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Historic Name

Henry G. Eckstien House

Address

1936 N Euclid Avenue
Upland, CA 91786

Evaluation

Building
5/8/2007

Construction Date

1930-31

Current Owner

Bruce & Helen McMurry

Current Owner Address

1921 w 11th st
Upland, CA 91786

Description

Located on a 3.38 acre parcel on the east side of upper Euclid Avenue, this is a one- and two-story house in the Monterey Revival style. A tiled, side gable roof with bracketed eaves caps the principal, two-story volume. The characteristic Monterey style balcony spans three quarters of this facade, tucked under the overhang of the gable. Wooden posts and a stick railing enclose the space. Shutters flank the paired casement windows and doors which open onto the space. Beneath the balcony, the entry is offset to the north. Framed by pilasters and a frieze, the door is recessed behind a screen of reias. Deep reveals and shutters distinguish the remaining facade openings. A chimney with diamond shaped venting rises above the south end of the facade. To the south of the main wing, a onestory extension is set beneath a tiered, side gable roof. The house has been restuccoed but appears otherwise intact.

The H.G. Eckstein House has been determined eligible to the National Register of Historic Places. Under Criterion A, the house exemplifies the historic development pattern of Euclid Avenue, itself determined eligible to the Register. Under Criterion B, the property is historically associated with inventor Henry G. Eckstein whose contributions to the Cracker Jack Company have had a national impact. Under Criterion C, the house is a fine example of Monterey Revival styling, an achievement of noted Pasadena architect, Reginald D. Johnson. Henry Gottlieb Eckstein was a Chicago inventor best known for his contributions to the Cracker Jack Company at the turn of the century. Earlier he had developed a grease cutting agent which was marketed as Gold Dust Household Cleaner. Eckstein joined the F.W. Rueckheim Brothers Company, makers of Cracker Jack, in 1899.

It is sited at the head of a gated and landscaped, semi-circular drive. A barn which is also on the property is a remnant of an earlier house which was moved to Montclair. Wood-sided, the structure has a clipped gable roof topped by a cupola. It also appears to be intact. Other features associated with the property include two cobblestone bridges which cross the stonelined gutter on Euclid, cobble gate posts, a formal garden, a reservoir, a one-story, Craftsman-influenced, caretaker's cottage, and an orange grove.

He developed a steam kettle and power mixing machine for the molasses coating and also invented the triple-proof Cracker Jack package which was dust, germ, and moisture proof. He was made a partner in 1902, and the company became Rueckheim Brothers and Eckstein (now the Cracker Jack Company). In 1911 Eckstein purchased 20 acres of orange groves in Upland on the northeast corner of Euclid Avenue and 19th Street. He built a two-story house (later moved to Montclair), barn, and caretaker's bungalow. The main house was occupied by the Eckstein family and their Chicago servants every winter for three or four months. The rest of the year was spend in Chicago. As a result of a heart attack in 1930, Eckstein required a downstairs bedroom. He decided to build a new house, commissioning prominent Pasadena architect Reginald D. Johnson to design it for him. Johnson, on his own and in partnerships with Gordon Kaufmann and Roland Coate and others, had a distinguished architectural career that included such diverse accomplishments as the Santa Barbara Biltmore Hotel (1926), the Baldwin Hills Village (1940-41), and countless elegant homes in various revival styles. For the Eckstein house, the Monterey Revival, the newest rage in residential architecture in 1930, was chosen. Campbell Construction built the house, which was completed in June 1931 at an estimated cost of $40,000. The U-shaped plan included fifteen rooms: living room, dining room, sitting room, kitchen, pantry, office, and six bedrooms. Special features included oak, cherry, and walnut doors and paneling, double wall construction, nine separate furnaces for independent temperature control, and a filter system to eliminate smoke from orchard smudge pots. Eckstein died in 1935, followed by his wife in 1939. Their son,Henry G. Eckstein Jr., a vice-president of Cracker Jack, inherited the property. Like his parents, Eckstein maintained the house as a winter home. After his death in 1963 the house was vacant until 1974. It has been well-maintained since that time. Despite the subdivision of the majority of the orange grove, the property retains a high degree of integrity, and is a significant landmark of Upland's past.