Introduction
Pictured is the “solid, substantial” Tillmann/Goad residence at 2000 Washington street. This house is remarkable for two reasons. First, my grandmother Agnes Lilly Tillmann lived here roughly twenty years, from 1902 to 1922, from early teens to marriage and children (including my own mother), experiencing earthquake and high society with equal vigor along the way.
Second, the house was featured as one of the Bay Area’s “Artistic Homes” spotlighted in 1887 by the S.F. News Letter (26 Nov) when the house was owned by the Goad family. Yes, the house survived the earthquake although with significant repairs.
Tillmann Family
The Tillmann family go back to the Gold Rush. By way of background, Frederick Tillmann (Sr) sailed through the Golden Gate in September 1849, and by 1890 Tillmann had built the largest wholesale grocery on the Pacific Slope, supplying packaged and canned comestibles, coffee, tea, spices, cigars, and liquor and beer on short term credit to retail groceries from SoCal to Alaska.
Agnes Lilly’s father was Frederick Tillmann JUNIOR, who founded the Oakland Preserving Company in Oakland, which first promoted the “Del Monte” mark to distinguish best quality canned fruits and vegetables. The Del Monte mark was also used by Tillmann & Bendel on other goods. Tillmann Jr. also had banking and oil interests.
On her mother’s side (Mangels), my grandmother Agnes Lilly Tillmann was grandniece of Claus Spreckels “the Sugar King,” who married a Mangels. The Mangels family shared in Spreckels prosperity with shipping, sugar plantations, and substantial real estate interests in The City.
Purchase from Goad Estate
Frederick Tillmann Jr. purchased 2000 Washington for $70,000 from the estate of attorney William F. Goad (d. 1898) in 1901.
2006 Washington — Next Door
The block on Washington between Gough and Octavia was a familiar one since Frederick Tillmann Sr. (’49er argonaut and family patriarch) lived at 2006 Washington from 1885 to 1894, next door to the featured house at 2000 Washington.
Tillmann Sr. occupied 2006 with his wife Anna, and their daughters Laura and Adele — sisters to Tillmann Jr. I like to imagine that the Tillmann sisters joined festivities with the three beautiful daughters of Attorney Goad — “budding into womanhood.” In 1894 Tillmann Sr returned to Bremen, but 2006 was retained and leased.
An 1885 advertisement announcing an auction of Pacific Heights residence lots promoted the sale by mentioning the “superb marine view” and the nearby “handsome homes of W.T. Goad, Esq., F. Tillmann, Esq., J. Parrott, Jr., Col. Fry, F. Macondray, Esq., Chas. Lux, Esq., and many others of our solid citizens”.
After the earthquake the house at 2006 Washington was acquired by Lewis Hanchett, a business partner of Frederick Tillmann Jr., my grandmother’s father. Both houses (2006, 2000) were torn down in the mid-1920s by landowners Fred Tillman (Agnes Lilly’s brother) and Agnes Mangels, who arranged for construction of the pair of community apartments standing in the same location today. Here, my grandmother — now Baroness van Eck — and Fred Tillman continued to own full-flat apartments until the 1950s.
Architectural historian Anne Bloomfield describes the new 2006 Washington as follows (from “Great Old Homes #86”, The New Fillmore, September 1992):
“Two thousand six Washington may be the most luxurious apartment building in Pacific Heights. Its 11 stories contain 10 apartments, each 6,000 square feet. Plenty of buildings have one apartment per floor, but they don’t have similar open space next door. Here the building occupies 67 front feet, but the circular driveway and side garden take up another hundred feet of sidewalk, where only the porte cochere intrudes….”
Anne Bloomfield, “Great Old Homes #86”, The New Fillmore, September 1992.
