Horatio West Court facts for kids
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Horatio West Court
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Horatio West Court, 2008
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 Location in the Los Angeles metropolitan area
Location in California
Location in the United States
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| Location | Santa Monica, California |
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| Built | c. 1921 |
| Architect | Irving Gill |
| Architectural style | Modern Movement |
| NRHP reference No. | 77000302 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | April 11, 1977 |
The Horatio West Court is a unique group of six small homes in Santa Monica, California. It was built in 1919 and is a great example of early modern architecture. These homes share a driveway and walking paths, which was a new idea at the time.
The famous architect Irving Gill designed these special buildings. He wanted to create homes that were simple, beautiful, and practical.
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What Makes Horatio West Court Special?
A Clever Design for Homes
The Horatio West Court uses its narrow piece of land very smartly. It has two homes on each side of a long driveway. This driveway leads to a parking area at the back. There, you'll find two garages with small apartments built on top of them.
Each building is a two-story cube with a flat roof. They also have a small front porch and a private walled patio. The curved doorways and cozy courtyards show Gill's love for the Mission Revival style. This style often uses arches and simple, strong shapes.
Modern Look and Feel
Even with some Mission Revival touches, the buildings are truly part of the Modern Movement. This means they have clean lines, flat roofs, and a focus on simple shapes. They were designed to be functional and look very up-to-date for their time.
Why Architects Love It
Recognized by Experts
Many important people in architecture have admired the Horatio West Court. A famous architect named Richard Neutra took many pictures of it. He even included them in his book Amerika: Neues Bauen in der Welt in 1930.
Leland Roth, in his book American Architecture: A History, called it "Gill's flat-roof crisply-rectilinear apartment complex." This means he thought the buildings were very neat and had sharp, straight lines.
John A. Vlahides and Tullan Spitz also praised the complex in their book Coastal California. They described it as "one of the best examples of Irving Gill's revolutionary modernism." This shows how important and groundbreaking Gill's design was.
A Historic Landmark
Protecting History in Santa Monica
The Horatio West Court was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. This is a special list of buildings, sites, and objects that are important in American history. Being on this list helps protect them for future generations.
It was the very first building in the city of Santa Monica to receive this important recognition. This shows how much people valued its unique design and historical significance.
Gallery of images
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General view from west
