Walter L. Dodge House
Encyclopedia
The Walter L. Dodge House was an architecturally significant house built in the Early Modern
style in West Hollywood, California
according to an Irving Gill
design. The house received substantial coverage and recognition from architecture experts, but was targeted for redevelopment. A long effort to preserve the house failed, and the Dodge House was demolished in 1970 and replaced with apartments.
American architectural historian William Jordy
and the American Institute of Architects
ranked it among the 15 most architecturally significant American houses.
The Dodge House was considered one of Gill's finest works, "revealing a functional asymmetry whose ornament was derived solely from the studied geometry of the sharp openings in plain walls." In 1921, House Beautiful published a profile of the Dodge House and noted:
Walter Dodge used the house as his retirement home until 1924, when he sold the house to T. Morrison McKenna for $125,000.
In 1939, the Los Angeles Board of Education acquired the property in a contested condemnation action, and the house was never put to full use again. The Board paid McKenna $69,000 for the property and planned to build a high school or junior high school on the site. However, in 1951, the Board determined that a school was not needed in the area. The house was used briefly from 1961-1962 by the Fairfax High School adult education program.
rezoned the property to R-4, opening it up to high-density apartment use. The zoning change increased the allowable development from eight units to 200, making it an attractive site for construction of a large apartment building.
In response to concerns that the Dodge House would be demolished, local residents and architects formed the "Citizens Committee to Save the Dodge House." Under pressure from the Citizens Committee, the Board of Education turned down a $820,000 offer in September 1965 from a bidder who would not pledge to save the house. The Board of Education gave the Citizens Committee several months to arrange for a purchase of the property by a public agency or to propose another means of saving the house.
Efforts to preserve the Dodge House were stymied by a public perception that, despite the opinions of architecture experts, the house was unremarkable. A writer in the Los Angeles Times noted that the Dodge House could pass for one built 30 years ago, and summed up the rationale for the public apathy about the Dodge House as follows:
In March 1966, the Board of Education sold the property to Beverly Hills financier, Bart Lytton, for $800,000. In May 1967, Lytton announced a $2.4 million development plan for the 2.75 acres (11,128.9 m²) site. Lytton's plan would have preserved the Dodge House itself and built 48 studio apartments in seven separate three-story buildings on the site. When Lytton's plan was announced, the Los Angeles Times headline read: "Saving of Dodge House Assured by Financier." However, Lytton's plan fell apart when his business began declining. Lytton was removed from control of his company, which was acquired by Equitable Savings & Loan Assn. The Los Angeles Times noted that, with the ouster of Lytton, the Dodge House had "lost its protector."
Efforts to save the house from demolition continued in the late 1960s, as the American Institute of Architects
sought to obtain a federal open-space grant to save the house. Famed architect Richard Neutra
noted that the Dodge House was required study for architecture students throughout the world, and declared that demolition of the Dodge House would "not be a passing event ... it would become and epic, an international scandal." The Los Angeles Times pled: "Let this generation of Angelenos not be remembered as one that betrayed its successors for a few dollars."
Apartments were built on the site.
Bemoaning the loss of the Dodge House, the Daily News wrote in 1991: "Mention the name Irving J. Gill, and anyone who values our local architectural heritage is bound to rant and fume. Here was one of our true cultural pioneers ... Gill's dream for a California architectural style was not the grandiose exotic palaces of a Frank Lloyd Wright
; he designed for humans, on a human scale. And now most of his best work has been lost. ... His gorgeous Dodge House in West Hollywood is long gone."
In December 2008, a panel of experts selected by the Los Angeles Times
selected the Walter Dodge House as one of the top ten houses in Southern California. The Times wrote: "Hard to believe this Modernist treasure was torn down to make way for apartments, but it happened 38 years ago, when historic preservation was still an exotic notion here. ... Nowadays, Gill's historic home survives only through photographs, memory and reputation."
Modern architecture
Modern architecture is generally characterized by simplification of form and creation of ornament from the structure and theme of the building. It is a term applied to an overarching movement, with its exact definition and scope varying widely...
style in West Hollywood, California
West Hollywood, California
West Hollywood, a city of Los Angeles County, California, was incorporated on November 29, 1984, with a population of 34,399 at the 2010 census. 41% of the city's population is made up of gay men according to a 2002 demographic analysis by Sara Kocher Consulting for the City of West Hollywood...
according to an Irving Gill
Irving Gill
Irving John Gill , American architect, is considered a pioneer of the modern movement in architecture. He designed several buildings considered examples of San Diego's best architecture.-Biography:...
design. The house received substantial coverage and recognition from architecture experts, but was targeted for redevelopment. A long effort to preserve the house failed, and the Dodge House was demolished in 1970 and replaced with apartments.
