Jan 31, 1979
Atherton House - National Register of Historic Places
Statement of Significance: On a scale of Zero to Five, the Atherton House was given a summary rating of Five in the1976 Architectural Inventory (Survey) of the City and County of San Francisco Department of Planning. The House is officially designated as Landmark Number 70 of the City and County of San Francisco. (The following history of the Atherton House is given in the March 20, 1974, Revised Case Report of the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board.) The house was built in 1881 for Mrs. Dominga de Goni Atherton after the death of her husband Faxon Dean Atherton. Previously the family had lived at the country estate known as Valparaiso Park in San Mateo County (named in honor of Mrs. Atherton's birthplace in Chile) where Faxon Dean Atherton had established his permanent residence in California in 1860. A native of Dedham, Massachusetts, Faxon Dean Atherton played a significant role in the commercial history of early California. Trading primarily in the hides and tallow between Valparaiso, Chile, and the eastern seaboard in the 1830's, he was lured to California by tales of business opportunities. His diary of the years 1836-1839 recounts the travails of life in Mexican ruled California and records his foresight as the future value of San Francisco Bay. In succeeding years, Atherton based himself principally in Valparaiso where he married into the wealthy de Goni family. He continued varied trading activities in Boston, Chile and California, but by the late 1840's, with the discovery of gold in California, he began to concentrate on supplying foodstuffs and commodities to the fast-growing San Francisco region. With the aid of United States consul Thomas 0. Larkin, Atherton made substantial investments in California real estate. In 1859-60, Atherton secured U.S. citizenship for his wife and his six children and moved to San Francisco, settling temporarily on Rincon Hill. Thereafter, the family moved to Fair Oaks, which is today known as Atherton. Until his death, Atherton continued to expand his already profitable holdings. Prominent members of the San Francisco social and business communities, the Atherton family received additional public acclaim due to the writings of Gertrude Atherton, Faxon and Dominga de Goni Atherton's daughter-in-law. Widowed in 1887, after 11 years of marriage to George Atherton, Gertrude became even more' dedicated to writing and travelled extensively to New York, The Atherton House is architecturally significant as an unusual example of the Queen Anne and Stick/Eastlake style. It is notable for its successful massing of diverse spaces, its basically balanced asymmetrical facade, and its eclectic combination of roof styles. Its appearance of solidity and bulk is successfully enlivened with an underlying tension created by the movement of interrelated spaces, and decorative motifs. Historically, the house is significant as the home of a prominent early California pioneer whose daughter-in-law, Gertrude Atherton, achieved international notoriety as a prolific author and world traveler. Although there is no evidence that Gertrude occupied the house herself, her mother-in-law raised Gertrude's children there from 1881 to 1890.
Atherton House - National Register of Historic Places
Statement of Significance: On a scale of Zero to Five, the Atherton House was given a summary rating of Five in the1976 Architectural Inventory (Survey) of the City and County of San Francisco Department of Planning. The House is officially designated as Landmark Number 70 of the City and County of San Francisco. (The following history of the Atherton House is given in the March 20, 1974, Revised Case Report of the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board.) The house was built in 1881 for Mrs. Dominga de Goni Atherton after the death of her husband Faxon Dean Atherton. Previously the family had lived at the country estate known as Valparaiso Park in San Mateo County (named in honor of Mrs. Atherton's birthplace in Chile) where Faxon Dean Atherton had established his permanent residence in California in 1860. A native of Dedham, Massachusetts, Faxon Dean Atherton played a significant role in the commercial history of early California. Trading primarily in the hides and tallow between Valparaiso, Chile, and the eastern seaboard in the 1830's, he was lured to California by tales of business opportunities. His diary of the years 1836-1839 recounts the travails of life in Mexican ruled California and records his foresight as the future value of San Francisco Bay. In succeeding years, Atherton based himself principally in Valparaiso where he married into the wealthy de Goni family. He continued varied trading activities in Boston, Chile and California, but by the late 1840's, with the discovery of gold in California, he began to concentrate on supplying foodstuffs and commodities to the fast-growing San Francisco region. With the aid of United States consul Thomas 0. Larkin, Atherton made substantial investments in California real estate. In 1859-60, Atherton secured U.S. citizenship for his wife and his six children and moved to San Francisco, settling temporarily on Rincon Hill. Thereafter, the family moved to Fair Oaks, which is today known as Atherton. Until his death, Atherton continued to expand his already profitable holdings. Prominent members of the San Francisco social and business communities, the Atherton family received additional public acclaim due to the writings of Gertrude Atherton, Faxon and Dominga de Goni Atherton's daughter-in-law. Widowed in 1887, after 11 years of marriage to George Atherton, Gertrude became even more' dedicated to writing and travelled extensively to New York, The Atherton House is architecturally significant as an unusual example of the Queen Anne and Stick/Eastlake style. It is notable for its successful massing of diverse spaces, its basically balanced asymmetrical facade, and its eclectic combination of roof styles. Its appearance of solidity and bulk is successfully enlivened with an underlying tension created by the movement of interrelated spaces, and decorative motifs. Historically, the house is significant as the home of a prominent early California pioneer whose daughter-in-law, Gertrude Atherton, achieved international notoriety as a prolific author and world traveler. Although there is no evidence that Gertrude occupied the house herself, her mother-in-law raised Gertrude's children there from 1881 to 1890.
Jan 31, 1979
Posted Date
Apr 10, 2022
Historical Record Date
Jan 31, 1979
Source Name
United States Department of Interior - National Park Service
