{"nrhp_refnum":"78000679","name":"Robinson, Virginia, Estate","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1008 Elden Way","address_restricted":false,"city":"Beverly Hills","county":"Los Angeles County","state":"CA","lat":34.08643586000005,"lon":-118.41767258799996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-11-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Beaux Arts estate on six acres at 1008 Elden Way, Beverly Hills, California, begun in 1908 and completed in 1911, with a main house, servants' quarters, a 1924 playhouse pavilion, and landscaped gardens. Nathaneal Dryden was the architect.","why_significant":"The house is described as the first residence in Beverly Hills and as representative of Beaux Arts architecture in Southern California, reflecting the architectural and social origins of the city. The 1924 playhouse pavilion and its terraced, integrated gardens are highlighted as outstanding design. The grounds also reflect Virginia Robinson's lifelong interest in horticulture, and she was a leading hostess and pioneer resident.","narrative":"Set on six hillside acres in Beverly Hills, this estate was begun in 1908 and finished in 1911 as the home of Harry Winchester Robinson and his wife Virginia. It is described as the first residence in the city, built when the area was mostly barley fields. Her father, Nathaneal Dryden, designed the simplified Beaux Arts house, which has a balustraded parapet, a central porch with paired columns and urns, marble fireplaces and crystal chandeliers. A separate servants' building follows a Florentine Renaissance model. In 1924 a playhouse pavilion was added beside a reflecting swimming pool, blending Palladian and French influences, with Tuscan columns, scraffito decoration and a front that appears to be a miniature theater stage. The terraced grounds hold a palm grove, Italian cypress, a rose garden and fountained patios, reflecting Virginia Robinson's devotion to horticulture. She remained a celebrated hostess and local pioneer until her death in 1977.","period_of_significance":"1908-1911","architect_builder":"Nathaneal Dryden","architectural_style":"Beaux Arts","criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as unaltered apart from two minor changes to the house, with no structural alterations to the playhouse. Owned by the County of Los Angeles and proposed for use as a botanic garden.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.787845-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/78000679.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000679/675c7d921a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78000679/675c7d921a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Los Angeles","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Virginia_Robinson_Estate.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Los Angeles</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Virginia_Robinson_Estate.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123859463","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Robinson_Gardens","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7934482"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/los-angeles-county/robinson-virginia-estate-78000679/"}