Grey, Zane, Estate

This three-story house at the foot of the Altadena foothills was built in 1907 and later became the home of Western novelist Zane Grey. It is designed in the Mission/Spanish Colonial variant of Mediterranean Revival style, with reinforced concrete and stucco walls, arched wood windows and doors, balconies, and a terra-cotta tile roof added over the original steel. After buying the property in 1920, Grey added a third-floor writing studio, and an east wing followed in 1928. Interiors blend Arts and Crafts features, including Grueby and Batchelder tile, with a library painted freehand with Kachina designs by his wife's cousin, Lillian Wilhelm Smith, in 1923. Grey lived here until his death in 1939 and wrote nearly forty novels during that time. The parcel is the remnant of an original five-acre estate, the rest of which was sold and subdivided in 1967. The house is still a private residence and retains much original fabric.