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Multiple stories -- and a century’s worth of tales

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Times Staff Writer

Morris A. Cohn, a self-made businessman whose overalls company became a major manufacturer of sportswear in the West, bought about 12 acres of land in 1913 for his grand estate in southwestern Pasadena.

Built the next year, the elegant English Tudor Revival-style house cost $32,000 -- a substantial amount when the average house could be built for about $2,000, according to Pasadena-based building historian Tim Gregory. Of course, with more than 9,500 square feet, the Cohn estate was nearly 10 times the size of the average house.

The fashionable mansion initially had two graceful stories and 15 rooms. It was designed by architects Frank Hudson and William Munsell, known for rich detail on homes and other projects including the stately domed Museum of Natural History in Exposition Park.

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For the woodwork in the Cohn estate, they used 790 square feet of Philippine mahogany, 1,412 square feet of red gum and 1,822 square feet of a specific variety of walnut, according to a city assessor’s report. Three years after completing the house, with its seven bedrooms and four bathrooms, the architects designed a 10-room semicircular bathhouse next to the swimming pool.

For years, Cohn and his wife, Edith, participated in the Pasadena Garden Club’s spring flower show, according to stories from the archives of the Los Angeles Times, and won first place one year for the beautiful snapdragons on their grounds.

Cohn subdivided the estate in 1940 and began selling off parcels for new homes. At the time of his death a year later, the original estate had shrunk to less than 6 acres. His widow sold the property around the time World War II ended. Subsequent owners sold off more land, built additions, renovated and upgraded the house.

About this house: Today, the three-story home includes a living room, library, media room, den, gym, gourmet kitchen, dining room, breakfast area, bonus room, family room, children’s playroom, wet bar, mud room, basement, patio and a four-car garage tucked away on 1.74 acres of rolling and gated grounds with a rose garden.

Asking price: $6.395 million

Size: Eight bedrooms, six bathrooms and two half-bathrooms in more than 11,000 square feet of living space.

Features: Crown moldings, hardwood floors, fireplaces with Batchelder tiles, built-ins, antique stove, terraces.

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Where: Pasadena

Listing agent: Rosemary Low, Sotheby’s International Realty Estate Properties, (323) 660-5885.

gayle.pollard-terry@latimes .com

To submit a candidate for Home of the Week, send color interior and exterior photos on a CD and a detailed description of the house, including what makes the property unusual, to Ruth Ryon, Real Estate section, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012. Send questions to homeoftheweek @latimes.com.

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