Kinsey, Martha, House
Why it's listed
Perched on a hillside in La Jolla's Park Tract, this roughly 5,000-square-foot home at 1624 Ludington Lane was designed by architect Lilian Jenette Rice for Martha Kinsey and finished in 1938. Its levels step downhill from south to north, with redwood clapboard siding, a shake roof, a concrete foundation, three brick chimneys and terraced porches that look toward the Pacific Ocean. The garage and main entrance sit at street level, and the lower floors drop away below. The house is listed because it shows a change in Rice's career. After years of Spanish Colonial work in the planned community of Rancho Santa Fe, she turned to informal, horizontal hillside designs inspired by Bay Area architecture, intended to blend with the terrain. Rice, one of the first women licensed as an architect in California, died in December 1938, and this may have been her final design. The house remains largely as built, with its original blueprints surviving.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house is the work of Lilian Rice, one of the earliest and most distinguished female architects of the 20th century. It marks a turning point in her career, from Spanish Colonial designs at Rancho Santa Fe toward Bay Area-style hillside homes fitted to the landscape. It is also considered possibly her last design, completed shortly before her death in December 1938.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 92000968, listed August 7, 1992. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 1624 Ludington Ln., La Jolla |
|---|---|
| County | San Diego County |
| Listed | August 7, 1992 |
| Reference number | 92000968 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1938 |
| Architect / builder | Rice, Lilian Jenette (architect); Ernest W. Dewhurst (contractor) |
| Architectural style | Modern Movement |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as unaltered, with no deterioration of original fabric and a high degree of architectural integrity; still used as a single dwelling. |
| Acreage | 0.3 |
| Coordinates | 32.84778, -117.27519 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 92000968.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q5754340
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.