James D. Phelan
Villa Montalvo
Carmel of the Infant Jesus
Around Santa Clara
Phelan was the son of a Gold Rush banking family. He had been mayor of San
Francisco. He would go on to be US Senator, and then to continue to run the
state Democratic party until his death in 1930.
His sister died. Her daughter, Agnes of Jesus, was a Carmelite novice in
Boston. There were then no Carmelite houses in California.
Phelan built a mediteranean style villa in the mountain foothills in
Saratoga. This was later donated to public use. The villa plays on pagan
mythology and imagery, as most of our great art always has.
Phelan liked mediteranean style villas, good food, good wine, opera, and he
kept two mistresses. He was basically an Irishman who decided he would
rather be Italian.
His niece, Agnes of Jesus, prayed for his soul.
When the sister died, Phelan bought a small ranch in Santa Clara, which had
belonged to Judge Bond. It was here on the porch of their house that Jack
London had written Call of the Wild. Their dog had been the inspiration.
Phelan had the house moved. It may have been moved a couple of times. But
now it is about 8 blocks away, on the other side of City Hall, and behind
the new Art Museum.
Then he built the Carmelite monastery. It is considered one of the greatest
replicas of Spanish Renaissance architecture.
Agnes of Jesus would go on to run that house. Then she went on to found
some additional houses in California, including the one in Carmel.
From their she went on to found a Carmelite house in Taiwan. The intent was
to from there take the order into mainland china. This was not to be.
Most of their family members are buried at the Carmel in Santa Clara
