504 Larkin Street
1910 Transitional Style with Shingle and Neoclassical elements
The Benjamin and Edna Wright home on Larkin Street was constructed in 1910 in a Colonial Revival design. The house was owned most notably by Benjamin F Wright, former mayor (1922) and prominent businessman who occupied the home from 1912 until 1942. Benjamin Wright came to the Monterey Peninsula in 1893 as representative for the Southern Pacific Railroad at the Hotel Del Monte, where he worked until retiring in 1936, and about which he published his Memoirs, detailing the visits to the hotel of the many distinguished guests of royalty, Hollywood, business, civic and political figures of the day. He also owned seven drug stores (Palace Drugs), and from 1906 along with his partner, George Gould, owned and sold the 400 lots above Clay Street known as Monterey Heights (now Upper Old Town).
His wife, Edna Ingram Wright, was the Goddess of Liberty in the 1896 celebration of the 50th anniversary of the raising of the American Flag. She was also an officer in the Monterey Civic Club in 1912.
In 1942, the home was sold to Charles Allaire, and in 1943 he sold it to Ernest and Helen Zanetta, who lived there until the 1960s when it was sold to Heinrich and Martha Bender. The Benders lived and taught music in the home for many years. It was extensively restored in 2013 by the current owners, Gari and Nancy Soulé, who are active in the Old Town Neighborhood Association.
Historic marker: Benjamin Franklin Wright House 1910 – This transitional style house with Neo-Classical, Colonial Revival, and shingle elements was home to The Benjamin Franklin Wright, Monterey Mayor, realtor, businessman, and Southern Pacific Company Host at the Del Monte Hotel.
Directions to the next house: Continue down Larkin Street, the Antonio Ferrante House (555 Larkin Street) will be on the other side of the street a little further down, and #7 on the map below.
