The Zamperini House

SAVE HISTORIC OLD TORRANCE ("SHOT") Text by Pete Porter; Photos by Margaret Porter

The "SHOT" Tote Bag

The "Save Historic Old Torrance," the Olmstead District Preservation Association, was formed by Don and Bonnie Mae Barnard and thirteen neighbors on June 17, 2003. Don and Bonnie Mae bought their house in 2000, but didn't realize the historic significance of it until neighbors told them that it was originally owned by the Zamperini family, and that our famous Torrance resident, Louis Zamperini had actually grown up in it. It is located on Gramercy Avenue and, along with Andreo Avenue, these two streets just happen to be the oldest residential streets in the city of Torrance. However, you wouldn't have recognized the historical significance of their house if you had seen it when it had been purchased in 2000. The windows were louvered, there was no fireplace, all the original plaster had been covered, the ceiling tiled and the wood trim removed. Don then decided to find out if Louis Zamperini was still alive and, when they located him, they asked if he had any original photos that they could use to return the house to its initial condition. Louis was happy to oblige them and Don set to work on the major restoration project that this involved. The fireplace was rebuilt and the front railing put back. The china closet in the dining room had been ripped out but appeared in one of Louis Zamperini's photographs. So Don was able to copy the design and also replace all the wood trim details to their original state. Don and Bonnie Mae found out that the house was originally built in 1912.

Louis Zamperini's 202 above the refurbished fireplace.

Don and Bonnie Mae Barnard

Helkka Chirello and her daughter, Nina on the front porch with Don and Bonnie Mae

However, because there were numerous tear-downs being replaced with modern condos going on in the area, Don, Bonnie Mae and a few other local residents started to get concerned about the changes that were starting to subvert the character of the neighborhood. When they lost an appeal to the local council to try to bring a halt to this wanton redevelopment, they decided that some serious action was needed and this formed the catalyst to the formation of the "Save Historic Old Torrance (SHOT)". Starting with just thirteen members three years ago, SHOT has now grown to over 250 strong and is still growing.

One of the primary objectives of SHOT is to promote the historic preservation of our old buildings so that a Historic Preservation Ordinance can be established for the city. Once they get that, it will free the mechanism to establish Historic Districts within the city boundary. The original part of Torrance was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (son of the famous Frederick Law Olmsted who designed and built Central Park in New York, among many other famous parks in this country). The other two prime movers in the establishment of this fine city were of course, Jared Sydney Torrance and architect Irving Gill. Although La Jolla can boast that they have the largest number of Irving Gill buildings in the world, the city of Torrance comes second in this category. There are probably still three to five thousand buildings in the city that could be used within these Historic Building areas. However, there is nothing right now that protects them from being demolished. Once they are gone, they are gone forever!

As we talked to Don and his wife, we were joined by Hilkka Chirello and her daughter Nina McCoy. Apart from many other duties, Nina and Hilkka help out at the "Save Historic Old Torrance" (SHOT) booth located in the Torrance Farmers Market. Nina told us that she managed to sign up over a hundred people at this booth in just the last year. There are many items of interest that are available at the SHOT booth. These range from copies of Louis Zamperini's book, "Devil at My Heels", and Bonnie Mae's book on the History of the city, "Old Torrance, Olmsted District", Tee- shirts and Tote Bags. Although some of our own RSVP members volunteer at this booth, SHOT is desperately in need of any help that it can get for this and many of the other events that they are involved in. They need help at the biannual birthday party that they hold every even dated year, as well as the biannual Home Tours, held every odd numbered year. Nina, who is the Fundraising Chairperson, told us that she managed to sign up over a hundred people for the "Torrance Historic Home Tour" in 2005 and welcomes volunteers for a three hour shift during the "Torrance Historic Homes Tour" that will be held Saturday and Sunday on 14 & 15 July in 2007. Volunteers receive a complimentary admitance to the home tour and its events, including a "Thank You BBQ" at the end of the tour on the 15th. RSVP volunteers also help SHOT by putting on 10,000 address labels for their quarterly preservation publication.

As it turned out, the next day was the "SHOT" Birthday Party and Hoe Down at the original Torrance Park on Santa Fe Avenue. This was a grand event and involved the presentation of free Cowboy and Cowgirl hats to all those in attendance. The music was supplied by the "Dessert Sage" Blue Grass Band and there was an ample supply of hamburgers and hot dogs, along with baked beans and all the trimmings. Our newly elected Mayor, Frank Scotto, was in attendance along with several other members of the Torrance City Council. Needless to say, a great time was had by one and all, as can be seen from the photographs shown below.

	Cathy Luciano and Hilkka giving out the hats.	The Dessert Sage Blue Grass Band
The RSVP's Thomas White	Don and Bonnie Mae cut the cake	Bonnie Mae and friends
Torrance Council Member Tom Brewer	Torrance Council Member Bill Sutherland and his wife, Diana.	Mayor Frank Scotto
Some of the numerous prizes donated by the sponsors.	New Torrance Mayor, Frank Scotto, joins the line for the BBQ at the food bar.	Nina McCoy's husband, Raymie, cooking up the hot dogs.	The special "SHOT" Birthday cake.