The R.L. Nelson House in Orinda



Shulman Photo Archive Getty Research Institute.  https://neutra.org/project/mr-and-mrs-r-l-nelson-house/


From the 2019 Orinda Historic Landmark application for the R.L.Nelson House (511 Miner Road):

The residence at 511 Miner Road was originally part of a family compound of the Bruener family, who commissioned buildings by several distinctive mid-century architects for their Brueners furniture stores as well their homes in Orinda. In this case, the wife of Mr. Nelson was a daughter of Mr. Bruener. The Brueners furniture business operated around the western United States, and thrived on home goods necessary for “living in a modern way” that was marketed for the residents of the expanding suburbs, including Orinda. The population of Orinda grew from 3,200 in 1940 to 9,500 by 1955, an increase of about 300% in 15 years. This period of rapid growth followed the opening of the Caldecott Tunnel in 1937, allowing families to be able to afford vacant land to construct innovative homes still close enough to the established cities.  The growth of Orinda during the post-World War II era means that there are a number of unique houses built by important architects of this period. The Nelson House is a largely unaltered and restored example of the original design of Richard Neutra, one of the most well-known architects of the time. Representative of a period that was significant for the development of Orinda, the modernist character of the home is a time capsule into the sentiment and attitude of a mid-century period that was anxious to build a more enlightened future.  https://orindaca.iqm2.com/Citizens/Detail_LegiFile.aspx?ID=1782


The other homes in the Bruener family compound include 

  • 1938 - The Richard Breuner House, 515 Miner Road, Orinda CA. William Wurster, Architect. Thomas Church, landscape architect. Remodeled in 1957 and an addition/ alteration in 1966.https://pcad.lib.washington.edu/building/22432/

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