The Atherton House, also known as the Faxon Atherton Mansion, is a historic building in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The style of the house, a blend of Queen Anne and Stick-Eastlake, has been described as both "eclectic" and "bizarre".

Architecture

The house was built in 1881–1882 in the Queen Anne style with horizontal lines, a clipped gable, and a short tower. The architect is thought to have been

John Marquis John Edward Marquis (born 16 May 1992) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-forward for EFL League One club Bristol Rovers. Career Millwall Born in Lewisham, London, Marquis progressed through the ranks of Millwall, sign ...

, but it has also been attributed to the Moore Brothers, who are depicted in other accounts as the initial builders.

History

It was constructed for Dominga de Goñi Atherton (1823–1890) after the death of her husband

Faxon Atherton Faxon Dean Atherton (1815–1877) was an American businessman, trader and landowner; initially successful in Valparaíso, Chile, he became a prominent citizen of San Mateo County, California. He is the namesake of Atherton, California. Early ...

. She was the mother-in-law of novelist

Gertrude Atherton Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton (October 30, 1857 – June 14, 1948) was an American author. Paterson, Isabel, "Gertrude Atherton: A Personality" The Bookman'', New York, February 1924, (pgs. 632-636) Many of her novels are set in her home sta ...

, who wrote about the house in her memoirs. Newspaper articles about the house when the housewarming was held in 1882 described it as picturesque, but appearing to be a relic of an earlier time. The reporter also noted that the height of the rooms created a claustrophobic effect on visitors. Possibly in answer to the comments, Dominga hired

Charles Lee Tilden Charles Lee Tilden (July 17, 1857 – November 12, 1950) was an attorney and businessman in the San Francisco Bay Area who served on the first Board of Directors of the East Bay Regional Park District. One of the first three parks in the Dist ...

to improve the house. After Dominga Atherton's death in 1890, the mansion was sold to Edgar Mills, brother of

Darius Ogden Mills Darius Ogden Mills (September 25, 1825 – January 3, 1910) was a prominent American banker and philanthropist. For a time, he was California's wealthiest citizen. Early life Mills was born in North Salem, in Westchester County, New Yor ...

of the

Bank of California The Bank of California was opened in San Francisco, California, on July 4, 1864, by William Chapman Ralston and Darius Ogden Mills. It was the first commercial bank in the Western United States, the second-richest bank in the nation, and considered ...

, and in 1900 was renumbered from 1950 to 1990 California St. In 1908 it was purchased by George Chauncey Boardman, a real-estate magnate and president of San Francisco Fire Insurance, whose house had been destroyed in the 1906 earthquake and fire. His widow and other family members lived there until 1923, when it was bought by Charles J. Rousseau, an architect, who subdivided it into 13 apartments. His widow Carrie lived there with fifty cats until her death in 1974. it was still subdivided. The house is purportedly haunted by as many as four ghosts, including Carrie Rousseau, and is featured on ghost tours. The commonly cited story is that the original ghost is George H. B. Atherton, who died at sea in the South Pacific in 1887 and whose body was shipped back to San Francisco in a rum barrel, but the barrel was delivered to the docks, not to the house.

References

{{reflist Buildings and structures in San Francisco Houses completed in 1881 San Francisco Designated Landmarks California Historical Landmarks Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in San Francisco Reportedly haunted locations in San Francisco