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A Place Once Called “Green Dragon” in California

An extraordinary art colony known to people all over the world, and it's how many people first learned about La Jolla. (Photo: The Middle Land)

By Yuyu Chiang

January 18, 2026
3:19 am
Los Angeles, CA

La Jolla, California, located north of San Diego along the curving Pacific coastline of Southern California, is an affluent, hilly seaside resort community. Although only 11 square kilometers in size, it once boasted some of the highest real estate prices in the entire United States. However, what many may not know is that this area was once known as the “Green Dragon” colony. La Jolla’s famous “Green Dragon Colony” was built between 1895 and 1906. Although it has largely disappeared over time, La Jollan Don Allison later acquired the most historically significant acre of land in the village for a residential development overlooking La Jolla Cove. These new townhouses, approved by the La Jolla Community Planning Group in 2011 and subsequently by the City Planning Commission in 2014, are

La Jolla’s famous “Green Dragon Colony” was built between 1895 and 1906. Although it has largely disappeared over time, La Jollan Don Allison later acquired the most historically significant acre of land in the village for a residential development overlooking La Jolla Cove.

These new townhouses, approved by the La Jolla Community Planning Group in 2011 and subsequently by the City Planning Commission in 2014, are located just 100 feet from the cliffs between Sunny Jim’s Cave and La Jolla Cove, offering perhaps the most stunning views in San Diego.

Taming the Dragon

The early “Green Dragon Colony” was developed by Anna Held, a former governess for the family of Ulysses S. Grant Jr., son of the 18th president.

In 1895, Held hired an architect to design a cottage for herself, surrounded by stones she collected from the cliffs to build a fireplace. After its completion, she built guest cottages to rent to friends. But these friends were not ordinary people.

One of the Green Dragon Cottages from the 1900s

“They were international elites—actresses, artists, musicians, writers, and bohemian types,” says historian Molly McClain, who is writing a book tentatively titled “Ellen Browning Scripps and Her Circle,” which includes a chapter about Held. McLean stated that the development, originally named “Green Dragon Camp” by a regular visitor, British novelist Beatrice Harraden, “an extraordinary art colony known to people all over the world, and it’s how many people first learned about La Jolla.” (In fact, in December 1901, the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “La Jolla is the Green Dragon Colony, and the Green Dragon Colony is La Jolla.”)

In September 1912, Held sold the Green Dragon property to two Los Angeles businessmen in one of the largest real estate transactions of the time, who planned to subdivide it and convert it into a hotel or apartments. When that plan fell through and the land was sold to Josephine Seaman in 1926, the cottages were spared—at least for a time. The La Jolla philanthropist converted all but four of the cottages into shops, but preserved their original character.

One of the Green Dragon Inns from the 1900s.

The modern La Jolla Cove residences also pay homage to the Green Dragon estate. They are named after three of the original cottages: Jack-o’-Lantern, Gable, and East Cliff. A plaque on the sidewalk in front of the buildings explains the historical significance of the property. And the buildings themselves look distinctly not modern. However, this final tribute was actually a condition imposed by the California Coastal Commission when it issued a permit to demolish the last of the Green Dragon cottages in 1991.

“The Coastal Commission required that the buildings rebuilt on the site had to adhere to certain design standards,” Allison explained. “That’s why these things look old and somewhat reminiscent of what was here before.”

Heart of the Dragon

All that remains of the original Green Dragon colony is the fireplace of the Wainfleet Cottage.

Today, all that remains of the original Green Dragon Colony is the fireplace from the Weinried cottage, which remains in its original location where Held built it, now part of the main dining room of Eddie V’s. The fireplace still bears the original German inscription written by Held himself. It translates to: “Sacred to me is my hearth; sacred to me is my home.”