The Lewis Ainsworth House is a restored

American Craftsman American Craftsman is an American domestic architectural style, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which included interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts, beginning in the last years of the 19th century. Its ...

style home in the city of Orange, in

Orange County, California Orange County is located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in Southern California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,186,989, making it the third-most-populous county in California, the sixth-most-populous in the United States, a ...

. The house is one of many preserved historic homes in and around Old Towne Orange. The home currently stands next to St. John's Lutheran Church, across the street from the city's public library, and nearby the Orange City Hall. It is currently owned by the City of Orange.

History

Lewis Ainsworth originally came to California in search of gold during the

California Gold Rush The California Gold Rush (1848–1855) was a gold rush that began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California fro ...

in 1849. He moved around the country for most of his life, but settled in Orange in 1900. Ainsworth was the owner of Ainsworth Lumber & Milling Company. Ainsworth had the home built in 1910 as a retirement home, and he lived there with his wife Persis and several children. It was designed by Ina Ainsworth Butler, daughter of Lewis and Persis. Lewis Ainsworth lived at the home for only four years until his death in 1914, and was sick for most of the time. The house remained in the family until 1975. It was purchased by the city in 1976 and later restored. The home was added to 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 ...

on March 13, 1981. In 1997, Old Town Orange, the district in which the house lies, was also added to the database.

References

External links

Orange's Architectural Legacy: A Place Called Home—Ainsworth House Google Maps: Street-level view and map of the Ainsworth House
Houses in Orange County, California Buildings and structures in Orange, California Houses completed in 1910 Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in Orange County, California American Craftsman architecture in California {{California-struct-stub