By Nancy Armitage
Christmas at the Mr. & Mrs. Henry E. Huntington’s (Arabella) Mansion in California. They were called “Edwards & Belle” to their family & friends. Their home on the San Marino Ranch in Southern California was a magical place. Perfect sunny weather even in the wintertime instead of cold, snowy & rainy in New York. We know of 5 years that the Huntington’s actually celebrated Christmas at the Ranch: 1922, & 1923. After Mrs. Arabella D. Huntington died in 1924, Mr. H. E. Huntington was at the San Marino Ranch at Christmas in the years: 1924, 1925, & 1926.
Mrs. Arabella Huntington loved Christmas & enjoyed have the Huntington Mansion looking festive for the holidays. The Huntington Mansion was dressed up beautifully for Christmas with 100’s of bright red poinsettias plants from Mexico, a Large Christmas Tree (maybe 2,) one in the foyer for sure; & I think another Christmas tree might have been in the Large Library at the San Marino Ranch. I was told by the guards, that The Huntington mansion had fragrant Christmas wreaths on all the double doors & I assume a Nativity Scene or Christmas creche. The Huntington Loggia & the Main hall & other rooms would have been decorated like a large hotel. With amazing grand red rose & white flower arrangements with 150-200 flowers in each.
Huntington’s Nativity Scene
Did the Huntington’s have one? I’m not sure. She was such a collector, she probably had several. Mrs. Arabella Huntington had a great affection for the “Madonna & Child”. As shown by her grand collection of “Madonna & Child” Italian and Dutch master paintings, she called “the Primitives”. A Christmas creche (Nativity Scene ) or several creches probably would have graced the Huntington Mansion. The Huntington’s were Christians, they attended the Presbyterian Church in Pasadena CA.
On Christmas Day, the Huntingtons had a special Christmas tea reception celebration. They invited all the employees & household servant staff that lived on the San Marino Ranch to a lovely Christmas tea reception. They gave their employees their cash bonus, sometimes gold coins, a lovely tea, & treats stated the Head Butler: Mr. Alfonso Gomez. Mrs. Arabella Huntington loved to buy little presents & treats for everyone, especially the employee’s children.
As one walked up to enter the Huntington Mansion on the Ranch, a lovely red surprise. At Christmas time, there were 100’s maybe 1000’s of bright red poinsettias decorating the entrance. A showy red long petaled plant from Mexico; surrounding the whole loggia area. (The Huntington Library guards have told me this was the tradition of the Huntington’s). On the Loggia, a enormous Christmas Flower arrangement atop the marble top table.
The flowers on the Loggia Table & in the Huntington Mansion were most-likely bright red & white “Winter Roses” & other winter flowers. Winter Roses are huge in Southern California; big as oranges with Christmas greenery, & red berries. Mr. H.E. Huntington had 3 hot houses on the ranch; one of them was just devoted to roses. Usually, the Huntington’s flower arrangement had 150-200 or more flowers, like a gigantic fancy hotel foyer flower arrangements.
The stunning red rose plants that were ordered most often at the Ranch were called “General MacArthur” Roses (similar to Mr. Lincoln red roses- sturdy stems, large bloom & quite fragrant). They ordered 100 or 250 of General MacArthur rose plants at a time! Also, White Irish “Killarney” Roses. They bought 100-200 rose plants at one time, when they ordered at the ranch by Mr. William Hertrich (Superintendent of the Ranch). Also, “American Beauty” red roses were order at local florist (a Huntington favorite) for their “entertainments”. I have seen in Gilded Age gardening catalogs that the “American Beauty” rose was once a bright red roses, not the pink rose that we see now.
In the 1890’s, these “American Beauty” special roses was were ordered often by the Huntington family. They would decorate the Collis and Arabella Huntington Mansion on Nob Hill (San Francisco, CA) with gorgeous bright red “American Beauty” roses for fancy 16-course banquet dinners: Southern Pacific Co. annual banquets, & other entertainments like Christmas time, at their New York City mansion, etc. At the San Marino Ranch they just grew their own red roses.
We know of 5 years that the Huntington’s celebrated Christmas at the Ranch. Edwards & Belle enjoyed Thanksgiving & Christmas in 1922 & 1923. After Belle’s death, Mr. H. E. “Edwards” Huntington himself had Christmas at his beloved San Marino Ranch in 1924, 1925, & 1926. Sadly, Mr. Huntington died in May of 1927. Sometimes, his daughters or son’s Howard & Leslie Huntington’s family would join him & houseguests, also. Howard had passed away in 1922, but the family still remained close.