“The early shareholder residents of 2006 Washington are an interesting group. Several also maintained houses in Woodside, Atherton, or Piedmont. They included Roscoe and Margaret Oakes, oil company president, who donated the cream of the De Young’s permanent collection: paintings by Rembrandt, Hals, and others. There were Dean Witter, founder of the stock brokerage firm; financial manager Alan Lowrey, and his father-in-law Charles Black, railroader. Several members of the Schilling Spice family lived here: August Schilling, the founder, physician son Walter, and daughter Else, friend of Julia Morgan, who designed the interiors of their apartments here and a house for Else in Tahoe.”
Anne Bloomfield, “Great Old Homes #86”, The New Fillmore, September 1992.
“The other five were auto dealer Stanley Smith, civil engineer Charles Quinn, attorney Thomas Palmer, banker’s widow Mrs. Philip Bowles, and Alexander Hamilton of the Baker and Hamilton hardware firm, whose sign still rises over their former building at Seventh and Townsend, inside the bend of the central freeway. Exactly the kind of people you’d expect in a really grand building…”
Anne Bloomfield, “Great Old Homes #86”, The New Fillmore, September 1992.
Yes, all grand people, and all people with close associations to the Tillmann family. Stories for another time.
Tillmann Family Before 2000 Washington
When first married in 1887 the Tillmanns lived at 923 Grove street near Alamo Square.
My grandmother Agnes Lilly was a frail child. To provide a healthier climate for their kids, the Tillmanns moved to Oakland in 1892, purchasing a 12-acre estate and building a new residence on Fruitvale Avenue near Bona. Tragically, the house burned to the ground in 1900.
For the next two years (1901, 1902) the Tillmanns lived out of hotels, alternating between the Del Monte Hotel in Monterey and the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. Purchase of the Goad house in 1901 provided the Tillmanns with a permanent residence for the next 20 years.
Occupants of 2000 Washington
Living inside 2000 Washington were the Tillmann family — Frederick Tillmann Jr., his wife Emma Maria Mangels, Emma’s sister Agnes Mangels, and two Tillmann children — Agnes Lilly Tillmann and her brother Fred Tillman.
Also living inside were household help, described by Agnes Lilly in unpublished Stories for Grandchildren, written in the 1970s:
“We had three Chinese boys as help who lived in the basement where the kitchen was; Lee, our chef-cook, was with us for 25 years, and when we gave parties he had his young ‘cousins’ come in and help. The upstairs maid, Josie [Giuseppina Giocomatti, 1884-1928]… married our tall Italian butler [Adonis “Adone” Ferrari, 1884-1915] on the same day as my own wedding” [June 30].
Agnes Lilly Tillmann, Stories for Grandchildren, 1970s.
Sad note — After their marriage Josie and Adone moved to Lytton, Sonoma County. Tragically, Adone died in 1915, following which Josie moved to Cloverdale.
2080 Washington — A.B. Spreckels
Uphill from the Tillmanns at 2080 Washington lived cousin Adolph B. Spreckels, first cousin to both Emma Mangels Tillmann and Agnes Mangels, who both lived at 2000 Washington. I note that the Spreckels were late comers — Tillmann Sr (2006) first lived on the block in 1885, and Tillmann Jr (2000) moved next door to dad’s house in 1901.
Goad House — S.F. News Letter (26 Nov 1887)
Following are the 1887 News Letter’s image and description of the Goad’s “Artistic House”.
1911 Photograph Album
Interior images of 2000 Washington street featured in this article come from a 1911 photographic album, professionally prepared by Gabriel Moulin. The album was presented to my grandmother Agnes Lilly Tillmann as a 22nd birthday gift in 1911 by her aunt Agnes Mangels.
Residence at 2000 Washington
Rooms in the Goad’s “Artistic Home” were described in the 1887 S.F. News Letter, but photographs are dated about 1910/1911 — so roughly twenty years after the room description. Each section below pairs a room’s 1910 image with the same room’s 1887 description. QUOTATION MARKS HIGHLIGHT NEWS LETTER EXCERPTS.
Site and Floor Plan
A rough floor plan is provided as an aid.
