Hoffy Tours made its annual trek to that once stuffy town - Pasadena - to savor its craftsman bungalow legacy. Our destination was Bungalow Heaven, a 1915 Historic Landmark District that once a year opens its homes to visitors. What we saw was leafy neighborhoods, comfortable vintage homes, wide porches, informative docents and beautiful landscaping.
The Bungalow Heaven neighborhood lies north of the 210 freeway and is the largest collection of early craftsman bungalows in southern California. Here you won't find the large craftsmans a la Greene brothers (the Gamble House, the Blacker House) but instead modest homes mostly built from contractor kit books. These small homes had no room for a foyer or parlor, but their attention to detail in wood, stone and landscaping was a delight. So significant is the area that it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, and its local historic designation requires a "certificate of appropriateness" for exterior changes.
 |
| Bungalow appreciators! |
 |
| "Airplane" bungalows have second-story cockpit! |
Our intrepid group of devotees visited as many homes as we could in two hours before heading to Gus's BBQ in South Pasadena. I left wondering why more neighborhoods couldn't be this inviting with its generous tree canopies, ample front porches and comfortable front porches. Garages were conspicuously absent since cars were only coming into their own during the early 1900s. No wonder the American Planning Association voted the area one of American's Ten Best Places. |
| Even their cole slaw is good! Right on Fair Oaks in downtown South Pasadena. |
 |
| Torrey Pines Resort and Golf Course adopted the clinker brick of the Craftsman Period |
 |
| A great commercial street brings the buildings all the way to the sidewalk to create good urban space |
 |
| Backyard craftsman comfort |
 |
| Lots of homes in Bungalow Heaven had backyard sales |
 |
| Unifornm setbacks, gable roofs and lots of shade |
 |
| Even Hoffy Tourists have to take a break. |
 |
| The joys of a front porch! |
 |
| Dutch revival bungalow |
