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Originally Posted by Tetsu
I know you guys have covered the Victorians of Angelino Heights before on NLA but I don't think anyone has ever mentioned the Stilson-Botsford House. It was probably one of the grandest in the neighborhood, with thirty rooms including a ballroom on the third floor. It was built for William Stilson, one of the original developers of Angelino Heights (along with Everett E. Hall, who jointly filed for ownership of the tract. It was then spelled "Angeleno Heights.") He built his own house on the northwest corner of Carroll Avenue and Edgeware Road in 1887, but died in the 1890's. The house was then purchased by California Bank president William Botsford. Here's a few photos of the place from the 1890's:
LAPL
Flickr
Tetsu - Thanks so much for posting these two great photos of the Stilson house. I have never seen closeup photos of it until now. I have often wondered how much of the original structure is left under that remodeling and whether the house could ever be restored.
I discovered Angeleno Heights in 1966 and at that time met Charles Pinney of 1355 Carroll Avenue. Pinney gladly showed me the ground floor of his home and also the garage where he had his early 1950s Cadillac stored. He told me he was 93 and had lived at the house since 1887. I'm thinking he may have moved away and moved back, but I'll never know. Pinney lived to be 106. His father, Henry, had bought their house at the northeast corner of Carroll and Douglas as well as the adjacent lot because he did not want a neighbor abutting his property. That lot now contains a huge tree.
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While I am not as good as most of you with finding old pictures, I am better with people. I did some background research on Charles Pinney. He apparently did not move away and come back. Here is what I found:
Some Census and other research reveals that Charles Lee Pinney was born on November 18, 1872 in Connecticut. He is listed on the voter registration at the Carroll Avenue house in 1896 along with his father. Charles is listed in that registration as being employed as a machinist.
His family appears in the 1900 Census at the Carroll Avenue address: father Henry, mother Emma, and three children: Louise, Charles and Frank. Two servants also are listed as living in the household in that Census. Henry Pinney is noted as being a “capitalist”
Charles is listed as living in the Carroll Avenue house in 1910 with his sister Louise and a housekeeper. At that time Charles is listed as being the proprietor of a Metal Works.
Charles married between 1910 and 1920 and is in the 1920 Census with his wife Bertha. When he filled out his draft card for WWI he was living at the same address. They apparently did not have any children.
They are in the Carroll Avenue house in 1920 and 1930. Voter Registrations in 1924 show Charles as being retired. In that year, he and Bertha took a trip to Cuba. They are listed as returning to San Pedro aboard the SS Finland. Their address is the same.
By 1940, while Charles is still living on Carroll Avenue, he is widowed. His wife Bertha died in November of 1935. Living in the house with Charles is his sister Louise, who is also widowed.
Charles died in Los Angeles on October 1, 1978. He is buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Glendale.