This is the second part to the April 22nd post on Nevada County's Most Endangered Historic Places.
1. Entire Grass Valley 1872 Townsite Historic Resource Inventory
2. NCNGRR Station Wall and Staircase-Bennett St., Grass Valley
3. Historic Downtown Grass Valley, Commercial Buildings
4. Historic Windows
5. St. Joseph’s Cultural Center, Grass Valley
6. Historic Fences
7. Historic Cemeteries
8. Nevada County Courthouse, Nevada City
9. Loma Rica Ranch, Grass Valley
5. St. Joseph's Cultural Center, Grass Valley
Significance: From their website:
“St. Joseph's Chapel was built on the site of the Henry Scadden cottage, which has served as a residence for priests, then as home for small orphan boys, and finally as the Sister's Chapel. The Chapel took from May of 1894 until December 1894 to build. It was truly and incredible feat considering its size; 90 feet long, by 40 feet wide and 36 feet high, with its beautiful pressed tin interior. In 1894, Myles P. O'Connor presented a large, colorful, stained glass window to the Sisters of Mercy, to be placed in the newly completed St. Joseph's Chapel. Judge O'Connor was the father of Bridget Frances O'Connor, who had entered the Sisters of Mercy community in 1891 as Sister Mary Genevieve.”
Languishing for years in need of repairs and restoration, the Historic Mt. St. Mary’s Preservation Committee has worked hard in securing funding to preserve this beautiful and important building. St. Joseph’s does not seem to receive enough support from the community in this respect, which is surprising given it serves us all in the programs and entertainment offered there. I wonder what they could have done with the approximately $70,000 that our community raised for the mural on the Del Oro?
Threat: Deterioration
6. Historic Fences
Significance: In Chapter 7, page 104 of the City of Grass Valley’s Historic Design Review Guidelines, it states;
The benefits from a well maintained landscape are many, including improved “curb appeal" and retaining neighborhood continuity. Mature street trees, lawn trees, side-yard trees, or features, such as front yard fences or rock walls, should be identified, protected, and maintained. Property owners should make an effort to ensure that their
landscape design and maintenance is in keeping with the historical period of the property.
Many of these historic fences in the Gold Country date to the turn of the 20th century through the 1930s. Due simply to a lack of knowledge and/or appreciation for these fences, they are often replaced or left damaged and suffering from deferred maintenance.
Threat: Deterioration, Removal
7. Historic Cemeteries
Significance: Nevada County has numerous cemeteries dating to the Gold Rush. These places of reverence contain tangible links to our past-not only to our genealogy, but the ethnic, religious and business history of the area. Often monuments were make locally, and some of the stone was quarried in Nevada and El Dorado Counties. Many grave markers and monuments contain details about the deceased which are invaluable to researchers. Unfortunately, our historic cemeteries are increasingly providing another visual, that of irreparably damaged grave markers and plots by vandalism, theft of monuments and fences and lack of maintenance. Time is running out to save these special places.
Threat: Vandalism, deterioration, lack of maintenance, incorrect maintenance techniques.
8. Nevada County Courthouse
Significance: Per the courts website, the courthouse was constructed in 1864 with substantial remodels in 1900 and 1937. The highly unattractive and unsympathetic styled annex was added in 1964. Viewing photographs of the original Italian Renaissance style architecture, the current Art Deco inspired interpretation makes it almost impossible to believe the it is the same building underneath. An anchor to historic downtown Nevada City, the courthouse stands as a representation of how historic towns functioned as an integrated whole from their beginnings. Relocating the courthouse to an area outside of town will not only affect local business revenues but it will also alter a way of life and interaction. One of the options pursued by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), was a rehabilitation of the existing courthouse which appears to have basically called for its demolition as it has been deemed unsuitable in layout and size for the modern set-ups of courthouses in regard to handling inmates and securing the public's safety. However, in October last year (2012), the AOC declared a stop to the courthouse project. "The Judicial Coucil accepted recommendations from its Court Facilities Working Group to indefinitely delay seven new courthouse projects due to ongoing state budget cuts." Hopefully this reprieve will buy the historic courthouse some more years of life and that this time-out will necessitate more dialog and reasonable more practical solutions to demoltion and an entirely new facility outside of town. It is difficult to believe that in the 21st century with all of our engineering capabilities, building products and innovation, that we can stand back and say it is impossible to rehabilitate the courthouse to meet modern standards.
Threat: Demolition, Removal of courthouse functions to location outside historic downtown Nevada City
9. Loma Rica Ranch, Grass Valley
Significance: Based on information contained in Chapter 13/Cultural Resources, Grass Valley General Plan, 1998, Errol MacBoyle, owner of the Idaho-Maryland Mine, purchased Loma Rica Ranch and the Loma Rica Rancho in 1936. At the time of purchase, the "ranch house" was already constructed.
The house structure has been described as 'having stylistic qualities common to modest dwellings from the 1850s through the 1880s,possibly pre-dating Lopez' 1870 purchase, and a possible connection with Henry McCarty (Haas1994; Terhorst 1994:12).MacBoyle desired to raise prize horses and began construction on the current Loma Rica RanchCenter, probably shortly after the 1936 purchase. The foundation contains the date '1/23/37'. No expense was spared to build a state-of-the-art facility. Included in the complex were foaling and stallion barns, exercise yards and rings, a laboratory, garage, shop, pump house and feed cribs (Terhorst 1994, Map 2). MacBoyle purchased brood mares and began breeding thoroughbreds, all the horses being given names beginning with "Gold". The ranch became a prominent estate in Grass Valley, MacBoyle reportedly hoping to create an estate comparable to Hearst's San Simeon (Janicot 1994: Terhorst 1994:1)
The historical significance is expanded when the connection is made to Charles Howard, famed for his racehorse Seabiscuit. In 1949, Howard purchased the thoroughbred, Noor, from the Aga Kahn. A champion horse with an amazing racing record, Noor set 3 world records in his lifetime and was inducted into the Racing Hall of Fame in 2002. The horse was retired to Loma Rica Ranch after Howard's death. When Noor passed away in 1974, he was buried on the infield of the racetrack. His remains were exhumed and removed to Kentucky in 2011 due the LRR development plans. Today, the magnificent barns still stand, as well as the "ranch house" and some other buildings. The two barns full of horse stalls are still viable, beautiful buildings and definitely warrant preservation and rehabilitation. Unfortunately, once again another local historic resource stands deteriorating from deferred maintenance and lack of, at the minimal, some stabilizing preservation. It could be another decade before the vision of the LRR development comes to fruition. Threat: Deterioration, Demolition by neglect
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