Green Shutters – Ascot Drive

The property commands a panoramic view of the Bay (might be a few more trees in the way now) and the surrounding areas.

Over a thousand visitors passed through “Green Shutters” when it opened in July of 1934.

“Monterey Colonial home in Piedmont Pines”

Oakland Tribune 1934

Depending on the article I read, the style is either new California Colonial, Hispano-Monterey, classic modern, or Monterey Colonial.

The first floor has a spacious living room overlooking the rear garden, a modern kitchen, and a dining nook.

There is a den and bathroom above the entrance. The second floor has two large bedrooms with access to a sun deck and one bathroom.

The basement has a large rumpus with a fireplace, french doors leading to the garden, a laundry area, and a furnace room.

Green Shutters Today

Happiness Haven/ Monterey Hacienda- Chelton Drive

“In a setting of Breath-Taking Beauty”

OaklandTribune April 1929

Happiness Haven, or Monterey Hacienda, was designed by Hamilton Murdock and built-in 1929. It is located at 6340 Chelton Drive.

It opened in May 1929 and was colorfully decorated by Brueners.

“Tis a home that will grow old gracefully”

Oakland Tribune April 1929

The living room has a Spanish-beamed cathedral ceiling and a large stately fireplace; the dignified main entry with a spacious reception hall and extra broad stairs; three bedrooms; two full bathrooms with colorful tile. An artsy all-electric kitchen, a separate and complete laundry room with every modern convenience, and a two-car garage.

The broad balcony, facing due west, commands a panoramic sweep of 60 miles…with the Golden Gate in the center.

6000 Chelton Drive

“In this house the living-room is elevated five or six steps entrance hall, the kitchen is a masterpiece of originally and ingenuity and the view from every room in the house is picture of great scenic beauty.”

Oakland Tribune 1934

6000 Chelton was last sold in 1998 for $420,000; before that, it sold in 1978 for about $154,000.

House of Ideas – Darnby Drive

The “House of Ideas” was designed by Charles W. McCall, a local architect. It was an adaption of an informal French farmhouse. The setting among the pines was selected for its beauty and magnificent view of the Bay.

The floor design takes advantage of every portion of the space, especially on the second floor, where the three bedrooms and two baths are located.

Other features include an all-mahogany bathroom and a new process of treating the redwood in the living room with a transparent finish that retains all the beauty of the wood yet lighten its natural color.

“Primitive in design, modern in every convenience.”

Oakland Tribune 1935

The unusual residence incorporated in the design was a score of new and novel ideas in construction planning and interior finishing. Thousands of families building their own homes visited every weekend it was open.

The display home opened in August of 1936, was furnished by Breuner’s of Oakland, and sold by Mitchell and Austin local real estate agents.

Early California – 5847 Chelton Drive

During the “Early Spring Home Show” in 1937, five homes on Piedmont Pines of different architecture and floor plans were open to the public.

One of the residences was a new “Early California” home located at 5847 Chelton Drive and built on a gently sloping lot, ideal for a patio and landscaping. It has three bedrooms, two baths, a living room, a dining room, a kitchen, and two sun decks. A view of the Bay from the living room. The other rooms look out on the pine-covered hills.

The Modern Home in Piedmont Pines – Chelton Drive

“modernistic architecture”

Oakland Tribune May 31, 1936

In May of 1936, Mitchell and Austin announced the opening of a modern home in the Piedmont Pines neighborhood.

The new residence was furnished by Breuner’s and is of modernistic design. It has three bedrooms with a living room, dining room, kitchen, and breakfast nook, and F. Harvey Slocombe designed it.

One of the attractive features of this home is the large, lofty living room with two large windows that provide a panorama of the Bay.

The unique floor plan takes advantage of the sloping hillside lot. It’s a three-story home in a story and a half. The living room is on the top floor. The dining room and the all-metal kitchen with a breakfast nook are a few steps below. The bedrooms are a few steps lower.

More Info:

• Activity in Home Sales Is Reported – Oakland Tribune April 30, 1933
• New Home for Piedmont – Oakland Tribune May 21, 1933
• Contest for Small Homes – Oakland Tribune June 4, 1933
• Piedmont Pines Homes – Oakland Tribune November 19. 1933
• Prize Display Home Opens – Oakland Tribune November 26, 1933
• Architectural Prize Home – Oakland Tribune December 10, 1933
• Green Shutters Admired – Oakland Tribune August 12, 1934
• 5000 Visitors at Model Home – Oakland Tribune August 19, 1934
• New Features in Show Home – Oakland Tribune August 30, 1936
• Idea House Draws Crowd – Oakland Tribune September 6, 1936

The End