{"nrhp_refnum":"83003538","name":"Main Building","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"2200 W. Carson","address_restricted":false,"city":"Torrance","county":"Los Angeles County","state":"CA","lat":33.830945832000054,"lon":-118.32126287599999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1983-10-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Community Planning and Development","Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Mediterranean-style school building of 1917 on the Torrance High School campus at the end of El Prado Park near Downtown Torrance, California. It was the first building on the campus and was designed by Robert Allen Farrell.","why_significant":"It was the first building of the high school in the planned city of Torrance and reflects a high-style Mediterranean design blending Classical Revival and Spanish Colonial Revival elements. The reviewer also notes a conscious adherence to City Beautiful movement principles. Its original design intent remains clearly evident despite minor alterations.","narrative":"Built in 1917, this two-story school building was the first structure on what became Torrance High School, at the end of El Prado Park near Downtown Torrance. Originally called Torrance School, it taught students from kindergarten through twelfth grade and opened on September 11, 1917, at a construction cost of $34,230. Architect Robert Allen Farrell gave it a Mediterranean character with Classical and Spanish Colonial touches, including a layered main entrance with pediment, arch, fanlight and paired columns. A 1921 rear addition by E.H. Cline created the Senior Patio, with a tile fountain and benches, and two one-story wings were added. Torrance was planned as a model garden-industrial city with a design by the Olmsted Brothers, and the school occupies the scenic parcel once intended for a city hall. Rehabilitation beginning in 1974 cost over two million dollars and preserved the building's architecture. Alterations to the facade are minor.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Robert Allen Farrell (architect); 1921 rear addition by E.H. Cline","architectural_style":"Mediterranean styling influenced by Classical and Spanish Colonial design elements","criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition marked excellent and altered, on its original site; major rehabilitation and restoration work began in 1974.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:26.972403-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/83003538.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83003538/6c2e08c915-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/83003538/6c2e08c915-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.0","author":"the 216","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:THS_facade.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">the 216</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:THS_facade.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123857542","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Building_(Torrance_High_School)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6735939"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/los-angeles-county/main-building-83003538/"}