Landscape Information
Situated between the Pacific Ocean and the mountains of the Los Padres National Forest, Casa del Herrero (House of the Blacksmith) was designed by architect George Washington Smith and landscape architect Ralph Stevens for George Fox Steedman and his wife Carrie Howard Steedman. The 11-acre property was completed in 1925, and incorporates a multitude of antique metalwork, tiles and stone carvings purchased in Spain and other parts of Europe. Although the original plans for the house and garden were provided by Smith and Stevens, both elements were elaborated upon throughout the 1930s by a group of designers that also included architect Lutah Maria Riggs, landscape architects Lockwood de Forest and Francis Underhill, and antiquarians Arthur and Mildred Byne. Together the group created a cohesive Mediterranean design that blends the Andalusian-style house and Moorish-inspired garden. The garden incorporates multiple Moorish-style tiled fountain systems, citrus orchards, perennial borders, a dominant axial vista, and a cactus (or Arizona) garden. Garden rooms at varying scales are enclosed by arcades and whitewashed stone walls, while stone pathways connect different parts of the garden. The densely-planted property is focused inward, surrounded and enclosed by tall stands of eucalyptus intermixed with palm trees. Casa del Herrero was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2009.
