a single hangar and dirt runways.
The airport was established by Earl Thomson, who leased land from the County. During World War II,
the airport was run by the government as part of the war effort. In 1940 hard surface runways and
lights were installed, and from 1940 to 1941 the airport served as a training ground for a federally
sponsored Civilian Pilot Training Program for the armed services. The airport was returned to County
control in 1946.
San Luis Obispo Airport, established in 1939. Photo 1963; source: San Luis
Obispo Tribune.
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In the 1940s, the pace of development increased dramatically in San Luis Obispo, in large part due to
the expansion of Camp Merriam into Camp San Luis Obispo in 1940. Many former agricultural
workers relocated from the San Joaquin Valley and other farming areas in search of employment at
the camp and other military manufacturing sites along the coast, which offered federally guaranteed
wages. Expansion efforts during this period were directed towards mitigating the strain placed on
existing facilities and services by the sudden influx of residents, as there was still little new residential
development. By 1940, most residential streets in San Luis Obispo were still unpaved and lacked
street signs. By 1941, however, the city’s first public bus system had been implemented, and a
property tax increase had been approved to fund the construction of a United Service Organization
(USO) center.72
The United States’ entrance into World War II effectively ended the Depression in California and
boosted the regional economy. California received almost 12% of the government war contracts and
produced 17% of all war supplies.73 California also acquired more military installations than any other
state by a wide margin, and military bases were opened throughout the state. Aircraft, shipbuilding,
and numerous other industries were booming due to the war effort, and unemployment was virtually
eliminated.
During World War II, the camp was expanded to serve as a training base for multiple combat divisions
deployed to both Europe and the Pacific, and much of the site’s development took place during 1940-
1941. The site was also expanded to over 15,000 acres and camp construction transitioned from the
erection of temporary structures and tents to more permanent buildings. Extant structures from this
period consist entirely of artillery camp facilities; there are no remaining extant infantry camp facilities.
At its peak during World War II, Camp San Luis Obispo housed approximately 20,000 soldiers.
A second, off-post facility, the Baywood Park Training Camp, was also acquired during World War II.
The Baywood Park Training Camp was located approximately thirteen miles northwest of the City of
San Luis Obispo and consisted of about 8,800 acres used primarily as a maneuver area and as a site
for bivouacs, or campsites. In 1946, the site was declared as excess by the government, and all of the
Baywood Park lands were returned to their original owners in 1947.
Important people during this period in San Luis Obispo’s history include several individuals who were
instrumental in the expansion of military establishments in the area. Major General Richard E.
Mittelstaedt, State Adjutant General; Major General Walter P. Story, Commanding General 40th
Division; and State Senator Chris N. Jespersen were all influential in persuading the California State
Legislature to establish Camp Merriam near San Luis Obispo. Frank F. Merriam had also lobbied
72 The USO building was constructed on the site of the Court School, which by that time was vacant and in disrepair. By 1944, there were
3,000 USO buildings strategically located throughout the world. After the war, the City of San Luis Obispo leased the property from the
Federal government until acquiring title in 1957. Source: Patti Taylor and Suzette Lees, 75 SLO City Sites: An Informative Self-Guided
Architectural Tour in Historic San Luis Obispo. San Luis Obispo, CA: Graphic Communication Institute at Cal Poly, California Polytechnic
State University, 2010.
73 California Military History Online, website (http://www.militarymuseum.org/HistoryWWII.html).
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vigorously for the camp while serving as Speaker of the California State Assembly, and the camp was
named in his honor.
Julian A. McPhee was instrumental in the growth of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo during this period.
McPhee was the school’s longest-serving president, holding the position from 1933 to 1966. He used
his influence in the state’s Board of Agriculture to prevent the struggling school from being closed by
the state, and he played a key role in the reorganization of the school during the Depression. He
served concurrently as both university president and as the head of the Bureau of Agricultural
Education for the California State Department of Education. He continued to hold positions in
California’s educational bureaus throughout his time at Cal Poly, including serving as chief of
California’s War Food Training Program and later, as director of Vocational Education for the state.
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THEME: RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT 1930-1945
Most residential construction projects were halted during the Great Depression and many residents
faced layoffs and foreclosures. Land use was focused on re-purposing existing properties in more
useful ways, such as utilizing vacant lots and yards to create gardens and raise rabbits and chickens.
When residential development did occur, it was on an individual basis rather than on the massive scale
seen in the post-World War II era. Through most of the 1930s, the average contractor in California
built no more than four homes per year.74 In San Luis Obispo, there were no annexations and only
three subdivisions during the 1930s: the Nippon tract, recorded in 1931; the California Park tract,
recorded in 1938; and the Escuela Alta tract, recorded in 1939. All told, less than 200 additional
residential lots were created during the entire decade.
Residences from this period range from small, one-story minimal houses, to one- and two-story
residences designed in popular architectural styles. Residential architecture from this period in San Luis
Obispo includes American Colonial Revival, Mediterranean Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival, and
Tudor Revival.
74 California Department of Transportation, Tract Housing in California, 1945-1973: A Context for National Register Evaluation, 2011, 4.
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Map indicating the three subdivisions recorded in San Luis Obispo in the 1930s. Source: San Luis Obispo GIS data.
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Residential Development 1930-1945: Associated Property Types,
Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type:
Single-family Residence; Multi-family Residence; Historic District
A residential property from this period may be significant:
As an excellent example of 1930s residential development in San Luis Obispo – Criterion
A/1/B.2 (Event).
As a rare example of a multi-family residential development or a particular multi-family residential
property type from the period – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event); C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
For its association with a significant person in San Luis Obispo’s history – Criterion B/2/B.1
(Person).
As an excellent or rare local example of particular architectural style associated with the period –
Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
A collection of residences from this period that are linked geographically may be eligible as a
historic district.
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Residential Development 1930-1945 theme.
There was minimal residential development during this period; therefore there are likely relatively few
eligible properties related to this theme.
Residential properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity of
location, design, feeling, and association.
A residential property significant under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design,
feeling, and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a significant
person.
Residential properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain
integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display the significant character-defining features of the property type or architectural style; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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Extant Examples
822 Murray Street, 1930. Photo 2013; source Historic Resources
Group.
752 Mission Street, 1931. Photo 2013; source Historic Resources
Group.
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THEME: COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT 1930-1945
There was little new commercial development in the years leading up to and during World War II. A
notable exception is the Fremont Theater, designed by nationally-prominent architect S. Charles Lee
and located in downtown San Luis Obispo. The Fremont Theater also retains its original neon sign.
San Luis Obispo retains a small collection of neon signs dating to the 1940s through the post-World
War II era. Architectural styles from this period include Mediterranean Revival, Spanish Colonial
Revival, Streamline Moderne, and Art Deco. Architects whose work is represented in San Luis Obispo
during this period include S. Charles Lee, Walker & Eisen, and Julia Morgan.
Commercial Development 1930-1945: Associated Property Types,
Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Commercial building; one- and two-story commercial block; theaters; low-rise storefront buildings
A commercial property from this period may be significant:
As an intact example of 1930s commercial development – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
For its association with a significant person in San Luis Obispo’s history – Criterion B/2/B.1
(Person).
As a good or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with the period, and/or the
work of a significant architect or designer – C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
Historic signs may also be eligible under this theme, as excellent or rare examples of commercial
neon signs – C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Commercial Development 1930-1945 theme.
Commercial properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, setting, feeling, and association.
A commercial property significant under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of
design, feeling, and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a
significant person.
Commercial properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should
retain integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
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Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display the significant character-defining features of the architectural style or property type; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
Extant Examples
Fremont Theater, 1035 Monterey Road, 1942.
Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Doton Building, 777 Higuera Street, 1931. Photo 2013;
source Historic Resources Group.
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THEME: DEPRESSION-ERA CIVIC & INSTITUTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
Civic and institutional development in San Luis Obispo continued in the 1930s, some of which was
the result of New Deal programs and funding. Properties significant under this theme may also be
significant examples of a particular architectural style. Architectural styles associated with this period
include Art Deco, Streamline Moderne, PWA Moderne, and period revival styles including
Mediterranean Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival, and Tudor Revival. Architects whose work is
represented in San Luis Obispo during this period include S. Charles Lee, Walker & Eisen, and Julia
Morgan.
San Luis Obispo County Courthouse, 976 Osos Street, 1941. Photo date unknown; source:
courthousehistory.com
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Depression-Era Civic & Institutional Development: Associated
Property Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Civic and institutional property types include city halls, post offices, fire stations, auditoriums, and
office buildings for public agencies. Infrastructural improvements and other civic amenities may also be
eligible under this theme, as roadways, bridges, and other improvements were funded by the WPA
and the PWA during this period. This theme also encompasses military-related properties constructed
during this period, including the USO Building. Non-governmental institutional buildings include
churches, meeting halls, and buildings associated with social organizations.
A civic or institutional property from this period may be significant:
For its direct association with New Deal funding programs – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
For its association with the military establishments in the area – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
For its association with an important religious, social, cultural, or civic institution – Criterion
A/1/B.2 (Event).
As an excellent or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with the period,
and/or the work of a significant architect or designer – Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3
(Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the New Deal-era Civic & Institutional Development
theme.
Civic and institutional properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should
retain integrity of location, design, feeling, and association.
Civic and institutional properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3
(Design/Construction) should retain integrity of location, design, materials, workmanship, and
feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the significant character-defining features of the style; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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Extant Examples
San Luis Obispo County House, 976 Osos Street,
1936-1941. Photo 2013; source Historic Resources
Group.
Sunny Acres, 1931. Photo c. 2003; source San Luis
Obispo Tribune.
Monday Club, 1815 Monterey Street, 1933-1934.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Fire Station, 750 Pismo Street, 1941.Photo 2013;
source Historic Resources Group.
San Luis Obispo High School Gymnasium, 1499 San Luis Drive, 1936.Photo 2013; source City of San Luis
Obispo.
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THEME: ETHNIC COMMUNITIES 1930-1945
Most of the historic ethnic communities in San Luis Obispo were established during earlier periods of
development. In the 1920s and 1930s, growth related specifically to local ethnic enclaves was
primarily focused in the Japanese community, which continued to grow until the outset of World War
II. In 1931, officers of the Guarantee Building and Loan Association created a small subdivision known
as the Nippon Tract around what is now known as Brook Street. From 1934 to 1942, Brook Street
was known as Eto Street, after the Eto family, who, along with the Tsutsumi Eto75 family, helped
develop San Luis Obispo’s Japantown.76 Japantown was located along Higuera Street, between South
and French Streets. Businesses along Higuera Street were Japanese-owned and operated until 1942,
when all people of Japanese descent in California were sent to relocation camps.77 Businesses in
Japantown included two hotels, a barber shop, a soda bottling company, two groceries, and a fish and
meat market.78 Other former sites associated with the Japanese population in San Luis Obispo include
75 Following Pearl Harbor, the Tsutsumi family was compelled to sell their property to a local realtor, Mr. Evans. The "Evans Building"
remained standing until the 1980s when it was torn down.
76 Margaret Lovell, “Historical Resources Survey II: Completion Report,” City of San Luis Obispo, January 1992. (12)
77 Japantown was later settled by African-Americans, and there are two African-American churches in this neighborhood.
78 “Japantown Atlas - Central California - San Luis Obispo,” website: http://japantownatlas.com/map-sanluis.html. Accessed May 2013.
Map of San Luis Obispo’s Japantown,
1934-1941, japantownatlas.com.
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the Buddhist Temple and Japanese School, which occupied ten acres near the Madonna Inn from the
1920s to 1960.79
Properties associated with San Luis Obispo’s ethnic communities are rare. Remaining extant examples
have largely already been identified as potential historic resources on the City’s Master List or
Contributing List, including eleven properties that were identified in 2008 for their historic association
with the local Italian community. Properties significant under the Ethnic Communities theme may also
be associated with other identified development themes.
79 The temple was demolished in 1960 to make way for a new freeway interchange.
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Ethnic Communities 1930-1945: Associated Property Types,
Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Single-family Residence; Multi-family Residence; Commercial Building; Historic District
A property associated with one of San Luis Obispo’s important ethnic groups may be significant:
As a recognizable remnant of a historic ethnic neighborhood – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As the gathering place of an important ethnic social or religious institution – Criterion A/1/B.2
(Event).
