Famed writer Upton Sinclair’s former California house lists for under $2 million

A historic Monrovia house once owned by the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Upton Sinclair is on the market.

Listed at just under $2 million, this neo-Mediterranean-style house — completed in 1923 — sits on nearly a third-acre lot. It spans 2,667 square feet and has four bedrooms and three bathrooms.

Sinclair and his second wife, Mary Craig, bought the house in 1942, shortly before he won the Pulitzer for “Dragon’s Teeth,” the third book in his “Lanny Budd” series set during the Nazi takeover of Germany in the 1930s.

Six months after Mary Craig died in April 1961, Sinclair remarried. He and his third wife, Mary Elizabeth Willis, remained in the house until 1966 when they moved to the East Coast to be closer to Sinclair’s son from his first marriage.

The couple sold the Monrovia house in 1967, and its long association with Sinclair earned it recognition as a National Historic Landmark in 1971.

Today, the house benefits from the Mills Act, which provides annual property tax savings in exchange for historical upkeep.

A stone arched entry and a handcrafted door of wood, wrought iron and glass opens to reveal an interior adorned with hardwood floors, intricate crown molding and other period details.

Anchoring the living room is a stone fireplace.

The formal dining room sits behind an intricately carved archway with pocket doors.

A swinging door with stained glass detailing opens into the kitchen, featuring black and white-checkered flooring, stainless steel appliances, stone countertops, pantry storage and a breakfast nook overlooking the garden.

The main living area features a wrought iron gate that leads to the staircase.

Upstairs, a barrel-ceiling hallway leads to three generous-sized bedrooms.

The primary suite boasts a decorative fireplace, two walk-in closets and French doors that open out to private balconies. Its ensuite bathroom showcases custom tilework, a pedestal sink and a glass-enclosed shower.

Other highlights include a finished basement, an ADU with a kitchenette, a three-quarter bathroom, a Murphy bed and a flexible living space, a detached two-car garage and a bonus studio that can double as storage space.

The grounds include a stone-laid patio with a covered lounge area and an outdoor fireplace.

Jason and Laura Berns of Keller Williams Realty are the listing agents.

Sinclair is best known for “The Jungle.” His 1906 novel exposed the hardships of immigrant life and the horrific working conditions they faced in Chicago’s meatpacking industry.

The book sparked public outrage not because of worker exploitation, but due to the unsanitary conditions it revealed, which ultimately led to the implementation of federal food safety laws.

Another of Sinclair’s known works is “Oil!,” published in 1927. The story follows the idealistic son of an oil tycoon and loosely inspired Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2007 film “There Will Be Blood,” starring Daniel Day-Lewis.

In 1934, Sinclair, a Socialist, ran for governor of California as a Democrat on an “End Poverty in California” platform but lost to the incumbent Frank Merriam.

Sinclair was married three times. He died in November 1968 at 90 in a nursing home in New Jersey.