YESTERDAY, TODAY AND TOMORROW
As more wealthy people were attracted to Palm
Springs, more homes of architectural significance
were built – buildings that are even more revered
nowadays than when they were built. When Pittsburgh department store mogul Edgar J. Kaufmann
Sr., who had commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to
design the iconic “Falling Water” house in Pennsylvania in 1934, hired Richard Neutra to build
his Palm Springs home in 1946, he couldn’t have
known that his homes would be National Historic Landmarks, listed on the National Register of
Historic Places, and consistently rank high in the
American Institute of Architects List of 100 most
photo: Jim Haefner, haefnerphoto.com
popular buildings in America.” Mr. Kaufmann
died in 1955 and the home has had a series of owners since then, including singer Barry Manilow and
San Diego Chargers owner Eugene V. Klein, and has had several renovations. In 1992, Brent Harris, an
investment manager, and his wife Beth Edwards Harris, an architectural historian, purchased the house
for $1.5 million and restored it to its original design (Neutra died in 1970). Unfortunately, the Harrises
divorced and the home was sold in May 2008, for $15 million at auction by Christie’s, but the sale later
fell through. It was relisted for sale at $12.95 million five months later but has languished, allegedly
due to a weak economy.
McCallum Adobe
Shulman’s photograph of “Frey House 1,
designed by architect Albert Frey
courtesy of the J. Paul Getty Trust
1955 was the year that the Palm Springs Historical Society was founded by Melba Berry
Bennett and it’s comprised of two 19th century
pioneer homes. One, the McCallum Adobe, is
the oldest remaining building in Palm Springs,
built in 1884 for John McCallum. The relocated
and restored adobe now exhibits an extensive
collection of photographs, paintings, clothing,
tools, books, and Indian ware from the earliest days of Palm Springs. The other is Miss
Corneilia White’s “Little House” that was built
from railroad ties taken from the abandoned
Palmdale railroad in 1893 by the city’s first
hotel proprietor, Dr. Welwood Murray.
Mt. San Jacinto (officially named San Jacinto Peak),
a favorite hiking and camping area with many trails
and magnificent views, is easily accessible to hikers,
but the opening of the Palm Springs Arial Tramway
in 1963 made the Peak a destination for non-hikers
as well. The unprecedented use of helicopters in the
construction of four of the aerial tram’s five towers helped the Tramway earn a reputation as one of
the greatest engineering feats ever accomplished.
The new tram car holds up to 80 passengers and
the floor rotates constantly, making two revolutions
during the journey to the top so all passengers can
get great views. (pstramway.com).
12
courtesy Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
courtesy Palm Springs Aerial Tramway