A study of this painting is now part of a larger project involving a number of different panoramic views of Santa Cruz, dating from 1870 to 1904. The original Santa Cruz Patch post on the 1870 view has been replaced with a longer piece, a guide to a Prezi slideshow. I haven't moved on yet to an expanded study of the 1876 Trousset painting, so the original post follows below.
First, the Wilson house is not, and never was a "Mansard style building" (for more on mansards, and the mansard style in Santa Cruz, see here).
Second, the Wilson house did not burn down in 1877. It's still standing on Ocean View Avenue, just as it does in Trousset's painting. At first, I was at a loss to explain this error, but came up with a theory after re-reading a passage in The Sidewalk Companion To Santa Cruz Architecture, by John Leighton Chase. On page 20, there's the following:
(34) ...site of the 1877 Second Empire style house of lumberman William F. March...one of the earliest three-story houses in Santa Cruz. It was second only to Martha Wilson's ill-fated boarding house on Ocean View Avenue, which stood for only one year until it burned in 1877.The composer of the museum exhibit notes may have confused Wilson's two-story, non-mansard-roofed house with this mysterious three-story "ill-fated boarding house", which does not appear in Trousset's painting. Or Chase may have made an error. Or - most likely of all - I'm totally failing to understand all of this. Another subject for future investigation.
1876 Santa Cruz Painting Shows Many Changes (Jul. 3, 2013)
The painting is a panoramic (nearly 180 degree) view of Santa Cruz, looking west from the bluffs on the east side of the San Lorenzo River near its mouth (approximately at today’s corner of Buena Vista and Riverview, but Trousset’s view is now obstructed by houses). It’s a testament to the painter’s skill that, when viewing the painting, you don’t realize the field of view is so wide. It’s probably not possible to capture the same scene with a camera.
A few posts back, we looked at a “bird’s eye view” of
One prominent feature of the Trousset painting missing in the 1870 view is the Santa Cruz Railroad (1876), with its new trestle over the
Follow the railroad tracks along the beach and there are the first beachfront bathhouses, precursors of today’s Beach Boardwalk. Still farther along the beach, you’ll find one-two-three wharfs. The first is the Powder Company wharf; the middle one is the brand-new railroad wharf (1875). Above the Davis & Cowell wharf (farthest) is the big red-roofed lime warehouse. Mostly hidden by the damage scar at far left is the 1869 lighthouse, which is out of frame left and so not shown in the 1870 view.
At the far right of the painting isOcean View Avenue , which opened in 1871 atop the bluff. Prominent at street’s end is the Ocean Villa resort, which stood where Ocean View Park
Beyond Ocean Villa to the left is Mission Hill. The distance makes details harder to pick out, but (right to left) the 1857 Holy Cross Church is recognizable, then the Sisters’ School. Both structures can be seen in greater detail in the 1870 lithograph but, to the left of the Sister’s School is the brand-new white, 3-storyMission Hill School
To the left of the school is the Methodist Church with its tall, pointy spire. Below and between those two is the 1866County Courthouse Oddfellows Building Soquel Avenue covered bridge, which opened in 1874.
At far upper left, with the smokestack, is the Boston and Jones tannery, still apparently in operation. The pointy-roofed building below the tannery is possibly the Unity Church on Walnut just off Pacific.
More about the painter, Leon Trousset: in the same year of 1876, he also created (from verbal descriptions only), the painting of Mission Santa Cruz that served as the basis for the half-scale mission chapel replica that now stands on the east side of Mission Plaza (Trousset’s mission painting is on display there).The original chapel stood where Holy Cross Church is today.
At the far right of the painting is
Beyond Ocean Villa to the left is Mission Hill. The distance makes details harder to pick out, but (right to left) the 1857 Holy Cross Church is recognizable, then the Sisters’ School. Both structures can be seen in greater detail in the 1870 lithograph but, to the left of the Sister’s School is the brand-new white, 3-story
To the left of the school is the Methodist Church with its tall, pointy spire. Below and between those two is the 1866
At far upper left, with the smokestack, is the Boston and Jones tannery, still apparently in operation. The pointy-roofed building below the tannery is possibly the Unity Church on Walnut just off Pacific.
More about the painter, Leon Trousset: in the same year of 1876, he also created (from verbal descriptions only), the painting of Mission Santa Cruz that served as the basis for the half-scale mission chapel replica that now stands on the east side of Mission Plaza (Trousset’s mission painting is on display there).The original chapel stood where Holy Cross Church is today.
