The Willow Glen Resident

Photograph by Skye Dunlap

This year's historical walking tour will feature homes of myriad architectural styles and eras, such as this charming cottage on Juanita Avenue.

Tour meanders through 70 years of architecture

By Michelle Ku

Founders Day isn't just about celebrating the founding of Willow Glen; it has also become a day to explore the architectural roots of the area.

Led by Evelyn Ucovich and three other volunteer guides--Linda Herschbach, Paulette Ornellas and Edith Walter--Willow Glen residents can participate in a half-hour historical walking tour of homes east of Lincoln Avenue.

Organized by the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association, the walks will begin at 10 a.m., and guided groups will leave the corner of Lincoln and Minnesota avenues every 30 minutes. The last walk will begin at 11:30 a.m. and return to the corner in time for the Founders Day parade at noon.

The route of this year's walk begins at the Lincoln/Minnesota intersection and continues to Settle Avenue, down Hill Avenue to Willow Glen Way and then back to Lincoln.

The tour covers homes built in the 1920s on up to the present day. "What's so interesting about this area is that you can tie in new homes on Lincoln and the new architectural styles to an established older neighborhood," says WGNA president Kris Cunningham.

Ucovich says this particular walk is one that she has wanted to do for years. "It's an area where lots of homes have been renovated [and where there's also] a stretch of new homes. It's interesting that there's such a contrast in this area in terms of houses."

Ucovich is particularly happy with an alley she discovered along the route. "I don't know of any other areas of Willow Glen with an alley," she says.

She was reluctant to reveal the location, saying she wanted to "keep it a secret for the walk."

While the volunteer tour guides, all longtime Willow Glen residents, are the ones who bring the historical roots of the homes to life for tourists, preparing for the walks is a community effort.

In researching the history of the homes, the tour guides used two books written about the architecture in the Willow Glen area and contacted participating residents for any information they had about their homes.

Tour guide Herschbach says some residents along the route produce a flier about their home and then pass copies out to each tour group.

Since the historical walk first began in the early 1990s, it has proven to be a popular part of the Founders Day celebration.

The turnout for the first walks exceeded the expectations of the organizers, says Nell Aiello, former WGNA president and organizer for the first two historical walks. "We thought maybe 25 people would show up, but we had more than 100 people. Instead of doing one walk, we did several. We were very surprised at the turnout," Aiello says.

Registration for the walks will be held at the Founders Day information booth located at Lincoln and Minnesota avenues.

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