Up for sale for the first time in over three decades is one of Beverly Hills’ most historic properties, with a pedigree as rich as its surrounding environs. Sequestered behind mature trees atop a knoll, the Georgian Colonial Revival was designed in 1911 by J. Martyn Haenke. Born in Queensland, Australia, in 1877, Haenke immigrated to San Francisco in 1906, taking part in the city’s rebuilding after the great earthquake and fire that year. Four years later, Haenke made his way to Los Angeles, then in the early stages of its own building boom.
Despite his double-immigrant status, Haenke seems to have had little difficulty establishing a Los Angeles practice with a well-heeled clientele. Among his most notable projects are Hancock Park’s Dorothy Chandler Estate (originally built for developer Peter Janss), the imposing cast-concrete gates of Fremont Place, and the English Tudor Revival mansion of Beverly Hills founder Burton E. Green.
Two blocks east of Green’s estate, the property now on offer has been home to Beverly Hills’ first mayor, Silsby Spalding, and his wife, oil heiress Caroline Canfield Spalding, as well as U.S. Senator Frank Putnam Flint. Since 1989, it has been owned by Sally Harkham, ex-wife of Iraqi-American business mogul Uri Harkham. The estate has also been used as a filming location in Ryan Murphy’s FX series “Feud: Bette and Joan,” standing in for the Louisiana plantation where “Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte,” the Southern Gothic follow-up to “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?” was shot in 1964.
Fronted by a veranda lined with towering Tuscan columns and a Federal-style entry with fanlight, the stately residence disperses 10 bedrooms and eight bathrooms within its approximately 8,500 square feet. Off the sweeping entry foyer is a stepdown living room with fireplace, a formal dining room with seating for 20, and a wood-paneled library, while most bedrooms, including a vast primary suite with sitting room and marbled bath, are located upstairs. Details include hardwood floors, elaborate moldings and wainscoting, and lavish antique chandeliers. All public rooms open via French doors to the manicured grounds, which contains a lush expanse of lawn, a swimming pool, and separate guest house.
View Listing | Offered at $45,000,000 | Represented by Drew Fenton
