The A. Levy House (1912)
(Ventura County Landmark #75)
Original Historic District Document Info: None.
Built in 1912 for the Achille Levy family—of the Bank of A. Levy—this two-story shingle-style home, accented with Craftsman details, remains one of the largest residences in Oxnard. In the 1960s, the house was converted into 10 separate apartments. More recently, in May 2024, the City of Oxnard purchased the property for $2.4 million.
Achille Levy began his career as a commission and forwarding merchant in Hueneme during the 1880s and 1890s. When the city of Oxnard was founded in 1898, he relocated his banking business there, though he continued to reside in Hueneme until moving into this house in 1912.
Today, the home remains divided into apartments. Notable landmarks associated with Levy include the Hueneme Bank Building (#32) and the Bank of A. Levy (#56). The house was designed by architect Albert C. Martin.
Map
*The Ventura County Assessor lists this house as being built in 1920, which is incorrect.
STATS: It is now 10 apartment units , 6,846 s.f. on a 16,552 s.f. lot.
Parcel number: 2020082010
Last sold: 5/03/2024 for $799,000
Prior Owners (or residents): Mr & Mrs Achille Levy [Joseph] (1912-1955); Nicholas Tolentino (1959); Listed for apartment rentals in 1960.
Current Owners (or residents):
Died in the home:
Trivia: Achille’s daughter lived directly behind this house at 200 S. E and his sister, Hortense, lived a short while across the street at 159 S. D. His sisters Camille and Juliette, and Camille’s husband Henry (Achille’s business partner) lived 3 blocks up at 155 S. G.)
LANDMARKS COUNTY HISTORICAL SITES : A. Levy House Was a Family Center
LA TIMES ARTICLE
KATHLEEN WILLIAMS
April 28, 1992
HISTORY: The A. Levy House was built in 1912 by Achille Levy, a French immigrant, crop broker and pioneer banker. He and his wife, Lucy, raised four children in Port Hueneme before the bank moved to Oxnard at the turn of the century. The house remained in the family for almost half a century.
The four Levy children were already grown when Achille and Lucy Levy moved from more modest quarters to the shingled bungalow-style home in Oxnard, one of the largest homes in the city. The two-story building was designed by Albert C. Martin, architect of the former Ventura County Courthouse, now Ventura City Hall.
The building’s exterior remains largely unchanged from the original design. A large Craftsman-style front door and an ample front porch supported by columns remain. The porch was used frequently by the Levys, particularly by Achille Levy, who was required by his wife to smoke his cigars outside.
The home was a place of congenial family gatherings, recalled A. A. (Bud) Milligan, grandson of the original owners and third president of the Bank of A. Levy. Two of the three Levy daughters settled in the Oxnard neighborhood when they married, and five grandchildren, including Milligan, grew up within a few blocks of the home.
“It was a very warm, open atmosphere,” he said, “We were in and out on a daily basis. On Sundays, there was a platter of sandwiches made for lunch.”
Milligan remembers a first-floor sun room, where the children had a special closet to keep their belongings in, and a big, paved back yard where they practiced their tennis swings against the garage doors.
He also recalled a roomy basement with a wine cellar.
“Prohibition came, and they weren’t supposed to have any (wine), but there was some left,” he said.
When the elder Levys died, their bachelor son Joe, second president of the bank, moved into the home and lived there until his death in 1955.
In the ‘60s, the building was converted to apartments. The home gained landmark status in 1982.