House at 1239-1245 Scott Street
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Why it's listed
Two joined Italianate Victorian houses, each a two-family dwelling, were built in 1882 at 1356-62 Scott Street in San Francisco's Western Addition. Water Department records show the connection date, and the owner was John J. Dowling, a contractor who lived nearby and may have built them himself. Tiered, angled bay windows rise from the ground to the roof cornice, with arched windows, bracketed cornices, small floral keystone ornaments and fluted colonnettes between the windows. The houses survived the 1906 earthquake and fire but later passed through absentee landlords and deteriorated. After the redevelopment agency bought them in 1969, zoning in the project area meant they had to be demolished or moved. Plans called for cutting the wide structure apart and relocating it one block away, next to a row of existing Victorians, as one of eight buildings moved for rehabilitation. A later state letter records the new address as 1239-45 Scott Street.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the buildings as fine, well-detailed examples of Italianate Victorian architecture that survived the 1906 earthquake and fire. Redevelopment zoning required the buildings to be demolished or moved, so they were relocated for rehabilitation beside a row of existing Victorians.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 73000441, listed March 8, 1973. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 1239-1245 Scott St., San Francisco |
|---|---|
| County | San Francisco |
| Listed | March 8, 1973 |
| Reference number | 73000441 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 19th Century (specific date 1882) |
| Architect / builder | Built for John J. Dowling, a contractor, who may have built it himself |
| Architectural style | Italianate Victorian |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as deteriorated and unoccupied, owned by the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency, and slated to be moved and rehabilitated; a later letter confirms the move to 1239-45 Scott Street. |
| Acreage | 0.3 |
| Coordinates | 37.77227, -122.43778 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 73000441.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q133478506
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.