Historic Walking Tour Guide: Webster Street Landmark District

One-sheet walking tour of the Webster Street Landmark District in San Francisco. Features six stops: the First, Second and Third Henry Hinkel Row; 2389 Washington; 2405 Washington; 2311 and 2315-2321 Webster. From introduction: "The Webster Street Landmark District is an important collection of typical middle-class houses built between 1878 and 1880 by two of San Francisco’s most prolific speculative builders of the 1870s: The Real Estate Associates (TREA) and Henry Hinkel. TREA, San Francisco’s largest builder of housing in the 1870s, built nearly 1,000 houses based on designs by architect John Remer. TREA pioneered quality low-cost housing in what were then suburbs. The private residence for the company president, William Hollis, at 2319 Webster Street was among the last built by the company. Henry Hinkel, the second of four generations of San Francisco builders, built thirteen of the District’s remaining houses. Hinkel’s designs are more decorative, as seen in the row at 2209-2253 Webster Street. The Italianate style of the landmark district is identified by the vertical emphasis, angled bay windows and dominant cornice line. Note the consistent scale, height, and setback of the buildings. Architecturally, the main portion of a typical house has strong vertical moldings that contrast the horizontal lines of the bracketed cornice that are part of the false-front parapets that hide a gable roof. Notable on the rooflines and brackets are cutwork, scrolls and moldings from old-growth redwood. Bay windows with richly detailed moldings, flanking windows, paneling, and sometimes fretwork are found on most of these buildings. Tall narrow paneled recessed entries are marked by prominent bracketed door hoods which align with the bay’s minor cornice." Funding for this project was provided in part through a 2010 Preserve America grant to the City of San Francisco (grant number 06-10-AP-5034) for the Market and Octavia Historic Resource Preservation Project. The grant was administered by the State, Tribal, and Local Plans and Grants Division, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Preserve America is a federal initiative that encourages and supports community efforts to preserve and enjoy our priceless cultural and natural heritage. The goals of the program include a greater shared knowledge about the nation's past, strengthened regional identities and local pride, increased local participation in preserving the country's cultural and natural heritage assets, and support for the economic vitality of our communities.

Historic Walking Tour Guide: Webster Street Landmark District

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