Ernest McConnell
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Ernest McConnell was an American architect, who worked in-house for the Los Angeles Investment Company.
Chapman Building
[edit]He designed the Charles C. Chapman Building (originally the Los Angeles Investment Company Building) at 756 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, 13 stories, built 1912 at a cost of $1 million, Beaux Arts style.[1][2][3]
The Globe Savings Bank also moved its headquarters to the new building.[4]
It is now in residential use as the "Chapman Flats" above the retail at street level. Charles C. Chapman — the first mayor of Fullerton and the chief patron of Chapman University in the city of Orange — bought the building for $1.6 million in 1920.[5]
The building is designated as City of Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument no. 899 and a contributing property to the Broadway Theater and Commercial District.[6]
Designs for homes
[edit]McConnell also designed numerous Craftsman homes featured in a plan book that the Los Angeles Investment Co. published. The LAIC constructed many homes from those plans in various housing developments they built throughout Southern California.[2][7]
McConnell oversaw the creation of all the designs in a 92-page catalog book that the Investment Co. released in 1912-3, titled Modern Homes of California. The book contained 77 architectural designs and photographs of mostly Arts and Crafts style bungalows across the Southland priced between $1500 and $5000, as well as 200 detailed illustrations of exterior and interior views, along with plans that provided accurate estimates for construction materials and labor costs.[8][9][10]
Los Angeles Investment Company
[edit]Founded in 1899 by Charles Abbott Elder and his partners, the Los Angeles Investment Company (LAIC) quickly established itself as a significant player in real estate development across Southern California. Elder envisioned an approach that made homeownership accessible to middle-class individuals, relying on a model where small investors could pool funds to support large-scale property development. By promoting installment payment options, LAIC allowed everyday citizens to become homeowners, especially during a period of rapid growth in Los Angeles.[11]
The company gained prominence by designing and constructing affordable "Modernized Bungalows", which were well-suited to the local climate. These homes featured in the LAIC’s publication, Modern Homes of California, which showcased architectural designs and construction details, appealing to families looking for cost-effective housing solutions.[11]
LAIC’s ambitious projects were supported by its subsidiary, the Elder Building Material Company, which provided necessary construction materials for the development of entire neighborhoods. Through this business model, the LAIC expanded quickly, becoming one of the largest cooperative development companies in the region by the early 1910s.[11]
Despite their early success, the LAIC faced financial difficulties in the mid-1910s, culminating in the sale of their iconic headquarters uilding at Eighth and Broadway in Los Angeles to Charles C. Chapman in 1920. Nonetheless, the company left a lasting impact on the urban landscape of Los Angeles by helping shape the city’s suburban housing market and contributing to the spread of bungalow-style homes.[11]
External links
[edit]- "If the Small Investor Ever Had a Monument to His Credit: The Los Angeles Investment Company Building, 1912" (Part One) (blog article, Archived)
References
[edit]- ^ "Los Angeles Investment Co. Building, Los Angeles, Cal". Loyola Marymount University Digital Collections. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ a b "Charles C. Chapman Building – Charles J. Fisher". Historian for Hire.
- ^ "Chapman Building Historical Marker". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Equipment for bank quarters cost $180,728". Los Angeles Evening Express. April 12, 1913. p. 18.
- ^ Rasmussen, Cecilia (25 March 2007). "City's old names grace trendy new residences". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Historic Places Los Angeles - Resource Report". historicplacesla.lacity.org. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Many Fine Homes Near Completion". Los Angeles Evening Express. June 28, 1913. p. 14.
- ^ "New Bungalow Book". Los Angeles Evening Post-Record. June 14, 1913. p. 8.
- ^ "Modern Homes of California". Antique Booksellers Association of America. Los Angeles Investment Company (Trade Catalog Bungalow Homes). Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Library Books: Monthly Bulletin of the Los Angeles Public Library". Google Books. Los Angeles Public Library. 1914. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ a b c d Paul R. Spitzzeri (March 25, 2022). ""If the Small Investor Ever Had a Monument to His Credit: The Los Angeles Investment Company Building, 1912" (Part One)". Homestead Museum Blog. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved 19 October 2024.