Page 15 - carey-bunse_habs_ca2712

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) HARRY CAREY RANCH
) (Clougherty Ranch)
HABS No. CA-2712 (Page 15)

) around the toe of the hill, and into the ravine where the main ranch comes into view. A
) combination guesthouse and garage (Building 6) was the first building along the drive,
) but the building was severely damaged in the 1994 Northridge earthquake.

With a wide front porch, tidy adobe fence, and tall trees, the main house (Building 5)
presents a friendly centerpiece for the complex. The remaining buildings are arranged
behind it as the elevation rises into the middle and upper reaches of the ravine. The lower
garage (Building 6) and tennis courts are located closest to the house, with Joe's Cabin
(Building 4 ), the swimming pool and pool house, and the Bunkhouse (Building 2) next.
Smaller buildings, such as the Smokehouse (Building 3), Adobe Stables (Building 1), and
) Wood Stables (Building 8) are located just uphill from that. Although they no longer
exist, there were at least two additional one-room guest cabins along the southwest side
)
of the complex during 1920s. This collection of buildings provided the Careys with a
gracious ranch lifestyle that enabled them to raise cattle, keep horses, entertain guests,
and provide housing for ranch hands.

The ranch complex was fully developed around a Spanish-related theme with the
)
construction of the adobe main house in 1933, continuing the precedence of the adobe
outbuildings and the destroyed Trading Post. A previous study of this property suggests
that the cubic massing of Joe's Cabin (Building 4) is similar to the southwestern style of
the former Trading Post buildings. Most of the outbuildings of the main ranch complex,
_ however, are simple utilitarian structures whose only link to either a southwestern
tradition or Spanish Colonial Revival is in the use of adobe and Spanish tile construction
materials. Undeniably, the adobe and tile unify the buildings of the complex. Yet, the
Main House and Caretaker's House (Buildings 5 and 9A) are the only buildings with a
discemable architectural style: Spanish Colonial Revival.
,

Assessor's records show that the swimming pool and cabana were built in 1946, during
C'> the short period when John and Irene Blanchard owned the property. The tennis court
may date to about the same time. Construction of these recreational structures is
consistent with the rumor that the Careys sold to people who wanted to start a dude
I
ranch. Even though the Clougherty family owned the property for at least forty years,
they completed relatively little new construction. It is not known when the smaller
cabins and additional wood frame stable or barn shown in the 1920s post card were
removed, but this might have occurred during their ownership For a short time the
family attempted to raise hogs on the property and built pens and outbuildings further up
the ravine for this purpose. The climate, however, was not favorable. and the Cloughertys
soon moved the swine operation elsewhere, retaining the property as a vacation retreat.
Currently, the only building that is occupied fulltime is the Bunkhouse. The Caretaker's
House and Joe's Cabin are in considerable disrepair, and the upper and lower garages
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suffered significant structural damage in the 1994 N orthridge earthquake.

31
Careys to Blanchards, April 1_8, 1945, Deeds 21887:152-154; Blanchards to L. Wagnon and C. McCaleb, June 2,
J
· 1948, Deeds 27336: I 65; Grantee - Grantor indexes, Los Angeles County Clerk and Recorder Office.

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