The Huntington’s grand Christmas tree was decorated in the middle of the foyer between the 2 grand staircases. The Huntington Library guards have told me that the Huntington’s tree was huge in the 1920’s. It was filled with the most ornate glass Christmas bulbs (German ones are really pretty). They were decorated with the smallest ornaments at the top of the Christmas tree; Christmas ornaments “as big as grapefruits” at the bottom of the tree. Arabella probably had a amazing collection of Christmas ornaments from her travels (Italy, Germany & France). Especially, Parisian ornate ornaments or German glass sparkly ornaments with thick red French ribbons.
Christmas Tea at the San Marino Ranch (for all staff & their families)
The Huntingtons loved Christmas & were very generous people. The daughter of the Mr. Huntington’s gardener once told a story. On Christmas Day, at the Huntington’s Ranch: Mr. & Mrs. Henry E. Huntington (Arabella) would host a large Christmas tea reception. Everyone that lived on the Ranch (household servants, ranch employees, & their families) all were invited. The number of guests could have been up to 60-80 or more people. Mr. Huntington gave out Christmas bonuses & gold coins (Alfonso, the Head Butler stated); Mrs. Huntington spoiled all the little children with wonderful gifts, Christmas treats, chocolates, & candy! Probably Santa Claus was invited to come to sit in a grand chair & have the children meet him; & he give out candy canes to the little children. Christmas music would be playing from his Mr. Huntington’s music box: his “Electric Victrola” with records in the “Coat Room”. Or maybe Mr. Huntington’s sister, Carrie Huntington Holladay or his daughter-in-law Leslie Huntington (Howard’s wife), would play Christmas carols; their was a large Steinway Grand Piano in the Huntington’s Large Library. A interesting fact that came to be known in the Burke Journals & Carrie Huntington Journals was that Mrs. Arabella Huntington was quite a excellent singer, so of her favorite music was classic opera.
For the Huntington’s Christmas Tea, Mrs. Arabella Huntington might have used one of her 11 different sets of Havilland dishes or Limoges (gold & white) dishes & teapots. Several of her beautiful Havilland & Limoges patterns dishes were gold & white or red; perfect for a elegant tea reception on the Dining Room Table as a Christmas buffet feast.
The Huntington’s Christmas Tea Blend would have been “Orange Pekoe“, a blend of Ceylon tea & India tea with cinnamon & allspice & orange peel. (Mrs. Huntington’s favorite). This was a wonderful tea, they used for decades at the Hotel Huntington in Pasadena, now the Langham-Huntington. The tea would have been placed in a large silver tea urn that the Huntington’s Head Butler, Alfonso Gomez would have helped the guests. Also, Christmas Hot Cocoa with peppermint stick could have been served to the little children.
A Huntington silver Punch Bowl filled with festive Christmas Champagne Punch would have been festive for the adults. The Huntington Mansion’s inventory states that they had a cut-glass punch bowl with punch glasses & also a silver punch bowl (most-likely Gorham silver, Sheffield silver, or George III). Mrs. Huntington loved “Champagne Punch” which is a combination of champagne, rum, & fruit juices. A hot punch called Christmas “Sherry Tea” was a Pasadena tradition at the Hotel Huntington could have also been served.
A typical Huntington tea reception had doily-lined Gorham silver butler trays of dainty tea sandwiches of minced ham or roast beef, chicken salad, cucumber, egg salad, or salmon. There often had canapes like salmon, caviar, or French Roquefort cheese canapes or deviled eggs passed around on doily-linedsilver trays by the butlers & the footmen to all of the party guests. They would have served sliced Southern Virginia ham, on Southern Beaten Biscuits with French Dijon mustard. They could have have made lovely English “Cream Scones” or Southern Beaten Biscuits with San Marino Ranch Honey . These light scones served with English Clotted Cream or French “Chantilly Cream (powdered vanilla added) & Ranch-made Orange Marmalade & Raspberry Jam.
A funny story about Mr. Huntington & Mr. Hertrich going for their daily walks around the Ranch. Mr. Huntington look up at a water tower & saw a leak on the top. The next day, Mr. Hertrich investigated & realized the leak was pounds and pounds of honey (orange blossom) oozing out of the water tower. The ranch bees thought it was a perfect place to have a bee hive. The Huntington Ranch must have had the sweetest water!! Hertrich & his crew of men filled every container they could get their hands on. They transported it to Head Housekeeper/Cook – Miss Nora Larsen, who bottled the orange blossom honey. The Huntington’s gave that delicious honey to all the employees as presents maybe with their bonus. The San Marino Ranch was supplied with this delicious honey for several years. The Huntingtons brought this treasured honey on their train journey back to their New York Mansion. They would give these treasured packaged honey away to their family & friends as Christmas gifts.
