tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56010529228356515722024-10-04T19:05:12.103-07:00Share information about the San Francisco Bay Area architect John Hudson Thomas, who practiced in Berkeley, California in the first half of the Twentieth Century.Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-12804518328255874932009-11-05T12:08:00.000-08:002009-11-05T14:00:07.976-08:00

Lowell Avenue facade. Photo: A. B. Clark, 1920 The house at 1680 Bryant Street, corner of Lowell Avenue, in Palo Alto was built for H. A. Haehl in 1914. It has elements of Art Nouveau, Viennese Secessionism, and Prairie School. A photo of this house appeared in "Art Principles" by A. B. Clark with a diagram illustrating the interplay of rectangles in the facades and window muntins. What stands

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-37519332728971222922009-10-31T20:41:00.001-07:002009-11-05T13:28:05.916-08:00

Photo: Los Altos History MuseumI received a bounty of information from Jane Metz, describing a house in Los Altos that JHT designed as a country retreat for E. J. McCutchen, a prominent San Francisco lawyer. It was located on Pine Lane, near Adobe Creek. The house was featured in the January 1920 issue of Architect and Engineer.Constructed for $20,000 in 1918, the 14-room mansion was sited on a

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-6662212491859381962009-07-04T13:02:00.000-07:002009-07-04T13:41:29.550-07:00

Three redwood interior doors from a 1923 John Hudson Thomas house in North Berkeley hills. Dimensions are:29 1/2" x 79 1/2"31 1/2" x 79 1/2" 31 3/4" x 79 1/2" (2-way swinging dr.) In the photo, the two doors on left are upside-down. They have partial hardware. Asking $40 apiece, or best offer. Respond to this ad on Craig's List if you are interested in acquiring these doors.

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-38911623576010428342009-06-05T10:38:00.001-07:002009-06-05T10:43:26.497-07:00

I was unable to attend the Anthony House tour organized by Foster Goldstrom but Jim Stetson did go and took these marvelous photos. Enjoy this very special house by JHT!Here's a link to the Flickr set. Or enjoy these photos as a larger sized slideshow by doubleclicking on them below. Many thanks to Foster for arranging this outing, to the owner for allowing appreciative visitors and to Jim for

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-75759405514761357452009-04-06T19:45:00.000-07:002009-04-12T18:29:45.947-07:00

I happened to be channel flipping last night and by chance came upon the American Experience documentary on PBS about the SF Earthquake of 1906. It really made me understand at a much deeper level how this fueled the East Bay's growth from 1906-1918 (when World War I began). You can't see the show online, but you can view some of the photos of SF in 1906 here.You can rent the program from Netflix

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-51506586742232397512009-03-25T21:51:00.000-07:002009-03-26T20:02:26.161-07:00

In 1979, the Ecole Bilingue offered a self-guided house tour of 7 houses by John Hudson Thomas. There are detailed descriptions for the featured houses:1. Kruse House, 564 Santa Clara Ave., 19142. Spring Mansion, 1960 San Antonio Road, 1912 3. Pratt-Verper House, 959 Indian Rock Ave., 19114. Pratt-Thomas House, 800 Shattuck Ave., 19115. Blum House, 1505 Hawthorne Terrace, 19266. Park House, 3115

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-8847509381493298362009-03-23T12:37:00.000-07:002011-01-28T16:31:54.300-08:00

Photo: Daniella Thompson, 2005 The Laura Belle Marsh Kluegel House (John Hudson Thomas, 1911) at 2669 Le Conte Avenue, Berkeley, is a designated City of Berkeley Landmark (see the full landmark application). Currently in default, the building will go on the auction block this Friday, March 27, at 12:30 pm. The sale will take place at the Fallon Street entrance to the Alameda County Court House

Daniella Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18221504329478379947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-67154216001455958822009-03-18T21:28:00.000-07:002009-03-23T16:38:16.827-07:00

John Hudson Thomas and the Progressive Spirit in Architecture 1910-1920 Publish at Scribd or explore others: Academic Work berkeley Oakland

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-83197609325383970782009-03-18T18:46:00.000-07:002009-03-23T16:38:39.875-07:00

To date, the person who has written the most about JHT is Thomas Gordon Smith, who wrote his master's thesis, while a student at U. C. Berkeley in the early 70s, on Thomas. Thomas Gordon Smith later became the dean of the school of architecture at the University of Notre Dame and a noted architect specializing in the classical style.I called him this week to see if he might allow his 1975 thesis

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-16903688929220074482009-03-18T18:31:00.000-07:002009-03-19T12:26:45.154-07:00

The fabulous Loring house, done in the Prairie School style, is on the National Historic Landmarks building list. Anyone have more info about the Loring House? Or know someone who does? Anyone know the owners?

