House used in Witchboard

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It was also used in an episode of Tales from the Crypt titled "television terror", with Morton Downey Jr. It's a cool house, does anyone know where it is located?

I have found this site about the house. Check it out.

http://www.larchmontchronicle.com/ArchiveDetail.asp?ArchiveID=631

Part of the film was also shot in the Stonedene Mansion in Fairfield, CA

Homes proposed for historic site near Solano College

FAIRFIELD - Development proposals are back for a Suisun Valley property called Stonedene that archeologists believe was once the site of Native American rituals and activities.

Fairfield tried to preserve the land for historical reasons when the last proposal came forth in the early 1990s. But, although a proposed deal ultimately failed, Stonedene development proposals went on a long hiatus -- until now.

Bob Runkel recently filed an application with Fairfield to build four homes on a portion of the 3-acre property at 4015 Suisun Valley Road, across the street from Solano Community College. The 148-year-old Samuel Martin House, also called Stonedene, would remain at the site.

No hearing has yet been set for the Planning Commission. The issue would ultimately have to go to the City Council for a General Plan amendment.

History abounds at the site, enough to get it a place on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. One feature is the field next to the Martin House. Archeologists since 1949 have found such things as grinding stones, obsidian chips, fire-affected rock and other signs of Native American activity there.


Jim Grossi of the CSW Stuber-Stroeh Engineering Group, speaking on behalf of the developer, said the Stonedene site has been studied more than any other project he's done. He talked of keeping development away from sensitive areas.

'The problem is the sensitivity of the archeological area in the southwest corner,' Grossi said. 'This pulls back from that completely.'

But the developer will have to convince some residents.

'Those are special things that today's society just bulldozes over,' Fairfield resident Helena Oberlander said. 'Those places are sacred, they are special and they need to be kept that way.'

Oberlander lives near Stonedene and learned of the development proposal when she approached the city about adding a segment of local sidewalk.

Another site feature is the Martin House built by pioneer Samuel Martin in 1861. Julia Morgan, an architect for Hearst Castle, restored and altered the house in about 1930 and designed an adjacent stucco carriage house.

The 1977 Solano County history book 'Our Lasting Heritage' said that 'this extraordinary stone house is a textbook example of the Gothic Revival style.'

Grossi said Stonedene needs seismic upgrades, but is in 'pretty good shape' with a good roof. Today's zoning lists Stonedene as being for offices, but under the proposal it would become a home once again.

The stucco carriage house designed by Morgan is in bad shape, Grossi said. Under the proposal, it would be moved from its present location to make way for a cul-de-sac and brought nearer to the house.

Jerry Bowen of the Vacaville Heritage Council is concerned about both the carriage house and the Native American archeological sites.

'I'm a real property rights believer,' Bowen said. 'I'm caught in-between because I believe history should be preserved.'

Developers in the late 1980s and early 1990s proposed building nine homes near Stonedene, then seven, then five. Local historical preservationists opposed the project.

Fairfield in 1991 announced it had reached an agreement with the developer: Land around Stonedene would be donated as permanent open space and the developers could build at another location.

The late Clyde Low, a local historian, pushed for the creation of Martin-Suisun Historical Park. City officials mentioned the possibility of having a museum there. But the development rights swap failed, as did efforts to get grants to buy the land.

Grossi said the Stonedene site development proposal could be ready for city hearings within a year.

Reach Barry Eberling at 425-4646, ext. 232

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