Paul Shoup House
Encyclopedia
The Paul Shoup House, also known as the Shoup House, is a historic residence in Los Altos
, Santa Clara County
, California
, United States. It was built as an American Craftsman
- and Shingle
-style home in 1910 for railroad executive Paul Shoup
. In 2011 it was designated a historic site
by the National Register of Historic Places
; the first such designation in Los Altos.
The wood shingle-clad building originally occupied a trapezoidal lot that crossed Adobe Creek. The building now sits on reduced acreage that retains its relationship with the creek, surrounded by denser residential development.
A century after its construction, the house retains many original wooden windows and wooden decorative features such as brackets, bell eaves, decorative vents, and a dramatic overall form. Hardscape features including the concrete retaining wall and a stone grotto were still in place.
The original front door, antique Venetian light, Douglas fir floors, paneling, beams, fireplace mantels, door and window trim, brass hardware, and antique glazing are intact in the foyer, dining and living rooms. The Douglas fir door trim throughout the house is six inches wide with a curved radius: a transitional design bridging the Victorian
and American Craftsman
styles.
, and founder of the community of Los Altos.
Shoup's son Carl Sumner Shoup lived in the home in his youth, riding his horse to school. Carl was a Columbia University
economist considered the intellectual father of the value-added tax (VAT). At the request of General Douglas MacArthur, Carl led the Shoup Mission that recommended the tax policy adopted by the Diet of Japan
in 1950 during the economic reconstruction of Japan after World War II
.
Living with Shoup garden caretaker Shoichi Kagawa on the property was his eldest son Bunichi Kagawa. Influenced by Los Altan and Stanford professor Yvor Winters
, issei
Bunichi Kagawa became a writer penning poetry in both his native Japanese and in English, collected in the 1930 volume Hidden Flame.
. During the celebration, Shoup and Kagawa family members retold stories of visiting the house, and living on the property. The centennial included a "family reunion" with 34 Shoup family members attending from Europe, New England, Denver, and other parts of California. During the centennial weekend, archival materials were opened for review at the Los Altos History Museum.
In May 2011 the historic grotto across Adobe Creek from the house was dedicated to Shoichi Kagawa who was the chief gardener and caretaker of the Japanese garden. He and his family lived on the property until they were sent to Heart Mountain to be interned
during World War II.
on September 23, 2011; the first Los Altos property to be added into the register. The house's nomination to the National Register was based on the significance of the original owner, Paul Shoup
.
Los Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
, Santa Clara County
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, United States. It was built as an American Craftsman
American Craftsman
The American Craftsman Style, or the American Arts and Crafts Movement, is an American domestic architectural, interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts style and lifestyle philosophy that began in the last years of the 19th century. As a comprehensive design and art...
- and Shingle
Shingle Style architecture
The Shingle style is an American architectural style made popular by the rise of the New England school of architecture, which eschewed the highly ornamented patterns of the Eastlake style in Queen Anne architecture....
-style home in 1910 for railroad executive Paul Shoup
Paul Shoup
Paul Shoup was an American businessman, president and later vice-chairman of the Southern Pacific Railroad in the 1920s and 1930s, a founding board member of the Stanford University School of Business, and founder of the community of Los Altos, California.-Family:He was the third of five children...
. In 2011 it was designated a historic site
Historic site
A historic site is an official location where pieces of political, military or social history have been preserved. Historic sites are usually protected by law, and many have recognized with the official national historic site status...
by the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
; the first such designation in Los Altos.
Building site and architectural description
The house is a two-story Craftsman residence completed in 1910 on a multi-acre lot within the Los Altos Land Company’s holding, acquired from Sarah Winchester in 1907.The wood shingle-clad building originally occupied a trapezoidal lot that crossed Adobe Creek. The building now sits on reduced acreage that retains its relationship with the creek, surrounded by denser residential development.
A century after its construction, the house retains many original wooden windows and wooden decorative features such as brackets, bell eaves, decorative vents, and a dramatic overall form. Hardscape features including the concrete retaining wall and a stone grotto were still in place.