American architectural historian William Jordy
William Jordy
Dr. William H. Jordy was a leading American architectural historian. At the time of his death, Jordy was Henry Ledyard Goddard Professor Emeritus of Art History at Brown University, where he taught for many years....
and the American Institute of Architects
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image...
ranked it among the 15 most architecturally significant American houses.
Design and early reaction
The 16-room house was designed by Gill in 1914 and built from 1914-1916 for Walter Luther Dodge, the maker of a patent medicine called "Tiz," used to treat tired feet. It was made out of reinforced concrete and blends Spanish mission and Modern architectural styles. The house incorporated many technological innovations, including a garbage disposal in the kitchen sink, an automatic car wash in the garage, plain flush doors that either swung on invisible hinges or slid into the wall, a central vacuum cleaning system, sheet-metal doors, interior use of unadorned naturally polished wood, and bright day-lit interiors from skylights and windows.The Dodge House was considered one of Gill's finest works, "revealing a functional asymmetry whose ornament was derived solely from the studied geometry of the sharp openings in plain walls." In 1921, House Beautiful published a profile of the Dodge House and noted:
"This house though unmistakably Californian, nevertheless exemplifies certain bold and novel ideas in design, construction and decoration that make it notable, even in this land where originality in architecture is to be expected. ... It is without ornament save that furnished by vines, for he believes beauty should be organic and that no amount of ornament can redeem a badly designed structure. There is not even an overhanging roof to break the severity of the exterior, and as may be seen in the photograph, there is a distinction, a dignity about it that is classic. Mr Gill thinks there is nothing more arrestingly beautiful than a plain wall across which move cloud shadows or a silhouette of flower, and that no carving or frescoing could more perfectly finish a doorway or window than a vine or creeper."
1920s through early 1960s
In 1939, the Los Angeles Board of Education acquired the property in a contested condemnation action, and the house was never put to full use again. The Board paid McKenna $69,000 for the property and planned to build a high school or junior high school on the site. However, in 1951, the Board determined that a school was not needed in the area. The house was used briefly from 1961-1962 by the Fairfax High School adult education program.
Preservation efforts
Two developments began the process toward demolition. First, the Board of Education declared the property to be "surplus" in 1963. Second, in 1964, the Los Angeles County Board of SupervisorsLos Angeles County Board of Supervisors
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is the five-member nonpartisan governing board of Los Angeles County, California. Members of the board of supervisors are elected by district. They were as of December 2, 2008:*District 1: Gloria Molina...
rezoned the property to R-4, opening it up to high-density apartment use. The zoning change increased the allowable development from eight units to 200, making it an attractive site for construction of a large apartment building.
In response to concerns that the Dodge House would be demolished, local residents and architects formed the "Citizens Committee to Save the Dodge House." Under pressure from the Citizens Committee, the Board of Education turned down a $820,000 offer in September 1965 from a bidder who would not pledge to save the house. The Board of Education gave the Citizens Committee several months to arrange for a purchase of the property by a public agency or to propose another means of saving the house.
Efforts to preserve the Dodge House were stymied by a public perception that, despite the opinions of architecture experts, the house was unremarkable. A writer in the Los Angeles Times noted that the Dodge House could pass for one built 30 years ago, and summed up the rationale for the public apathy about the Dodge House as follows:
"In some ways, it's a house only an architect would love. Nothing noteworthy ever happened there, and it's not really old enough to claim historical status. Visually, it has neither the charm nor nostalgia of a 'period piece,' nor the spectacularly expressive design of many 'modern' residences. From the outside, it seems quite ordinary: two stories high, flat roofed, with undecorated white walls, simple rectangular metal windows, and a few arches to remind the viewer that he is in Los Angeles and not somewhere else."
In March 1966, the Board of Education sold the property to Beverly Hills financier, Bart Lytton, for $800,000. In May 1967, Lytton announced a $2.4 million development plan for the 2.75 acres (11,128.9 m²) site. Lytton's plan would have preserved the Dodge House itself and built 48 studio apartments in seven separate three-story buildings on the site. When Lytton's plan was announced, the Los Angeles Times headline read: "Saving of Dodge House Assured by Financier." However, Lytton's plan fell apart when his business began declining. Lytton was removed from control of his company, which was acquired by Equitable Savings & Loan Assn. The Los Angeles Times noted that, with the ouster of Lytton, the Dodge House had "lost its protector."
Efforts to save the house from demolition continued in the late 1960s, as the American Institute of Architects
American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image...
sought to obtain a federal open-space grant to save the house. Famed architect Richard Neutra
Richard Neutra
Richard Joseph Neutra is considered one of modernism's most important architects.- Biography :Neutra was born in Leopoldstadt, the 2nd district of Vienna, Austria Hungary, on April 8, 1892. He was born into both-Jewish wealthy family...
noted that the Dodge House was required study for architecture students throughout the world, and declared that demolition of the Dodge House would "not be a passing event ... it would become and epic, an international scandal." The Los Angeles Times pled: "Let this generation of Angelenos not be remembered as one that betrayed its successors for a few dollars."
