Commissioned by John C. Bentz, a prominent Pasadena businessman who imported Chinese and Japanese art, this two-story Craftsman bungalow was designed by Charles and Henry Greene in 1906 to serve a dual purpose. The 3,300-square-foot residence would be both the Bentz family home and the model house for the entire Prospect Park Tract, establishing the architectural character for what would become one of Pasadena's most distinguished neighborhoods. Charles Greene personally directed the design, building on a professional relationship that began when the firm designed a storefront for Bentz's Asian art import business. The commission arrived just two years before the brothers would complete their masterwork, the Gamble House, and captures their developing Arts and Crafts vocabulary applied to a middle-class budget.
Dark redwood shake siding wraps the exterior, while a low-pitched roof extends into wide, sheltering eaves supported by exposed rafters and beams. The design synthesizes Swiss chalet and Japanese influences within the Arts and Crafts framework, with wraparound casement windows bringing light into the interior. Five bedrooms and two full baths occupy the upper floor, while the main level unfolds through a living room anchored by its original fireplace, a formal dining room, kitchen with butler's pantry, mudroom, study, and bath. Flat-cut Douglas fir trim throughout the interior, an economical choice, mimics the grain of Japanese sugi and would have complemented Bentz's Asian art collection. The brothers returned in 1910 to add a sleeping porch, additional bathroom, dressing room above the kitchen, maid's bedroom, back porch, and garage, all of which survive along with original light fixtures, doors, windows, and built-in cabinetry.