FIVE MAJOR SUB-TYPES OF VICTORIAN
San Francisco’s architectural vocabulary is diverse, offering a huge range of styles from the city’s 1776 founding of the Presidio and the Mission Dolores with the adobe style to every design revolution in each successive decade: Gothic, Victorian, Edwardian, Mediterranean, and on.?
Until Victoria died in 1901, the British Empire reigned in territories worldwide. As Rev. R.P. Buddicom said, “The sun never sets on the British Empire.” And neither did Victoria’s influence on styles around the world. When Victorian wore a white wedding dress for her nuptials, brides everywhere did the same.?
Victorian became the Queen in 1837 upon the death of William IV. She was just 18 years old. She was on the throne for 64 years. Her tastes prevailed until Edward ascended and started to put his stamp on tastes from 1901-1910,? which bracketed San Francisco’s earthquake in 1906.
Victorian homes and buildings in San Francisco owed much to the Gold Rush, plentiful Redwood trees, and an end to wooden shipbuilding.? The style has become important to the city’s character and is a mecca for tourists. Although there are different types within this broad Victorian classification, generally, Victorian homes have steep roofs, asymmetrical facades, and detailed fretwork and patterning
When searching for San Francisco homes, here are five popular styles.
1. ITALIANATE (1840-1870)
A popular type of San Francisco Victorian home is the Italianate. This home style is characterized by its flat front and slanted bay windows. Popular from the 1850s through the 1870s, the Italianate style mixed and embellished traditional European styles to create fanciful decorations for homes. They’re typically made of redwood, with heroic tensile strength, they are strong against earthquakes, so many survived the natural disaster of 1906. Other features of the Italianate are decorative brackets, a low-pitched roof, and elaborate frames for arched doors and windows.
There are three different types of Italianate: flat front, slant front, and freestanding Italianate villa. Flat fronts are characterized by their flat fronts, as well as, towering false fronts, which add to their exterior opulence. Slant fronts feature the Italianate’s slanted bay windows, which became a popular way to increase square footage in the 1880s. Today, slant fronts (also known as bay window Italianate) are hallmarks of San Francisco. Freestanding Italianate villas are large constructions originally built for the upper class to appear like stone Italian villas. As such, they have faux quoining, stucco, or sand in the paint to make it appear like stone.
Click this link to see a video about a famous Italianate.?
2. EASTLAKE-STICK (1860-1890)
The Stick-Eastlake style is known for its square bay windows, its ornately crafted woodwork, and intricately carved details in its fa?ade. Like Italianates, many Eastlake-style homes managed to survive 1906 and stand today. Those looking for this home type can spot Eastlakes by their nature themes, sunburst brackets, and plant imagery like rosettes, vines, acanthus leaves, sunrises, and flowers. Back in their heyday, they were also painted in a range of muted colors.
The Eastlake style is closely related to the Stick style, which applies sticks to the exterior wall, transforming it into a decorative element. These rose in popularity through the house pattern books available in 1860 and 1870. Although they aren’t the same, those with Eastlake homes also used catalogs to order decorative detailing for their properties
3. QUEEN ANNE (1875-1905)
One of the most popular types of San Francisco Victorian homes is the Queen Anne style. It rose to fame from the 1880s to 1901. This style was made to stand out with its multiple-storied construction, asymmetrical architecture
Originally, the Queen Anne Style was created for large summer houses, which was the perfect fa?ade for the gingerbread-esque detailing and decoration. However, with more construction and less space available, this style was adapted for row houses and workers' cottages. Overall, those looking for this home type can note its steep roofs, patterned surfaces, elevated front porch, and ornamented front-facing gable.
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Another type of Queen Anne in San Francisco is the turreted Queen Anne. These are large constructions, typically taking up corners of a street or on double lots. As such, they’re typically freestanding homes rather than row houses or other iterations. Their sheer size indicates the wealth of their owners, while the towering ornamentation was an extra touch indicating wealth.
4. GOTHIC REVIVAL (1830-1860)
The Gothic Revival style emerged in the 1840s, becoming a popular choice through the pattern books of Andrew Jackson Downing. The sprawling style is typically popular in rural areas, although that didn’t stop ambitious architects in the city. Given their large size, many of these buildings are used in public spaces like civic and religious buildings, although there are a few residential examples that exist today.
These San Francisco homes are distinguishable by their steep roofs, pointed arch windows, and decorated gables. In some instances, these buildings can also have castle-like turrets or battlements. A version of the Gothic Revival is the Carpenter Gothic, visible in examples like the Nightingale House. Instead of stone construction, the style is built with wood. They are decorated with bargeboards and spindles. There are at least three Carpenter Gothic homes left in San Francisco.?
Click this link to see one of the last Carpenter Gothic homes in San Francisco?
5. SECOND EMPIRE (1852-1870)
The Second Empire was the Victorian style altered by France. Its most prominent feature is a Mansard roof. A Mansard roof has a multiple-sided gambrel hip roof, with the lower part at less of a slope than the upper. This makes for usable fourth-floor attics. They often have dormers and turrets. The homes are ornate and often have exotic woods and gold leaf.?
Click this link to see a video about a Second Empire in the center of Hayes Valley.
READY TO SEARCH IN SAN FRANCISCO?
Although there’s a wide variety of Victorian homes in San Francisco, these are five of the most common you’ll see when searching in the area. Also common are modern and contemporary homes that are influenced by these five styles. Buyers can find these styles virtually anywhere in the city, from the classic South Park to Alamo Square, as well as neighborhoods like Bernal Heights and Noe Valley.
Navigating the San Francisco Victorian home scene can get overwhelming, which is why it’s best to have the professional help of a real estate agent to guide you through the styles and areas of the city. When you’re ready to start your search in the area, contact local agent Bonnie Spindler to guide you through the complicated real estate process.