Casa de Los Robles, a timeless treasure.

Architect

Name of the Residence
Although the present owner named the property “Casa de Los Robles” (“House of the Oaks”) after the 70+ mature oak trees that cover the grounds, the original name of the home is the H. Palmer Sabin Residence.  Henry Palmer Sabin (1892-1956) was the original owner and architect who designed this home as his family’s personal residence which was built in 1927.  

Sabin’s Notable Architecture
H. Palmer Sabin, as he was known professionally, is considered one of Southern California’s leading architects of the late 1920’s through the 1930’s.  According to Tim Gregory, The Building Biographer, Mr. Sabin designed other residences in the Pasadena area, including locations on North and South Arroyo Boulevards, Linda Vista Avenue, and Wotkyns Drive.  In addition to his residential designs, Mr. Sabin also designed the Earhart Laboratory at Caltech, the Pasadena Hall of Justice, Loma Alta Elementary School and the Huntington Middle School in San Marino.   

Sabin’s Architectural Features
H. Palmer Sabin described his designs as “a departure from stereotyped Spanish and Italian, etc. to a more livable type adaptable to modern needs and comforts”, thereby creating a new “California style” for the time.  Mr. Sabin’s signature architectural details included barrel ceilings, window seats, interesting windows such as colored roundels, and large French doors created to bring the outdoors in.  

A Thoughtful Addition
The current owner searched for the original plans in a number of places and was fortunate to have been directed to look into the Architectural & Design Collection (ADC) at the University Art Museum at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB).  (The ADC has a growing repository of representing the work of over 350 architects from 1890 to the present.)  This is where the family of Palmer Sabin had sent his architectural collection decades earlier, including the plans for the H. Palmer Sabin Residence.  

While reviewing the collection, the owner came upon a tattered piece of paper dated 1932 with a drawing by the original architect of a second story addition of a bedroom and bath that had never been built.  Nearly 50 years after Sabin’s death, the owners faithfully constructed this addition which the original architect had drawn 67 years earlier.  Adding a second story onto an historic structure would normally be considered a move fraught with risk.  The owner knew that this risk was eliminated since the original architect had designed the second story addition.  This is further evidence of the care and thoughtfulness by the current owner in making improvements consistent with the original design.