Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189 Public Domain. Release under the CC BY Attribution license--http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/--Credit both “University of Southern California. Libraries” and “California Historical Society” as the source. Digitally reproduced by the USC Digital Library; From the California Historical Society Collection at the University of Southern California Send requests to address or e-mail given USC Libraries Special Collections specol@usc.edu
Description
Photograph (streetscape, horizontal photography) of the Church of the Angels, 1100 North Avenue 64, Highland Park (near Garvanza?), Los Angeles, ca.1895-1899. The Victorian-style church is about four-stories tall. It features a clock tower, inclined roofs, and stone masonry walls. A built to surround the property also is made of stone masonry. Trees surround the property. Hills are visible in the background. "The church was originally built in 1889 for Mrs. Alexander Campbell-Johnston in memory of her late husband. It was designed by Architect Ernest Coxhead and was built in a style reminiscent of a church that Mrs. Campbell-Johnston remembered from her native Scotland. This photo also shows stone wall that appears to be under construction along Avenue 64, then Mountain Avenue. The wall was designed in 1895 by Architect Fred L. Rohrig." -- unknown author. "Church of the Angels is located on Avenue 64 and Church Street, Highland Park. The story of how a charming stone Victorian church came to stand on what was once a Spanish land grant goes something like this: In 1798 land was granted to Jose Maria Verdugo, an area encompassing thousands of acres of what we now call Pasadena and Burbank. It was known then as Rancho San Rafael. The Verdugos prospered the land was handed down to children and children's children. But the prosperity passed and hard times forced descendants of Jose Maria to sell much of the land. In 1869 a man named Prudent Beaudry lived up to his name by gaining several thousand acres of Rancho San Rafael in a loan forfeiture. He went on to become mayor of Los Angeles in 1874. About a decade later, a British diplomat named Alexander Robert Campbell-Johnson visited Southern California. He must have liked what he saw, because in 1883 he and his wife, Frances, purchased 2,000 acres from Beaudry. They quickly developed the land for farming, turned over operations to their sons and left for England. A few years later, Alexander and Frances returned to the re-christened San Rafael Ranch, but Alexander took ill and died in January of 1888. In memory of her husband, Mrs. Campbell-Johnson commissioned a church from Arthur Street -- son of the famous Victorian architect George Street. Inspired by one of his father's designs, Arthur drew up plans and sent them to Ernest A. Coxhead, another British architect who was building quite a reputation in Central California. The first cornerstone was laid by Frances herself on Easter eve of 1889. The church was finished in September of that same year. Exercising considerable artistic expression with Street's plans, Coxhead created a masterpiece that remains nearly unchanged save for slight earthquake damage to the clock tower. Today, Church of the Angels is an active place of worship and a sought-after venue for wedding ceremonies." -- Bill Smith, ca.2001.
Type
image
Format
1 photograph : glass photonegative, b&w 21 x 26 cm. negatives (photographic) photographs
Churches Stone walls Coxhead, Ernest Church of the Angels Los Angeles--Churches--General Los Angeles--Architecture--Churches--General Los Angeles--Highland Park--Architecture Religious facilities
Time Period
circa 1895/1899
Place
-118.17564,34.12701 -118.17469,34.1258 -118.17588,34.12478 -118.17636,34.12562 1100 North Avenue 64 California Church of the Angels Garvanza Highland Park Pasadena Los Angeles USA
Source
1-16-48 [Microfiche number] 5897 [Accession number] CHS-5897 [Call number] California Historical Society [Contributing entity] isla id: S-4464 [Identifying number]
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