For its association with a person or event important to the history of a particular ethnic group –
Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person).
As a good or rare example of a particular building type associated with an important ethnic group
– Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction).
A collection of properties associated with a specific ethnic group that are linked geographically
may be eligible as a historic district.
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Ethnic Communities theme. Properties associated
with important ethnic groups in San Luis Obispo’s history are rare, and therefore a greater degree of
alteration may be acceptable.
Properties that are eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity of location,
design, feeling, and association.
Properties that are eligible under Criterion B/2/B.1 (Person) should retain integrity of design,
feeling, and association, at a minimum, in order to convey the historic association with a significant
person.
Properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2 (Design/Construction) should retain integrity of
location, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the character-defining features; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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CONTEXT: MID-20TH CENTURY GROWTH (1945-1970)
In the immediate post-World War II period, California experienced unprecedented growth, as many
people who came west to participate in the war effort, including former military personnel, decided to
settle permanently. San Luis Obispo’s growth during this period was further influenced by the opening
of the California Men’s Colony correctional facility and the transition of Cal Poly to a co-educational
institution.
Between 1940 and 1950, California’s population increased by fifty-three per cent, which was partially
accounted for by the 850,000 veterans who took up residence after the War.80 The population of San
Luis Obispo grew over 59%, from 8,881 in 1940 to 14,180 in 1950.81 Two new subdivisions were
recorded in San Luis Obispo in the 1940s: the Mira Monte subdivision with 83 parcels in 1946, and
the Hagen subdivision with 38 parcels in 1949.
Camp San Luis Obispo was returned to the state of California in 1946. For the next several years, the
camp served as the primary training site for the 40th and 49th Infantry divisions of the California
National Guard. However, when war the Korean War broke out in 1950, the site was reactivated by
the federal government and the Signal Corps training center was established. The camp was
maintained in “inactive” status by the United States government following the Korean War until 1965,
when it was returned to the California National Guard and developed in part as an academic complex
for the Guard’s California Military Academy. In 1972, a portion of the camp land was deeded to the
county under President Nixon’s “Legacy of Parks” program and now serves as El Chorro Regional
Park. Today, Camp San Luis Obispo continues to host large-scale military exercises, as well as provide
operational, training, and logistical support to a variety of civilian and military agencies.82
Many of the area’s wartime visitors became permanent residents in the ensuing decade. Soldiers who
had been stationed at Camp San Luis Obispo opted to return with their families and settle in the area
following their release from active duty. The G.I. Bill and the proximity of Cal Poly also provided an
attractive incentive to veterans thinking of relocating to the area. As a result, development in San Luis
Obispo in the 1950s was largely in response to this sudden and substantial need for single-family
housing.
80 Kevin Starr, Embattled Dreams: California in War and Peace, 1940-1950. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002, 193-194.
81 United States Census Data.
82 “Historic California Posts: Camp San Luis Obispo, including Camp Merriam and Baywood Park Training Area,” The California State
Military Museum, http://www.militarymuseum.org/CSLO%20History.html. Accessed April 2013.
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The years following World War II marked perhaps the most significant period in the development of
Cal Poly’s curriculum and campus planning. To accommodate the vast increase in student enrollment,
the school instituted new and expanded academic programs and developed the first formal campus
plan, designed by the architectural firm of Allison & Rible in 1949. As enrollment continued to
increase in the postwar period, a second master plan was completed in 1962 to accommodate
additional growth. One of the new academic programs introduced in the postwar era was the School
of Architecture, which was established in 1968. Two years later the program was expanded and
reorganized as the School of Architecture and Environmental Design, and in 1977 the program
moved into the newly-constructed Architecture Building.
George Hasslein served as dean of the School of Architecture and Environmental Design from its
inception in 1968, until he returned to teaching in 1983.83 Hasslein was a native of Los Angeles, and
received his architectural training at the University of Southern California. He worked for several
prominent Southern California firms, including Sumner Hunt, Welton Becket and Associates, and
Kistner, Curtis and Wright, before joining the faculty at Cal Poly in 1950. Hasslein was instrumental in
promoting modern principles of design, and Cal Poly championed a more progressive approach to
architecture, rejecting the long-held Beaux Arts principles of architectural method. Students received
instruction in architecture, architectural engineering, city and regional planning, construction
83 “Obituary: George Hasslein, 83; Dean of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo School of Architecture,” Los Angeles Times, September 8, 2001.
Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Campus, 1960s. View of Dexter Lawn facing west towards
Bishop’s Peak. Source: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Master Plan, 1962.
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management, and landscape architecture. Graduates of the program, including noted architect Homer
Delawie, went on to design significant modern structures throughout California.
Significant civic improvements were undertaken during this era, most notably in downtown and the
Mission Plaza. As early as the 1940s, residents of San Luis Obispo were expressing concern over the
dilapidated appearance of the historic mission landscape as well as the layout of some of the city’s
early streets. The demolition of the Mission Garage at the corner of Monterey and Chorro Streets
improved safety conditions downtown and restored the area’s early vistas, which spurred further
beautification efforts. The Mission Garden Association was formed in 1961 and played a key role in
the development of the plan for Mission Plaza throughout the 1960s. Landscape architect Robert B.
Taylor was hired in 1968 to design the Mission Plaza, which closed the area surrounding the mission
to vehicular traffic, restored and beautified the creek, and created a landscaped public park.
Mission Plaza during construction, 1970. Source: Cal Poly San
Luis Obispo, Special Collections.
Detail of Mission Plaza in 2012. Source: Historic Resources
Group.
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THEME: MID-20TH CENTURY RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
There was a great deal of residential development in San Luis Obispo from the 1940s to the 1960s.
Development from this period included some infill construction in previously-established
neighborhoods, along with new residential subdivisions. The presence of nearby military installations,
overall post-World War II growth throughout California, and the continued influence of the California
Polytechnic Institute (by this time known as the California Polytechnic State University) all played a
role in the City’s post-World War II residential development. The growth of Cal Poly during this
period resulted in custom houses designed for professors (many of whom lived in Monterey Heights),
along with the proliferation of work by graduates of the architecture program.
The National Housing Act of 1934 created the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which was
meant to reignite the construction of single family homes by establishing mortgage terms that were
conducive to the average American family and would regulate the interest rates and terms that had
ballooned in the aftermath of the stock market crash. During the 1940s, FHA programs also helped
finance military housing and homes needed for returning veterans. While the FHA rose to prominence
because of these financial incentives, it also influenced how homes and neighborhoods were designed.
In particular, FHA guidelines promoted a 624-square-foot dwelling type termed the basic plan or
minimum house: “In the design of small, low-priced houses, the principles of efficiency, economic use
of materials, and proper equipment, which are important in any class of dwellings, become
paramount.”84
As early as 1936, the FHA embraced the principles of modern community planning, advocating for
well-designed comprehensive communities at the neighborhood scale. This development model would
become the standard approach for the rapid development of the suburbs after the War. The FHA
published a series of informational pamphlets to help spread these ideas and to inform land
developers and speculative builders of the economic advantages of good planning in the creation and
maintenance of real estate values. These pamphlets also outlined concepts of proper street patterns,
planning for parks, playgrounds, and commercial areas, and recommending a buffer zone of
multifamily dwellings and commercial buildings between major arterials and minor interior streets.”85
In 1944, the Servicemen’s Readjustment Act (more commonly known as the G.I. Bill) helped military
families attain the dream of home ownership. The G.I. Bill allowed veterans to purchase a home with
no down payment using the FHA mortgage guarantee program. With the FHA’s low down payment
requirements and attractive loan terms, for many returning G.I.s and other middle-class workers,
owning a home became as affordable as renting an apartment.86
Constructing single-family residences in the numbers required by the population boom also
necessitated developing large parcels of land, and this led to an increase in both the size and number
84 As quoted in Hise, Greg. Magnetic Los Angeles. Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1997, 68.
85 Hise, Magnetic Los Angeles, 34.
86 California Department of Transportation, 17.
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of subdivisions and annexations recorded in San Luis Obispo in the 1950s; over half of the fifty-four
subdivisions recorded between 1935 and 1965 were established between 1950 and 1959.87 While
annexations extended the city boundary further south along Broad and Higuera Streets, tract
development typically remained relatively close to the city’s center and usually tended to be clustered
together. Subdivisions were frequently recorded adjacent to each other as larger residential areas
developed. There were three tracts subdivided in the 1950s with over one hundred parcels each: the
McMillan No. 9 subdivision with 123 parcels, recorded in 1950; the Park View Homes No. 1
subdivision with 139 parcels, recorded in 1952; and the McMillan Manor No. 18 subdivision with
144 parcels, also recorded in 1952.
Despite the focus on mass housing throughout the 1950s, there were also neighborhoods developed
with custom-designed residences. These were usually concentrated away from the city center, located
at higher elevations than typical residential subdivisions, and featured greater architectural variety. In
San Luis Obispo, the McAllen Heights and Piedmont Estates subdivisions (recorded in 1957 and 1958
respectively) exemplify this trend, with a number of custom homes situated in the low hills lining the
eastern boundary of the city. Tract development during this period can be found in the Terrace Hill
neighborhood, which includes a cohesive collection of one-story Mid-century Modern houses along
Greta Place.
87 Information in this section related specifically to post-World War II subdivisions is drawn from Allison Dean Zike, “Mid-Twentieth Century
Residential Development in San Luis Obispo,” A Thesis presented to the Faculty of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo,
June 2012.
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Map indicating subdivisions recorded in San Luis Obispo in the 1950s. Source: San Luis Obispo GIS data.
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In the 1960s, the city continued to subdivide and annex land, usually on a much larger geographic
scale than in previous periods. An additional 2.95 square miles was annexed in the 1960s, establishing
the San Luis Obispo City boundary recognized today.88 There were also new subdivisions recorded in
the 1960s, with development focused on the tracts south of Southwood Street and the Laguna Lake
area. The Lakewood subdivision, recorded in 1960, was the largest of the 1960s subdivisions with
196 residential lots.
These postwar subdivisions typically reflect modern community planning principles that grew out of
the Progressive Era. These principles were best articulated in 1929 by Clarence Perry’s neighborhood
unit theory, which proposed a self-contained residential development bounded by major arterial
streets to accommodate through traffic, while curvilinear internal streets offered residential access only.
The typical postwar subdivision is immediately distinguishable from older city neighborhoods by the
street layout, which typically included curvilinear street patterns and culs-de-sac. Nearly all of the tracts
developed between 1935 and 1965 in San Luis Obispo, particularly in those areas developed outside
the original city boundaries, feature curved streets with elongated blocks and fewer intersections.
Architectural styles associated with this period include Mid-century Modern, Ranch, and Minimal
Traditional. Architects who are represented in San Luis Obispo during this period include Frank Lloyd
Wright and Craig Ellwood, along with local architects Mackey Deasy, Homer Delawie, George
Hasslein, Warren Leopold, Paul Neel, and Piercy K. Reibsamen.89 Notable local builders include Stan
Bell, Leonard Blazer, Roger Brown, Alex Madonna, Patrick Smith, Arnold Volney, and Jack
Westerman.90
88 The City boundary may continue to change as additional land is annexed.
89 There are reportedly two works by Richard Neutra in San Luis Obispo. The first is now part of the Ludwick Center on Santa Rosa and
Mill Streets, and it has been substantially altered. The second is on the campus of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
90 Local builders played a significant role in the development of San Luis Obispo in the post-World War II era, developing both custom
homes and housing tracts. Stan Bell in Laguna Shores, Leonard Blazer in Cuesta Highlands, Roger Brown with custom homes primarily in the
Johnson Heights area, and Patrick Smith, Jack Westerman, and Arnold Volney with custom homes in various areas throughout the City
including Ferrini Heights.
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Map indicating subdivisions recorded in San Luis Obispo from 1960-1965. Source: San Luis Obispo GIS data.
