Just Listed


250 Douglass Street

Known over the years as the Alfred E. Clarke Mansion, the Caselli Mansion, Nobby Clarke’s Castle, and most memorably “Nobby Clarke’s Folly,” 250 Douglass Street has stood at the corner of Douglass and Caselli for well over a century. 

 

Built in the late 19th century for Alfred E. “Nobby” Clarke, the mansion was an unusually ambitious undertaking for what was then a sparsely developed corner of Eureka Valley. Its grand scale and exuberant Queen Anne architecture stood in dramatic contrast to the modest cottages surrounding it, earning the house its enduring “Folly” nickname. 

 

After Clarke lost the property in the 1890s, the mansion began another chapter. It was acquired by the California Medical College and used as the Maclean Hospital and Sanitarium, later operating as the California General Hospital. The building survived the 1906 earthquake and fires and was subsequently adapted to residential use. 

 

Its architectural and historical importance was formally recognized in 1975, when the City of San Francisco designated the Alfred E. Clarke Mansion San Francisco Landmark No. 80. Today, the property retains the unmistakable presence that has defined it for generations: four stories, multiple towers and bays, patterned shingles, elaborate Victorian ornamentation, high ceilings, abundant windows and a commanding corner setting. 

 

One of San Francisco’s most beautiful and distinctive apartment buildings, 250 Douglass Street is a true trophy asset—an irreplaceable piece of the city’s architectural history and a chance for its next owner to become the steward of a landmark that has endured for generations.