Description and review of the 2023 Preservation Sacramento Historic Home Tour, featuring homes in East Sacramento.
In mid-September a friend and I spent a pleasant Sunday afternoon on the annual Preservation Sacramento self-guided Historic Home Tour. This was the 47th Annual Historic Home Tour, and the first year that homes in East Sacramento were featured.
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What is Preservation Sacramento?
Preservation Sacramento is a citywide historic preservation nonprofit dedicated to preserving historic buildings and the cultural heritage of Sacramento.
The annual home tours generate revenues to fund, among other things, the nominations of historic properties, advocate for policies that protect historic resources, and to educate the public about the importance of historic preservation.
Preservation Sacramento Historic Home Tour
This year the Preservation Sacramento Historic Home Tour featured four homes located between 38th Street, 40th Street, J Street, and Folsom Boulevard. Former farmland, the area started changing to residential in the early 1900’s. Most of the homes in the neighborhood were built after 1911, the year Sacramento annexed East Sacramento.
My friend and I had purchased tour tickets in advance on-line, so we checked in at the event street fair location to receive our wristbands and programs. The programs contain photos and details on the four featured homes, as well as supplemental information on other homes in the vicinity of the tour.
New this year, the tour also featured an optional docent-led walking tour of other homes on the two streets. We decided to wait until after we had toured the four homes to decide whether to sign up for the docent-led tour.
Featured Homes
1081 38th Street
Our first stop was at the Longton House at 1081 38th Street. Sally and Greg Lukenbill have owned the home for over 25 years.
After slipping on protective booties, we entered the beautiful home which reflects the Prairie School style of architecture. Inside the home, Craftsman style features include extensive woodwork and stained-glass windows.
Gregg Lukenbill personally has done much of the renovation work on the house himself.
1125 38th Street
The Scholefield House is owned by Richard Saxton, MD and William Nilva. The Scholefield House was built in the French Eclectic style. It has a steeply pitched roof sweeping down one side to create an arched porte-cochere.
The home is one of a few 38th Street duplexes that have remained two-family residences. Other duplexes were converted to single-family residences.
1308 38th Street
The Miller House is owned by Marny and Rick Wasserman. The wood exterior home has features from both the Prairie School style (deep eaves) and the Colonial Revival style (hipped roof, Tuscan columns).
The Wasserman’s, who bought the property in 1984, have added on to the house, but in a way that respects the design of the structure.
1121 40th Street
The Noack House is owned by Ellen Mallory. It is a Craftsman-style bungalow. The home was not purchased by its first owner until 1917, three years after it was finished. It was prior to being purchased used as a model home, featured in newspaper ads, etc.
The current owner has been restoring the home bit by bit. For example, she is currently in the process of stripping paint from the interior wood.
Demolition Averted
Of note, two of the four homes on the tour had faced demolition in the past.
In 1959 ,the new owner of the home at 1081 38th Street was unable to have the property rezoned as multiple residential. He had proposed to raze the home and build a 16-unit apartment building on the site, a proposal that was opposed by many East Sacramento residents.
In 2019, the new owners of 1121 40th Street intended to demolish the house and replace it with a larger one, but were prevented from doing so by the Preservation office because of the house’s historical significance.
Source Material: Preservation Sacramento Program
To Sum Up
To sum up, the Preservation Sacramento Historic Home Tour was a fun and informative way to spend a sunny Sunday afternoon. We both enjoyed learning the history of the area, and the background on the homes and their previous and current owners.
Comments on Preservation Sacramento Historic Home Tours?
Did you participate in the home tour this year? Or, in years past?
Preservation Sacramento 2023 Historic Home Tour Snapshot:
- Sunday, September 17, 2023
- 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
- Featuring East Sacramento’s 38th & 40th Streets
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