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Mid-20th Century Residential Development: Associated Property
Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Types
Single-family Residence; Multi-family Residence; Historic District
In general, tract houses are not individually significant, but a geographically-linked collection may be
eligible as a historic district. A post-World War II residential historic district may be eligible:
For playing an important role in the post-war suburbanization of San Luis Obispo; or for
collectively representing postwar planning and design principles – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
An individual residential property from this period may be significant:
For its association with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and in particular for being a custom-designed
house influenced by a Cal Poly professor – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event) and Criterion
C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
As an excellent example of a particular architectural style; or as the work of noted architect –
Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Mid-20th Century Residential Development
theme.
Historic Districts eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain integrity of location, design,
setting, materials, and feeling. Some alterations to individual buildings, such as replacement
windows in original openings, replacement of roof materials, and replacement garage doors may
be acceptable as long as the district as a whole continues to convey its significance. The district
overall should convey a strong sense of time and place.
Individual residential properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction)
should retain integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
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Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a historic district must:
retain a majority of the contributors date from the period of significance;
reflect post-World War II planning and design principles;
display most of the character-defining features of a residential subdivision, including the original
layout, street plan, and other planning features; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
To be eligible, an individual property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the significant character-defining features of the style or property type; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
Extant Examples
1944 Corralitos, 1950. Photo 2013; source Historic Resources
Group.
2554 Greta Place, 1951.Photo 2013; source Historic
Resources Group.
314 San Miguel Avenue, c.1960. Photo 2013; source
Historic Resources Group.
Ken Schwartz House, 201 Buena Vista Avenue, 1964.
Photo 2013; source Historic Resources Group.
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THEME: MID-20TH CENTURY COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT
In 1958, the U. S. Highway 101 was completed, which became a major thoroughfare for automobile
tourism in the area. San Luis Obispo’s location near California’s Central Coast and at the mid-point
between San Francisco and Los Angeles continued to make it an attractive destination for automobile
tourism. The first roadside motel was established in San Luis Obispo in 1925; additional motels were
developed that were easily accessible from the freeway in the 1950s and 1960s. The most prominent
example is the Madonna Inn, developed by local construction magnate and entrepreneur, Alex
Madonna. Madonna opened the Madonna Inn in 1961 and ran the hotel until his death in 2004; the
inn is still owned and operated by the Madonna family today. The Madonna Inn exemplifies the eye-
catching designs and prominent signage that characterized roadside motel design of the 1950s and
1960s.
Downtown San Luis Obispo, c. 1950s. Source: Hemmings Daily.
Madonna Inn Sign, 1969. Photo
2013; source Historic Resources
Group.
Sunset Drive-In, 225 Elks Lane, 1950. Photo 2013; source Historic
Resources Group.
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In 1950, the Sunset Drive-In opened in San Luis Obispo. The first drive-in theater opened in New
Jersey in 1933. The drive-in reached the height of its popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, as over
4,000 outdoor theaters were opened across the country, accounting for 25% of the nation's movie
screens. By the late 1980s, more than three-quarters of the country’s drive-ins closed as multiplexes
proliferated. As of January 2013, drive-ins only accounted for 1.5% of the nation’s theaters. In
California, fewer than twenty of the state’s more than two hundred theaters remain. Of those that are
extant, many have been substantially altered or no longer operate as theaters. The Sunset Drive-In still
operates as a drive-in theater today, representing a rare remaining example in California.
Many existing commercial buildings in the original downtown core were modified with contemporary
storefronts during this period. New commercial development during this period included a small
number of low-density commercial retail and office buildings located outside of the historic core.
Many of these low-density office buildings were developed for use as medical offices and health
services. The most prominent of these is the Kundert Medical Building, which was designed by Frank
Lloyd Wright and completed in 1956. During the 1950s, San Luis Obispo saw its share of suburban
sprawl within geographically defined borders, and the first mall was built just a few miles from
downtown. In the 1970s, another mall was added. But unlike in other communities in California, the
two shopping centers proved to be little competition for downtown San Luis Obispo as the major
commercial center.
During the postwar economic boom, several San Luis Obispo families established long-running
enterprises. In 1947, brothers William and Pino Cattaneo founded the Cattaneo Brothers sausage
company, and William Cattaneo’s wife, Mary (Piantanida) Cattaneo, worked as the company’s
bookkeeper. Paul Piantanida built an auto repair shop, Paul’s Garage, in 1948 which now serves as the
San Luis Obispo Children’s Museum. Today, Cattaneo Brothers is run by descendants of the
Piantanida and Cattaneo families.
Kundert Medical Building, 1106 Pacific, 1956.Photo 2013; source
Historic Resources Group.
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Architectural styles associated with this period include Mid-century Modern. Architects who are
represented in San Luis Obispo during this period include Frank Lloyd Wright and Craig Ellwood,
along with local architects Mackey Deasy, Homer Delawie, George Hasslein, Warren Leopold, Paul
Neel, and Piercy K. Notable local builders include Stan Bell, Leonard Blazer, Roger Brown, Alex
Madonna, Patrick Smith, Arnold Volney, and Jack Westerman.
.
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Mid-20th Century Commercial Development: Associated Property
Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Mid-20th century commercial development typically includes retail storefronts, service stations, motels,
banks, grocery stores, drive-ins, coffee shops, bowling alleys, car washes, department stores, theaters,
retail strips, and office buildings. San Luis Obispo has a collection of low-density
commercial/professional buildings that housed medical clinics and related services.
A post-World War II commercial building may be eligible:
For its role in post-World War II commercial development – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As an excellent or rare example of a particular architectural style associated with the period,
and/or the work of a significant architect or designer – C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
As an excellent example of a post-World War II commercial property type – C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
Historic signs may also be eligible under this theme, as excellent or rare examples of commercial
neon signs – C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Mid-20th Century Commercial Development
theme.
Commercial properties from this period eligible under Criteria A/1/B.2 (Event) should retain
integrity of location, design, materials, feeling, and association.
Commercial properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction) should
retain integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, an individual property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the significant character-defining features of the style or property type; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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Extant Examples
Office Building, 84 Santa Rosa Street, 1967. Photo 2013; source
Historic Resources Group.
Madonna Inn, 1961-1969. 100 Madonna Road, 1961-1969.Photo
2013; source Historic Resources Group.
Kundert Medical Building, 1106 Pacific, 1956. Photo 2013; source
Historic Resources Group.
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THEME: MID-20TH CENTURY CIVIC AND INSTITUTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
The population growth in the post-World War II era resulted in increased demand for civic and
institutional buildings, including schools and a new city hall. The California Polytechnic Institute (now
California Polytechnic State University) expanded during this period, as returning veterans enrolled in
great numbers under the G.I. Bill. One of the most significant buildings on the Cal Poly campus from
this period is the “Weekend House.” The Weekend House was originally designed by Craig Ellwood in
1964; it was constructed by Cal Poly students in 1967-1968 as part of a class led by Ellwood, who
was serving as a visiting professor.
Mid-20th Century Civic & Institutional Development: Associated
Property Types, Integrity Considerations & Eligibility Standards
Property Type
Civic and institutional property types include schools, libraries, post offices, and fire and police stations.
Non-governmental institutional buildings include churches and meeting halls.
A civic or institutional building from this period may be significant:
For its role in post-World War II civic or institutional development – Criterion A/1/B.2 (Event).
As an excellent example of a post-World War II property type – C/3/A.1,A.2
(Design/Construction).
As an excellent example of a particular architectural style; or as the work of noted architect –
Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction).
Integrity Considerations
In order to be eligible for listing at the federal, state, or local levels, a property must retain sufficient
integrity to convey its historic significance under the Mid-20th Century Civic & Institutional
Development theme.
Individual properties significant under Criterion A/1/B.2 (Events) should retain integrity of location,
design, materials, feeling, and association.
Individual properties significant under Criterion C/3/A.1,A.2,A.3 (Design/Construction) should retain
integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, and feeling.
Eligibility Standards
To be eligible, a property must:
date from the period of significance;
display most of the significant character-defining features of the style or property type; and
retain the essential aspects of integrity.
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San Luis Obispo City Hall, 990 Palm Street, 1951. Photo 2013; source City of San Luis Obispo.
Extant Examples
George Hasslein, Mount Carmel Lutheran Church, 1701 Fredericks Street,
1958. Contemporary photograph; source unknown.
Craig Ellwood, “Weekend House,” Cal Poly
San Luis Obispo, 1964. Date of photo
unknown; source architecturefarm.wordpress.com.
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ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
INTRODUCTION
This section describes the predominant construction methods and historic architectural styles
represented in San Luis Obispo. This section can be used to supplement or expand the City’s existing
Guide to Historic Architectural Styles in San Luis Obispo.91 The information below briefly describes
the origin of each style, provides a list of character-defining features, and includes extant local
examples.92 A property that is eligible for designation as a good example of its architectural style
retains most - though not necessarily all - of the character-defining features of the style, and continues
to exhibit its historic appearance. For guidance on the proper treatment of historic resources and
appropriate alterations to specific architectural styles, refer to the City of San Luis Obispo Design
Guidelines,93 and the Historic Preservation Program Guidelines.94
The diverse architectural character of San Luis Obispo reflects changes in popular tastes over time.
These include Victorian-era styles of the late 19th-century (Italianate, Gothic Revival, Stick/Eastlake,
Queen Anne); the Craftsman style, a distinctly regional style that enjoyed widespread popularity in the
first two decades of the 20th century; Period Revival styles of the 1920s and 1930s which made
explicit references to their European predecessors (Mission Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival,
Renaissance Revival, Tudor Revival, Colonial Revival, Classical Revival); and the Modern styles of the
late 1930s through the 1950s (Streamline Moderne, Minimal Traditional, Mid-Century Modern,
Ranch).
While some buildings are representations of a particular architectural style, others are vernacular in
their design. Vernacular buildings may display certain characteristics of popular styles of the period, but
are generally less elaborated than their high-style counterparts.
91 City of San Luis Obispo, Historic Resources Survey Program, “Guide to Historic Architectural Styles in San Luis Obispo,” October, 1982.
92 All photographs in the “Architectural Character” section were taken 2012-2013.
93 City of San Luis Obispo, “Community Design Guidelines,” June 2010.
94 City of San Luis Obispo, “Historic Preservation Program Guidelines,” November 2010.
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ADOBE CONSTRUCTION
From the 1820s to the mid-1800s, adobe construction was the primary building type in San Luis
Obispo. Early adobe buildings were typically small, single-story structures, with thick adobe walls, low
sloping tile roofs, and wood detailing. Adobe construction consists of thick walls composed of large
sun-dried bricks, usually made from clay, sand, and straw and covered with whitewash. The
unreinforced adobe walls typically vary from one and one-half to six feet thick, resting on a dirt or
rock foundation. Roofs are typically tile or wood shingle, resting on wooden roof timbers. Door and
window openings are normally surrounded by heavy timbers, often with a prominent timber lintel
above the openings. There are examples with second story additions that are referred to as Monterey
Style adobes. Adobe construction demonstrates a continuation of indigenous building traditions that
were passed down from generation to generation of craftsmen. Adobe construction used locally
available resources, and was appropriate for the climate in the Southwest, staying cool in the summer
and warm in the winter.
The majority of the extant adobes in and around San Luis Obispo were built in the second half of the
19th century. Following California’s annexation to the United States in 1850, there was a migration of
settlers from the east. During this period many adobe structures were destroyed to make way for new
development. Many were altered during this period, with the addition of wood siding, composition
roofing, and exterior finishes that may have obscured the adobe structure beneath. Clapboard siding
was commonly used to protect adobe blocks from weathering, or to create a more stylish, ornamental
appearance. In some cases, adobes were covered with a stucco or plaster finish.
Character-defining features include:
Rectangular plan
Thick masonry walls of adobe brick
Simple, unadorned exteriors (often with stucco cladding)
Few, small window openings
Simple arrangement of interior spaces
Murray Adobe, 747 Monterey Street, 1850. Source:
City of San Luis Obispo.
Butron Adobe, 466 Dana Street, 1860. Source: City of San Luis
Obispo.
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COMMERCIAL VERNACULAR
Although not an officially recognized style, “commercial vernacular” describes simple commercial
structures with little decorative ornamentation, common in American cities and towns of the late 19th
and early 20th centuries. They are typically brick in construction, with minimal decorative detailing.
