Rengstorff House

The Rengstorff House was one of the first houses to be built in Mountain View, California. It was built c. 1867 by Henry Rengstorff, a prominent local businessman who operated a ferry between San Francisco and Mountain View. It is built in the Italianate Victorian architecture style. The house's three-bay front facade features an entrance pavilion topped by a balustrade and a pediment on the middle bay.[2]

Henry A. Rengstorff House
The Rengstorff House
Location3070 N. Shoreline Blvd.
Mountain View, California
Coordinates37°25′53.24″N 122°5′13.56″W
Area2 acres (0.81 ha)
Architectural styleItalianate[1]
NRHP reference No.78000778[1]
Added to NRHPJune 13, 1978

History

Henry Rengstorff built the house near Rengstorff Landing, an important grain shipping point. The house was built to demonstrate his prosperity, and to raise his six children in comfort, including a room built solely for his four girls, to accommodate their regular appointment with a dressmaker to try on the latest fashions. When Rensgstorff died, his daughter Elise Haag and grandson Perry Askam moved into the house. The ranch on which the house was located was purchased by the Newhall Development Company. This company did not have use for the house, but attempted to preserve the structure while having it relocated.[3]

The house was located about a mile from the present location at Shoreline Park. It was saved from destruction in the 1970s, but remained abandoned for many years, until the 1980s when the house was finally restored. There are stories of Hells Angels driving their motorcycles up and down the dilapidated staircase.

The house is open for guided tours on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Sundays. Docents in period costume talk about the antique Victorian furnishings and decorative details. The English gardens are open during public hours as well.

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. Alsman, Ken; Sarnat, Marlene; Butler, Phyllis; Lyon, Emily; Carlson, John (December 28, 1976). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: Henry A. Rengstorff House". National Park Service. Retrieved September 1, 2014. Accompanied by photos.
  3. Butler, Phyllis Filiberti (1991). Old Santa Clara Valley: A Guide to Historic Buildings from Palo Alto to Gilroy. San Carlos, California: Wide World Publishing. pp. 38–39. ISBN 0-933174-81-0.


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