Berkeley Landmarks designated in 2003

Marshall-Lindblom House (BAHA archives)

Photo: Daniella Thompson, 2008

252. John A. Marshall-Erik O. Lindblom House Cunningham Brothers (1897) 2601 Hillegass Avenue Designated: 3 March 2003 This exuberant expression of the Colonial Revival style, designed by the prominent Bay Area architectural firm of Cunningham Bros., is a last surviving intact example of their work in Berkeley. Two noteworthy families are associated with the house: John A. Marshall, a major contractor/developer, and Erik Lindblom, who completed the Claremont Hotel in 1915 with resources from gold prospecting in Nome, Alaska.

Brooks Apartments

Photo: Daniella Thompson, 2004

253. Brooks Apartments (Amherst Hotel) Meyers & Ward, Architect (1906) 2231 Shattuck Avenue Designated: 7 April 2003 This handsome 3-story yellow brick building at the corner of Shattuck Avenue and Kittredge Street was designed by the San Francisco firm that also designed the Carlton Hotel and the Granada Building on Telegraph Avenue. Commenting on the building boom in downtown Berkeley during the early 1900s, the Berkeley Gazette reported that “with the completion of [the Brooks Apts.], Shattuck Avenue will be solidly built on both sides from University Avenue to Bancroft Way.”

Heywood Apartments

Photo: Daniella Thompson, 2004

254. Heywood Apartments (1906) 2119 Addison Street Designated: 7 April 2003 This is one of several downtown buildings built by the pioneer Heywood family. Architect James W. Plachek’s ground floor remodel in 1917 gave the building a distinctive character and flair, and the building remains intact from that time. Bertha Boss� Cottages (photo: Daniella Thompson, 2005) 255. & 260. Bertha Boss� Houses (1884) 2426 & 2424 Fulton Street Designated: 5 May & 2 June 2003 These two cottages, built in 1884 for Mrs. Bertha Boss� and her family, are among the oldest surviving buildings in the College Homestead Association Tract. Built on two parcels, they were landmarked separately. The northern of the two cottages retained its original ornamental artificial stone curbing, which had once supported a cast iron fence and was noted in the State Historic Resources Inventory listing for this house. Sadly, a new owner recently destroyed this special feature.

Kueffer House (photo: Daniella Thompson, 2004)

The restored house (photo: Daniella Thompson, 2005)

256. John & Emily Kueffer House (1891) 2430 Fulton Street Designated: 5 May 2003 Just south of the two Boss� cottages on Fulton Street stands the Kueffer house, an intact Queen Anne raised-basement cottage, complete with wrought-iron garden railing. In the 1910s and ’20s, the house served as the home and business establishment of a corset maker. An old photograph of the Kueffer house was featured in the 1990 BAHA Calendar Proud Survivors. In 2004, the exterior was beautifully restored, but nothing remains of the original interiors. 257. West Berkeley Branch Library William K. Bartges (1923) 1125 University Avenue Structure of Merit Designated: 5 May 2003 Demolished The handsome design of this Beaux Arts style public building was severely compromised by insensitive remodeling in 1974. The building was demolished and replaced by a modern, two-story building in December 2013.

1960 University Ave. (photos: Daniella Thompson, 2004)

1960 University Ave., rear (photos: Daniella Thompson, 2005)

1952 University Ave. (photos: Daniella Thompson, 2005)

258. & 259. Alexandre & Marie Bertin Properties 1889; John Bartlett (1922); Harry C. Smith (1923) 1952 & 1960 University Avenue Structures of Merit Designated: 2 June 2003 Located on two parcels, the Bertin properties comprise a unique cluster of 19th- and early 20th-century houses and shopfronts collected on site by Alexandre and Marie Bertin, French immigrants who owned a large dry-cleaning and dyeing establishment in San Francisco and a flower nursery here. The Bertins made substantial investments in Berkeley real estate, eventually owning most of the lots on the south side of University Avenue between Milvia and Grove streets. In 1903, their San Francisco dyeworks burned down, and they replaced them with a new plant on Milvia at Addison Street. Buildings that had stood on the Milvia lot and possibly other nearby properties were moved onto this site, joining those that already stood there, complemented by new construction. Among the buildings that survived on the site are two large Victorians with stucco storefront fa�ades added in the early 1920s, two 19th-century workmen’s cottages, and twin Colonial Revival cottages—the latter four in the rear courtyard. The Bertin properties represent an intriguing early example of adaptive reuse and now resemble a miniature version of Oakland’s Preservation Park.

Daggett House front (photo: Jim Stetson)

Daggett House rear (photo: Nathan Bennett)

261. Prof. Stuart Daggett House John Hudson Thomas (1924, 1938) 1427 Hawthorne Terrace Designated: 14 July 2003 The Daggett house is a significant example of the work of John Hudson Thomas, and especially representative of his later phase, in which period design predominated. Professor Daggett (1881–1954) was a notable expert in transportation engineering. His residence is a two-story English country house with Tudor elements, adapted to the California landscape and climate. It has remained in the Daggett family to this day.

Frederick A. Thomas House

Photo: Daniella Thompson, 2004

262. Frederick A. Thomas House Julia Morgan (1911) 883 Arlington Avenue Designated: 14 July 2003 The Craftsman style Thomas house, complete with garden retaining walls and porch columns of North Berkeley Rhyolite, was designed to harmonize with its setting in the more rural Northbrae subdivision on the outskirts of Berkeley. The house was featured both in a 1912 promotional booklet on Berkeley and on a postcard (see Picturing Berkeley, a Postcard History).

Wright Block (1908 Football Game day)

Photo: Daniella Thompson, 2004

263. Wright Block William Knowles (1906) 2161 Shattuck Avenue at Center Street Designated: 8 Sep 2003 The Wright Block is the only remaining building from its era at the intersection of Shattuck Avenue and Center Street. Built immediately after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire, the Wright block marks the transformation of downtown Berkeley from a collection of wooden buildings into a substantial, “fireproof” environment. 264. Concrete Grid Forms Company Walter T. Steilberg [poss. w/ Bernard Maybeck] (1938) 3075 Telegraph Avenue Designated: 8 Sep 2003 The Concrete Grid Forms Co. demonstration building is the prototype of a uniquely Berkeley architectural construction technique, patented as Concrete Wall Form and consisting of 4’ x 8’ prefabricated concrete grid form, assembled on the jobsite to create exterior walls with 8.25” x 8.25” diamond-shaped openings filled with glass blocks. On 12 January 2004, the Landmarks Preservation Commission approved demolition subject to the applicant’s saving and relocating four panels of historic merit. The building was demolished, but it’s not clear whether the panels have been saved.

Harry H. Webb House (photo: Carroll Brentano)

Photo: Daniella Thompson, 2004

265. Harry H. Webb House Charles Manning MacGregor (1904) 2935 Otis Street Structure of Merit Designated: 8 Oct 2003 One of the last remaining intact early 20th-century houses built at the Ashby Station, the Webb house is contemporary with the landmark Webb Block around the corner, which was built for a nephew of Harry H. Webb. It is a good example of Arts and Crafts movement construction as designed for the middle class. The house is a tribute to its architect, Charles M. MacGregor, who proselytized the Gustav Stickley progressive living philosophy, adapting it to the West Coast.

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