Character-defining features include:
Simple square or rectangular form
Flat roof with a flat or stepped parapet
Brick exterior wall surfaces, with face brick on the primary facade
First-story storefronts, typically with a continuous transom window above
Wood double-hung sash upper-story windows, often in pairs
Segmental arch window and door openings on side and rear elevations
Decorative detailing, if any, may include cornices, friezes, quoins, or stringcourses
1901 Broad Street. Source: Historic Resources Group. 1401 Osos Street. Source: Historic Resources Group.
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GOTHIC REVIVAL (CARPENTER GOTHIC)
Like the Italianate style, Gothic Revival emerged in England as part of the Picturesque Movement.
Often termed “Carpenter Gothic” in the United States, this style commonly was applied to both
residences and churches. Buildings may be of wood or masonry construction, but wood-frame
predominates in domestic examples.
Character-defining features include:
Asymmetrical façade
Vertical emphasis
Steeply-pitched roof, often with cross gables and overhanging eaves
Often features a square or octagonal tower
Typically with horizontal wood exterior cladding
Tall narrow windows, commonly with pointed arches
One-story entry or full-width porch, often supported by flattened Gothic arches
Fanciful wood ornamentation, including decorative vergeboards
McManus House, 639 Pismo Street, 1901. Source: City of
San Luis Obispo.
First Baptist Church, 1301 Osos Street,
1907. Source: City of San Luis Obispo.
Biddle House, 552 Pismo Street, 1889. Source: City
of San Luis Obispo.
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STICK/EASTLAKE
The Stick style is an architectural link between the earlier Gothic Revival and later Queen Anne style,
all of which are adapted from Medieval buildings traditions. The Stick style is defined primarily by its
decorative detailing, where the wall surface itself is treated as a decorative element, frequently with
visible stick work. The term “Eastlake” typically refers to the decorative ornamentation found on
Victorian-era residences, such as those designed in the Stick style.
Character-defining features include:
Steeply-pitched gabled roof, usually with cross gables
Decorative trusses at the gable apex
Overhanging eaves with exposed rafters
Wood exterior wall cladding with applied decorative stick work
Entry or full-width porches with diagonal or curved braces
May incorporate Eastlake detailing
Shipsey House, 1266 Mill Street, 1890. Source: Historic Resources Group.
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QUEEN ANNE
The Queen Anne style was one of the most popular Victorian-era styles for residential buildings in
California. Like the Stick style that it quickly replaced, Queen Anne uses exterior wall surfaces as a
primary decorative element.
Character-defining features include:
Asymmetrical façade
Steeply-pitched roof of irregular shape, usually with a dominate front-facing gable
Wooden exterior wall cladding with decorative patterned shingles
Projecting partial-, full-width or wrap-around front porch, usually one story in height
Cut-away bay windows
Wood double-hung sash windows
Towers topped by turrets, domes or cupolas
Tall decorative brick chimneys
Ornamentation may include decorative brackets, bargeboards and pendants, as well as Eastlake
details, such as spindle work
Crocker House, 793 Buchon Street, 1901-1902.Source
City of San Luis Obispo.
Stanton House, 752 Buchon Street, 1903-1905. Source City of
San Luis Obispo.
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NEO-CLASSICAL COTTAGE
The term “Neo-Classical Cottage” is used to describe simple house forms or cottages with fewer
decorative features than other styles from the period. While vernacular residences may display certain
characteristics of recognizable styles, decorative detailing is typically confined to the porch or cornice
line.
Character-defining features include:
Symmetrical façade
Simple square or rectangular form
Gabled or hipped roof with boxed or open eaves
Wood exterior cladding
Simple window and door surrounds
Details may include cornice line brackets
Porch support with turned spindles or square posts
1203 Pismo Street, c.1900. Source: Historic Resources
Group.
1211 Pismo Street, 1908.Source: Historic Resources
Group.
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RESIDENTIAL VERNACULAR
The term “Residential Vernacular” is used to describe simple houses or cottages with little or no
distinguishing decorative features. These buildings are characterized by their simplicity and lack of any
characteristics of recognizable styles.
Character-defining features include:
Simple square or rectangular form
Gabled or hipped roof with boxed or open eaves
Wood exterior cladding
Simple window and door surrounds
Fitzpatrick House, 670 Islay Street, 1880. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
Foreman House, 1500 Eto Street, 1878. Source: City of
San Luis Obispo.
Anderson House, 532 Dana Street, 1898.
Source: City of San Luis Obispo.
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MISSION REVIVAL
The Mission Revival style is indigenous to California. Drawing upon its own colonial past, Mission
Revival was the Californian counterpart to the Colonial Revival of the Northeastern states. Never
common beyond the Southwest, its regional popularity was spurred by its adoption by the Santa Fe
and Southern Pacific Railways as the preferred style for train stations and resort hotels. Features of the
California Missions were borrowed and freely adapted, often in combination with elements of other
revival styles.
Character-defining features include:
Red clay tile roofs with overhanging eaves and open rafters
Shaped parapets
Stucco exterior wall cladding
Arched window and door openings
Details may include bell towers, quatrefoil openings or patterned tiles
Old Gas Works, 280 Pismo Street, 1902. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
Grace Church, 1350 Osos Street. Source: Historic Resources Group.
Milestone Motel, 2223 Monterey Street, 1925. Source: City of San
Luis Obispo.
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CRAFTSMAN
Craftsman architecture in America grew out of the late-19th century English Arts and Crafts
movement. It stressed simplicity of design, hand-craftsmanship, and the relationship to the climate and
landscape. Craftsman architecture was widely published in architectural journals and pattern books,
popularizing the style throughout the country. Affordable and easily constructed from local materials,
the mostly one- or one-and-a-half-story homes were often referred to as “bungalows” and dominated
middle-class residential design during the first quarter of the 20th century.
Character-defining features include:
Horizontal massing
Low-pitched gabled roof
Widely overhanging eaves with exposed rafters, beams, or braces
Wood exterior wall cladding (shingle, shake, or clapboard)
Projecting partial-, full-width or wrap-around front porch
Heavy porch piers, often of river stone or masonry
Wood-frame casement or double-hung sash windows, often grouped in multiples
Widely-proportioned front doors, often with a beveled light
Wide window and door surrounds, often with extended lintels
Extensive use of natural materials (wood, brick or river stone)
1339 Higuera Street. Source: City of San Luis Obispo.
Burch House, 1333 Mill Street, 1915. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
Residence, 863 Islay Street, c. 1915. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
City of San Luis Obispo Architectural Character
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TUDOR REVIVAL
The Tudor Revival style is loosely based on a variety of Medieval English building traditions. In the
United States, these traditions are combined freely, but retain the steeply-pitched front-facing gable
which is almost universally present as a dominant façade element. The style’s popularity expanded
dramatically in the 1920s and early 1930s, when masonry veneering techniques allowed even the
most modest examples to mimic closely the brick and stone exteriors seen on English prototypes.
The Storybook cottage is a more whimsical version of Tudor Revival. Storybook residences typically
feature roofs laid in irregular patterns and rolled eaves to suggest thatching, eyebrow arches over
entries and dormers, and exterior walls with irregular plaster finish. The Storybook style was
particularly popular in Hollywood where motion picture set designers sometimes moonlighted as
architects.
Character-defining features include:
Asymmetrical facade
Steeply-pitched gabled roof with a prominent front-facing gable
Stucco or brick exterior wall cladding, typically with half-timbering
Tall, narrow divided-light windows, casement or double-hung sash, often arranged in multiples
May display picture windows with leaded diamond panes
Small gabled entry porch, often with arched openings
Details may include stone or brick accents or faux quoining
236 Broad Street. Source: City of San Luis Obispo.
1167 Marsh Street, 1930.Source: Historic Resources Group. 752 Mission Street, 1931. Source: Historic Resources Group.
Dunne House, 59 Benton Way, 1927. Source City of San
Luis Obispo.
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AMERICAN COLONIAL REVIVAL
The Colonial Revival style proliferated during the first half of the 20th century. This style incorporates
traditions from the Georgian, Adam and early Classical Revival styles that were prevalent during the
English colonial period. Dutch colonial influences were also incorporated, which often include a
gambrel roof. Earlier examples were rarely accurate recreations but were instead free interpretations
with details inspired by colonial precedents, while later examples shifted to more historically correct
proportions and details.
Character-defining features include:
Side gable or hipped roofs
Wood exterior wall cladding, typically horizontal
Accentuated front entry or portico, featuring decorative pediments supported by pilasters or
slender columns
Wood double-hung sash windows with multi-pane glazing
Front doors flanked by sidelights with fanlights above
Fixed wooden shutters
1318 Mill Street, 1906. Source: Historic Resources Group.
1727 Corralitos Avenue, c.1940. Source: Historic Resources
Group
1624 Morro Street.Source: Historic
Resources Group.
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CLASSICAL REVIVAL
The Classical Revival style did not achieve the broad popularity of its closely-related Colonial Revival
contemporary. The style is best identified by its symmetrical façade, which is typically dominated by a
full-height porch with the roof supported by classical columns. Like the Renaissance Revival, this style
was widely used for imposing civic buildings, institutional buildings, and banks.
Character-defining features include:
Symmetrical façade
Front- or side-gabled roof
Wood or masonry exterior wall cladding
Full-height gabled or pedimented front porch
Porch roof supported by slender fluted columns with Ionic or Corinthian capitals
Wood double-hung sash windows with multi-pane glazing
Details may include dentils, a wide frieze beneath the cornice, and roofline balustrades
Masonic Temple, 1913. 856 Marsh Street. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
Stover’s Sanitarium, 1911. 1160 Marsh Street. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
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ITALIANATE
The Italianate style began in England as part of the Picturesque Movement. As used in the United
States, this style generally followed the informal model of the simple Italian farmhouse, but was
adapted into an indigenous style. This style did not enjoy the widespread popularity of other
Victorian-era styles, and relatively few Italianate buildings were built.
Character-defining features include:
Symmetrical façade
Low pitched hipped or flat roof
Widely overhanging eaves with large decorative brackets
Tall narrow windows, commonly arched or curved above
Elaborated window crowns
One-story entry porch, often supported by square posts with beveled corners
Centrally-placed square tower or cupola
Jack House, 536 Marsh Street, 1880. Source: Historic Resources
Group.
Fitzgerald House, 794 Buchon Street, 1902.
Source: Historic Resources Group.
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RENAISSANCE REVIVAL
Renaissance Revival buildings were often fairly literal interpretations of the Italian originals, unlike the
free interpretations of the preceding Italianate style. Its formal, symmetrical facades and Classical or
Beaux Arts details including quoins, roofline balustrades, pedimented windows, molded cornices and
belt courses were often used for imposing civic buildings, institutional buildings, and banks.
Character-defining features include:
Symmetrical facade
Tiled low-pitched hip roof, sometimes flat roof
Boxed eaves with decorative brackets
Stucco or masonry exterior wall cladding
Arched window and door openings on the first story
Wood divided-light casement or double-hung sash windows in the upper stories
Front entry accentuated with slender classical columns or pilasters
Johnson Building, 796 Higuera Street, 1903-1904.
Source: Historic Resources Group.
Andrews Building, 998 Monterey Street, 1893-1906.
Source: Historic Resources Group.
Sinsheimer Building, 849 Monterey
Street, 1884. Source: Historic Resources
Group.
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SPANISH COLONIAL REVIVAL
Enormously popular in Southern California from the late 1910s through the late 1930s, the Spanish
Colonial Revival style emerged from a conscious effort by architects to emulate older Spanish
architectural traditions, and break with Eastern colonial influences. At the peak of its popularity, design
features of other regions of the Mediterranean were often creatively incorporated, including those of
Italy, France, and North Africa. The result was a pan-Mediterranean mélange of eclectic variations on
Spanish Revival styles.
Character-defining features include:
Asymmetrical facade
Red clay tile hip or side-gable roof, or flat roof with a tile-clad parapet
Stucco exterior cladding, forming uninterrupted wall planes
Wood-frame casement or double-hung windows, typically with divided lights
Arched colonnades, window or door openings
Decorative grilles of wood, wrought iron, or plaster
Balconies, patios or towers
Decorative terra cotta or tile work
M.F. Avila House, 1443 Osos Street. Source: Historic
Resources Group. Division of Highways District 5 Office, 50 Higuera Street,
1931. Source: City of San Luis Obispo.
U.S. Post Office, 893 Marsh Street, 1925. Source: Historic
Resources Group.Mission College Prep Catholic High School, Palm
& Broad Streets. Source: Historic Resources Group.
