Orville U. Miracle

According to The City of San Diego Biographies of Established Masters, 2020, Orville U. Miracle was born in 1871 in Wisconsin and is a local Master Builder. While living in the Midwest, Miracle built concrete sidewalks and curbs. He moved to San Diego in 1924. In 1927, he started the Miracle Construction Company, and that same year he won a contract to build sidewalks in Oceanside, California.

In the early 1930s, Roy Litchy, the developer of Talmadge, hired Miracle to start building sidewalks in Talmadge Park. Even today, you can still see the O.U. Miracle stamp on Talmadge sidewalks. Miracle Drive in Talmadge is also named after O.U. Miracle.

Roy Litchy’s daughter was married to the Master Architect Cliff May, and Cliff May met O.U. Miracle through his father-in-law. The Miracle Construction Company went into partnership with Cliff May and built May’s first house at 4725 Norma Drive in 1932. The name of their company became Cliff May Miracle Company. 4725 Norma Drive became a protype for 50 other California Ranch style houses built during the May Miracle partnership before WWII.

In 1938, The Miracle Company alone built a house (4729 Norma Drive) next to the California Ranch at 4725 Norma Drive. It was built in the Minimal Traditional style.

In the 1929 City Directory, Miracle Construction Company general contractors had an office at 4751 Monroe Avenue. In the 1931 City Directory, the entry went from Miracle Construction Company “general contractors” to “paving contractors.” They remained in the City Directories until 1938. It appears the Miracle office was torn down and rebuilt in 1941 by Master Builder Chris Cosgrove.

In the 1933 City Directory, Orville and his wife Grace lived at 4499 Euclid Avenue. This address was within the district and was next to the Miracle office on Monroe. Both addresses were at the Southeast corner of Monroe Avenue and Euclid Avenue. Orville and Grace lived on Euclid until 1938. Unfortunately, 4499 Euclid Avenue no longer exists.

In summary, O.U. Miracle had an office within Talmadge Park Estates Historic District while his company was paving sidewalks and building two homes. Orville and Grace lived in the neighborhood until the Miracle Construction Company office closed around 1938. According to O.U. Miracle’s Obituary, he moved to Oceanside after he left Talmadge and spent the rest of this life there. He died in 1949 at the age of 78.

References

City of San Diego, “Biographies of established Masters.” 2020

“O. U. Miracle Dies in California.” Great Falls Tribune. October 23, 1949.