IMMACULATE HOUSE RETREAT HOUSE
The house,
located in the heart of the city, offers a place of peace from the
surrounding hustle and bustle. It is an urban sanctuary available to
individuals or groups for a few hours or a day for reflection and
prayer. A chapel, dining room and conference rooms are
available.
The residence
of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary was built in 1927 as a
family home by Earl C. Anthony, a prominent Los Angeles automobile
dealer. It was designed by Bernard Maybeck in the style of a
medieval renaissance castle. The basic Norman-French and Spanish
structure also exhibits Greco-Roman and Moorish
influences.
The home was
purchased in the early fifties by Sir Daniel J. and Countess
Bernardine Murphy Donohue. The mansion was donated to the Immaculate
Heart Sisters in 1971 upon the death of the Countess.
The interior of
the Nordic entrance tower was furnished as a replica of the prayer
room of the Holy Father at the Vatican in Rome. Many internationally
distinguished visitors were entertained in the mansion and it's
eight and one half acre environs.