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ART DECO
Art Deco was the first popular style in the United States that consciously rejected historical precedents.
Most commonly used in public and commercial buildings, Art Deco was rarely used in domestic
architecture. The highly decorative style employed stylized floral, figurative and geometric motifs s as
decorative elements on the façade. Towers, piers and setbacks were employed to give the buildings a
vertical emphasis.
Character-defining features include:
Smooth wall surfaces, usually of stucco
Stylized decorative floral and figurative elements
Geometric decorative motifs such as zigzags and chevrons
Towers, piers and other vertical elements
Setbacks as design elements
Doton Building, 1931. 777 Higuera Street. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
Fremont Theatre, 1941. 1035 Monterey Street.Source:
Historic Resources Group.
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STREAMLINE MODERNE
Characterized by smooth surfaces, curved corners, and sweeping horizontal lines, Streamline Moderne
is considered to be the first thoroughly Modern architectural style to achieve wide acceptance among
the American public. Inspired by the industrial designs of the period, the style was popular throughout
the United States in the late 1930s, particularly with the Federally-funded projects of the Works
Progress Administration; buildings executed under those programs are often referred to PWA
Moderne. Unlike the equally modern but highly-ornamental Art Deco style of the late 1920s,
Streamline Moderne was perceived as expressing an austerity more appropriate for Depression-era
architecture.
Character-defining features include:
Horizontal massing
Asymmetrical façade
Flat roof with coping
Smooth wall surfaces, typically clad in stucco
Curved end walls and corners
Glass block and porthole windows
Flat canopy over entrances
Horizontal grooves or stringcourses
Pipe railings along exterior staircases and balconies
1219 Monterey Street.Source: Historic Resources Group.
1259 Palm Street. Source: Historic Resources Group.
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MINIMAL TRADITIONAL
The Minimal Traditional style is defined by simple exterior forms and a restrained use of traditional
architectural detailing. The Minimal Traditional house was immensely popular in large suburban
residential developments throughout the United States during the World War II and postwar periods.
The style had its origins in the principles of the Modern movement and the requirements of the FHA
and other Federal programs of the 1930s. Its open plan reflected the developer’s desire for greater
efficiency. Modern construction methods addressed the builder’s need to reduce costs and keep
homes affordable to the middle class. Conventional detailing appealed to conservative home buyers
and mortgage companies.
Character-defining features include:
One-story
Simple rectangular plan
Medium or low-pitched hip or side-gable roof with shallow eaves
Smooth stucco wall cladding, often with wood lap or stone veneer accents
Wood multi-light windows (picture, double-hung sash, casement)
Projecting three-sided oriel
Shallow entry porch with slender wood supports
Fixed wooden shutters
Minimal decorative exterior detailing
Example of a Minimal Traditional House. Source: Historic
Resources Group.
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RANCH
The Ranch style enjoyed enormous popularity throughout the United States during the late 1950s and
1960s, becoming the predominant domestic style in Southern California’s postwar suburbs. The Ranch
style emerged from the 1930s designs of Southern California architect Cliff May, who merged
modernist ideas with traditional notions of the working ranches of the American West. The resulting
architectural style – characterized by its low horizontal massing, sprawling interior plan, and wooden
exterior detailing - embodied the mid-century ideal of “California living.”
Character-defining features include:
One-story configuration
Sprawling plan, often with radiating wings
Low, horizontal massing with wide street facade
Low-pitched hip or gable roof with wide open eaves and wood shakes
Wood lap or board-and-batten cladding, often with brick or stucco accents
Large wood multi-light windows (picture, double-hung sash, diamond-pane)
Wide recessed front porch with wood supports and balustrades
Attached two-stall garage
Details may include such as wooden shutters, attic vents in gable ends, hipped dovecote, extended
gables, or scalloped barge boards
Common sub-styles include California Ranch and Modern Ranch
1755 Tanglewood. Source: Historic Resources Group.
1749 San Luis Drive.Source: Historic Resources Group.
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MID-CENTURY MODERN
Mid-century Modern is a term used to describe a post-World War II iteration of the International Style
in both residential and commercial design. The International Style was characterized by geometric
forms, smooth wall surfaces, and an absence of exterior decoration. Mid-century Modern represents
the adaptation of these elements to the local climate and topography, as well as to the postwar need
for efficiently-built, moderately-priced homes and buildings.
The Mid-century Modern building is characterized by its clear expression of structure and materials,
large expanses of glass, and open interior plan.
Character-defining Features
One or two-story configuration
Simple geometric forms
Expressed post-and-beam construction, in wood or steel
Flat roof with wide overhanging eaves and cantilevered canopies
Unadorned wall surfaces
Exterior panels of wood, stucco, brick or stone
Flush-mounted metal frame full-height and clerestory windows
Exterior staircases, decks, patios and balconies
Little or no exterior decorative detailing
Expressionistic/Organic subtype: sculptural forms and geometric shapes, including butterfly, A-
frame, folded plate or barrel vault roofs
2525 Augusta Street, 1951. Source: Historic Resources
Group.
201 Buena Vista Street, 1964.Source: Historic
Resources Group.
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GOOGIE
Googie has been described as Modernism for the masses. With its swooping lines and organic shapes,
the style attempted to capture the playful exuberance of postwar America. Named for the John
Lautner-designed Googie’s Restaurant in Los Angeles, the style was widely employed in roadside
commercial architecture of the 1950s, including coffee shops, bowling alleys, and car washes.
Character-defining features include:
Expressive rooflines, including butterfly, folded-plate, and cantilevers
Organic, abstract, and parabolic shapes
Clear expression of materials, including concrete, steel, asbestos, cement, glass block, plastic, and
plywood
Large expanses of plate glass
Thematic ornamentation, including tiki and space age motifs
Primacy of signage, including the pervasive use of neon
SLO Coast Diner (former Denny’s), 1460 Calle Joaquin, c. 1960. Source: City of
San Luis Obispo.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Angel, Myron. History of San Luis Obispo County with Illustrations. Oakland, CA: Thompson & West,
1883. Reprinted by Fresno Valley Publishers, CA, 1979.
California Military History Online. http://www.militarymuseum.org/HistoryWWII.html. Accessed
January 2013.
California Department of Transportation. Tract Housing in California, 1945-1973: A Context for
National Register Evaluation, 2011.
“Cal Poly History.” Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Robert E. Kennedy Library.
http://lib.calpoly.edu/universityarchives/history/. Accessed April 2013.
Calvin Coolidge Papers. “Transportation – General 1923-28: Automobiles and the Highways,” Library
of Congress, American Memory Collection, http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-
bin/query/r?ammem/coolbib@field(subj+@band(Roads+)). Accessed January 2013.
“Camp San Luis Obispo.” Global Security. http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/camp-san-
luis-obispo.htm. Accessed April 2013.
City of San Luis Obispo. “Draft Historical and Architectural Conservation Element,” n.d.
___. “Guide to Architectural Styles in San Luis Obispo,” October 1982.
___. “Completion Report: Historic Resources Survey,” July 1983.
___. “Historic Preservation Program Guidelines,” November 2010.
___. “Historic Resources Inventory,” 2011-2012.
Franks, Janet Penn. San Luis Obispo: A History in Architecture. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia
Publishing, 2004.
Haggard, Ken. San Luis Obispo Architecture: A Brief Architectural History of San Luis Obispo. San
Luis Obispo, CA: Central Coast Press, 2004.
Heizer, Robert F. Handbook of North American Indians, Washington: Smithsonian Institution, 1978.
“Highlights in the History of Cal Poly.” Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Robert E. Kennedy Library.
http://lib.calpoly.edu/universityarchives/history/timeline/. Accessed April 2013.
Historic American Buildings Survey. “Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa, 782 Monterey Street, San
Luis Obispo, San Luis Obispo County, CA.” http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/ca0799/. Accessed
April 2013.
City of San Luis Obispo
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“Historic California Posts: Camp San Luis Obispo, including Camp Merriam and Baywood Park
Training Area.” The California State Military Museum,
http://www.militarymuseum.org/CSLO%20History.html. Accessed April 2013.
“Historic California Posts: Estrella Army Air Field.” The California State Military Museum,
http://www.militarymuseum.org/EstrellaAAF.html. Accessed January 2013.
James, George Wharton. The Old Franciscan Missions of California. Boston: Little, Brown & Company,
1919.
Jordan, Adrianna. The Historical Influence of the Railroads on Urban Development and Future
Economic Potential in San Luis Obispo. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Master’s Thesis, Master of City
and Regional Planning, August 2011.
Krell, Dorothy. The California Missions. Menlo Park, CA: Sunset Books, 1979.
Landwehr, Lynne. “History in San Luis Obispo County.” http://www.historyinslocounty.org. Accessed
January 2013.
“Layout of Mission San Luis Obispo c. 1856.” California Missions Resource Center.
http://www.missionscalifornia.com/gallery/gal_layout-mission-san-luis-obispo.html. Accessed April
2013.
Lovell, Margaret. “Historical Resources Survey II: Completion Report,” January, 1992.
McKeen, Rose. Parade along the Creek: Memories of Growing up with San Luis Obispo. San Luis
Obispo, CA: Central Coast Publishers, 1988.
“Master Plan History.” Cal Poly Administration & Finance.
http://afd.calpoly.edu/facilities/masterplan/archive/history/master.htm. Accessed February 2013.
“Mission History.” Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa.
http://www.missionsanluisobispo.org/?page_id=207. Accessed April 2013.
Morrison, Annie L. and John H. Haydon. History of San Luis Obispo County and Environs, California,
with Biographical Sketches of the Leading Men and Women of the County and Environs Who
Have Been Identified with the Growth and Development of the Section from the Early Days to
the Present History. Los Angeles: Historic Record Company, 1917.
National Park Service. “National Register Bulletin 16A. How to Complete the National Register
Registration Form.” Washington D.C.: National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior,
1997.
Nettles, Wendy M. “The Copelands Project: Neophytes, Shopkeepers, and the Soiled Doves of San
Luis Obispo.” City of San Luis Obispo, Community Development Department, October 2006.
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___. “The Archaeology of the Marsh Street Garage Expansion Project: A Glimpse of Victorian Life in
San Luis Obispo, California.” San Luis Obispo County Archaeological Society, Occasional Paper
No. 20, 2012.
Nicholson, Loren. Rails Across the Ranchos. San Luis Obispo, CA: California Heritage Publishing
Associates, 1993.
“Obituary: George Hasslein, 83; Dean of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo School of Architecture,” Los
Angeles Times, September 8, 2001.
“Old Mission Church Catholic Cemetery.” San Luis Obispo County Genealogical Society.
http://www.slocgs.org/slocem/old.mission/. Accessed April 2013.
Pavlik, Robert C. “Historical Architectural Survey Report for the Cuesta Grade Project,” California
Department of Transportation, October 1994.
___. “A Railroad Runs Through It: The San Luis Obispo Southern Pacific Railroad Historic District,”
n.d. Website: http://www.heritageshared.org/docs/essays/roadscholars/roadscholars.html.
Accessed March 2013.
Rafferty, Tod, ed. The Achievers: Central California’s Engineering Pioneers. San Luis Obispo, CA:
Central Coast History Foundation, 2004.
Robinson, W.W. The Story of San Luis Obispo County. Los Angeles, CA: Title Insurance and Trust
Company, 1957.
San Luis Obispo County Historical Society. “The Dallidet Family History.”
http://www.slochs.org/history.asp. Accessed January 2013.
San Luis Obispo Tribune. Souvenir Railroad Edition, May 5, 1894. San Luis Obispo, CA: The Library
Associates, Robert E. Kennedy Library, California Polytechnic State University, 199.
Sheridan, Edwin, M. History of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura Counties California.
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1917.
Starr, Kevin. Embattled Dreams: California in War and Peace, 1940-1950. New York: Oxford
University Press, 2002.
