Survey of potential
National
Register properties
in the “180 Gap” Freeway Corridor
Fresno, California
In 1990 and 1991 Dr. Karen Weitze prepared
a report for the California Department of Transportation on historic properties
in the area of central Fresno affected by the "180 Gap" freeway project. This
approximately 2.5-mile freeway is located north of downtown Fresno and links
freeways 99 and 41. Of the eighty pre-1946 structures in the area, Weitze
determined that thirteen were potentially eligible for the
National Register of Historic Places.
Dr. Weitze assessed these properties for their potential eligibility under the
National Register's Criteria for Evaluation:
- Criterion A (buildings that are
associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad
patterns of our history).
- Criterion B (buildings that are
associated with the lives of significant persons in our past).
- Criterion C (buildings 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).
- Criterion D (buildings that have yielded
or may be likely to yield, information important in history or
prehistory.)
Of the thirteen properties that Dr. Weitze
targeted, two have subsequently been demolished: the Standard Oil/Union Oil
Warehouse at 101 N. Roosevelt, and the Belmont Veterinary Hospital at 1212 E.
Belmont. The eleven remaining properties, one of which has been moved out of
the immediate area, are as follows:
Boarding
House (ca. 1892-1896)
136-138 N. Roosevelt
Simplified Eastlake
Potentially eligible under Criterion A (as associated with working class
settlement patterns in late 19th and early 20th century Fresno); and, Criterion
C (as representative of a relatively rare multi-family dwelling type, with
extremely simplified design).
Late
Italianate Dwelling (ca. 1885)
254 N. Roosevelt
Bracketed
Italianate, transitional to Stick/Eastlake
Potentially eligible under
Criterion C (as representative of a rare architectural style).
*Bethel
Danish Lutheran Church (1917)
187 N. Broadway
Henry F. Starbuck, Architect
Flemish
Revival with Craftsman details
Potentially eligible under Criterion A
(as associated with the early 20th-century Fresno Danish community, and as
associated with the German, Swedish and Danish neighborhood of the Sunset
Tract); and, Criterion C (as representative of the Flemish Revival with
Craftsman details, and as the work of California architect Henry F.
Starbuck).
Edward
J. Goodrich Home (ca. 1911)
221 N. Broadway
Craftsman bungaloid
Potentially eligible under Criterion B (as associated with the life of
Edward J. Goodrich, prominent Fresno County farmer and civic leader); and,
Criterion C (as an excellent representation of the Craftsman bungaloid style
and method of construction).
*Sample
Sanitarium (1912-1913)
311 N. Fulton
Henry F. Starbuck, Architect
Spanish
Colonial Revival
Potentially eligible under Criterion A (as associated
with the development of the greater North Park neighborhood, ca. 1902-1920, and
as representative of early 20th-century health care facilities); and, Criterion
C (as representative of the early Spanish Colonial Revival in a rare and
unusual building type, and as the work of California architect Henry F.
Starbuck).
*Ira H.
Brooks Home (ca. 1903-1905)
226 N. Fulton (relocated from 350 N.
Fulton)
Craftsman bungaloid with Colonial Revival details
Potentially eligible under Criterion A (as associated with the initial
development of North Park, ca. 1902-1910); Criterion B (as associated with Ira
H. Brooks, president of the Brooks Furniture Company); and, Criterion C (as an
excellent early example of Fresno Arts and Crafts architecture, here combining
details from both Craftsman and Colonial Revival aesthetics).
*Albert
G. Wishon Home (1904)
340 N. Fulton
A. C. Swartz, Architect
Colonial Revival
Potentially eligible under Criterion A (as associated with the initial
development of North Park, ca. 1902-1910); Criterion B (as associated with
Albert G. Wishon, manager of the San Joaquin Light and Power Company, the
Fresno City Railroad and the Fresno Water Company); and, Criterion C (as an
excellent example of the Colonial Revival and as representative of local master
architect A. C. Swartz).
Matthew
H. McIndoo Home (ca. 1905)
345 N. Van Ness
Mission
Revival/Craftsman
Potentially eligible under Criterion A (as associated
with the initial development of North Park, ca. 1910-1910); Criterion B (as
associated with the prominent farming and land investment McIndoo family); and,
Criterion C (as an excellent example of early Arts and Crafts Fresno
architecture, here combining the Mission Revival and Craftsman
aesthetics).
Newman
J. Levinson Home (ca. 1911)
1636 Broadway (relocated from 439 N. Van
Ness)
Colonial Revival
Potentially eligible under Criterion A (as
associated with the development of the greater North Park neighborhood, ca.
1902-1920); Criterion B (as associated with Newman J. Levinson, president of
the Fresno Publishing Company); and, Criterion C (as representative of the
Colonial Revival style).
*John G.
Porter Home (1909)
320 N. Fulton (relocated from 420 N. Van Ness)
Craftsman bungaloid
Potentially eligible under Criterion A (as
associated with the development of the greater North Park neighborhood, ca.
1902-1920); Criterion B (as associated with John G. Porter, Fresno builder and
developer); and, Criterion C (as representative of the oversized Craftsman
bungaloid style, and as possibly the first major work of local master builder
John G. Porter).
George H.
Larsen Home (ca. 1907)
486 N. Poplar
Colonial Revival
Potentially eligible under Criterion B (as associated with prominent Danish
blacksmith George H. Larsen); and, Criterion C (as representative of design
aesthetics transitional between the late Queen Anne and the nascent Colonial
Revival styles).
Three other properties in the project area
had previously been determined potentially eligible for the National Register,
and so were not included in Weitze's report. They are as follows:
*Charles H.
Cobb Home (1913)
271 N. Yosemite (relocated from 437 N. Fulton)
Neoclassical
*Ivan
Carter McIndoo Home (1913)
310 N. Fulton (relocated from 410 N. Van
Ness)
Craftsman Shingle Bungaloid
*William H. Hanger Home (1900)
relocated out of city (from 425 N. Van Ness)
Colonial
Revival
*In the Local
Register of Historic Resources |