Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site
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Tao House
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Tao House in spring
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| Location: | Kuss Road, Danville, California |
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| Coordinates: | 37°49′28″N 122°1′47″W / 37.82444°N 122.02972°WCoordinates: 37°49′28″N 122°1′47″W / 37.82444°N 122.02972°W |
| Area: | 13 acres (5.3 ha) |
| Built: | 1937 |
| Architect: | Frederick Confer -[2] |
| Architectural style: | Monterey Colonial |
| Visitation: | 3,652 (2005) |
| Governing body: | National Park Service |
| NRHP Reference#: | 71000137[1] |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP: | May 6, 1971 |
| Designated NHL: | July 17, 1971[3] |
| Designated NHS: | October 12, 1976 |
The Eugene O'Neill National Historic Site, located in Danville, California, preserves Tao House, the Monterey Colonial hillside home of America's only Nobel Prize-winning playwright, Eugene O'Neill.
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[edit] History
O'Neill and his wife lived in the home from 1937 to 1944.[4] At this home, O'Neill wrote his final and most memorable plays: The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey Into Night, and A Moon for the Misbegotten.
The house was saved from demolition in the early 1970s by the Eugene O’Neill Foundation through several fundraising efforts, including benefit performances of Eugene O’Neill’s play Hughie featuring Jason Robards. Through their efforts, Tao House was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1971[3], a National Historic Site in 1976, and passed into the management of the National Park Service in 1980.
[edit] Archive
The Foundation maintains an archive of Eugene O'Neill-related material at Tao House (including photographs, playbills, manuscripts, posters, and O'Neill's original phonograph record collection) and sponsors events such as productions of O'Neill plays, staged in the adjacent barn.
[edit] Visiting the house
The National Park Service does not publish the address of the property, but it is widely known that it is located near Kuss Road in Danville. A locked gate prevents unauthorized vehicles from reaching the site. The Site occupies 13 acres (5.3 ha) accessible via car only by private road, so advance reservations are required to visit. Private vehicles are not allowed. Transportation to the site is provided by a twice-daily free shuttle from Danville, Wednesdays to Sundays. Reservations are required.[5]
Trails from Las Trampas Regional Wilderness also lead to the site. Reservations are also recommended for those arriving for a tour via horseback or on foot.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2008-04-15. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html.
- ^ NPS Redbook[dead link]
- ^ a b NHL Summary
- ^ NHL Writeup[dead link]
- ^ Reservation page for Tao House
[edit] External links
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- Historic house museums in California
- Houses in Contra Costa County, California
- Museums in Contra Costa County, California
- Biographical museums in California
- Literary museums in the United States
- National Historic Sites in California
- National Historic Landmarks in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in California
- Protected areas established in 1971
- Houses completed in 1937
- 1937 in California
- History of Contra Costa County, California
- Colonial architecture in the United States