Storke, Yda Addis. A Memorial and Biographical History of the Counties of Santa Barbara, San Luis
Obispo, and Ventura, California. Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1891. Transcribed to
http://ca-files.biofiles.us.htm. Accessed January 2013.
Taylor, Patti and Suzette Lees. 75 SLO City Sites: An Informative Self-Guided Architectural Tour in
Historic San Luis Obispo. San Luis Obispo, CA: Graphic Communication Institute at Cal Poly,
California Polytechnic State University, 2010.
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The Library Associates. A Vast Pictorial Domain: San Luis Obispo County in the 1870s. San Luis
Obispo, CA: The Library Associates, Robert E. Kennedy Library, California Polytechnic State
University, 1993.
Tritenbach, Paul. San Luis Obispo Discoveries. San Luis Obispo, Excellence Press: 1989.
Weitze, Karen. California’s Mission Revival. Los Angeles: Hennessey & Ingalls, 1984.
White, Roger. “At Home on the Highway,” American Heritage Magazine, December 1985.
http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1985/1/1985_1_98.shtml. Accessed
January 2013.
“William Weeks.” https://digital.lib.washington.edu/php/architect/record. Accessed January 2013.
Zike, Allison Dean. “Mid-Twentieth Century Residential Development in San Luis Obispo,” A Thesis
presented to the Faculty of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, June 2012.
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APPENDIX A: EVALUATION CRITERIA
NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES
The National Register of Historic Places is an authoritative guide to be used by Federal, State, and local
governments, private groups, and citizens to identify the Nation's cultural resources and to indicate
what properties should be considered for protection from destruction or impairment.95 The National
Park Service administers the National Register program. Listing in the National Register assists in
preservation of historic properties in several ways, including: recognition that a property is of
significance to the nation, the state, or the community; consideration in the planning for federal or
federally assisted projects; eligibility for federal tax benefits; and qualification for Federal assistance for
historic preservation, when funds are available.
To be eligible for listing and/or listed in the National Register, a resource must possess significance in
American history and culture, architecture, or archaeology. Listing in the National Register is primarily
honorary and does not in and of itself provide protection of a historic resource. The primary effect of
listing in the National Register on private owners of historic buildings is the availability of financial and
tax incentives. In addition, for projects that receive Federal funding, a clearance process must be
completed in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. State and local
regulations may also apply to properties listed in the National Register.
The criteria for listing in the National Register follow established guidelines for determining the
significance of properties. The quality of significance in American history, architecture, archeology,
engineering, and culture is present in districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects:
A. That are associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns
of our history; or
B. That are associated with the lives of persons significant in our past; or
C. That embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction, or that
represent the work of a master, or that possess high artistic values, or that represent a significant
and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction; or
D. That have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or
history. 96
Standard preservation practice evaluates collections of buildings from similar time periods and historic
contexts as historic districts. The National Park Service defines a historic district as “a significant
95 36CFR60, Section 60.2.
96 36CFR60, Section 60.3.
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concentration, linkage, or continuity of sites, buildings, structures, or objects united historically or
aesthetically by plan or physical development.”97
CALIFORNIA REGISTER OF HISTORICAL RESOURCES
The California Register is an authoritative guide in California used by State and local agencies, private
groups, and citizens to identify the State's historical resources and to indicate what properties are to be
protected, to the extent prudent and feasible, from substantial adverse change.98
The criteria for eligibility for listing in the California Register are based upon National Register criteria.
These criteria are:
1. Associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of local or
regional history or the cultural heritage of California or the United States.
2. Associated with the lives of persons important to local, California or national history.
3. Embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, region or method of construction or
represents the work of a master or possesses high artistic values.
4. Has yielded, or has the potential to yield, information important to the prehistory or history of
the local area, California or the nation.
The California Register consists of resources that are listed automatically and those that must be
nominated through an application and public hearing process. The California Register includes the
following:
California properties formally determined eligible for (Category 2 in the State Inventory of
Historical Resources), or listed in (Category 1 in the State Inventory), the National Register of
Historic Places.
State Historical Landmarks No. 770 and all consecutively numbered state historical landmarks
following No. 770. For state historical landmarks preceding No. 770, the Office of Historic
Preservation (OHP) shall review their eligibility for the California Register in accordance with
procedures to be adopted by the State Historical Resources Commission (commission).
Points of historical interest which have been reviewed by the OHP and recommended for listing
by the commission for inclusion in the California Register in accordance with criteria adopted by
the commission.99
97 National Register Bulletin 15. (5)
98 California PRC, Section 5023.1(a).
99 California PRC, Section 5023.1(d).
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Other resources which may be nominated for listing in the California Register include:
Individual historical resources.
Historical resources contributing to the significance of an historic district.
Historical resources identified as significant in historical resources surveys, if the survey meets the
criteria listed in subdivision (g) of Section 5023.1” of the Public Resources Code.
Historical resources and historic districts designated or listed as city or county landmarks or
historic properties or districts pursuant to any city or county ordinance, if the criteria for
designation or listing under the ordinance have been determined by the office to be consistent
with California Register criteria.
Local landmarks or historic properties designated under any municipal or county ordinance.100
LOCAL DESIGNATION
In 2010, the City of San Luis Obispo adopted a Historic Preservation Ordinance that outlines the
procedures and criteria for the inclusion of historic or cultural resources on the City’s Master List or
Contributing List of Historic Resources. 101 In order to be eligible for designation, the resource must
exhibit a high level of historic integrity, be at least fifty (50) years old,102 and satisfy at least one of the
following criteria:
A. Architectural Criteria: Embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, region, or method
of construction, or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values.
1. Style: Describes the form of a building, such as size, structural shape and details within that form
(e.g. arrangement of windows and doors, ornamentation, etc.). Building style will be evaluated as a
measure of:
a. The relative purity of a traditional style;
b. Rarity of existence at any time in the locale; and/or current rarity although the structure
reflects a once popular style;
c. Traditional, vernacular and/or eclectic influences that represent a particular social milieu and
period of the community; and/or the uniqueness of hybrid styles and how these styles are put
together.
100 California PRC, Section 5023.1(e).
101 City of San Luis Obispo, “Historic Preservation Ordinance, Section 14.01.070,” December 7, 2010.
102 Properties less than 50 years old can be designated if it can be demonstrated that enough time has passed to
understand the historical importance.
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2. Design: Describes the architectural concept of a structure and the quality of artistic merit and
craftsmanship of the individual parts. Reflects how well a particular style or combination of styles
are expressed through compatibility and detailing of elements.
Also, suggests degree to which the designer (e.g., carpenter-builder) accurately interpreted and
conveyed the style(s). Building design will be evaluated as a measure of:
a. Notable attractiveness with aesthetic appeal because of its artistic merit, details and
craftsmanship (even if not necessarily unique);
b. An expression of interesting details and eclecticism among carpenter-builders, although the
craftsmanship and artistic quality may not be superior.
3. Architect: Describes the professional (an individual or firm) directly responsible for the building
design and plans of the structure. The architect will be evaluated as a reference to:
a. A notable architect (e.g., Wright, Morgan), including architects who made significant
contributions to the state or region, or an architect whose work influenced development of the
city, state or nation.
b. An architect who, in terms of craftsmanship, made significant contributions to San Luis
Obispo (e.g., Abrahams who, according to local sources, designed the house at 810 Osos -
Frank Avila's father's home - built between 1927 – 30).
B. Historic Criteria
1. History – Person: Associated with the lives of persons important to local, California, or national
history. Historic person will be evaluated as a measure of the degree to which a person or group
was:
a. Significant to the community as a public leader (e.g., mayor, congress member, etc.) or for
his or her fame and outstanding recognition - locally, regionally, or nationally.
b. Significant to the community as a public servant or person who made early, unique, or
outstanding contributions to the community, important local affairs or institutions (e.g., council
members, educators, medical professionals, clergymen, railroad officials).
2. History – Event: Associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad
patterns of local or regional history or the cultural heritage of California or the United States.
Historic event will be evaluated as a measure of:
i. A landmark, famous, or first-of-its-kind event for the city - regardless of whether the impact
of the event spread beyond the city.
ii. A relatively unique, important or interesting contribution to the city (e.g., the Ah Louis Store
as the center for Chinese-American cultural activities in early San Luis Obispo history).
City of San Luis Obispo
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162
3. History-Context: Associated with and also a prime illustration of predominant patterns of
political, social, economic, cultural, medical, educational, governmental, military, industrial, or
religious history. Historic context will be evaluated as a measure of the degree to which it reflects:
a. Early, first, or major patterns of local history, regardless of whether the historic effects go
beyond the city level, that are intimately connected with the building (e.g., County Museum).
b. Secondary patterns of local history, but closely associated with the building (e.g., Park
Hotel).
C. Integrity: Authenticity of an historical resource’s physical identity evidenced by the survival of
characteristics that existed during the resource’s period of significance. Integrity will be evaluated by a
measure of:
1. Whether or not a structure occupies its original site and/or whether or not the original
foundation has been changed, if known.
2. The degree to which the structure has maintained enough of its historic character or appearance
to be recognizable as an historic resource and to convey the reason(s) for its significance.
3. The degree to which the resource has retained its design, setting, materials, workmanship,
feeling and association.
Integrity
In addition to meeting any or all of the designation criteria listed above, properties nominated must
also possess historic integrity. Historic integrity is the ability of a property to convey its significance and
is defined as “the authenticity of a property’s historic identity, evidenced by the survival of physical
characteristics that existed during the property’s historic period.”103
The National Register recognizes seven aspects or qualities that comprise integrity, which are also
referenced in the City’s local ordinance: location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and
association. These qualities are defined as follows:
Location is the place where the historic property was constructed or the place where the historic event
took place.
Design is the combination of elements that create the form, plan, space, structure, and style of a
property.
Setting is the physical environment of a historic property.
Materials are the physical elements that were combined or deposited during a particular period of
time and in a particular pattern or configuration to form a historic property.
103 National Register Bulletin 16A.
City of San Luis Obispo
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HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
163
Workmanship is the physical evidence of the crafts of a particular culture or people during any given
period in history or prehistory.
Feeling is a property's expression of the aesthetic or historic sense of a particular period of time.
Association is the direct link between an important historic event or person and a historic property.104
In assessing a property's integrity, the National Park Service recognizes that properties change over
time. National Register Bulletin 15 provides:
To retain historic integrity a property will always possess several, and usually most, of the aspects. It is
not necessary for a property to retain all its historic physical features or characteristics. The property
must retain, however, the essential physical features that enable it to convey its historic identity.
A property that has lost some historic materials or details can be eligible if it retains the majority of the
features that illustrate its style in terms of the massing, spatial relationships, proportion, pattern of
windows and doors, texture of materials, and ornamentation. The property is not eligible, however, if
it retains some basic features conveying massing but has lost the majority of the features that once
characterized its style.105
For properties which are considered significant under National Register Criteria A and B, National
Register Bulletin 15 states:
A property that is significant for its historic association is eligible if it retains the essential physical
features that made up its character or appearance during the period of its association with the
important event, historical pattern, or person(s).
A property important for illustrating a particular architectural style or construction technique must
retain most of the physical features that constitute that style or technique.106
A property that has sufficient integrity for listing at the national, state, or local level will typically retain
a majority of the identified character-defining features, and will retain sufficient integrity to convey its
significance. The required aspects of integrity are dependent on the reason for a property’s
significance. Increased age and rarity of the property type are also considerations when assessing
integrity thresholds.
For example, for properties that are significant for their architectural merit (Criterion C/3/A.1-.3), a
higher priority is placed on integrity of design, materials, and workmanship. For properties that are
104 U.S. Department of Interior, National Park Service, National Register Bulletin 15: How to Apply the
National Register Criteria for Evaluation. Washington D.C.: National Park Service, 1995.
105National Register Bulletin 15.
106National Register Bulletin 15.
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
164
significant for their association with important events or people, integrity of feeling and/or association
may be more important.
