A renewed Revival
Long Beach pioneer and civic leader Irwin M. Stevens distinguished his home by adding three bathrooms with hot and cold running water to the second story -- a rare feature in 1929 when construction began. Stevens, who owned a laundry business, had the 12-room home plumbed with a recirculating water system that, even in winter, immediately delivered hot water to the second floor.
According to Stevens’ daughter, Jean Stevens Romer, her hard-working father never left work before 6 p.m. He survived the Long Beach earthquake because he inexplicably arrived home early on March 10, 1933.
“For some unknown reason, he was given to flee,” Romer said. He had barely sat down to read the newspaper in his mahogany paneled library when the temblor hit. The house stood, but one wall of his business, the Queen City Laundry, had collapsed, burying his desk and chair in a pile of bricks and rubble.
The current owners have meticulously restored the Mediterranean Revival home and remodeled the kitchen and butler’s pantry with Carrara marble countertops and carved cherrywood cabinets. The garage was expanded to hold three cars.
About this house: Completed in 1931, it is one of the few homes in the Bluff Park Historic District of Long Beach whose large rooms have not been structurally altered. A grand staircase with a wrought-iron railing, stained glass window and a mica chandelier grace the entry hall.
Asking price: $3,399,000
Size: There are four bedrooms and 4 1/2 bathrooms in 4,364 square feet.
Features: The living room has an original Batchelder tile fireplace. There are pull-down copper window screens on all but two windows, oak floors, period nickel hardware and a putting green in the backyard.
Where: One block from the ocean at 3040 E. 1st St., Long Beach.
Listing agent: Mark D. Wilson, Coldwell Banker, Coastal Alliance, Long Beach (562) 433-2811.
