We could not have gotten any more lucky walking around Sacramento’s Boulevard Park neighborhood. Behold Eddie, the miniature poodle who stood in for Snickers to show off his gorgeous Italianate home, the H. E. Parker house, built in 1878.

Parker, a wholesale produce salesman for W.R. Strong and Company, was its original owner. Online, we located an old flyer indicating that in 1882, Parker was selling property in Penryn Fruit Lands.

Parker seemed to know his way around fruit, having been lauded in an 1886 article in The Placer Herald for his pineapple squash at the local fair.

According to an 1888 newspaper article, Parker and his wife were rock stars of the local fair that year, too: “H. E. Parker, of Penryn, shows what can be done by a little energy in a short time in this fertile country, he shows some fine specimens of White Smyrna figs, which he says are peculiarly adapted to the soil of Placer. One of the most attractive features in Placer’s exhibit was the splendid display of jellies, jams, etc., by Mrs. H. E. Parker, of Penryn.”

From 1905-1935, the house belonged to Peter Carlson, a cabinetmaker for the South Pacific Railroad. The house sold in 1938 for $2,900.

Currently, the home, which is a City of Sacramento Landmark, is owned by someone with love and appreciation for history, and who provided me some of the details for this post.

Jon Marshack spent seven years on the City of Sacramento’s Preservation Committee, serving two years as its chair, and is currently preservation chair for the Boulevard Park Neighborhood Association.

We thank him so much for his help with this post, we will leave you with the good vibes plaque that adorns one of its front steps: “Peace to All Who Enter Here.”