Phelan Building

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Phelan Building
250px
A view of the Phelan Building from the Central Tower, 2014
General information
Type Commercial offices
Retail space
Location 760 Market Street
San Francisco, California
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Groundbreaking October 7, 1907
Completed 1908
Technical details
Floor count 11
Floor area 31,000 sq ft (2,900 m2)
Lifts/elevators 9
Design and construction
Architect William Curlett
Developer James D. Phelan
Designated 1982[1]
Reference no. 156
References
[2]

The Phelan Building is an 11-story office building in the downtown shopping district of San Francisco, California. It has a triangular shape reminiscent of the Flatiron Building, with its tip at the meeting point of Market Street, O’Farrell Street, and Grant Ave. It is a San Francisco Designated Landmark.

The building was designed by William Curlett and built in 1908 by James D. Phelan on the place of the first, original Phelan Building, damaged by the 1906 earthquake and fire.

The original Phelan Building

The first Phelan Building was constructed in 1881 by James Phelan, the father of James D. Phelan. It was a 6-story, bay-windowed, mansard-roofed flatiron.[3]

Despite being advertised to be “thoroughly fire and earthquake proof”,[4] the building was badly damaged in the 1906 post-earthquake fire, and its ruins were subsequently dynamited on April 20, 1906.[5]

  • Old Phelan Building.jpg

    Original Phelan Building in 1888

  • Phelan Building after the earthquake on April 20, 1906.jpg

    Ruins of the original Phelan Building

The second Phelan Building

The work of the new Phelan Building started on October 7, 1907 and was finished on September 1, 1908 for stores and the first day of 1909 for offices.[6] It was one of the earliest office buildings to be rebuilt after the earthquake. The building exterior features metal windows and is clad in cream glazed terra-cotta. The original steel structure was designed to accommodate 13 floors; eventually eleven were completed.[7]

At its opening, the building featured an assembly hall on the 11th floor, arcade stores on the second floor, and a basement café.[6]

For many decades, the Phelan Building was a de facto center for jewelry, hosting dozens of jewelers and a jewelry school.[8]

  • Phelan Building (9154685638).jpg

    Phelan Building in 2013

  • Tip of the Phelan Building

  • Inside Phelan Building, San Francisco.jpg

    7th floor of the Phelan Building in March 2014; the last floor in its original configuration at that point and not converted to open layout

The penthouse

An unusual feature of the building is a small penthouse. Originally adorned by a rooftop garden, it was used by James D. Phelan to entertain dignitaries. It has later served as a photography studio in the 1960s,[9] and was abandoned some time in the 1980s.

  • The Phelan Building penthouse.jpg

    The penthouse as of April 2014

Major tenants

References

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External links

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