Ralph J. Bunche House facts for kids
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Ralph J. Bunche House
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Ralph J. Bunche House, 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 | 1221 E. 40th Place, Los Angeles, California |
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| Built | 1919 |
| Architectural style | Victorian-Bungalow |
| NRHP reference No. | 78000686 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | May 22, 1978 |
The Ralph J. Bunche House, also known as the Ralph Bunche Peace & Heritage Center, is located in South Los Angeles, USA. This house was the childhood home of Ralph Bunche, who won the Nobel Peace Prize. It is built in a mix of Victorian and Bungalow styles. The house became a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument in 1976. It was also added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
Contents
Ralph Bunche's Boyhood Home
Ralph Bunche was born in Detroit, Michigan. He later lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In 1917, his mother passed away. Ralph then moved to Los Angeles to live with his grandmother.
Ralph and his sister, Grace, grew up in this house on 40th Place. Their grandmother, Lucy Taylor Johnson, raised them. Their two aunts, Nelle and Ethel, and their uncle, Thomas Johnson, also lived there.
While in Los Angeles, Ralph was a top student. He was the valedictorian at Jefferson High School. This school was only half a block away from his home. He was also valedictorian at UCLA. At that time, UCLA was located at Vermont Avenue and Melrose. Ralph was also a star basketball player for UCLA.
In 1950, Ralph Bunche won the Nobel Peace Prize. He earned it for his important work in peace talks. He helped create the 1949 Armistice Agreements. These agreements ended the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Ralph Bunche was the first person of color from any country to receive this award.
Restoring the Bunche House
Over time, Ralph Bunche's childhood home needed a lot of repair. It was empty for about ten years. In 1996, a group called the Dunbar Economic Development Corp. bought the house. This non-profit group planned to turn it into a museum.
Their plans were delayed because they needed more money. In 1999, the California Community Foundation gave them a large interest-free loan. After a news report in 1999 showed the house needing help, Mayor Richard Riordan joined a work crew. He helped clean up the home.
Dr. Ralph J. Bunche Peace & Heritage Center
The house was carefully fixed up and decorated. It now holds photos and items from Ralph Bunche's life. It became the Dr. Ralph J. Bunche Peace & Heritage Center. This center is a museum and a community place. It aims to encourage peaceful interactions among all groups in South Central Los Angeles.
The house was fully restored between 2002 and 2004. Design Aid Architects did the work. They won a Los Angeles Conservancy preservation award in 2006. That year, the Los Angeles Times newspaper described the house as "brilliant." Sunlight streamed through its windows, and it had clean wood floors.
Oral History Project
The Dr. Ralph J. Bunche Peace and Heritage Center also started an Oral History Project. This was a joint effort with UCLA. The project collected stories about Bunche's life in Los Angeles. It also gathered stories about the Central Avenue and Dunbar Hotel community.
These oral histories were shown at the Ralph J. Bunche House. Around 2011, they were moved to UCLA. Today, the house is a private home.
See also
- List of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in South Los Angeles
- List of Registered Historic Places in Los Angeles
- Ralph Johnson Bunche House, the home in Queens, New York, where Bunche lived for 30 years.
