Charles and Henry Greene in Altadena
By Kathy Hoskins, AHS volunteer
Charles and Henry Greene are
famous for the many beautiful homes they built in Pasadena including the Gamble
and Blacker houses. Altadena has it’s
own share of these wonderful buildings.
The Greene and Greene
architectural offices opened in 1894. In
1898, after only four years in practice, they received a rather large
commission to build a home for James Swan, a prominent Pasadenan. The home was built at 515 E. Colorado in
Pasadena and was an example of the Greene’s early architectural style. Having received their architectural training
at MIT, the Greene’s were influenced by the east coast arts and crafts movement
most notably with the shingle style that was popular at the time. The home,
“Torrington Place”, combined Georgian and classical elements with a shingle
exterior. It was built with a budget of
$18,500.
In 1925 the home was moved to
Altadena. Henry Greene designed the
alterations (Mediterranean style) for the home.
It now stands at 2162 N. Holliston near the corner of Boston and
Holliston. It has a stucco exterior
instead of shingles but the Georgian exterior elements can still be seen and except for the kitchen, the interior is in near original condition.
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| Torrington Place today |
The William A. Bowen house stands
at the northwest corner of Calaveras and Santa Anita. It was designed by the Greene brothers and
built in 1903. It was built as a ranch
house and included out buildings. It was
called a “ranchita” and demonstrated the Greene’s love of creating space that
interacted with nature. Originally it
was one story and was built around an inner courtyard or garden “living
room”. All but one bedroom had access
only to the courtyard with not interior hallway. It was certainly the ultimate in
indoor/outdoor living at the time. A second story was added in 1905. The home has been much altered and looks
little like its original design but some of the Greene’s style can be seen in
the overhangs and beam structure.
In 1905 a home for was designed
and built for August Brandt on the northeast corner of Maiden Lane and
Mariposa. The family of Iwan Serrurier,
an inventor from Holland who developed the Ganesha Tract, first inhabited the
house; at the time Mr. Brandt was serving as the contractor for the Pasadena
home being built from the Greene’s design for Mr. Serrurier. When the Altadena home was completed, the
Serrurier family decided to live in it and rent the Pasadena home. The Altadena bungalow was later moved to the
southeast corner of the same intersection where it can be seen today.
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| Serrurier House corner of Mariposa and Maiden Lane Source: Greene & Greene Virtual Archives, USC Berkeley |
Charles and Henry Greene’s
architectural career boomed between 1903 and 1909 but declined sharply from
1910 to 1923 due to the loss of popularity of the bungalow style. Charles Greene moved to Carmel in 1916 to
spend more time following his passion of studying art and Asian
philosophy. Henry Greene remained in
Pasadena to continue the work of the architectural firm.
The Dr. Nathan Williams home was
built in 1913 and shows Henry Greene’s more practical influence. It is unlike other Greene and Greene homes
with a gunite-clad front elevation and a façade reminiscent of the recently
relocated Herkimer Arms apartments in Pasadena.
All of the large interior rooms are painted with little surface
decoration. The built-in buffet in the
dining room and the stairway show some of the Greene’s signature details.
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| Dr. Nathan Williams' home today 1145 Sonoma |
Wildwood Park is a newly
discovered Henry Greene design. The
cottages were designed in 1922 for Walter D. Valentine who wished to turn his
property at the end of a cul-de-sac on Palm Street into a small compound. Two of the cottages survive today accessed by
a private driveway with stone gate pillars marking the entrance. The oak shaded property lends itself to Henry
Greene’s architectural style.
Henry Greene lived the last years
of his life in Altadena. In 1940, after
the death of his wife Emmaline, Henry moved to the home of his son Henry Dart
Greene. He lived with his son’s family
at 1405 La Solana until his death in 1954.
