Mendocino Joss House - Mendocino and Headlands Historic District - Mendocino, CA - NRHP Historic Districts - Contributing Buildings on Waymarking.com

"The Mendocino Joss House is located one block north of Main Street on a small rise overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The surrouding area is primarily residential with many open spaces which provide "scenic corridors" that allow an unbroken view to the ocean. The building is representative of an early phase of simple vernacular redwood architecture typical to the coastal area during the early phase of settlement between 1851-1870. The Joss House is a balloon frame sheathed in b ship lap siding which has been painted red and green. The rectangular plan with rear shed addition houses a two room temple. The building measures 13'5"x30'6" and is 14'6" from the foundation to the roof line. There are only two doors; the entrance door and a rear exit door. The original entrance door was a narrow double door with two recessed center panels (this door has now been moved to the interior). There are three windows in the efitire building; two double hung sash windows flank the entrance door and a small paned window gives light to the priest room in the rear of the building. Both exterior and interior condition are good; work is needed to reroof the building. There are plans to reroof with redwood shingles, presently there are redwood shingles on the roof. A new 'foundation of redwood piers on cement blocks replaced the original redwood foundation. There is no chimney; a'small clay stove pipe extends beyond the exterior plane of the west wall. This is the vent for a stove which sits in the southwest corner of the interior. The only decorative elements of the Joss House are the crudely sawn porch brackets which enliven the corner of the porch's shed roof. The cornice is constructed of a rough cut redwood board, painted green. There is no ornamentation on the cornice. The interior of the Joss House is constructed of smooth finished redwood. There are 6" wide plank floors and ceiling and 6" tongue and groove wall siding (horizontal). Other than a few wall -hangings the walls are bare; interior furnishings are sparse and consist of a small prayer table with an altar behind it and several hanging lanterns. Simple wood benches line each wall and a stove sits in one corner of the front room."

Name of Historic District (as listed on the NRHP): Mendocino and Headlands Historic District Link to nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com page with the Historic District: [Web Link] Address: 45160 Albion Street How did you determine the building to be a contributing structure?: Narrative found on the internet (Link provided below) Optional link to narrative or database: [Web Link] NRHP Historic District Waymark (Optional): Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   01/20/2022 hidegoseek visited it