The original front door, antique Venetian light, Douglas fir floors, paneling, beams, fireplace mantels, door and window trim, brass hardware, and antique glazing are intact in the foyer, dining and living rooms. The Douglas fir door trim throughout the house is six inches wide with a curved radius: a transitional design bridging the Victorian
Victorian
Victorian may mean:*Of or relating to Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom*Victorian era , a term derived from the lengthy 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria and particularity various styles, ideas, and trends associated with that era:...
and American Craftsman
American Craftsman
The American Craftsman Style, or the American Arts and Crafts Movement, is an American domestic architectural, interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts style and lifestyle philosophy that began in the last years of the 19th century. As a comprehensive design and art...
styles.
Residents
Paul Shoup (1874–1946) was president and later vice-chairman of the Southern Pacific Railroad in the 1920s and 1930s, a founding board member of the Stanford University School of BusinessStanford Graduate School of Business
The Stanford Graduate School of Business is one of the professional schools of Stanford University, in Stanford, California and is broadly regarded as one of the best business schools in the world.The Stanford GSB offers a general management Master of Business Administration degree, the Sloan...
, and founder of the community of Los Altos.
Shoup's son Carl Sumner Shoup lived in the home in his youth, riding his horse to school. Carl was a Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
economist considered the intellectual father of the value-added tax (VAT). At the request of General Douglas MacArthur, Carl led the Shoup Mission that recommended the tax policy adopted by the Diet of Japan
Diet of Japan
The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
in 1950 during the economic reconstruction of Japan after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Living with Shoup garden caretaker Shoichi Kagawa on the property was his eldest son Bunichi Kagawa. Influenced by Los Altan and Stanford professor Yvor Winters
Yvor Winters
Arthur Yvor Winters was an American poet and literary critic.-As modernist:Winters's early poetry, which appeared in small avant-garde magazines alongside work by writers like James Joyce and Gertrude Stein, was written in the modernist idiom, and was heavily influenced both by Native American...
, issei
Issei
Issei is a Japanese language term used in countries in North America, South America and Australia to specify the Japanese people first to immigrate. Their children born in the new country are referred to as Nisei , and their grandchildren are Sansei...
Bunichi Kagawa became a writer penning poetry in both his native Japanese and in English, collected in the 1930 volume Hidden Flame.
Rehabilitation
As the home was protected by the California Mills Act, and governed by the local historic building processes, approval for the rehabilitation was controversial. Ultimately permission for the rehabilitation was granted, enabling completion prior to the centennial of the house. Changes were made to the interior of the house, bringing the house up to modern earthquake, plumbing, and electrical codes while reconfiguring the non-historic kitchen and bathrooms. Lead paint was stripped, and the wood stained to match the basement door finish, unchanged through the years. The Japanese-influenced garden was designed with plants that would have been used in the 1920s and dry-set stonework was used for landscape terracing.Centennial celebration
After the rehabilitation was complete, the house was blessed by a local Catholic priest, and then was the venue for a Shoup centennial celebration hosted by the Los Altos History MuseumLos Altos History Museum
The Los Altos History Museum is a museum in Los Altos, California. It showcases the rich history of Los Altos and surrounding areas, including the transformation of the agricultural paradise once known as the "Valley of Heart's Delight" into the high-tech Silicon Valley...
. During the celebration, Shoup and Kagawa family members retold stories of visiting the house, and living on the property. The centennial included a "family reunion" with 34 Shoup family members attending from Europe, New England, Denver, and other parts of California. During the centennial weekend, archival materials were opened for review at the Los Altos History Museum.
Garden dedications
The Los Altos History Museum and homeowners recognized Rose Wilson Shoup, the wife of Paul Shoup, by dedicating the Paul Shoup House's rose garden to the original "Mother of Los Altos".In May 2011 the historic grotto across Adobe Creek from the house was dedicated to Shoichi Kagawa who was the chief gardener and caretaker of the Japanese garden. He and his family lived on the property until they were sent to Heart Mountain to be interned
Japanese American internment
Japanese-American internment was the relocation and internment by the United States government in 1942 of approximately 110,000 Japanese Americans and Japanese who lived along the Pacific coast of the United States to camps called "War Relocation Camps," in the wake of Imperial Japan's attack on...
during World War II.
Recognition
The house was listed in the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on September 23, 2011; the first Los Altos property to be added into the register. The house's nomination to the National Register was based on the significance of the original owner, Paul Shoup
Paul Shoup
Paul Shoup was an American businessman, president and later vice-chairman of the Southern Pacific Railroad in the 1920s and 1930s, a founding board member of the Stanford University School of Business, and founder of the community of Los Altos, California.-Family:He was the third of five children...
.