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Palo Alto Historic Buildings Inventory

1415 Cowper Street


Photo taken in 1978.	Location Map

The following is from the Historic Buildings Inventory as revised in 1985:

Physical appearance: This is a formal, symmetrical house whose antecedents are partly French, partly Regency. The steep roof, the quoining, and the arch–topped dormers all reinforce the image.

Significance: This house is a superb example of period revival design at its most evocative, quite different from the two houses behind it on Tasso Street [1408-10 and 1416] which were built for the same owner, Dr. Ephraim Weiss. Its first occupant, Armand T. Mercier (1938–1940), became President of Southern Pacific Railroad, 1941–1951, after a long career as a chief construction engineer with the company.

Weiss, the original owner, bequeathed the house to Stanford University, which sold it in 1956 to Leslie S. Post, a Realtor. Ten years later it was acquired by Robert and Lois Morgan.

This house was built in 1936 and is a Category 4 on the Historic Buildings Inventory. The builder was Carl Walstrom. Interior remodeling circa 1977 was made by Joseph Lombardo. The property measures 65 by 112.5 feet.

Sources: Palo Alto City Directories; Palo Alto Times 3/18/36, 10/19/51, 11/22/57; interviews 1985, Lois Morgan, Leslie S. Post

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