On March 14, 1909, the Sacramento Union reported that Robert E. Cranston was about to begin work on a $10,000 residence and garage that had been designed by the architectural firm of Sellon & Hemmings.

The building permit was issued to Cranston two months later (May 20, 1909).16 It indicated that the two-story frame dwelling and its garage were expected to cost $11,000, an increase over the price estimated in March. Three years later, when it was sold to the Geary family, the house was reported by a Sacramento Bee journalist to have cost more than $25,000 to build.