At the Christmas Tea: they would have had bowls of Jordan Almonds & Virginia Peanuts (favorites of Arabellas). For dessert, a team of dessert cooks (often hired at Holiday time) would have made homemade Christmas goodies like: Huntington Fruit Cake or a Christmas Plum Pudding or Huntington Spice Cake. All sorts of Christmas Cookies (shortbread, peanut butter cookies and ginger snaps & Gingerbread men with white Royal Icing, small Tartelettes of pecan & lemon curd, French Chocolate BonBons & Peppermint BonBons (truffles) & iced “Petit Fours” (French petit cakes). Mrs. Kley was the Huntington’s dessert cook for the Huntingtons. The granddaughter of Mrs. Kley (dessert cook for the Huntingtons) gave me 2 of her recipes: Huntington Mansion “Honey Spice Bars” (between a chocolate brownie & a truffle) & “Cinnamon Stars” (a almond-based cookie with cinnamon) with Royal Icing.
Recipe for Huntington Christmas “Fruit Cake”, handwritten in one of Mr. H. E. Huntington rare books: Corona Club Cookbook, San Francisco (1911): makes 2 good sized cakes. Irish cooks use coffee for a wonderful addition to cakes, Irish Shepard’s pie & Irish lamb stew.
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. butter
5 eggs
1/2 c. molasses
1/4 c. strong coffee
1/3 c. Brandy
2 c. flour
1/4 t. salt
1 lb. raisins
1 lb. currants
1/2 lb. dates [or dried apricots]
1/2 lb. walnuts, chopped
1/4 lb.-1/2 lb. citron [San Marino Ranch orange peel ]
1/2lb, orange and lemon peel
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. ginger
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. mace
1/4 t. salt
1 t. cloves (opt.)
1 t. allspice (opt)
1/2 t. baking soda
There were no directions on the pencil notation; [Cream Butter & sugar add molasses, coffee, brandy and flour. Add spices and fruit. Stirring all ingredients] in a middle size bowl, add all ingredients. Bake in a slow oven 325 degrees for about 3 1/2 hours.
Christmas at the Glenwood Mission Inn Riverside, CA
One year, in 1924 (the year Belle died, Mr. H. E. “Edwards”Huntington must have been quite sad). So the Huntington’s enjoy an early Christmas Breakfast at the Ranch & then went off on a little vacation. Then Mr. Huntington & his daughter, Marian Huntington were joined by his sister, Carrie Holladay & his brother-in-law, “Burke” Holladay & were “motoring” to Riverside, CA”. They took Mr. Huntington’s limousines for a couple of days; guests of Frank Miller at the Glenwood “Mission Inn” in Riverside, CA.
Historical Note: The background on Mr. Huntington & this little San Francisco cookbook: In 1910, he was single man/divorced from his 1st wife, Mary Alice Huntington; that year he moved into the Huntington Mansion on the ranch with a small servant staff . His 1st housekeeper at the San Marino Ranch was Mrs. Foley from San Francisco. Mrs. Foley was Mrs. Collis P. Huntington’s (Arabella) former Head Housekeeper. She was employed at the Huntington’s San Francisco Mansion on Nob Hill at 1020 California St. in SF, CA.- which was completely destroyed in 1906 by the Great Earthquake/Fire.
I think Mrs. Foley helped Mr. H. E. Huntington set up his large mansion kitchen, & maybe brought some cookbooks with her. Or, Mr. Huntington bought the Corona Club Cookbook & gave it to his cook to use. This is the only cookbook, I found in the HEH’s personal cookbook collection labeled: HEH Collection with hand written notes in it. A couple months later after Mrs. Foley arrived; Mr. Huntington employed Miss Nora Larsen as his loyal cook & head housekeeper ( from 1911-1927). Edwards & Arabella Huntington got married in 1913, but Arabella & Sir Joseph Duveen was very involved with the setting up of this residence, paintings, oriental rugs & tapestries were purchased, etc.
Document: HEH Coll. HEH 8/9 (San Marino Ranch Papers) Red roses & grocery & food lists of Huntington household SMR; HEH Coll. HEH 38/6 uncat [Huntington Mansion inventory book]; HEH Coll. MS 10968 (E. Burke Holladay Journals 1914-1924)- Mission Inn trip in 1924; Cookbook: Corona Club Cookbook, San Francisco (1911) in the HEH Collection of books. Huntington Library San Marino, CA
Inside the Huntington's Story 