Westerfeld, William, House
Why it's listed
Perched on a hilltop corner about a mile west of San Francisco's City Hall, this large wooden house at 1198 Fulton Street was built in 1889 for baker and confectioner William Westerfeld. Architect Henry Geilfuss gave it a tall, narrow form with square bay windows, a bracketed roofline, finials, Corinthian columns and a square tower. The interior has carved wood paneling, mantels and built-in cabinets. Its integrity is high; a garage added before 1912 is the main early change, along with a staircase and east-side alteration made around 1901. The house is considered probably Geilfuss's largest and most ornate work and is widely recognized as a symbol of San Francisco Victorian architecture. It is also a designated local landmark. John J. Mahony, of the Mahony Brothers contracting firm active in rebuilding the city after 1906, lived here from 1896 to 1918. Later uses included a Russian emigre community center, a rooming house and a 1960s commune.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the house embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type and period of construction and has high artistic merit, under Criterion C. It is widely seen as a symbol of San Francisco Victorian architecture and is probably the largest and most ornate house by Henry Geilfuss. It also has some added significance as the 1896-1918 home of building contractor John Joseph Mahony.
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 89000197, listed March 16, 1989. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 1198 Fulton St., San Francisco |
|---|---|
| County | San Francisco |
| Listed | March 16, 1989 |
| Reference number | 89000197 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1889 |
| Architect / builder | Geilfuss, Henry |
| Architectural style | Stick/Eastlake |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as having high integrity and largely unchanged exterior, with ongoing restoration by the current owner. Basement converted to apartments; the rest is single-occupancy use. |
| Acreage | 0.1 |
| Coordinates | 37.77722, -122.43627 (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.
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 89000197.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q8020221
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.