The Journal of San Diego History
Summer 1982, Volume 28, Number 3
Contents of This Issue

The Ramona Castle: Irene Amy Strong's Home
and the Craftsman Movement

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Page iv. The front door to Amy Strong's home. The stencil designs were a tribute to prosperity, health and friendship and were taken from Persian, Arabic and Oriental rugs used in the house.

 
Page 151. Mrs. Irene Amy strong (right) and her niece Margaret Meyers (left). The identity of the other woman and the date of the photograph are unknown.

 
Page 153. Mrs. Strong (with hat) overseeing the construction of her home.

 
Page 153. The exterior of the home was an attempt to integrate it with the natural environment and create a "haven from the cruelities of life."

 
Page 154. A portion of the 72 x 16 foot living room. The floor is of flagstone. The stone used throughout the house was chosen for its color and lichen growth. Once a year the house was emptied and watered down to maintain lichen on the walls.

 
Page 155. Sketches from Emmor Brooke Weaver's Painting Specifications for the Strong home. Rafters were stenciled with lines "sufficiently free as to relieve the rigid lines of the timbers."

 
Page 156. The dome shaped plaster ceiling of the dining room, among other motifs, contains the astrological signs as seen in the close-up example below.

 
Page 157. The rear of the Strong home. No chalk lines were used in construction. There are no perfect corners and neither roof nor floors are level.

 
Page 158. The chimney combines the Medieval style with the Mission style of the roof.

THE PHOTOGRAPHS on page 151 and page 153 (top) are courtesy of Sue Hodge and the Ramona Historical Society. All others are by Schiowitz, 1981.