Ilsley Estate: Jewel in the Coast Royal Crown

Nestled in a lushly landscaped beachfront acre in South Laguna rests the Ilsley estate, a micro Hearst Castle that has survived time and tides.

Its story begins in 1921 on a pristine piece of paradise located between Camel Point and Table Rock, according to a report on the home's historical significance, submitted to city officials last November by preservationists of the South Laguna Civic Association. After legal and financial setbacks spanning 15 years, Blanche Dolph, an avid arts enthusiast from the East who believed that California had restored her failing health, filed final tract maps for development of the area with the regal name Coast Royal. True to its name, the stretch of beach mirrored the Mediterranean shores of the Riviera. Prior to the Coast Royal development, Dolph purchased massive acreage in the area then known as Serra, or San Juan by the Sea, which is now Dana Point.

When Dolph started selling Coast Royal parcels, Coast Highway had not yet been completed; a 1200-foot airstrip provided access. The development preceded Three Arch Bay and the rest of South Laguna by three years. Most prominent of the new landowners was Joe Skidmore, who had previously built an impressive estate called Stonehenge, nearby to Coast Royal. Skidmore was very forward thinking. He not only dedicated public right-of-way for the future "Coast Boulevard," but also made history statewide by dedicating for public use beaches below Coast Royal bluffs. He constructed multiple beach access paths and even a covered picnic area, which partially stands to this day.

The Ilsley home and gazebo as it is today.

On April 23, 1930, at the height of the Great Depression, Philip and Mildred Ilsley bought a 180-

foot wide beachfront parcel in Coast Royal. Philip Ilsley, 33 years old at the time, was the president of a health company. Their plan was to build the showcase of the development; a 4,500 square-foot home, replete with an "observatory," or gazebo overlook, and extravegently landscaped grounds.

The placement of the house on the parcel was progressive for its time. Instead of erecting a massive structure right on the beach, the Ilsley's opted to build their home tucked away on the hillside. The result was a very private and serene retreat, while still taking full advantage of the breathtaking ocean front setting. The plan also provided a more aesthetic view of the property from the beach.

The architecture of the home is classic Spanish Colonial Revival, deeply rooted in nearby Mission San Juan Capistrano,

built to colonize California for the Spanish. The Ilsley's choice of Spanish Colonial Revival was more than just an architectural or decorative style; it was an important connection between past and present.

The landscape design was highly unusual for its time. Most large homes in the area used low maintenance, drought-tolerant plants. Ilsley's plan called for elaborate flower and specialty gardens. Coast Royal did not have an abundant water supply. This did not dissuade Ilsley, who installed an elaborate irrigation system, supplemented with hand-watering and skilled landscape labor. He purportedly bought out an entire

nursery to fulfill his landscape vision. Ilsley had a keen interest in horticulture and by the completion of the home, owned his own nursery on Coast Highway, the first in the area.

Actress Joan Fontaine by her Philip Ilsley designed pool in Los Angeles. (Marc Wanamaker/Bison Archives)

Even the hardscape plan was thoughtful. Instead of a having a straight walkway leading from the house to the beach, Ilsley constructed meandering garden pathways. This made for a leisurely, more enjoyable trek to the sand while providing a wide variety of vistas along the way.

In May of 1930, the South Coast News reported that the home would be built for $18,000, but the final cost was in excess of $50,000. Sometime after construction began, Ilsley purchased additional acreage, increasing his beach frontage to 218 feet. What's truly remarkable was that the project was completed in one year.

The Ilsley's were considered to be among Laguna's most prominent citizens and were constantly mentioned in the South Coast News' society column. Their home had achieved local stature as well. According to Paquita Machris, daughter in-law of Alfred Machris, who was the second owner of the property, a postcard of the estate and gardens "was in all the stores in Laguna." But the zenith of notoriety for the Ilsley estate came in 1934 when it was featured in a National Geographic article on Southern California. A picture of the gardens was one of only two photographs used in the article depicting the burgeoning community of Laguna Beach.

The Ilsley house was featured in National Geographic in November 1934.

Ilsley, a Da Vinci-like entrepreneur, saw the gardens not only as a promotion for Coast Royal, but himself. He and his wife were noted art aficionados. By 1932 he was a director of the Laguna Beach Art Association, later to become the Laguna Beach Art Museum, and owner of a prestigious art gallery at the now demolished Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

But where Ilsley really made his economic splash was in swimming pools. He revolutionized the design and construction of pools, as well as filtering equipment. He not only made swimming pools affordable to the middle class, but also was touted as pool designer to the stars. Joan Fontaine, Joseph Cotton, Ginger Rogers and Jack Benny were among his clients. He built their pools in a variety of highly unique designs, including the piano-shaped pool at Frank Sinatra's getaway in Palm Springs. This all occurred in the 40's, long after he had moved from Coast Royal.

The Ilsley estate depicted in a 1930s era postcard.

The Ilsleys sold the estate to Mr. And Mrs. Alfred Machris in 1934. Machris, a Canadian oil baron, bought the property fully furnished, including its extensive art collection. The couple died in 1942 and the property changed hands many times, most notably in 1973 to Boyd and Sharon Jeffries. Boyd Jeffries, a well-known stockbroker convicted in the insider trading scandals of the '80s, owned many properties in Laguna. He lived in the home while constructing a large house and tennis courts south of Villa Rockledge.

In 1984 Downey Savings & Loan took the property into custody due to an unpaid debt of $477,000. Mike and Layla Boyajians purchased the property in 1986 for $500,000. They hired local architect Morris Skendarian to prepare plans for a large addition, in keeping with the original style, but the project never came to fruition. They sold the property in 1996, and then it sold again in 2000 to its present owner, Jack B. Corwin of Los Angeles.

Interior images from 1980.

Today, most of the flower gardens have been taken over by exotic old growth trees, shrubs and succulents, but the landscaping is nonetheless beautiful. With the exception of some of the open-air patios that were later enclosed, the home looks almost exactly the same as it

did in the vintage 1932 postcard.

But that may change. Last fall the owner submitted a variance request to the City for permission to demolish the house, grade the property and construct a 9,700 square foot single-family residence exceeding allowable height limits. The plan also included construction of a 2,000-square-foot nine car attached garage.

The South Laguna Civic Association immediately started lobbying to block the project. They prepared the 47-page report on the historic and architectural significance of the Ilsley estate, used in preparing this article.

In a cover letter by the association's president, Bill Rihn wrote, "What started as an effort to protect this historic home from being replaced by a huge mansion, completely out of character with the rest of the neighborhood, has turned into much more than that." This includes attempting to have the Ilsley estate recognized as a local, state and national historic site.

On Jan. 12, 2006, the Corwin trust requested an indefinite postponement of its plans in order to reevaluate their submission.

The venerable and spectacular Ilsley estate isn't visible from Coast Highway. You have to hike down to the beach and gaze up at it from the sand.

It's well worth the walk.

The South Laguna Civic Association report was prepared by: Vonn Marie May, historical consultant; Ted Wells, architectural historian; and Ann Christoph, landscape architect and landscape historian. Editing was by Barbara Metzger.

Research was contributed by Phil Barbour, Anne Frank, Willa Gupta, Mary Ives, Jane Janz and Lindsay

Tognetti. Greg O'Loughlin was the photographic librarian. All images courtesy of the South Laguna Civic Association.