The Los Angeles Conservancy‘s decade-long effort to have the iconic homes of the Case Study House program nationally recognized has finally paid off, with news that 11 of the homes have been named eligible to be listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Among the homes included are the West House (CSH #18, above), designed by Rodney A. Walker, and the Stahl House (CSH #22), designed by Pierre Koenig and made indelibly famous by Julius Shulman’s nighttime photo of the home. Several Case Study Houses, such as the Eames House, were not included in the announcement because they are already listed in the National Register.
Julius Shulman’s photo of the Stahl House
“The Case Study House Program brought mid-century modern architecture and the Southern California lifestyle squarely in to the social consciousness,” said Billy Rose, President and Co-Founder of The Agency. “We applaud the LA Conservancy’s tenacity in getting these architectural treasures on the National Register and ensuring that these homes stand for generations to admire and inspire.”
The Case Study House program was launched in 1945 by Arts & Architecture editor John Entenza in an effort to study, plan and design homes that could be easily constructed during the postwar housing boom. For the project, Entenza enlisted many of the greatest talents in Modernist architecture, including Richard Neutra, Charles and Ray Eames, Rodney A. Walker and Eero Saarinen.
“Los Angeles is disproportionately rich and deep in terms of the numbers and styles of architecturally significant homes,” noted Rose. “We hope that the inclusion of these iconic residences signals the forthcoming addition to the Register of other seminal expressions of architecture which stand throughout the region.”
Of the 11 homes deemed eligible, ten Case Study Houses have been officially listed in the National Register of Historic Places. One of the homes was not formally listed due to the owner’s objection. All 11, according to the LA Conservancy, are officially declared “historic” and will enjoy preservation protections under the California Environmental Quality Act.
National Register of Historic Places – Case Study Houses
Los Angeles County
- Case Study House #1, 10152 Toluca Lake Ave., Los Angeles
- Case Study House #9, 205 Chautauqua Blvd., Los Angeles
- Case Study House #10, 711 S. San Rafael Ave., Pasadena
- Case Study House #16, 1811 Bel Air Rd., Los Angeles
- Case Study House #18, 199 Chautauqua Blvd., Los Angeles
- Case Study House #20, 2275 N. Santa Rosa Ave., Altadena
- Case Study House #21, 9038 Wonderland Park Ave., Los Angeles
- Case Study House #22, 1635 Woods Dr., Los Angeles
- Study House #23A, 2342 Rue de Anne, La Jolla, San Diego (determined eligible)
- Case Study House #23C, 2339 Rue de Anne, La Jolla, San Diego
- Case Study House #28, 91 Inverness Rd., Thousand Oaks
