A Sierra Madre home built on a hillside lot discovered by the late owners when they were high school sweethearts in the late 1940s is on the market.
The asking price is $1.698 million.
Dubbed “Cedarhawke,” the 2,612-square-foot home that recalls the wood-clad modernist architecture of Sonoma County’s Sea Ranch has two bedrooms and three bathrooms. Abundant windows and decks adorn the weathered cedar exterior and make the most of the views from the surrounding canyon to the San Gabriel Valley and Catalina Island on a clear day.
Carolyn and Harry Gravatte capped off their first real date at this spot as 16-year-olds. Nearly 30 years and two children later, the couple happened upon it once more, only to find a “For Sale” sign.
As Carolyn Gravatte recalled in a 2012 oral history interview with the Sierra Madre Historial Preservatiton Society, “We went out on the peak and looked over the valley, and (Harry) said, ‘This is where I’m going to build my house.’ “
The Gravattes bought the lot in 1976 and worked with a local architect who allowed them to pay as they went because they had limited funds. Daughter Laura Wambsgans of Santa Clarita said Sea Ranch, her parents’ favorite romantic destination, inspired the look and feel of this custom build.
After professionals dug the foundation and poured the concrete, Carolyn and Harry Gravatte took over. They built their dream house together around their day jobs — she made art and taught sculpture through Monrovia Adult Education, and he worked as a precision machinist.
“I didn’t live with them, then, but I remember visiting them at their house in Temple City,” said Wambsgans, an artist like her mom. “Dad had built the wooden spiral staircase steps at night, and they were sitting in the living room of their little 900-square-foot house in a stack.”
From the staircase to every board and nail, the Gravattes’ fingerprints are all over the house — that goes for their hidden love notes, too.
Wambsgans said her parents left scribbles and drawings to one another on the drywall, which got covered up by the construction.
The front door opens to a staircase that leads to the living room with a soaring ceiling and a freestanding fireplace. From there, a flight of stairs lands on the dining area and an all-white kitchen with stainless steel appliances, tiled countertops and a peninsula island with a cooktop and ample storage.
Two bedrooms, including the primary suite, are at the end of a hallway. It boasts a glass-enclosed shower and a separate tub. A sliding glass door in the primary bedroom opens to an extended deck with views.
Off the kitchen, the spiral staircase Harry Gravatte built leads to a bright and airy artist’s loft that can double as a third bedroom. Another spiral staircase continues to the five-car garage and shop, where he restored his cars, including a 1961 Ferrari Lusso and a 1949 MG TC.
Harry Gravatte also ran a post-retirement business out of the shop, recreating and selling obsolete parts for classic cars, historic homes, old-fashioned cameras, guitars and Telefunken microphones.
When Harry Gravatte died in July 2020 at 87, his wife continued in the house alone. Carolyn Gravatte died in May at 91.
Wambsgans, whose brother lives in coastal Washington, said it’s now time for someone else to enjoy the home her parents built.
“The house really is a piece of art,” she said. “As an artist, when I’m done creating a painting, I’m finished. It goes on to bring someone joy every day they look at it. It needs to get passed on.”
Jan Greteman and Katherine Orth of DPP share the listing.
