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Cordhaven was built in 1933 for Errett Lobban Cord (E. L. Cord).  The colonial-style red brick mansion on a ten-acre Noth Hillcrest Road estate in Beverly Hills covered 32,000 square feet and contained 16 bedrooms and 22 bathrooms.  Impressed by both the speed of delivery of the plans for the “dream house” and the quality of his ideas, industrialist Cord awarded Paul R. Williams the contract over the proposals of many of the major white architects practicing in Los Angeles at the time.

Cord's million-dollar mansion was similar to many built during the 1920s and 1930s in Beverly Hills. The over-sized front neoclassical portico, the many mahogany-paneled rooms and white marble floors were not unprecedented. What made Williams' plan unique was his design for housing one of Cord's passions --- chickens. Cord had many interests but raising chickens was top most. The Paul R. Williams' designed chicken coops were "constructed in the same style as the main house, with brick floors, wood paneling, and satin drapes... his favorite birds reportedly ate and drank from gold dishes." (Charles Lockwood. Dream Palaces: Hollywood at Home, 1981)

In 1929, Cord controlled through his Cord Corporation over 150 companies including the Auburn Automobile Company, the maker of the iconic Cord and the Duesenberg. His selection of Williams to design Cordhaven helped open the door for Williams to work for many of the powerful in Los Angeles. Later Williams would design a Nevada vacation ranch for E.L. Cord's immediate family and an Inn with a home for his relative, William A. Tharpe located in Lovelock, NV. The Cord's Nevada ranch and the Lovelock properties still exist today but in 1963, Cordhaven was demolished and the property developed into 13 separate parcels.