EVENTS

HERITAGE MONTH 2024

The City of Laguna Beach alongside the Heritage Committee has designated the month of May as ‘Heritage Month’.

Explore below for additional information.

OPENING NIGHT CELEBRATION

Thursday, May 2
5:30 PM - 7:00 PM
Join the Heritage Committee in Celebration of Heritage Month at Tango Restaurant. Light Hors d’oeuvres provided. No charge!
Tango Restaurant -
305 Forest Avenue, Suite 103
Image - “Escbachs by David Solomon”
Trolley Tour: The Works of Architect Aubrey St. Clair

Saturday, May 11
9:00 AM and 11:00 AM
Guided trolley tour celebrating the works of Laguna Beach architect, Aubrey St. Clair.
Click here for more information and to sign-up!
Photo of Aubrey St. Clair provided by Kathryn Crawford
HISTORIC PROJECT FORUM

Thursday, May 16
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Design, construction and real estate professionals share experiences with historic properties, including Mills Act calculations and Q&A Find out about the rewarding process of historic preservation!
City Council Chambers -
505 Forest Avenue
Laguna Beach Living History featuring No Square Theatre

Saturday, May 18,
10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Celebrate Heritage Month with the Laguna Beach Historical Society!
Partnering with No Square Theater, the historical society plans to stage a reenactment at the bungalow to see firsthand how early Laguna residents lived and contributed to the early decades and unique character of our town.
Murphy Smith Bungalow
278 Ocean Avenue
Image - Frank Cuprien, Calisphere.
LAGUNA CHARM HOUSE TOUR

Sunday, May 19
12:00 PM - 3:00 PM
Experience a taste of the heritage of Laguna Beach as you tour houses in neighborhoods dating from homestead days in the 1800s. Visit cottages and bungalows, working artists’ homes and studios. Experience the rustic canyon environments and see how creative residents have crafted their home environments to reflect their own unique talents and interests.
Click here for more information and to purchase tickets.
Image - Charm House Tour 2023
Public Tours of the Hortense Miller Garden

Come visit and fall in love with Hortense Miller, her home, and garden!
Click here for more information or to schedule your docent led tour.
You may also call (949) 464-6645 to book a tour most Saturdays and Thursdays at 9:45 AM – 12:00 p.m. No charge.
Image - Hortense Miller Garden
Crystal Cove Historic District – Self-Guided Walking Tour

This charming, quaint Historic District will take you back in time!
Check the website below for park hours, activities, and parking information.
For more information: https://www.crystalcovestatepark.org
Image - Crystal Cove Historic District

Aubrey St. Clair Trolley Tour

May 11, 2024, 9:00 AM & 11:00 AM

The Laguna Beach Heritage Committee will be providing guided tours of some of the historic commercial buildings and residences designed by Aubrey St. Clair.

THANK YOU TO EVERYBODY FOR JOINING US!

About the Architect

Aubrey St. Clair, 1934.
Photo courtesy of Kathryn Crawford.

Aubrey St. Clair was born in Massachusetts in 1889. His family moved to Pasadena when he was a boy. Creative talents ran in the family. His father, Norman St. Clair, was an architect, an illustrator, and an artist. His younger brother, Malcolm St. Clair was a well-known Hollywood movie director. Aubrey honed his professional skills apprenticing with some of the leading architects in Los Angeles and Pasadena including Greene and Greene, Irving Gill, Wallace Neff, and Marston and Maybury.

He developed an appreciation for traditional architectural types while traveling in Europe. Although he began his design career in Pasadena, his family spent a great deal of time in Laguna Beach. His earliest commissions in this coastal community were in the late 1920’s.

His work spanned five decades and encompasses civic, commercial, religious, and residential projects. St. Clair had a special affinity for English style buildings, but his designs reflect many different genres including Spanish, Cottage, Monterey, and Streamline Moderne. Many of his projects were featured in Architectural Digest and Sunset magazines. Aubrey and his wife Dolly settled permanently in Laguna Beach in 1935 and raised a daughter and two sons here. He died in 1968 but his work lives on in dozens of buildings all over our city.

Explore the tour route below!

Water District Building

306 Third Street
1929
Laguna Beach County Water District Photo Archive
Fire Station

501 Forest Avenue
1931
1930’s Photo from the Laguna Beach Historical Society
City Hall

505 Forest Avenue
1951
Photo by Hunter Fuentes
Laguna Federal Savings and Loan

260 Ocean Avenue
1961
1960’s Postcard - Original design by Josten’s
Laguna Federal Savings and Loan

222 Ocean Avenue
1945
South Coast News, June 28, 1945
Isch Building

329 South Coast Highway
1928
South Coast News, February 14, 1930
Builders' Guild

1185 South Coast Highway
1936
Architectural Digest, 1938
The First Church of Christ, Scientist

285 Legion Street
1938
South Coast News, January 11, 1938
Neighborhood Congregational Church

340 St. Anns Drive
1950
Photo by Hunter Fuentes
Woodworth Residence

350 Center Street
1940
Photo by Brad Engelland
Beery Residence

495 Mountain Road
1935
Photo by Hunter Fuentes
Gazda Residence

455 El Bosque
1932
Photo by Hunter Fuentes