It’s Been Called the ‘Ultimate California Bungalow’ : A House Is ‘Rescued’ in Pasadena

Pasadena’s landmark Blacker House, which was stripped of its treasured light fixtures by a Texas cattleman days after he bought it in 1985, has been sold to a local couple who vow to preserve its historic character.

The 81-year-old house, often called the “ultimate California bungalow,” was sold for an undisclosed amount Tuesday to John and Dorrie Poole, who grew up not far from the home designed by Charles and Henry Greene.

“This is going to be our home,” said John Poole, whose family includes three children. “I think we can give it the treatment it deserves.”

Sale of the house, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, was cheered by preservationists who have watched in rage over the last three years as Stonewall, Tex., rancher Barton English stripped the house of at least $1.3 million in irreplaceable artifacts.

“Black Bart is riding into the sunset and may he never return,” said Sue Mossman, program director of Pasadena Heritage, a preservation group.

Michael Carey, an antique dealer and one of English’s business partners, said the Texan decided earlier this year to sell the 9,000-square-foot house because all the fixtures and stained glass had been removed. English never lived in the house.

“Our goal was to improve our personal collections of arts and craft objects,” Carey said from his office in New York City. “We accomplished what we wanted to do.”

English could not be reached for comment, but Carey said they are both relieved that their controversial involvement with the house is over.

The outcry began when English bought the house for $1.2 million and quickly removed four dozen light fixtures.

The action, dubbed the “Texas chain saw massacre” by preservationists, brought protests from around the country. It led to passage of an emergency Pasadena ordinance that made it illegal to alter any Greene and Greene house without first notifying the city. But the measure only gave the city power to delay such a move.

There were outcries again last year when preservationists suspected English of trying to remove the house’s stained-glass windows and doors and replace them with replicas without city permission. Copies of the doors were found in the home’s basement.

Police and residents began an unusual neighborhood watch to make sure no one tampered with the house. But the stained glass eventually was removed this year after English gave the city proper notice and obtained approval.

Built in 1907, the two-story Blacker House is considered one of the finest works of the Greene brothers. Located on a one-acre lot at the corner of Hillcrest and Wentworth avenues, it was built for Michigan lumber magnate Robert R. Blacker, who retired to Pasadena during its golden age as a resort for the rich and famous.

The Greenes, leading figures in the arts and crafts movement that flourished in Pasadena around the turn of the century, also designed the Gamble House in Pasadena, which is now a museum.

The Blacker House is a classic example of the Craftsman style: simple in design but filled with bold, natural woodwork and accented with intricate stained glass windows and hand-crafted light fixtures.

John Poole, 31, an attorney with Ticor Title Insurance Co., and Dorrie Poole, 33, a Pasadena Parks and Recreation commissioner and president of Pasadena Arts Services, a local nonprofit arts organization, said they are excited and overwhelmed by the prospect of owning and caring for the house.

“I used to ride my bike up the driveway. It’s magnificent,” John Poole said.

But after years of neglect, the house needs a new roof, a new foundation and some interior work, he said.

Dorrie Poole said she is already preparing herself for the task of looking after her three young children, and a fourth on the way, as they cavort around the historic structure.

“Actually, I’m terrified of it,” she said. “Crayons and felt-tipped pens are pretty much going to disappear around here.”

Although she lamented the removal of the original stained glass and light fixtures, she added: “Maybe it’s just as well. The first baseball through a window would have been a disaster.”