{"nrhp_refnum":"72000255","name":"Squire, John Adam, House","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"900 University Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Palo Alto","county":"Santa Clara County","state":"CA","lat":37.453124212000034,"lon":-122.15413947599995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1972-03-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Greek Revival mansion at 900 University Avenue in Palo Alto, Santa Clara County, California, built in 1904/05 and designed by San Francisco architect T. Patterson Ross, with George Mosher as contractor.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the house is the finest example of Greek Revival style in Palo Alto and one of the town's earliest houses. It is also tied to John Adam Squire, a classics professor and weather observer. A Stanford architecture professor is quoted calling it a link to the westward spread of the style.","narrative":"Set back from University Avenue in Palo Alto, this mansion was built in 1904/05 to designs by San Francisco architect T. Patterson Ross, with Palo Alto craftsman George Mosher as contractor. A semicircular drive lined with tall Washingtonia palms leads to a portico with four channelled Ionic columns, pilasters, an entablature and a pediment, with capitals modeled on those of the Erechtheum in Athens. Dentil moldings run below the roofline. Inside are an oak reception hall and stairway, a large drawing room, rosewood sliding doors, five second-floor bedrooms and a full attic with a widow's walk. The house came through the 1906 earthquake with only its two brick chimneys toppled. It was listed because the nomination describes it as the finest Greek Revival building in Palo Alto and one of the town's earliest houses. It was also the home of John Adam Squire, a classics professor who supplied daily weather reports to local newspapers. The state recognized it as a Point of Historical Interest in 1971.","period_of_significance":"20th Century (1904/05)","architect_builder":"T. Patterson Ross, architect; George Mosher, contractor","architectural_style":"Greek Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed in good condition, occupied as a private residence, and described as for sale in a 1972 letter from the mayor.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.58062-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/72000255.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72000255/df67ab243d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72000255/df67ab243d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Eugene Zelenko","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USA-Palo_Alto-John_Adam_Squire_House-2.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Eugene Zelenko</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USA-Palo_Alto-John_Adam_Squire_House-2.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123861797","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Adam_Squire_House","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q55757585"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/santa-clara-county/squire-john-adam-house-72000255/"}