Padve, Martha

Historical Background

Martha Padve was a weekend resident of Crystal Cove, California from 1957 until the 1990s and a longtime activist for preserving its 46 rustic cottages and the surrounding natural environment. Born on February 22, 1917 in Scobey, Montana as Martha Bertonneau, she later moved to Pasadena, California and married Jacob (Jack) Padve. Together they bought the lease for Crystal Cove cottage #16 in 1957 from Mrs. Helen Pharaoh following the death of Mr. Gerald Pharaoh. Padve retained sole ownership of the lease after her divorce in November 1980.

Padve was a member of the executive council of the Crystal Cove Residents' Association. Worried that the Irvine Company would sell the Cove to a developer who would destroy the cottages and natural ecology of the surrounding area, Padve successfully pursued measures to add Crystal Cove to the National Register of Historic Places. She was guided in these efforts by the experience she gained as chair of the Pasadena Planning Commission from 1973 to 1981. Together with another member of the Crystal Cove Residents' Association, Christine Shirley, Padve gathered information about the local history and leaseholder history of the cottages from the residents. Padve also briefly pursued an unrealized plan with Chancellor Daniel Aldrich of the University of California, Irvine, to have UCI purchase Crystal Cove for use as a biological study center and faculty housing. After the Irvine Company sold Crystal Cove to the State of California in 1979, Padve remained involved in the Crystal Cove Residents' Association as it filed lawsuits against the State to allow residents to remain in the cottages. The Association won several lease extensions for its residents, but the State finally evicted all residents in 2001.

Crystal Cove lies on the Pacific Coast between the Southern California cities of Newport Beach and Laguna Beach. The area was purchased by James Irvine I in 1864 and retained by the Irvine Company until 1979. Early in the twentieth century, squatters began to live in the area, first erecting tents, then one-room cottages. More rooms were added to these structures as needed over time, often assembled from driftwood gathered along the beach. The cottages are one of the only remaining examples of California vernacular beach architecture, otherwise known as architecture without architects.

Beginning in the 1920s, silent film productions used Crystal Cove as a set for movies set in the South Seas because, during this era, all of the cottages had palm-thatched roofs. Such movies included Treasure Island (1920), Storm Tossed (1921), Sadie Thompson (1928), Half a Bride (1928), White Shadows in the South Seas (1928), and, much later, Beaches (1988). Road traffic increased with the construction of Pacific Coast Highway in 1926, and Crystal Cove became easily accessible to the public. In the late 1930s the Irvine Company informed cottage owners that they must either move their cottages or agree to lease the property from the company. Many owners chose to remain.

The last of the cottages was built in the late 1940s. The exteriors of the structures have remained nearly unchanged since the 1950s, although many interiors have been remodeled. Between 2001 and 2006, the State of California restored 22 of the 46 cottages to their vintage 1935-1955 interior and exterior condition. Additional restoration will occur as funds are raised. Beginning in 2001, the Crystal Cove Alliance, a non-profit organization formed in 1999 to preserve and protect the Crystal Cove State Historic District, became the concessionaire for the district.

• 1954: Martha Bertonneau married Jack Padve.
• 1957: Martha and Jack Padve purchased lease to Cottage 16 from Helen Pharaoh.
• 1979 June 16: Crystal Cove Historic District placed on National Register of Historic Places.
• 1979 December: State of California purchased 1,898 acres of Crystal Cove State Park from the Irvine Company for $32,600,000.
• 1981 - 1983 : First Development and Public Use Plan was created. Crystal Cove Residents' Association took action against the State of California to win the right to remain in their cottages.
• 1982 April 14: Crystal Cove residents were given notice to vacate by 1982 July 31.
• 1983: Crystal Cove lease period was extended by ten years.
• 1991 - 1994 : Second Development and Public Use Plan was created to establish some of the cottages as a hostel. The plan was blocked by legislation that required the California Department of Parks and Recreation to prepare a legislative report on alternative uses for the Historic District.
• 1993 - 1995 : Tenant leases were extended two years.
• 1994 - 2001 : Third Development and Public Use Plan was created which planned to build a seaside resort on the Historic District. Implementation of the plan was cancelled by the California Department of Parks and Recreation following public concern about the project.
• 1995 December 29: Crystal Cove Residents' Association filed lawsuit against the State of California, Parks and Recreation to prevent eviction.
• 1996: Crystal Cove Preservation Partners was selected concessionaire of the Historic District.
• 1996 - 2001 : Tenant leases were extended month-to-month.
• 1999: Crystal Cove Alliance formed to resist the State of California's plans to build a luxury hotel and modify the Crystal Cove cottages.
• 2001: Crystal Cove Preservation Partners' contract was cancelled.
• 2001 February 9: The California Department of Parks and Recreation issued 30-day eviction notice to residents. Residents filed lawsuit claiming non-compliance of agreement.
• 2001 July 8: Crystal Cove residents vacated their properties.
• 2001 - 2006 : State of California Department of Parks and Recreation began to renovate cottages and implement fourth Plan for Public Use and Preservation.
• 2006 June: Crystal Cove cottages were made available for public use.

From the guide to the Martha Padve papers on the Crystal Cove Historic District, 1940-2003, bulk 1978-1983, (University of California, Irvine. Library. Special Collections and Archives.)