Home of Capt. Frederick J. Woodbury

Home of Capt. Frederick J. Woodbury in 1882. This was the first house built in Altadena. Fred and his brother John bought 937 acres at $5 an acre. Source: LAPL

The home was the headquarters for a ranch that included a two-story bunkhouse for the ranch hands. Citrus groves and vineyards were planted on the land. Woodbury planted the deodar cedars that line the contemporary Santa Rosa Ave., also known as Christmas Tree Lane.

In 1892, Woodbury sold the home to a man named Walker, who in turn sold it to Hampton L. Story in 1894. During the decades following Story's death, the home became a coffee shop, sheriff's station, a fire engine house, office building and a tea house. It is currently used as a filming location.

The home received smoke damage during the Eaton Fire in January 2025 but it is still standing. It is the National Register of Historic Places structure site #93001463.