Bembridge House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Green-Rankin-Bembridge House
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Bembridge House in Long Beach, California, U.S.
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 Location in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Location in California
Location in the United States
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| Location | 953 Park Circle Dr, Long Beach, California |
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| Area | Less than one acre |
| Built | 1906 |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne, Victorian |
| Website | https://www.lbheritage.org/bembridge-house/visit/ |
| NRHP reference No. | 05000002 |
| Added to NRHP | February 10, 2005 |
The Bembridge House, also known as the Green-Rankin-Bembridge House, is a special historic building. It stands across from Drake Park in the Willmore neighborhood of Long Beach, California. This beautiful Queen Anne Victorian house was built in 1906. A musician and teacher named Dorothy Bembridge lived in the house from 1918 until her passing in 1999. The organization Long Beach Heritage bought the house in 2000 to protect it.
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What Makes Bembridge House Special?
The Bembridge House is located at 953 Park Circle Drive in Long Beach, California. It is a Queen Anne Victorian house built in 1906. It has 18 rooms and still looks much like it did when it was first built. You can see its original high ceilings, beautiful woodwork, and many of the first furnishings.
Amazing Details and Design
Many people think it's the most fancy Victorian home in Long Beach. It features hand-carved wood, colorful stained and leaded glass windows, and a tiled fireplace. In 1981, the Los Angeles Times newspaper called it "the city's only perfectly preserved Queen Anne mansion." They noted its "turrets, pillars, angles, beveled Tiffany glass windows, and white-on-blue scrollwork." Long Beach Heritage believes it's the most important example of this style of architecture left in Long Beach today.
A Look at Its History
The house was built in 1906 by Stephen and Josephine Green. Stephen Green was a successful businessman and one of the founders of City National Bank. He moved to Long Beach from Seattle and Los Angeles. Mr. Green loved plants and animals. He planted unique shrubs and flowers around the house. He also built an aviary for his collection of foreign birds and a barn for his Shetland ponies. Stephen Green passed away at the house.
The Rankin Family and Dorothy Bembridge
Thomas Rankin bought the house in 1918 after Stephen Green's death. The Rankin family owned the house for over 80 years. After Thomas Rankin passed away, his children, Dorothy Bembridge and Neil Rankin, inherited it.
Dorothy Bembridge was a talented musician and a school teacher in Long Beach. She taught until she retired in 1968. Dorothy lived in the house starting in 1918 and made sure the inside was never changed. She felt the curtains and soft floors made a "perfect acoustical environment" for the many piano concerts she held there.
Saving a Landmark
In 1969, the city of Long Beach wanted to make the nearby Drake Park bigger. This meant the Bembridge House might have been torn down. People who cared about history worked hard to save the building. Dorothy Bembridge hoped it could become a music center. She told a local newspaper:
"I pray it can be saved. It's a wonderful old house — as solid as the Rock of Gibraltar. There's not a break in the foundation; not a crack in the walls. It's absolutely the only one of its kind in town that has not been altered. It would have special charm as a music center. The tower serves as a natural megaphone, making the acoustics remarkable. Many say they have never heard anything like the sounds that ring out from the Steinway in this old house."
In 1981, the Long Beach Cultural Heritage Committee officially named Bembridge House a Long Beach Historic Landmark. It was one of the first buildings to get this important title. Dorothy Bembridge was very happy, knowing the home she loved since 1918 would be protected.
A New Chapter for the House
Dorothy Bembridge passed away in 1999 at the age of 89. After her passing, Long Beach Heritage bought the house in 2000 for $325,000. This group has worked to bring the house back to its original beautiful condition. Today, the house is open for tours, so people can visit and learn about its history.
In 2002, Long Beach Heritage received a grant of $72,000 from the J. Paul Getty Trust. This money helped them plan how to preserve the main house, the carriage house, and the aviary. It also helped restore the gardens and make the house stronger against earthquakes.
The Bembridge House, at 953 Park Circle Drive, Long Beach, California, was also added to the National Register of Historic Places in February 2005. This means it is recognized as an important historic place across the entire country.
See also
In Spanish: Casa Bembridge para niños
- List of City of Long Beach Historic Landmarks
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Los Angeles County, California
