Without a doubt, one of the most beautiful, interesting and historic residences in Naglee Park is the Maybeck House at 62 South 13th Street. Fifty years ago it nearly disappeared, a victim of a combination of bad zoning, greed and extreme abuse. In the early 1970s it was marked as condemned by San Jose Code Enforcement, the result of occupancy by the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. The Pike’s were known for their parties. But the house endured and has lived to see another day, thanks to a succession of caring owners.

Although the designer of the house was apparently known in academic architectural circles, thanks to interest from the School of Environmental Design at UC-Berkeley, the local history and importance were lost for many years.  It was known as being one of only two Maybeck houses in Santa Clara County.  Perhaps it was the blossoming interest in Maybeck and his work during the 1970s that brought the house to the attention of the staff at the Library of Congress.

For years the Library of Congress has hosted the Historic American Building Survey (HABS), a project initiated during the Depression of the 1930s. In order to put architects and historians to work, HABS began to meticulously document many of America’s most significant structural treasures. It was such a popular program that it was continued into modern times.The Maybeck House was on the HABS list in 1980 and a team of architects and historians arrived in San Jose to document this interesting building.

Generally the investigation of the HABS team is quite thorough, but although their work shows the original owners as Howard and Amelia Gates, the documentation notes that little is known about the Gates’. The HABS team did document a number of interesting owners through the years including Mr. & Mrs. Paul Masson who were in residence from 1928 to 1934. After Mrs. Masson died, her husband moved down the street to 285 South 13th.

It was a chance revelation by the late California Room librarian George Kobayashi that brought the name Mrs. Howard Gates to light. He noticed the name and address in the Society Blue Book of social ladies listing their visiting days. The house was built by two medical doctors, Dr. Howard Gates and his wife Dr. Amelia Levinson Gates. They met in medical school in San Francisco and married in 1897. After graduation they moved to San Jose to a large house at 430 North Fifth Street. They opened their medical practices and sanitarium nearby. When the Naglee Park property was opened for development in 1902, they were among the first to buy a double lot and plan a new residence. Their home was under construction by 1904 and the Certificate of Completion filed in January of 1905.

In general, historic houses are named after the original owner or the person who paid for construction. In some cases, where the architecture is especially notable, the house becomes listed on the National Register under the name of the architect. In this case, the designer was Bernard Maybeck, the American-born son of an immigrant German cabinet maker. Maybeck eventually became a professor of design at UC-Berkeley, where many of the finest examples of his work still remain. It is supposed the two doctors met Maybeck when they attended school.

Dr. Howard Gates was the son of San Jose resident Freeman Gates, the founder of the first business school in San Jose. The San Jose Institute and Business College was opened in  1860 by Freeman Gates, who operated the business school until his early death in 1872 at the age of 41. Howard was his youngest child, only four when his father died. The business school was important in supporting commerce in early San Jose, which was the County Seat and needed clerical workers trained in bookkeeping and business practices.

By 1900 the two doctors had their offices Downtown in the Porter Building but listed the location of their residence and Private Sanitarium as “southeast corner Eleventh and Santa Clara Streets. Dr. Howard was not in good health and suffered his first health breakdown soon after arriving in San Jose. The newspaper politely refers to the problem as peripheral neuritis. He tried to continue his medical and surgical practice, in between break-downs and periods of rest. He was encouraged to spend time in the California mountains for improved health and was later recommended to travel to Southern Italy. He then moved to Rome and was under the care of a prominent neurologist when he died in May of 1914.

Dr. Amelia Gates cared for her husband with the help of his two older brothers, who spent the final six months with him, dividing their time at his bedside. After his death Howard was cremated and his ashes returned to San Jose. Curiously his name has been omitted from mention by the usual family databases. He was survived by an adopted son. His widow continued her medical practice in pediatrics and gynecology, later moving to Carmel where she died in 1947 at the age of 81.