Chapter 8: Architecture & Design

The City of Pasadena is widely regarded as a center of architecture in Southern California, and its early reputation for art and culture played an important role in the development and shaping of Pasadena’s identity. Pasadena’s rich architectural legacy reflects a wide range of architectural styles and property types across all periods of development, along with a significant collection of gardens and designed landscapes.

Pasadena’s residential neighborhoods represent significant periods of the city’s growth; many neighborhoods in the city have already been designated as landmark or historic districts. Estates and houses from the late 19th and early 20th centuries remain throughout the city, many designed by prominent architects who followed their wealthy clients to California from the East Coast and Midwest.

Significant residential, commercial, and institutional projects constructed throughout the city in the 1920s represent important examples of Period Revival styles popular after World War I. The Civic Center itself reflects the successful implementation of planning principles of the City Beautiful movement, and the buildings within are some of the finest examples of Mediterranean Revival architecture in Southern California.

In the period after World War II, the resulting population and building boom transformed how Californians lived and had an immediate and irrevocable impact on the architectural landscape. In Pasadena, there are notable modernist works by prominent local practitioners, many of whom taught or studied at the University of Southern California (USC) School of Architecture.

This context provides a brief overview of architectural movements in Pasadena, followed by a description of the relevant styles from each period to aid in the evaluation of potential historic resources that may be eligible for their architectural merit. The identification of architectural styles is based on information about the built environment at this phase of the project. There may be additional styles or refinement of the character-defining features based on discoveries in the field.