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
165
APPENDIX B: PROPERTIES LISTED IN THE NATIONAL
REGISTER
HISTORIC NAME ADDRESS
Ah Louis Store 800 Palm Street
Myron Angel House 714 Buchon Street
Robert Jack House 536 Marsh Street
Pacific Coast Railway Company Grain
Warehouse
65 Higuera Street
The Powerhouse Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, northeast corner
of South Perimeter Road & Cuesta Avenue
San Luis Obispo Carnegie Library 696 Monterey Street
Tribune-Republic Building 1763 Santa Barbara Street
William Shipsey House 1266 Mill Street
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
166
APPENDIX C: MASTER LIST OF HISTORIC RESOURCES107
ADDRESS STREET HISTORIC NAME YEAR BUILT
1590 LIZZIE LA LOMA DE LA NOPALERA ADOBE 1780
782 MONTEREY MISSION SAN LUIS OBISPO 1812
964 CHORRO SAUER/ADAMS ADOBE 1820
1451 ANDREWS ANDREWS ADOBE 1830
747 MONTEREY MURRAY ADOBE 1850
868 CHORRO MANCILLA/FREITAS ADOBE 1850
1341 PURPLE SAGE RODRIGUEZ ADOBE 1850
466 DANA ROSA BUTRON ADOBE 1860
642 MONTEREY HAYS/LATTIMER ADOBE 1860
1185 PACIFIC DALLIDET ADOBE 1860
1344 NIPOMO ST. STEPHEN'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH 1873
1763 SANTA BARBARA TRIBUNE REPUBLIC BUILDING 1873
644 ISLAY DANA/PARSONS HOUSE 1875
848 MONTEREY SAUER BAKERY 1875
1314 PALM RIGHETTI HOUSE 1877
1500 ETO SOLOMON FOREMAN HOUSE 1878
536 MARSH JACK HOUSE 1880
670 ISLAY FITZPATRICK HOUSE 1880
3897 HIGUERA, SOUTH LONG/BONETTI RANCH 1880
547 MARSH KAETZEL HOUSE 1882
236 HIGUERA H. H. WAITE PLANING MILL 1883
849 HIGUERA GOLDTREE BLOCK/HOTEL WINEMAN 1883/1930
1129 GARDEN LAIRD BUILDING 1883
1306 CHORRO REGAN HOUSE 1883
800 PALM AH LOUIS STORE 1884
849 MONTEREY SINSHEIMER BUILDING 1884
1429 OSOS FRANK CAMPBELL MITCHELL HOUSE 1884-85
75 HIGUERA LOOMIS FEED CO.WAREHOUSE 1885
1029 CHORRO DUGHI BUILDING 1885
1033 CHORRO WICKENDEN BUILDING 1885
1406 MORRO SNYDER HOUSE 1885
714 BUCHON MYRON ANGEL HOUSE 1886-91
963 BROAD MANDERSCHEID HOUSE 1886-91
1703 SANTA BARBARA CALL HOTEL 1886
1117 MARSH ESQUAR HOUSE 1888
1135 MARSH SHIPMAN HOUSE 1888
559 PISMO BIDDLE HOUSE 1889
107 City of San Luis Obispo, “Master List of Historic Resources,” March 2012. Organized by date of construction.
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
167
ADDRESS STREET HISTORIC NAME YEAR BUILT
2132 HARRIS WEILL HOUSE 1889
71 PALOMAR SANDFORD HOUSE 1890
497 ISLAY VOLLMER HOUSE 1890
671 PISMO LEWIN HOUSE 1890
676 PISMO GREENFIELD HOUSE 1890
740 HIGUERA VOLLMER GROCERY 1890
777 JOHNSON BUCKLEY HOUSE 1890
856 HIGUERA SANDERCOCK TRANSFER BUILDING 1890
1141 MARSH THE NURSE'S HOUSE 1890
1266 MILL SHIPSEY HOUSE 1890
1428 NIPOMO ROGERS HOUSE 1890
1510 BROAD MCKENNON HOUSE 1890
1518 CHORRO BROOKS HOUSE 1890
1907 CHORRO FINNEY HOUSE 1890
1953 CHORRO OLIVER HOUSE 1890-1910
799 HIGUERA COMMERCIAL BANK BUILDING 1891
1720 JOHNSON THE JUDGE'S HOUSE 1892-1906
998 MONTEREY ANDREWS BUILDING 1893-1906
687 ISLAY ERICKSON HOUSE 1894-95
1118 PALM GREGG HOUSE 1894
860 BUCHON HOURIHAN HOUSE 1895
1445 BROAD FALKENSTEIN HOUSE 1895
1504 BROAD VETTERLINE HOUSE 1895-1900
1716 OSOS HAGEMAN SANITARIUM 1895
726 HIGUERA KLUVER CIGAR FACTORY 1897
1435 BROAD MILLER HOUSE 1897
532 DANA ANDERSON HOUSE 1898
779 BUCHON UPHAM HOUSE 1898
1212 GARDEN GOLDTREE/MCCAFFREY HOUSE 1898
785 BUCHON MARSHALL HOUSE 1899
461 ISLAY ERICKSON HOUSE 1900
463 ISLAY FUMIGALLI HOUSE 1900
690 ISLAY KIMBALL HOUSE 1900
726 BUCHON JESSIE WRIGHT MATERNITY HOME 1900
1636 MORRO BAKER HOUSE 1900
1642 MORRO ALBERT HOUSE 1900
1700 OSOS ALLEN HOUSE 1900
1940 SANTA BARBARA SOUTHERN PACIFIC WAREHOUSE 1900
1019-23 LEFF POST HOUSE 1900
649 PISMO MCMANUS HOUSE 1901
767 HIGUERA BANK OF AMERICA BUILDING 1901-02
793 BUCHON CROCKER HOUSE 1901-02
1021 RAILROAD SP TRANSPORTATION CO. BLDG. 1901-13
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
168
ADDRESS STREET HISTORIC NAME YEAR BUILT
1717 SANTA BARBARA WILLIAM M. DUFF HOUSE 1901
280 PISMO OLD GAS WORKS 1902
794 BUCHON FITZGERALD HOUSE 1902
752 BUCHON STANTON HOUSE 1903-05
771 BUCHON BREW HOUSE 1903
796 HIGUERA JOHNSON BUILDING 1903-04
852 HIGUERA A. F. FITZGERALD BUILDING 1903
1446 NIPOMO NICHOLS HOUSE 1903
1546 CHORRO FLEUGER HOUSE 1903
1746 CHORRO ASTON HOUSE 1903
696 MONTEREY CARNEGIE LIBRARY 1904-05
751 BUCHON KAISER HOUSE 1904-08
842 HIGUERA WARDEN/TOWER BUILDING 1904
850 BUCHON CLARK/NORTON HOUSE 1904-08
1426 BROAD DUTTON HOUSE 1904-08
1516 BROAD RENETZKY HOUSE 1904
1725 SANTA BARBARA ALEXANDER GALEWSKI HOUSE 1904
719 HIGUERA GREENFIELD BUILDING 1905
951 MARSH FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 1905
978 OLIVE HERITAGE INN 1905
1129 MARSH RAMAGE HOUSE 1905
1306 MILL SMITH HOUSE 1905
1530 BROAD TUCKER HOUSE 1905
1624 MORRO BULLARD HOUSE 1905
736 HIGUERA CARRISA BUILDING 1906
1105 GEORGE EDWARD F. BUSHNELL HOUSE 1906
1123 PISMO THORNE HOUSE 1906
1318 CHORRO MAZZA HOUSE 1906
664 MONTEREY DR. GEORGE B. NICHOLS HOUSE 1907
1301 OSOS FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH 1907
1815 OSOS PARK/REIDY HOTEL 1907
1127 PEACH J. MAINO HOUSE 1908
2030 JOHNSON OLD SLO HIGH SCHOOL
CLASSROOM
1908
863 PACIFIC ZION LUTHERAN CHURCH 1909-10
1026 CHORRO WADE BUILDING 1909
1330 MILL MUSCIO HOUSE 1909
535 ISLAY SANDERCOCK HOUSE 1910
570 HIGUERA GOLDEN STATE CREAMERY 1910
745 BUCHON BRADBURY HOUSE 1910
790 ISLAY JACKSON HOUSE 1910
1128 PEACH MAINO/RIGHETTI HOUSE 1910
1345 BROAD ANDERSON HOUSE 1910-14
743 BUCHON BRADBURY SANITARIUM 1911-12
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
169
ADDRESS STREET HISTORIC NAME YEAR BUILT
1144 PALM PAYNE HOUSE 1911-13
1160 MARSH STOVER'S SANITARIUM 1911
868 MONTEREY MUZIO'S GROCERY 1912
868 UPHAM HARRY E LYMAN HOUSE 1912
1116 PISMO VOLLMER HOUSE 1912
1119 GARDEN UNION HARDWARE BUILDING 1912
1318 PACIFIC LOUISIANA CLAYTON DART 1912
1880 SANTA BARBARA CHANNEL COMMERCIAL COMPANY 1912
1902 CHORRO BITTICK RESIDENCE 1912-13
859 MARSH MASONIC TEMPLE 1913
1130 GARDEN STOVER BUILDING 1913
1407 NIPOMO PATTON HOUSE 1913
550 DANA BARNEBERG HOUSE 1914
896 BUCHON CROSSETT HOUSE 1914-18
1052 ISLAY KAUFMAN HOUSE 1915
1145 MARSH FAULKNER HOUSE 1915
1333 MILL BURCH HOUSE 1915
1511 MORRO MARTHA DUNLAP HOUSE 1916
1445 SANTA ROSA KINDERGARTEN SCHOOL 1917
375 CHORRO CHRIS ANHOLM HOUSE 1919-20
890 BUCHON PAULSON HOUSE 1919
1204 NIPOMO PARSONS HOUSE 1919
843 UPHAM CHAPEK HOUSE 1921
1352 PACIFIC CHARLES JOHN KELLY 1921
1531 SANTA ROSA ADRIANCE COURT 1921
955 MONTEREY ANDERSON HOTEL 1922-23
962 MONTEREY BRUNNER BUILDING 1922-23
1335 ROUNDHOUSE SOUTHERN PACIFIC ROUNDHOUSE 1923
1123 GARDEN SMITH BUILDING 1924-25
2223 MONTEREY MILESTONE MOTEL INN 1924-25
774 MARSH SNYDER BUILDING 1925
893 MARSH U.S. POST OFFICE 1925
1460 MILL MUGLER HOUSE 1925
591 ISLAY SANDERCOCK HOUSE 1926-27
1424 MILL MAINO HOUSE 1926
59 BENTON WAY J. J. DUNNE HOUSE 1927
1443 OSOS M. F. AVILA HOUSE 1927-29
981 MARSH FREDERICK HART BUILDING 1928
2243 SANTA YNEZ FAULSTICH HOUSE 1928
890 OSOS TEASS HOUSE 1929
991 NIPOMO HARMONY CREAMERY 1929
1167 MARSH GRAVES HOUSE 1929
1305 PALM RIGHETTI APARTMENTS 1929
116 CHORRO MICHAEL C. HALPIN HOUSE 1930
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
170
ADDRESS STREET HISTORIC NAME YEAR BUILT
1305 MARSH REID HOUSE 1930
50 HIGUERA DIV. OF HIGHWAYS DIST. 5 OFF. 1931
148 BROAD BRAZIL HOUSE 1931-33
777 HIGUERA DOTON BUILDING 1931
1323 MILL LAIRD HOUSE 1931
1411 BROAD MAIER HOUSE 1933
1815 MONTEREY MONDAY CLUB 1933
1499 SAN LUIS DRIVE SLO HIGH SCHOOL GYMNASIUM 1936
1100 IRIS SOUTHERN PACIFIC WATER TOWER 1940
750 PISMO OLD FIRE STATION BUILDING 1941
976 OSOS COUNTY COURTHOUSE 1941
1035 MONTEREY FREMONT THEATER 1941
1011 RAILROAD SOUTHERN PACIFIC DEPOT 1943
990 PALM SAN LUIS OBISPO CITY HALL 1951
1106 PACIFIC KUNDERT MEDICAL BUILDING 1956
100 MADONNA MADONNA INN 1961-69
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
171
APPENDIX D: LIST OF CONTRIBUTING HISTORIC RESOURCES108
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1428 Beach Old Town 2/3/1987
1520 Beach Old Town 2/3/1987
1342 Breck East Railroad Area 2/20/2007
156 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
207 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
236 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
282 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
301 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
368 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
381 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
397 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
453 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
456 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
457 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
464 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
472 Broad Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 8/18/1998
967 Broad Downtown 8/16/1983
975 Broad Downtown 8/16/1983
1019-23 Broad Downtown 8/16/1983
1405 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1408-10 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1418 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1421 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1427 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1505 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1511-13 Broad Old Town 08/16/83.
