1975 HERITAGE AWARD RECIPIENT
The Redlands Area Historical Society, Inc.
Heritage Award 1975
Mrs. Cornelia A. Hill Home
“Kimberly Crest”
150 Prospect Drive
1897
Ernest Frenzell has begun work on a reservoir, 30 feet in diameter and six feet deep, for Mrs. C.A. Hill who recently purchased property (May 1896) in the Judson Tract, Redlands Heights – a sightly knoll west of Prospect Hill. He also completed 900 feet of stone gutter for Mrs. Hill and 400 feet for Mr. Judson.
Mrs. Hill will have of the prettiest homes in that picturesque section the grounds laid out by F. P. Hasp of Riverside, being set to the choicest varieties of shrubbery and trees.
The Citrograph, Redlands first newspaper, clearly states the beginning of one of Redlands most noteworthy residences. The paper chronicles the construction of the house which was begun in May of 1897.
Mrs. Hill moved into her home in October of 1897 with her two granddaughters, Mae and Olive Cary. Mrs. Hill was a wealthy widow from Middletown, New York, having secured her wealth through lumber, coal and land speculation.
The architecture of the home has been dubbed “French-Chateau” style. Structurally, the home has had but few changes. The second story balcony was enclosed to make a sunporch and the port cochere was added.
The home was sold to Mrs. and Mrs. J.A. Kimberly in 1905. The Kimberlys redecorated the interior through Tiffany’s of New York. The orange grove surrounding the home was taken out and replaced by Italian gardens. Formal landscaping with terraces, fish ponds, stairways, balustrades and planters adorn the exterior.
The Kimberly’s were founders of the Kimberly-Clark paper manufacturing company. Mrs. Elbert Shirk, the present owner and daughter of the Kimberly’s, maintains the home in its present grandeur.