Demolition and replacement with apartments
In November 1969, a lawsuit by the Citizens Committee seeking to stop the sale of the Dodge House was rejected, and the house was sold to Riviera Management Company. The new owner demolished the house during a drenching rainstorm on February 9, 1970. On learning of the demolition, architect Kurt Meyer, who had fought for seven years to save the house, said, "This is like slashing a Rembrandt with a razor." The bulldozing of the Dodge House has been called one of "the most shameful chapters in L.A.'s legacy of self-destruction," and The New York Times called it a "tragic commentary on how we throw our national heritage away."Apartments were built on the site.
Lasting acclaim
Critical acclaim for the Dodge House has continued despite the demolition. Examples of the critical response include the following:- A leading American architectural historian William JordyWilliam JordyDr. William H. Jordy was a leading American architectural historian. At the time of his death, Jordy was Henry Ledyard Goddard Professor Emeritus of Art History at Brown University, where he taught for many years....
said, "I believe it to be among the 15 most significant American houses. ... Perhaps no house built before World War I so clearly anticipated the modern movement as it developed in Europe." - The American Institute of ArchitectsAmerican Institute of ArchitectsThe American Institute of Architects is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to support the architecture profession and improve its public image...
, which sought to save the Dodge House, also rated it among the 15 most architecturally significant residences in the United States. - Architectural historian Henry-Russell HitchcockHenry-Russell HitchcockHenry-Russell Hitchcock was the leading American architectural historian of his generation. A long-time professor at Smith College and New York University, he is best known for writings that helped to define Modern architecture.-Biography:...
called the Dodge House a prophetic paradigm of Modernism in America. - The house led Lewis MumfordLewis MumfordLewis Mumford was an American historian, philosopher of technology, and influential literary critic. Particularly noted for his study of cities and urban architecture, he had a broad career as a writer...
to consider Gill "an equal to Louis SullivanLouis SullivanLouis Henri Sullivan was an American architect, and has been called the "father of skyscrapers" and "father of modernism" He is considered by many as the creator of the modern skyscraper, was an influential architect and critic of the Chicago School, was a mentor to Frank Lloyd Wright, and an...
, Frank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd WrightFrank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
and Bernard MaybeckBernard MaybeckBernard Ralph Maybeck was a architect in the Arts and Crafts Movement of the early 20th century. He was a professor at University of California, Berkeley...
as a pioneer of the modernist movement." - Dr. Ludwig Glaeser, curator of architecture at the Museum of Modern ArtMuseum of Modern ArtThe Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
, New York, said, "Gill's new concepts, only today fully recognised, found their clearest expression in the Dodge House." - The New York Times called the Dodge House Gill's "masterwork."
- The Historic American Buildings Survey called it a culmination of Gill's genius, and "a rare example of the early manifestations of the International Style, and also one of the great monuments of the early experimental architecture of reinforced concrete."
Bemoaning the loss of the Dodge House, the Daily News wrote in 1991: "Mention the name Irving J. Gill, and anyone who values our local architectural heritage is bound to rant and fume. Here was one of our true cultural pioneers ... Gill's dream for a California architectural style was not the grandiose exotic palaces of a Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
; he designed for humans, on a human scale. And now most of his best work has been lost. ... His gorgeous Dodge House in West Hollywood is long gone."
In December 2008, a panel of experts selected by the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
selected the Walter Dodge House as one of the top ten houses in Southern California. The Times wrote: "Hard to believe this Modernist treasure was torn down to make way for apartments, but it happened 38 years ago, when historic preservation was still an exotic notion here. ... Nowadays, Gill's historic home survives only through photographs, memory and reputation."
See also
- Irving GillIrving GillIrving John Gill , American architect, is considered a pioneer of the modern movement in architecture. He designed several buildings considered examples of San Diego's best architecture.-Biography:...
- Horatio West CourtHoratio West CourtHoratio West Court, built in Santa Monica, California in 1919, is an early example of attached houses with shared pedestrian and vehicle access. It was designed by Irving Gill. The arched entry ways and small patio courts reflect Gill's affinity for the Mission Revival style...
, Gill-designed apartments from the same period in Santa Monica
External links
- Walter Luther Dodge House, 950 North Kings Road, West Hollywood District, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA: 34 photos, 9 drawings, and 15 data pages, at Historic American Building Survey
- Photographs of the Walter L. Dodge House from the American Architecture web site
- Photograph of Dodge House demolition in 1970, from Los Angeles Public Library photograph collection