1519 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1531 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1536 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
1544 Broad Old Town 8/16/1983
530 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
108 City of San Luis Obispo, “List of Contributing Historic Resources,” January 2013.
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
172
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
533 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
540 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
549 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
575 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
578 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
586-88 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
594 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
641 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
651 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
654 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
658 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
661 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
665 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
670 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
673 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
676-80 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
677 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
685 Buchon Old Town 8/16/1983
722 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
770 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
871 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
880 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
885 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
889 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
966 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
973 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
977 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1015 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1035 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1045 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1051 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1057 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1067 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1110 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1118 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1124 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1126 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
173
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1132 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1135 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1137 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1144 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1145 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1151 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1152 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1157 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1160 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1165 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1170 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1175 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1176 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1182 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1189 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1190 Buchon Old Town 2/3/1987
1203 Buchon N/A 11/6/2012
1216 Buchon N/A 11/6/2012
1227 Buchon N/A 11/6/2012
1256 Buchon N/A 11/6/2012
1262 Buchon N/A 11/6/2012
285 Buena Vista Monterey Heights 5/20/2008
405 Buena Vista Monterey Heights 5/21/2008
495 Buena Vista Monterey Heights 5/22/2008
742 Center Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
755 Center Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
30 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
45 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
59 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
63 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
69 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
115 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
116 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
158 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
173 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
183 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
190 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
174
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
211 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
360 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 1/5/1999
368 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
369 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
375 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
395 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
398 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
431 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
453 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
476 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
482 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
487 Chorro Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
940-42 Chorro Downtown 8/16/1983
950 Chorro China Town 2/3/1987
970 Chorro Downtown 8/16/1983
978-80 Chorro Downtown 8/16/1983
984 Chorro Downtown 8/16/1983
1023 Chorro Downtown 2/3/1987
1111 Chorro Downtown 2/3/1987
1119 Chorro Downtown 2/3/1987
1534 Chorro Old Town 2/3/1987
888 Church Old Town 2/3/1987
893 Church Old Town 2/3/1987
971 Church Railroad 2/3/1987
972 Church Old Town 2/3/1987
1010 Church Railroad 2/3/1987
1018 Church Railroad 2/3/1987
1022 Church Railroad 2/3/1987
1028 Church Railroad 2/3/1987
1034 Church Railroad 2/3/1987
465 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
469 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
507/515 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
522 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
525 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
531 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
543 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
175
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
547 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
577 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
579 Dana Downtown 2/3/1987
1013 Ella East Railroad 2/20/2007
1015 Ella East Railroad 2/20/2007
1240 Ella East Railroad 2/20/2007
1255 Ella East Railroad 2/20/2007
1265 Ella East Railroad 2/20/2007
1345 Ella #17 East Railroad 2/20/2007
1672 Fairview East Railroad 2/20/2007
1110 Garden Downtown 2/3/1987
1408 Garden Old Town 2/3/1987
1421 Garden Old Town 2/3/1987
1425 Garden Old Town 2/3/1987
1536 Garden Old Town 2/3/1987
1043 George East Railroad 2/20/2007
1127 George East Railroad 2/20/2007
1205 George East Railroad 2/20/2007
1215 George East Railroad 2/20/2007
1234 George East Railroad 2/20/2007
1236 George East Railroad 2/20/2007
673 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
685 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
686 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
698 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
699 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
705 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
715 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
717 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
718-20 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
723 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
725 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
728 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
733 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
746 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
751 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
760-70 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
176
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
778 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
779-87 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
782-90 Higuera Downtown 8/16/1983
858 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
970 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
995 Higuera Downtown 2/3/1987
1303 Higuera N/A 11/6/2012
1311 Higuera N/A 11/6/2012
1339 Higuera N/A 11/6/2012
1361 Higuera N/A 11/6/2012
1368 Higuera N/A 11/6/2012
491 Hill Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
1136 Iris East Railroad 2/20/2007
1139 Iris East Railroad 2/20/2007
1140 Iris East Railroad 2/20/2007
1204 Iris East Railroad 2/20/2007
454 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
462 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
468 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
481 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
482 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
530 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
539 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
542 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
550 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
559 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
567 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
572 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
574 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
575 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
641 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
654 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
655 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
662 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
663 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
675 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
676 Islay Old Town 8/16/1983
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
177
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
727 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
744 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
752 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
753 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
770 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
827 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
862 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
868/870 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
878 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
879 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
893 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
974 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
976 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
978 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
980 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1005 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1011 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1017 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1022 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1029 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1034 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1035 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1040 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1044 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1045 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1052 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1053 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1061 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1071 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1028 Islay A Old Town 1/18/2011
1117 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1120 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1121 Islay Old Town 2/3/1987
1129 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
1135 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
1153 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
1154 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
178
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1159 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
1160 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
1170 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
1184 Islay N/A 11/6/2012
772 Johnson Mill 8/16/1983
773 Johnson Mill 8/16/1983
879 Johnson Mill 2/3/1987
949 Johnson Mill 2/3/1987
955 Johnson Mill 2/3/1987
957 Johnson Mill 2/3/1987
1318 Johnson N/A 11/6/2012
1405 Johnson N/A 11/6/2012
1408 Johnson Johnson Avenue 10/7/1997
1436 Johnson N/A 11/6/2012
1985 Johnson East Railroad 2/20/2007
2105 Johnson East Railroad 2/20/2007
968 Leff Old Town 2/3/1987
976 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1020 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1027 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1028 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1035 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1045 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1051 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1059 Leff Old town 2/3/1987
1160 Leff N/A 11/6/2012
1169 Leff N/A 11/6/2012
754 Lincoln Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
755 Lincoln Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
762 Lincoln Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
785 Lincoln Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
795 Lincoln Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
2102 Loomis Monterey Heights 5/20/2008
2122 Loomis Monterey Heights 5/21/2008
2160 Loomis Monterey Heights 5/22/2008
412 Marsh none 1/5/1999
742 Marsh Downtown 2/3/1987
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
179
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
778 Marsh Downtown 2/3/1987
1302 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1310 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1320 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1339 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1343 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1350 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1356 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1359 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
1360 Marsh N/A 11/6/2012
704 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
706 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
724 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
732 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
770 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
780 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
794 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
804 Meinecke Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 5/4/1999
1162 Mill Mill 2/3/1987
1165 Mill Mill 2/3/1987
1168 Mill Mill 2/3/1987
1202 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1214 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1217 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1220 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1234 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1237 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1244 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1253 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1261 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1262 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1265 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1307 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1318 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1333 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1343 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1344 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
180
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1350 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1351-63 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1360 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
1367 Mill Mill 8/16/1983
249 Mission Lane Mt. Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
728 Mission Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
734 Mission Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
752 Mission Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
610 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
614 Monterey Downtown 2/3/1987
658 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
667 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
679 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
840 Monterey Downtown 2/3/1987
857 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
861-63 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
886 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
894 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
895 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
956 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
974-82 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
1005 Monterey Downtown 8/16/1983
1009 Monterey Downtown 2/3/1987
879 Morro Downtown 2/3/1987
1009 Morro Downtown 2/3/1987
1336 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1346 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1428 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1436 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1444 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1512 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1520 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1527 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1528 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1535 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1536 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1543 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
181
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1544 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1604 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1615 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1720 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1727 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1729 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1731 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1814 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1821 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1829 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
1845 Morro Old Town 2/3/1987
501 Mt. View Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
644 Mt. View Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
676 Mt. View Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
764 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
807 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
814 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
815 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
822 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
823 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
829 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
836 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
851 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
854 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
859 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
869 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
871 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
883 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
884 Murray
Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm (Old
Town) 7/9/1999
894 Murray Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
1415 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1429 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1438 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1516 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1519 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1527 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
182
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1528 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1535 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1541 Nipomo Old Town 8/16/1983
1341 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1350 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1421 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1511 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1514 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1521 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1522 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1526 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1529 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1533 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1534 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1541 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1542 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1609 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1638 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1641 Osos Old Town 2/3/1987
1724 Osos Railroad 2/3/1987
1734 Osos Railroad 2/3/1987
1740 Osos Railroad 2/3/1987
1814 Osos Railroad 2/3/1987
1331 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
1327 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
1325 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
1326 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
1336 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
1338 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
1344 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
1371 Pacific N/A 11/6/2012
682 Palm Downtown 2/3/1987
752 Palm Downtown 2/3/1987
756 Palm Downtown 2/3/1987
776 Palm Downtown 2/3/1987
778 Palm China Town 2/3/1987
798 Palm China Town 8/16/1983
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
183
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
811 Palm China Town 2/3/1987
815 Palm China Town 2/3/1987
861 Palm China Town 2/3/1987
1014 Palm Downtown 2/3/1987
1020 Palm Downtown 2/3/1987
1201 Palm Mill 2/3/1987
1208 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1228 Palm Mill 2/3/1987
1236 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1243 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1248 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1250 Palm Mill 2/3/1987
1259 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1260 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1264 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1269 Palm Mill 2/3/1987
1270 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1317 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1320 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1344 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1347 Palm Mill 2/3/1987
1355 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1359 Palm Mill 2/3/1987
1390 Palm Mill 8/16/1983
1134 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1137 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1143 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1151 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1154 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1156 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1163 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1168 Peach Mill 8/16/1983
1206 Peach Mill 2/3/1987
1209 Peach Mill 8/16/1983
1215 Peach Mill 8/16/1983
1221 Peach Mill 8/16/1983
861 Pepper Mill 8/16/1983
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
184
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
571 Pismo Old Town 8/16/1983
657 Pismo Old Town 8/16/1983
660 Pismo Old Town 8/16/1983
663 Pismo Old Town 8/16/1983
683 Pismo Old Town 8/16/1983
729 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
954 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
956 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
958 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
969 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
977 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
979 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
985 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1042 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1050 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1060 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1068 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1109 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1126 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1133 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1145 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1147 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1152 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1155 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1160 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1163 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1166 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1171 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1176 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1179 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1185 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1190 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1193 Pismo Old Town 2/3/1987
1203 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1208 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1211 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1218 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
185
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1221 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1241 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1253 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1263 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1267 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1362 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1335 Pismo N/A 11/6/2012
1337 Pismo N/A 11/62012
907 Rachel East Railroad 2/20/2007
2056 Rachel East Railroad 2/20/2007
1020 Railroad Railroad 2/3/1987
747 Rougeot Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
750 Rougeot Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
762 Rougeot Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
783 Rougeot Mt. Pleasanton/Anholm 7/9/1999
1908 Ruth East Railroad 2/20/2007
398 San Miguel Monterey Heights 5/20/2008
1749 Santa Barbara Railroad 2/3/1987
1789 Santa Barbara Railroad 2/3/1987
1901 Santa Barbara Railroad 2/3/1987
1414 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1426 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1504 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1512 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1515 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1520 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1521 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1530 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1606 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1617 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1624 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1627 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1633 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1705 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1707 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1720 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
1728 Santa Rosa Old Town 2/3/1987
City of San Luis Obispo
Citywide Historic Context Statement
HISTORIC RESOURCES GROUP
186
ADDRESS DISTRICT OR NEIGHBORHOOD DATE LISTED
1730 Santa Rosa Railroad 2/3/1987
1731 Santa Rosa Railroad 2/3/1987
2006 Swazey East Railroad 2/20/2007
2033 Swazey East Railroad 2/20/2007
675 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
760 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
762 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
770 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
771 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
778 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
780 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
855 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
858 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
862 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
865 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
872 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
898 Toro Mill 8/16/1983
1423 Toro Old Town 2/3/1987
1424 Toro N/A 11/6/2012
1432 Toro N/A 11/6/2012
1519 Toro N/A 11/6/2012
875 Upham Railroad 2/3/1987
750 Woodbridge Little Italy 10/2/2001
756 Woodbridge Little Italy 10/2/2001
762 Woodbrige Little Italy 10/2/2001