Apr 012012
Nob Hill
Pacific Union Club
Flood Mansion
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This house, built in 1886 forJames Clair Flood, was the first Brownstone west of the Mississippi. It was the only great Nob Hill house to survive the 1906 Fire, saved just barely, thanks to its Connecticut brownstone walls. The Pacific Union Club purchased it’s shell and William Bourn, who was on the building committee, secured the reconstruction commission for Willis Polk.
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This bronze fence surrounding the property is the city’s finest; Flood allegedly employed one man just to polish it. With those days gone, it has been allowed to mellow to a fine patinated green. The pattern was supposedly taken from a piece of lace that Mrs. Flood admired, and surrounds all four sides of the property.
At the time it was built the fence cost $30,000. (around $715,000 in 2012 dollars)
Flood was one of the “Bonanza Kings“, a saloon Keeper that came from New York in the 1870s, he made his fortune in one of the richest silver strikes in the United States – The Nevada Comstock Lode.
The Pacific Union Club is a highly private mens club. Entry to the PU club for non-members is difficult at best.
I love that fence! And the patina.
Fascinating history of this place. I love the story of the fence!
The fence is fantastic. I guess they must have shipped all that brownstone by rail. It must have cost a bundle!
Grand ol’ house for sure. I am sure keeping that fence polished was a full-time job, but I too prefer the verdigris patina over the polished.
That fence is an amazing piece of art. Thank you so much for the history! 🙂
This was a single-family home? The mega-rich really are different. Who would want to live in such a place? A men’s club might be passe these days, but…
Wow! What a grand house!! And, the fence, beautiful!
Great photos of this historic building. Glad it was saved for posterity.
The fence has a great story. I appreciate how people opts to maintain and at the same time enhance it’s appearance over the years.