National Register visit 220: Winona Boulevard Mid-Century Modern Historic District 📍Winona between Franklin & Hollywood, Los Feliz
This district comprises 13 low-rise apartment complexes in an assortment of mid-century modern styles, constructed from 1950-1964. With a couple exceptions, these apartments were designed by the contractors that built them. So don’t expect the high-style modernism of Pierre Koenig or Buff, Straub & Hensman. But there is still some fine architectural eye candy as you walk down the block. It’s a reminder that there was a populist thrust to MCM, the idea that good design could be accessible to middle-class residents through cheaper materials, prefab parts and simpler plans.
In addition to their architectural merit, these apartments offer a snapshot of how LA was changing after WWII. More than 1.3 million new residents flooded into LA County between 1940 and 1950 (a 49% increase), looking to start new families and new lives. The existing housing stock was mostly single-family homes, plus some bungalow courts and small courtyard apartments. After the war, many of those were knocked down so developers could cram more people into the same-sized lots. That pattern played out on Winona Boulevard and throughout the city.
Get more history and more photos of this district at EtanDoesLA.com - 🔗 in my bio.
PS: For the most part, the 13 contributing buildings here retain a high level of historic integrity. But look at the windows. On a number of these mid-century apartments, the original metal casement and jalousie windows have been replaced with cheap vinyl versions. I might not even have noticed it if it weren’t pointed out to me by James Dastoli, the citizen preservationist who wrote the district’s application for the National Register (he’s gotten 5 others added to the NRHP in recent years too). Combating the incursion of character-killing vinyl replacement windows on old buildings is something of a crusade for Dastoli. And I’m now a convert!
I'm visiting all 600+ LA landmarks on the National Register of Historic Places. Read more about this one and many more at EtanDoesLA.com: etandoesla.com...
Photo credits:
📷1: Stahl House: public domain
📷2: La Traviata dingbat apartment: via Wiki user Barmysot
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