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-73760979120689158642009-03-18T18:20:00.000-07:002009-03-18T22:07:03.189-07:00

This entire hillside was bare and unpopulated when developer Pratt commissioned JHT to design three houses, that cascade down the hill, on Indian Rock Avenue, beginning with the top house across the street from Indian Rock Park. A more commanding site could not be imagined. With thrilling views down the street to the Marin Circle and vast views across the Bay in all directions, JHT, who'd had the

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-6167436448039562482009-03-18T18:17:00.000-07:002009-03-18T23:11:28.838-07:00

Here are the photos of the Pratt Thomas House series I took the other day.You don't usually get to see them as a triplet, which is the way they were designed - i.e. to all go together. They function beautifully that way. All three are in his interpretation of the Viennese Secessionist style and are filled with incredible charm. The outside is a veritable symphony of mass, shapes and adornment.

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-48338570888329341032009-03-18T11:18:00.000-07:002009-11-03T06:40:13.057-08:00

A week ago, I had the pleasure of visiting Dick and Irene Riemann, who purchased 31 Norwood (Kensington) from JHT's family in 1972. This is the house JHT designed and lived in from 1928 through 1945. It also contains his office and workshop. The Riemann's have taken extremely good care of the house and, except for adding a carport and remodeling the kitchen, have kept it original for the most

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-78593946996929142582009-03-16T01:03:00.001-07:002009-03-16T22:41:35.048-07:00

Just a brief note to let people know that they can order a copy of their house plans, if they are on file, from the U.C. Santa Barbara Collection of Art and Design. I mentioned this to a JHT home owner I met today who didn't know about this, so I thought it was worth sharing with a wider audience.I've published a listing of all the collection holdings of JHT plans. I will be adding links like

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-8347624785961936052009-03-16T00:37:00.001-07:002009-03-16T00:58:26.033-07:00

A BIT OF INTRODUCTIONHi, I'm Pam Strayer and I am a John Hudson Thomas homeowner. Thanks to Jim for allowing me to join his blog as another contributor. I've lived in the Bourne Melvin house on Majestic Ave. near Mill College since 2000. The area was known as Chevrolet Park in 1927 when the house was built (probably because there was a Chevrolet Plant in nearby Eastmont). It's a doll's house

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-16413240906704855032009-03-15T23:55:00.000-07:002009-03-16T03:09:37.768-07:00

I spontaneously ended up touring 5 of Thomas's 8 Oakland houses (from the outside) yesterday so I started a Flickr.com collection of just the Oakland houses, as a start. I recommend viewing them in slideshow mode.• JHT Oakland House PhotosConners House, 1012 Ashmount and [unknown owner] 1016 AshmountToday I ventured out to 1012 Ashmount Ave., in Oakland, which is currently for sale. I'd hope to

Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-10964288291321655682009-02-16T21:31:00.000-08:002018-12-18T22:14:16.029-08:00

Photo: Oakland Library History Room Photo: Oakland Library History Room This house is known as the Conners House and it is one of JHT's best. You can see pictures of this house taken in 1997 in the JHT Gallery, but the place is for sale now, so check out these very good pictures: 1012 Ashmount It looks like it was restored to like-new condition. Wish I had an extra $2M hanging around.

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-23151019781104712092009-02-11T22:54:00.000-08:002009-04-12T20:35:09.661-07:00

Photo: Jim Stetson, 1986This is a great story I received back in December of 2002. It's the kind of item that is perfect for this blog so I offer it as an example for any of you who might have similar anecdotal tales on the subject of JHT and his work. Dear Jim,                                                                                                   From 1959 through 1987 my family owned

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-49612300145070568222009-02-07T22:01:00.000-08:002009-04-12T22:43:08.886-07:00

I have just photographed 832 Oxford Street in Berkeley. This is a beautifully maintained example of the type of house JHT was doing in 1928. It is stucco with steep sloped roofs. The stucco on this house is a warm brown with gold colored pebbles scattered through it. It has never been painted and looks as good as new after more than 80 years. The owners were kind enough to let me borrow the

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5601052922835651572.post-71815013833484452472009-02-07T21:54:00.000-08:002009-10-22T22:30:09.733-07:00

In 1997 I assembled my photos of the work of John Hudson Thomas on a website and called it the John Hudson Thomas Gallery. Over the years I have received many emails from people who own houses designed by JHT. I have also been given tips on where to find other JHT houses that are missing from the Gallery. I try to keep the site updated but because this is just one hobby among others, and they all

Jim Stetsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14624362946187843394noreply@blogger.com0