Chambers Mansion

The Chambers Mansion is a historic house that was built in 1887, and is located at 2220 Sacramento Street in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco, California.[1] In 2010, CBS News declared the Chambers Mansion one of the "scariest haunted houses" in the United States, based on stories of its dark history.[2]

Chambers Mansion
Chambers Mansion in 2017
Location2220 Sacramento Street, San Francisco, California, U.S.
Coordinates37.791290°N 122.430237°W / 37.791290; -122.430237
Built1887
Built forR. C. Chambers
ArchitectJulius Case Mathews, J. C. Mathews & Son
Architectural style(s)Queen Anne Victorian, Gothic Revival architecture,
DesignatedOctober 5, 1980[1]
Reference no.119
Chambers Mansion is located in San Francisco County
Chambers Mansion
Location of Chambers Mansion in San Francisco County
Chambers Mansion is located in California
Chambers Mansion
Chambers Mansion (California)
Chambers Mansion is located in the United States
Chambers Mansion
Chambers Mansion (the United States)

The house is listed as one of the San Francisco Designated Landmark, since October 5, 1980.[1]

History

The architect for the house was Julius Case Mathews and the firm J. C. Mathews & Son.[3] The architectural style is Queen Anne Victorian with Gothic and Tuscan details.[4]

The Chambers Mansion was built in 1877 for R. C. Chambers (Robert Craig, sometimes incorrectly identified as Richard Craig; 1832–1901); and for his wife Eudora T. (née Tolles; 1848–1897).[5][6][7] Chambers was an Utah mining tycoon, banker, and politician.[8] Eudora Tolles Chambers died in 1897 at the age 48/49, following suicide attempts.[9][5] After Chamber's death in 1901 and with no direct heirs, his house in San Francisco was inherited.[6] There are conflicting stories about who inherited the house; some stories say his younger sister Ada Chambers; and other stories say it was either his two nieces (or Eudora's two nieces Lillian and Harriet).[6]

In 1917, an addition was added to the house by architect Houghton Sawyer.[4][3][10]

In 1977, Bob Pritikin opened the "Mansion Hotel", a bed and breakfast at the Chambers Mansion.[11] The decor as a hotel was eclectic and featured nightly magic shows.[5] In 2000, he sold the hotel, by then it was designated a city landmark, and was converted into two private townhouses.[5]

Haunting and folklore

The Chambers Mansion has been the subject of many stories.[6] The most popular (but untrue) story is Chamber's niece Claudia Chambers lived with her sister in the inherited house, and the sisters did not get along. In 1917, they built a second house on the property so they could live separately.[6] Claudia was murdered, she was sawed in half in what the family claimed as a farming accident.[6] The ghost of Claudia has been seen haunting the house. However nobody named "Claudia Chambers" ever lived in the house, per city records.[6]

See also

References

  1. "San Francisco Landmark #119: Chambers Mansion". noehill.com. Retrieved 2022-11-06.
  2. "Scariest Haunted Houses in U.S." CBS News. October 28, 2010. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  3. Accardi, Catherine (2012). San Francisco Landmarks. Arcadia Publishing. p. 33. ISBN 978-0-7385-9580-1.
  4. "Ordinance Designating Landmark" (PDF). San Francisco Planning. September 5, 1980.
  5. Vickers, Marques (2019-08-25). Twisted Tour Guide to the San Francisco Bay Area: Shocking Deaths, Scandals and Vice. Marquis Publishing.
  6. Dowd, Katie (2018-10-23). "The ridiculous San Francisco 'murder' that somehow got accepted as fact". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  7. "R. C. Chambers Dead". The Ogden Standard. 1901-04-12. p. 1. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  8. Gibson, Richard I. (April 25, 2022). "Mining City History: R.C. Chambers founder of one of Butte's first banks". Montana Standard. Retrieved 2022-11-07.
  9. "Under An Engine, Mrs. R. C. Chambers Tries To Commit Suicide". The Morning Call. January 3, 1894. p. 7.
  10. McGrew, Patrick (1991). Landmarks of San Francisco. H.N. Abrams. p. 176. ISBN 978-0-8109-3557-0.
  11. Niekerken, Bill Van (2020-12-15). "A colorful, possibly haunted hotel drew celebrity guests — and angry neighbors". San Francisco Chronicle. ISSN 1932-8672. Retrieved 2022-11-06.
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