I recently finished this watercolor of the Stansbury House which is a local landmark in my hometown of Chico. 
When I posted this image, some people thought the house was in New Orleans due to its historical character and detail. Nope–it’s right here in Chico, California. My wife and I took a tour of the interior about a week ago, which was a great way to see and learn more about the 1880’s and 1890’s local scene, all provided by an excellent and knowledgeable docent. As stated on the landmark’s website: “The Stansbury Home is a Victorian home built by Dr. Oscar Stansbury in 1883. The home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 and in 1991 was listed as supporting the South Campus Historic District. While the home is now the property of the City of Chico, the Stansbury Home Preservation Association helps to fund and maintain the 19th-century historic residence. The house was designed by Sacramento architect, A.A. Cook, and is a classic example of Italianate Victorian—a style patterned after the sturdy square manor houses of the Italian countryside. The exterior of the house incorporates beautifully molded and arched windows accented with carved rosettes at their peak, angled bay windows flanked by colonettes; entrance porches rippled with slender fluted columns; carved balustrades and decorated pediments, all topped by bracketed cornices. Centered on the roof is a low decorative wrought iron fence accentuated by a fleur-de-lis design. The quarter block on which the home was built was purchased for $1,000 and the 10-room house was constructed for just under $8,000. The home remained in the Stansbury family from the time it was occupied in 1883 until the death of the Stansbury’s oldest daughter, Miss Angeline Stansbury, on Christmas Day, 1974.” The watercolor painting is by Jeffrey Michael George, an architectural illustrator who lives and works in Chico. Jeffrey shows and sells his artwork at Chico Paper Company in downtown Chico, California.
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