On December 4, 1957, one of the oldest homes in Marin County, a distinctive Victorian that stood for 80 years on the east side of Strawberry Point, was lifted from its foundation and barged across Richardson Bay. Known as the Lyford House, now part of the Richardson Bay Audubon Center, it arrived at its present location just off Tiburon Boulevard through a combination of good luck, timing and a massive community effort that saved the Bay from development and created a wildlife refuge along the shore.
Its builders were Dr. Benjamin Lyford and his wife, Hilarita, whose father was John Reed, the first white settler in Marin County and recipient of a Mexican land grant that spanned 9,000 acres from Tiburon to San Rafael.
Lyford House also figures grandly in the effort to save Richardson Bay from development in the 1950s, when the bay was scheduled to be filled and divided for homes.
Dr. David Steinhardt, a retired surgeon who lived on Strawberry Point, discovered the old house surrounded by bulldozers one day in 1957 when he went for a walk near his home. Steinhardt, who had helped form a coalition a year earlier to save Richardson Bay, learned the house would be destroyed within days.
Steinhardt was offered the house on the spot.
The transaction clinched a deal to secure 9 of the 11 acres that are home to the Audubon center, which were donated to the group by Rosie Verrall on the condition that Lyford House be relocated there.
A reclusive woman known locally as “the goat lady” for her small herd, Verrall had received the land from the nephew of Hilarita Lyford, John Paul Reed, with whom she had an early romance.
“Her diary would make you cry,” said Steinhardt, who helped arrange a volunteer brigade to move the house and pledge lifelong care to Verrall in exchange for the land. “She looked out every day for years to see him, but it just wasn't to be.”
These days it’s listed as a National Historic Landmark and plays hosts to events throughout the year, including weddings. Assuming you get a nice day, not only will you have access to the charming Victorian, but you get incredibly scenic bay views, too.
(via SFGATE)
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