Susana_Machado_Bernard_House_and_Barn
Susana Machado Bernard House and Barn
Historic house in California, United States
Susana Machado Bernard House and Barn is an elaborate 10,000-square-foot (930 m2) Art Nouveau Gothic Revival style mansion and carriage house located in the Pico Union section of Los Angeles, California.[3] Built in 1901, the house was designed by architect John B. Parkinson (1861–1935). Parkinson also designed the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Union Station and Los Angeles City Hall.[4] Noted for its Gothic style with soaring spaces, the house has vaulted ceilings and curved walls.[4] In 1979, it was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM #208),[5] and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The property was purchased in 1996 by the Center for Human Rights & Constitutional Law. Since 2002, the house has been operated as the Casa Libre/Freedom House, a fourteen-bed shelter for homeless minors.[4][6] In May 2003, the Los Angeles Times profiled the shelter, noting the following: "Casa Libre/Freedom House occupies a newly renovated mansion near MacArthur Park. Registered as a state, county and federal historic site, the home's gothic facade rises elegantly from the corner of South Lake Street and James M. Wood Boulevard.[7] The shelter arranges for schooling, counseling, and medical care for undocumented and unaccompanied immigrant children, mainly from Latin America.[7]