August 3, 2022 - The California State Historical Resources Commission (Commission) will consider six nominations for federal historic designation and two nominations for state historic designation on Friday, August 5. The Commission meeting will be held at 9 a.m. in the California Natural Resources Agency building in Sacramento and will also be streamed on CAL-SPAN.
One of the nominations being considered by the Commission is the NORLINA, the submerged archaeological site of the steel-hulled tramp steamship that struck the jagged shoals south of Horseshoe Point and came to rest in Gerstle Cove near Salt Point in 1926. Another nominated property is the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, which was intended as a temporary installation at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exhibition. It is the only surviving building of the world fair. The palace quickly became recognized as one of California's most beautiful buildings, despite its lack of function and temporary nature.
Below are some of the properties being considered at the meeting:
National Register of Historic Places Nominations
Asilomar Conference Grounds Warnecke Historic District
Pacific Grove, Monterey County
The district, located at the western edge of the Pacific Grove and overlooking Asilomar State Beach, consists of 22 buildings and associated landscape features designed by John Carl Warnecke & Associates after the State of California acquired the property in 1956. Originally a Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) camp designed by Julia Morgan, Asilomar’s initial stage of development was between 1913 and 1928. The Asilomar Conference Grounds Historic District was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987 for its association with YWCA history and as an important work of a master architect. Warnecke created a master plan to expand the original site and make it more automobile accessible, harmonizing with both the natural environment and Asilomar’s older buildings. The resulting distinct architectural context and 1957-to-1968 period of significance allow for a new stand-alone nomination rather than amending the earlier nomination with additional documentation.
NORLINA (shipwreck and remains)
Jenner (vicinity), Sonoma County
The submerged archaeological site is that of the steel-hulled tramp steamship NORLINA (1908-1926). NORLINA—also known historically as HARFLEUR, GEORGIANA and USS NORLINA—was built in 1908 in West Hartlepool, England, at the William Gray and Company shipyard as HARFLEUR. Between 1909 and 1926, the vessel served as a cargo steamship under several ownerships and nationalities, including service during World War I under charter to the United States government. In August 1926, while enroute from San Francisco to Puget Sound with the Garland Steamship Corporation, NORLINA struck the jagged shoals south of Horseshoe Point and came to rest in Gerstle Cove near Salt Point. The steamship was a total loss and heavily salvaged before breaking up and sinking.
California Historical Landmarks Nomination
Palace of Fine Arts
San Francisco, San Francisco County
The building and four structures in a park in the Marina District were originally conceived in 1913 for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition. The Palace was designed by architect Bernard Maybeck as a forgotten and overgrown Roman ruin and intended as a temporary installation, and the citizens of San Francisco engaged in heroic efforts to retain the property, the only surviving building of the 1915 exhibition. The Palace quickly became recognized as one of California's most beautiful buildings, despite its lack of function and temporary nature. A long-term project, planned in the 1950s and begun in the 1960s, reconstructed the Palace in its current permanent form, a project completed in 1974.
The National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program that coordinates and supports public and private efforts to identify, evaluate and protect America’s historic and archaeological resources. The California Register of Historical Resources is a program designed by the Commission in 1992 for use by state and local government agencies, private groups and citizens to identify, evaluate, register and protect California’s historical resources. California Historical Landmarks are sites, buildings, features or events that are of statewide significance and have anthropological, cultural, military, political, architectural, economic, scientific, technical, religious or experimental value.California Points of Historical Interest are sites, buildings, features or events that are of local (city or county) significance and have anthropological, cultural, military, political, architectural, economic, scientific, technical, religious or experimental value.
Placement on the National Register can help bring positive attention to a historic place and affords a property the honor of inclusion in the nation’s list of cultural resources worthy of preservation. This can provide a degree of protection from adverse effects resulting from federally funded or licensed projects. Registration also provides several incentives for preservation of historic properties, including special building codes to facilitate the restoration of historic structures and certain tax advantages.
All nominations and photographs of properties under consideration at this Friday’s meeting are available online.
This Commission meeting will occur in person and through video and teleconference on Friday, August 5, at 9 a.m. The Commissioners will meet in person, and the meeting is open to the public at the Natural Resources Agency building’s Auditorium located at 715 P St., Sacramento. The public may also view the meeting via CAL-SPAN or participate in the meeting by registering for attendance via the Zoom link posted on the State Historical Resources Commission Meeting Schedule and Notices page of the Office of Historic Preservation website at ohp.parks.ca.gov/SHRCnotices.
Those who wish to watch the meeting but not provide comments do not need to register and may watch a live webcast, with archived video provided post-meeting, at www.cal-span.org.
Notices and agendas for Commission meetings are available online 10 days before a meeting at ohp.parks.ca.gov. The public may present oral statements at the hearing at the appropriate time. Inquiries and written comments on the agenda may also be emailed to the Office of Historic Preservation at calshpo@ohp.parks.ca.gov or submitted via mail to Julianne Polanco, State Historic Preservation Officer, at the Office of Historic Preservation, P.O. Box 942896, Sacramento, CA 94296-0001.
General inquiries about the Commission should be directed to (916) 445-7000 or calshpo.shrc@parks.ca.gov.
Top: NORLINA in Gerstle Cove near Salt Point. Photo from U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command. Bottom left: Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Photo from Hans Baldauf. Bottom right: Asilomar Conference Grounds Warnecke Historic District. Photo from Stephen Schafer.
Source: CA. State Parks
