THE GUTHRIE-BIANCHINI HOUSE
The Guthrie-Bianchini House, located at the corner of Burton Drive and Center Street in Cambria’s East Village, is one of the oldest houses in Cambria.
The original house, a small “salt box” construction, was built by Thomas Clendinen in 1870. This is the portion which faces Center Street and is nearest to the “Blue House”. In 1882 the property was purchased by Benjamin Franklin (no, not that one) and by the following year he had constructed the addition which faces Burton Drive and sold the house to Sarah Guthrie. Her husband, Samuel Guthrie, worked at the Grant & Lull Store on the corner of Bridge and Main Streets where Cambria Village Pharmacy is now and eventually came to own that business when Lull retired to the house that is now the centerpiece of the Bluebird Motel on Main Street. Samuel retired in 1903 and died two years later.
Sarah remained in the house until 1916 when she sold it to Eugenio Bianchini, a Swiss immigrant. Bianchini arrived in the Cambria area by ship at the port of San Simeon in 1878. At various times he was in the dairy business, owned a butcher shop in Cayucos and, later, one in Cambria, and worked at the Oceanic Quicksilver Mine. He also owned at least two ranches, one of which was at the mouth of Pico Creek and today is known as San Simeon Acres.
In 1889, Eugenio married Louisa Bezzini who was born in Avigno, Italy on the Swiss border and they had seven chidren, four boys and three girls. One of the children, Elvira, married Rocco Rava and they lived in what has become known as the “Blue House” next door. Eugenio was a master of the barbecue and the tradition is being carried on by CHS at the annual Heritage Day Celebration. He was also a whiskey importer during prohibition purchasing the stuff in Canada and bringing it by boat to a point just south of Piedras Blancas Lighthouse. It was then retailed through a local doctor!
After Eugenio Bianchini died, some of his family continued to live in the house. The last official occupant was one of his sons, Jim, commonly known as Spider, who lived there until 1971. Since then the house remained unoccupied, except for transients, while Eugenio’s heirs fought over the estate. The continuing litigation kept the house in limbo until 1999 when they agreed on how to settle the estate. The Cambria Historical Society managed to acquire the property in 2001.
During the ensuing years, CHS has begun the actual work of restoring the house and turning it into a historical museum. After several years of planning and obtaining the necessary permits, the entire “salt box” portion of the house was totally disassembled. All of the parts removed were carefully documented and logged by Cambria Historical Society volunteers led by John Ruml and stored on the property. Where possible, these parts were reused when the house was assembled again or, if they could not be saved, they were used to fabricate duplicate parts. A more recent addition to the kitchen and a bathroom were also removed.
On July 14, 2004, the remainder of the house was lifted up about eight feet and a stem-wall foundation was built for the entire structure. On October 20 of that year, the G-B House was gently lowered onto its newly constructed foundation where it now sits quite comfortably. Having stabilized the house to prevent further deterioration, work on the rehabilitation was temporarily suspended due to lack of funds. Then, in late 2005, an additional grant was secured from California State Parks which enabled CHS to proceed. Work was actually resumed in June of 2006. Since that time, the floor and framing of the rebuilt "salt box" portion of the house has been completed and a new roof for the entire structure is well under way.
The Guthrie-Bianchini House was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on January 10, 1980 and is on the California Registry. The house will become the western anchor of a Heritage Park encompassing all of Center Street between Burton Drive and Bridge Street. When the restoration is complete we will have a museum which will endeavor to educate Cambria area residents and visitors about the history of the various peoples who have lived in the area and The Guthrie-Bianchini House and Gardens for the purpose of broadening the understanding and deepening the appreciation of the community and its visitors. In addition, it will provide a gathering place for small social functions and serve as a community park.
In June, 2006, the restoration was scheduled to be complete by the end of September, 2007. Although the restoration is nearly completed at the present time, we do not have sufficient funds in hand to finish the project. For this reason, CHS has been forced to temporarily suspend work until an additional $150,000 can be raised.
The Cambria Historical Society is currently working on raising this amount through further grants, donations, picket sales and engraved brick sales. Please give us your support and help us finish this very important project.
On Friday, September 2, 2005, CHS held a brief ceremony to dedicate the new picket fence on the Burton Drive side of the Guthrie-Bianchini House. The pickets are made from one-inch thick old growth redwood. Using one of the old pickets as a template, new pickets were fabricated. Each picket has a plaque on it containing the name of the person who donated it or the person to be honored by the donation. At the ceremony, the initial batch of about seventy pickets was installed and about seventy more were installed on April 28, 2006.
All of the remaining pickets on the Burton Drive side of the property have been sold. We are now selling pickets on the Center Street side of the property for $125 each.
CHS is also selling engraved bricks which will be placed in the garden paths that surround the Cambria Hisorical Museum and will be a lasting monument to your support. We are selling 4" x 8" bricks with your message engraved in all capital letters. Each brick costs $150. You can have up to 18 characters (letters, spaces, commas, dashes) on each line. Up to three lines are permitted on each brick.
To order your bricks and/or pickets just fill in the form below and send it with your payment to:
Cambria Historical Society, P. O. Box 906,
Cambria, California, 93428.
Name________________________________________________
Address________________________________________________
City___________________State_________________ZIP___________
Email____________________________ Phone__________________
__Check enclosed __Charge my visa __Charge my Mastercard
Card # _________________________________ Expiration Date _______
I want my picket to read: _________________________________________________________
I want my brick to read:
Line 1____________________________________________________
Line 2____________________________________________________
Line 3____________________________________________________