| When Capitola's owner F.A.Hihn died in 1913, his daughter,
Katherine Cope Henderson, put the resort up for sale. H. Allen Rispin,
a wealthy San Franciscan, bought it at the end of World War I. Although
he had grand plans to develop "Capitola by-the-Sea," Rispin overextended
himself and was broke by 1928. He lost his elaborate 22-room mansion and
most of his holdings in 1930-31. This picture was taken after the Rispin
home had been sold to Burlingame millionnaire Robert Hays Smith. The Smith
family ran into financial problems during The Great Depression and surrendered
the mansion in 1939. It was then sold to the Catholic Church for use as
a convent by the Order of Poor Clares. The nuns resided at the complex
until 1957. The mansion has since been vacant of permanent residents, and
is now owned by the City of Capitola. |
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