I arrived in Lincoln Heights at about 3:30 in the morning. It was still dark when I pulled up to 3024 N Main Street, where the historic 1895 Queen Anne I call 3024 was waiting for its journey to Altadena.
There is something surreal about seeing a house at that hour, lit by work lights, strapped and braced, quietly waiting to roll through sleeping neighborhoods before sunrise.
A few days earlier, two other historic homes had already made their way from this same site to Altadena, but this morning felt different. This house was larger, taller, and carried a striking presence. Even in the dark, disassembled and sitting on 2 trucks, you could feel it.
This was no ordinary move. This was a 131-year-old two-story Queen Anne, preparing to leave Main Street in Los Angeles and begin a new life at La Venezia Court in Altadena.
At about 4:30 am, the trucks finally pulled away from the Lincoln Heights site. As they began the route east and north, I drove ahead to find different places where I could film the house passing by in the early morning darkness. I wanted to capture the journey from different vantage points and document this remarkable move as it crossed from one community to another.
My first video was at about 4:45 am along Huntington Drive, just before the route crossed from Los Angeles into Alhambra.
My second video was at about 4:57 am on Fair Oaks, as the trucks traveled through South Pasadena and approached the Pasadena border.
By 5:07 am, I filmed again as the house continued north on Fair Oaks and passed Washington Boulevard.
Then came the final approach.
At about 5:16 am, I captured the first truck as it backed off Fair Oaks and slowly made its way along La Venezia Court toward the end of the block.
There is always something thrilling about that final turn, the moment when the house is no longer just traveling, but arriving.
At about 5:22 am, the first truck carrying the west side of the house came to a stop in front of the property.
From there, the next phase began.
Because of the site conditions, the house would not simply be rolled straight onto the lot. The property is enclosed by a 6-foot-high masonry wall, so a crane would be needed to lift the house from the truck, raise it above the wall, and carefully place it onto the prepared site.
By about 6:01 am, the crane was in position.The lot had already been prepared in advance, and wooden cribs were placed to receive the structure. These cribs would temporarily support the house while also maintaining the required front yard, side yard, and rear yard setbacks until the permanent foundation work could move forward.
As the morning went on, more people gathered to witness the move.
Brad Chambers was on site, along with local neighbors who came out to watch this remarkable old house arrive. I’ve been working with Brad since 2004, and I’ve always admired his creativity and his passion for preserving historic structures. One of the things I especially appreciate is the way he sees value not only in saving old buildings, but also in repurposing materials from dismantled structures to create something new that meets today’s code while still carrying echoes of the past.
Anna, who received the two relocated houses on Calaveras Street just one block north, was there too.
Brooke and Michael, the new owners, were there to welcome the house along with their dog, Izzy. They are both artists, wonderful to work with, and deeply woven into the fabric of the Altadena community. Brooke’s mother was there as well.
Gwen and Jacques attended too, along with their dog Lucy. Gwen and Jacques were the first family to receive a relocated house in Altadena, when a home was moved from Los Angeles to their property on Poppyfields Drive.
One of my favorite details from the morning was that Brooke brought coffee and croissants for the local neighbors and friends who came to watch the house be lifted from the truck and placed onto the property. Moments like that say so much about what this project is really about. Yes, it is about moving houses. But it is also about community, generosity, preservation, and people showing up for one another.
And there was one more important part of this story: DECRO generously donated the house, making it possible for this remarkable 1895 Queen Anne to begin a new chapter in Altadena.
As the site crew continued preparing for the lift, the first truck was rolled back at about 8:24 am, approximately 30 feet east, repositioning it from directly in front of the house to a point in front of the crane near the center of the street, alongside the east side of the corner lot.
The crane cables had already been attached to the steel frame supporting the house at about 8:20 am, and at 8:35 am, the first half of the Queen Anne was lifted off the truck.
A few minutes later, at about 8:40 am, the house rose above the street and was carefully carried over the masonry wall and into the property.
Then, at about 8:50 am, the first half of the house was lowered onto the wooden cribs.
It was an incredible moment.I was in awe of the technical precision of the moving team, how the house was prepared for travel, how it was transported through four cities on its way to Altadena, and how it was carefully lifted by crane from the truck, up over the masonry wall, and onto the wooden cribs.
Technology has evolved so much over the past 131 years that this challenging move from Lincoln Heights to Altadena was made to look almost simple.
One of the moments that stayed with me most was hearing the small crowd of neighbors gasp along with me as the house rose into the air. In that moment, I felt even more connected to the Altadena community and to the magic of what we were all witnessing together.
After traveling from Main Street in Los Angeles through multiple cities and arriving in Altadena before sunrise, the first half of this remarkable 1895 Queen Anne was finally in place on La Venezia Court.
Next came the second half.
The second truck was rolled into position, and the crane lines were attached to the remaining half of the house. At about 10:03 am, the second half was lifted from the truck. By about 10:15 am, it was set down adjacent to its other half.
With both sections now on the lot, the crew carefully lined them up and fit the house back together.
Then, at about 10:45 am, the existing roof trusses, very heavy and full of original material, were lifted back onto the top of the house so they could be assembled later.
Minor adjustments were made to the building as the placement work continued.
When the two halves of the building were finally lined up, I felt a real sense of completion. There is still a long road ahead, months of paperwork and approvals, the pouring of a new two-story foundation, the reassembly of the second story and roof, and the interior remodeling and restoration still to come, but bringing those two halves together felt like the close of an important chapter in the story of 3024.
By 11:42 am, I was walking back to my car to head to the office in time for a 12:00 pm meeting, leaving behind a scene that had looked impossible just a few hours earlier. What began in darkness on Main Street had become, by late morning, a reassembled 1895 Queen Anne standing once again on a lot in Altadena.
That is what I love about house relocation.
It proves that old homes still matter.They matter because of their craftsmanship. They matter because of their beauty. They matter because they connect us to the people and neighborhoods that came before us. And they matter because, with the right team and a lot of determination, they can still be saved and given new life.
For more than 130 years, 3024 stood in Los Angeles. On this morning, it made an extraordinary journey and began a new chapter in Altadena.
From Main Street in Los Angeles to La Venezia Court in Altadena, another historic home was given the chance to begin again.
Thank you for reading…
The story of 3024 continues…
Cheers!
Alan Pinel
(213)841-9988
