Quote:
Originally Posted by Tetsu
I live in Pasadena just a few blocks away from your house - I've driven and walked by more than once and always wondered about its history. There's a handful of great Victorians in Pasadena that seemed to have been overlooked, in many ways, and I always considered your house to be one of them. A few months ago I found something online (I'd have to backtrack to find a link) that labeled your place as the "Jennie Keil house" but not too much info beyond that. So, in short, thanks for posting the info about the connection to Batchelder-Wilson! Best of luck with the restoration.
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Tetsu, please say hi next time you see me working on the house (I'll be up on the veranda roof).
I'm happy to see a reference to Jennie Keil, because we've always found her to be quite an interesting historical figure, and have been dismayed at the way she's been ignored by the local historical cognoscenti. It seems to us that any woman transacting business on her own initiative in late Victorian times would merit a closer look than has been accorded Mrs. Jennie A. Keil.
She built this house in 1885 as an income property on an acre of land, specifically as a rental unit, according to tax documents. I don't have my documentation handy, but I believe it was at the corner of a 600-acre tract. In any event, I know that we are at the corner of what is now known as "Keil's Lakewood Tract."
You can find a lot of information about the house at the blog.