{"nrhp_refnum":"04000955","name":"Woman's Athletic Club of San Francisco","other_names":["Metropolitan Club"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"640 Sutter St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"San Francisco","county":"San Francisco","state":"CA","lat":37.78898725100004,"lon":-122.41062756299999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2004-09-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A six-story brick and terra cotta women's athletic clubhouse and hotel at 640 Sutter Street near Union Square, San Francisco, built in two phases completed in 1917 and 1923 and designed by Bliss & Faville.","why_significant":"The club was the first women's athletic club west of Chicago when it opened in 1917 and the largest in the country after its 1923 expansion. It was a distinctive building type produced by the Women's Club Movement. Its construction also catalyzed a women's club district in San Francisco in the 1920s.","narrative":"Located at 640 Sutter Street near Union Square in San Francisco, this six-story clubhouse was built for the Woman's Athletic Club in two phases, completed in 1917 and 1923. Bliss & Faville designed it in an Italian Renaissance style modeled on Florentine palazzi and a New York library by McKim, Mead & White. The street facade combines red brick, cream terra cotta, wrought iron balconies and a red-tile roof. Inside are a swimming pool, a tennis court, more than 80 hotel rooms, and dining rooms and lounges on the ceremonial fourth floor. The club was the first women's athletic club west of Chicago and, after the 1923 expansion, the largest in the country. It reflected the Women's Club Movement and helped spark a women's club district in San Francisco during the 1920s. Its period of significance runs from 1917 to 1954. Despite the loss of some balcony portions and a few interior changes, the building retains a high degree of integrity and continues to serve as a club and hotel.","period_of_significance":"1917-1954","architect_builder":"Bliss & Faville (architects); Caius Tacitus Ryland built the original 1917 portion","architectural_style":"Italian Renaissance","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Still used as a clubhouse, sports facility and hotel (the Metropolitan Club); retains a high degree of integrity apart from removed balcony portions and minor interior alterations.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:29.585132-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/04000955.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/04000955/40cb3e1011-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/04000955/40cb3e1011-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"mutante","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Woman%27s_Athletic_Club_of_San_Francisco_2012-09-22_14-30-14.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">mutante</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Woman%27s_Athletic_Club_of_San_Francisco_2012-09-22_14-30-14.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"91000957","name":"Lower Nob Hill Apartment Hotel District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/california/lower-nob-hill-apartment-hotel-district-91000957/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123861363","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_Club_(San_Francisco)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q125759066"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/san-francisco/womans-athletic-club-of-san-francisco-04000955/"}