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Richard H. Chambers United States Court of Appeals

Architect
Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury
Year
1920
Style
Spanish Colonial Revival
City
Los Angeles, CA
Richard H. Chambers United States Court of Appeals
Photo: Coolcaesar, CC BY-SA 3.0
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The Richard H. Chambers U.S. Court of Appeals building began as the Vista del Arroyo Hotel, a Spanish Colonial Revival resort designed by Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury and built in two stages — a two-story north wing in 1920 and a six-story bell tower with flanking wings in 1930. Set on a hilltop crest overlooking the Arroyo Seco, it capped a resort tradition on the site dating back to 1882. During World War II the building was requisitioned as McCornack General Hospital, and it now serves as a courthouse for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

the building

A hotel built in two acts. The main building went up a decade apart: hotel tycoon Daniel M. Linnard, already associated with Pasadena's Huntington and Green hotels, built the two-story north wing in 1920, then added the six-story bell tower and flanking wings in 1930, giving the hotel its dominant silhouette above the Arroyo Seco.

From resort to hospital to courthouse. The site's hospitality history stretches back to 1882, when Emma C. Bangs opened the original wood-frame La Vista del Arroyo Hotel and cottages. The building later served as McCornack General Hospital during World War II before its long life as a general-purpose federal building and, eventually, a Ninth Circuit courthouse.

the style

Built as a Spanish Colonial Revival resort during the closing years of Pasadena's grand hotel era, the building's massing and detailing were meant to evoke California's mission past for wealthy hotel guests rather than for government use, a legacy that survives even though the interior now houses federal courtrooms.

More on Spanish Colonial Revival

the architect

Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury designed the hotel's 1920 north wing. No further biographical detail on the firm is recorded here.

significance

The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and today serves as home to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, named for judge Richard H. Chambers.

nearby

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