California Ranch

This early substyle of Ranch architecture was developed by architect Cliff May. His early works were all in the California Ranch style, also advertised as “Hacienda” and drew inspiration from the pitched-roof Spanish Colonial homes of Southern California. This style was most common in California and the Southwest and was constructed from 1930s-80s. May first introduced this Hacienda home in Talmadge in the 1930s at 4725 Norma Drive.

Character-Defining Features of California Ranch houses include:

● U-shape floorplan wrapped around a veranda

● French doors and concrete floors connecting indoor and outdoor spaces

● Rough-hewn garage doors, shutters, and window grills

● Garage attached to the house beside the primary facade of the house

● Typically clay tile roof, including stacked tiles with visible mortar

● Low profile chimneys

● Gated entrances with limited visibility from the outside

● Floorplans adapted to pie-shaped, narrow, and other irregular-shaped lots

For more about the origins of the Hacienda style, please read this excellent article by Talmadge resident Cameron Lindsay-Hewitt.

References:

McAlester, Field Guide to American Houses, 696.

Gail and Richard Garbini, “The Colonel Arthur J. And Frances O’Leary House is the prototype for fifty other ranch style homes built in San Diego after World War II,” City of San Diego Historic Site Designation Report, 2, https://sandiego.cfwebtools.com/images/files/cr 479.pdf 2

Editorial Staff of Sunset Magazine & Cliff May, Sunset Western Ranch House (San Francisco: Lane Publishing Co., 1947), 16, 25-26, 31, 36, 38-41.