Alfred Henry Jacobs (1882 – December 14, 1954) was an American architect. He designed theaters, hotels, residential, and religious buildings, primarily working in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

. Three of the buildings he designed are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. He also worked as a watercolorist.

Early life and education

Alfred Henry Jacobs was born in 1882 in San Francisco, California to Julius and Sarah Adler Jacobs. His father Julius Jacobs was born in

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

in 1840 and immigrated to California in 1853. In 1898 he was appointed Assistant U.S. Treasurer, in charge of the Sub-Treasury in San Francisco. He was Jewish. He graduated high school from the California School of Mechanical Arts (now

Lick-Wilmerding High School Lick-Wilmerding High School is a private college-preparatory high school located in San Francisco, California, United States. History Lick-Wilmerding High School was founded on September 21, 1874 as the California School of Mechanical Arts by a ...

). Jacobs studied fine art at Mark Hopkins Art Institute (later known as San Francisco Art Institute) from 1897 until 1899. This was followed by mechanical engineering studies at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

where he graduated in 1903; and

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

where he received a B.S. degree in architecture in 1904 and an M.S. degree in architecture in 1905. He did further studies at the

École des Beaux Arts École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

in Paris. He married Lillian Wollenberg in 1908.

Career

Back in San Francisco by 1907, he partnered with Walter Ratcliff and helped design the Berkeley Tennis Club (1908) in Berkeley, California. In 1909, he joined San Francisco's Fidelity Lodge, Number 120, Free and Accepted Masons of California and established his own firm. Jacobs gained emeritus membership status with the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

Death and legacy

He died on December 14, 1954. The Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life at the

has a collection of his papers, drawings, and photographs. In August 2003 to January 2004, a solo exhibition titled "Alfred Henry Jacobs" at the Judah L. Magnes Museum (now known as the Magnes Collection of Jewish Art and Life at U.C. Berkeley) was held featuring his architectural drawings and related documents, his fine artwork, and photographs.

Work

*Berkeley Tennis Club (1908), 2624 Hillegass Avenue, Berkeley, California; now a private home *Religious school house for Congregation Emanu-El (1910), 1337 Sutter Street, San Francisco, California; NRHP–listed; later known as the

Grabhorn Press The Grabhorn Institute is a nonprofit organization formed in October 2000 for the purpose of preserving and continuing the operation of one of the last integrated facilities for typefounding, letterpress printing, and bookbinding in the fine press ...

building * Herald Hotel (1910), 308 Eddy Street, San Francisco, California; part of the NRHP–listed Uptown Tenderloin Historic District *1244–1268 Sutter Street (1911), commercial building in

Polk Gulch Polk Street (also sometimes referred to by its German name, ''Polkstrasse'') is a street in San Francisco, California, that travels northward from Market Street to Beach Street and is one of the main thoroughfares of the Polk Gulch neighborhood ...

, San Francisco, California; later known as the

Avalon Ballroom The Avalon Ballroom was a music venue in the Polk Gulch neighborhood of San Francisco, California, at 1244 Sutter Street (or 1268 Sutter, depending on the entrance). The space is known as the location of many concerts of the counterculture move ...

*Jacobs family's residence (1915), 80-21st Avenue, San Francisco, California * California Theatre (1916), 787–799 Market Street, San Francisco, California; renamed the State Theatre, and torn down in 1954 * Winema Theater (1920), Main Street,

Scotia, California Scotia, formerly known as Forestville until 1888, is a census-designated place in Humboldt County, California. It is located on the Eel River along U.S. Route 101, southeast of Fortuna and north of San Francisco. Scotia has a population of 85 ...

; made with redwood lumber. *Granada Theater (1920–1921), 1066 Market Street, San Francisco, California; renamed the Paramount Theatre, dismantled in 1965 *Homewood Terrace (1920–1921) Pacific Hebrew Orphan Asylum and Home Society, San Francisco, California *

Curran Theatre The Curran Theatre, located at 445 Geary Street between Taylor and Mason Streets in the Theatre District of San Francisco, California opened in February 1922, and was named after its first owner, Homer Curran. As of 2014, the theater is owned by ...

(1921–1922), 445 Geary Street, San Francisco, California * Ansel Adams childhood home (1929), 129-24th Avenue, San Francisco, California * Hotel Californian (1929; addition-only), 403 Taylor Street, San Francisco, California *Butterfield and Butterfield Auctioneer building, San Francisco, California *Memorial for the Pacific Hebrew Orphan Asylum at the Home of Peace Cemetery,

Colma, California Colma (Ohlone for "Springs") is a small incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 1,507 at the 2020 census. The town was founded as a necropolis in 1924. ...

*Pacific Hebrew Orphanage, North Ocean Boulevard, San Francisco, California; a Jewish orphanage now demolished File:Hotel Californian (San Francisco).JPG, Hotel Spero (formerly the Hotel Californian), 403 Taylor Street, entry File:Grabhorn Press Building (San Francisco).JPG, Former

building, 1337 Sutter Street File:Herald Hotel (San Francisco, CA).JPG, Herald Hotel, 308 Eddy Street File:Scotia Winema Theater Sign.jpg, Winema Theater roofline and signage

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacobs, Alfred 1882 births 1954 deaths Architects from California Jewish architects 20th-century American Jews Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni People from San Francisco American people of Prussian descent American people of German-Jewish descent American watercolorists

Early life and education

Career

Death and legacy

Work

See also

References