William Black House (La Jolla, California)
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The Audrey Geisel University House, historically known as the William Black House, is the private residence of the Chancellor of the
University of California San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is t ...
. Located in
La Jolla, California La Jolla ( , ) is a hilly, seaside neighborhood within the city of San Diego, California, United States, occupying of curving coastline along the Pacific Ocean. The population reported in the 2010 census was 46,781. La Jolla is surrounded on ...
, it is a historic site that is listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. It is located at 9630 La Jolla Farms Road and overlooks
Black's Beach Black's Beach is a secluded section of beach beneath the bluffs of Torrey Pines on the Pacific Ocean in La Jolla, San Diego, California, United States. It is officially part of Torrey Pines State Beach. The northern portion of Black's Beach is ow ...
, the Scripps Coastal Reserve, and the Pacific Ocean. The house was designed by architect
William Lumpkins William Lumpkins (1909-2000) was an American artist and architect best known for his abstract watercolors and pioneering solar adobe architecture. He was a founding member of the Transcendental Painting Group and cofounder of the Santa Fe Art In ...
of the adobe revival movement of Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was the first house built in the La Jolla Farms area, and was designed for William H. and Ruth Black who lived there during 1952–67 in what is termed
Pueblo Revival architecture The Pueblo Revival style or Santa Fe style is a regional architectural style of the Southwestern United States, which draws its inspiration from Santa Fe de Nuevo México's traditional Pueblo architecture, the Spanish missions, and Territorial ...
style. It was then sold to the
Regents of the University of California The Regents of the University of California (also referred to as the Board of Regents to distinguish the board from the corporation it governs of the same name) is the governing board of the University of California (UC), a state university sy ...
and used by UC San Diego chancellors during 1967–2004. In 2004, the house was deemed structurally unsound and subsequently vacated. Between 2004 and 2012, the house was the subject of numerous controversies stemming from the university's attempts to demolish, sell, and renovate the property. La Jolla residents objected to the sale of what they saw as an important historical artifact. The site is also significant as a location of a prehistoric Native American village; it is "sacred ground to
Kumeyaay The Kumeyaay, also known as Tipai-Ipai or by their historical Spanish name Diegueño, is a tribe of Indigenous peoples of the Americas who live at the northern border of Baja California in Mexico and the southern border of California in the Unit ...
people." Between 1929 and 2008, the remains of 29 Kumeyaay were found and removed from the site, at least 17 of which were subsequently housed in the
San Diego Museum of Man The Museum of Us (formerly known as the San Diego Museum of Man) is a museum of anthropology located in Balboa Park, San Diego, California and housed in the historic landmark buildings of the California Quadrangle. History The museum traces it ...
. In 2010, a historically sensitive remodel design by architect Ione R. Stiegler was approved. The renovation included a seismic retrofit and structural, electrical, and plumbing repairs, while avoiding compromising any of the sacred land or ocean views near the original house. The $10 million remodel was completed in 2013 and funded by external gifts, including a $3 million donation by La Jolla resident Audrey Geisel, the widow of
Theodor Seuss Geisel Theodor Seuss Geisel (;"Seuss"
''
Pradeep K. Khosla, the eighth chancellor of UC San Diego. It is also used for hosting special events and formal university functions. The property was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 2008 as William Black House—SDM-W-12 Locus A (CA-SDI-4669). The site includes a house built during 1950-52 and a cemetery and the site of a pre-historic village. The listing included one
contributing building In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...
and one
contributing site In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distric ...
on .


References


External links


University House InformationUCSD Audrey Geisel University House Rehabilitation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, William, House--SDM-W-12 Locus A (CA-SDI-4669) Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in California Houses completed in 1952 Houses in San Diego County, California Archaeological sites on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in San Diego County, California University of California, San Diego Official residences in California