Photographs of 2000 Washington Street
Entrance Hall
“Upon the northwest corner of Washington and Gough streets stands the residence of Mr. Wm F. Goad, the well-known lawyer and school director. The solid, substantial order of architecture which it represents may be seen by a glance at the artotype accompanying this issues of the NEWS LETTER. The front entrance is approached by a flight of wide granite steps, leading to a marble-paved porch whose roof is supported on fluted Corinthian columns.”
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
“The vestibule is floored in bright-hued tiles, and is hexagonal in shape, with a heavy oak dado and frescoed walls. The heavy oaken vestibule doors, lighted by art glass, open directly into the main [Entrance] hall, which is nearly square, as well as spacious. Its greatest length is from north to south. At the north end, confronting the entrance is the hall fire-place.”
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
“The floor is inlaid with oak, the walls are painted terra cotta in oils, the dado is lincrusta, after the style of pressed Cordovan leather. On the left of the hall is the library [pictured and described below]…. In the center of the left side of the hall rises the staircase with its landing [ditto]….. Here, also, near the main staircase, is the flight descending to the billiard-room below [ditto]. On the right of the hall massive rolling doors of paneled maple open into the drawing room [ditto].”
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
Library
“On the left of the [entrance] hall is the library, finished in black walnut, with a beautiful mantel and chimney-piece, the fire-place set in legendary tiles.”
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
Kids used the library too, at least for fun if not for reading. Pictured is my grandmother Agnes Lilly, her brother Fred, and their mother Emma. Others present include children of J.D. Spreckels (who lived a few blocks away) and Tillmann cousins.
Drawing Room
“On the right of the [entrance] hall massive rolling doors of paneled maple open into the drawing room with its inlaid floor, a mirror which reaches from floor to ceiling.”
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
Music Room
“Beyond [the drawing room] is the music room, with a magnificent mantel of California onyx.”
San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
After the Tillmanns acquired the property, the music room became a more intimate room for gathering before or after dinner. The grand piano is located in the drawing room.
The rug on the floor? Sigh, the skin of a polar bear. My mother vividly remembered playing on the rug as a child at the van Eck home on Russian Hill.
Causerie
“Doors from each of these rooms [drawing room, music room] open into the round room formed by the swell window, so impressive a feature of the plan of construction. It is fitted up as a causerie, or secluded nook for conversation.”
Causerie — a room to chat in, have a private conversation.
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
Dining Room
“En suite with the music-room is the dining-room, in the northern side of the house. This room is finished in oak, with a dado; floor inlaid, as indeed are all the floors in this first story. The buffet is built into the south side of the room. On either side of it is a door opening into the main hall. In the western side is a richly carved mantel with its towering chimney-piece and tall mirror. To its left is the smoking-room, to its right the butler’s spacious pantry.”
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
“Professional” albums often seem aseptic to me, showing a house beautiful, devoid of life. But the Tillmanns lived in these rooms too. Pictured below is Agnes Lilly’s graduation party from the Hamlin school in 1907, held in the dining room.
The dining room also held a Christmas tree, at least in 1904.
Staircase
“In the center of the left side of the hall rises the staircase with its landing, from which arises the art-glass windows that shed light through upper and lower halls.”
Goad House, San Francisco News Letter, November 26, 1887.
Discovered among my grandmother’s wedding photos (1914) was an image of the staircase looking up from the Entrance Hall. This is paired with the 1911 photograph. Near the main staircase is the flight descending to the billiard-room below.
Conservatory
There is no mention of the conservatory in the 1887 description of the Goad house.
In the following image, the Tillmann family poses with Peter Spreckels, brother of Claus Spreckels, in the conservatory.
1906 Earthquake & Fire
Smoke rises as The City burns. Folks gather just in front of the Tillmann houses on Washington street. The Tillmanns left San Francisco and took up residence in the gardener’s cottage of their former property on Fruitvale avenue in Oakland. The fire stopped at Van Ness, and my 16-year old grandmother Agnes Lilly wept when she learned 2000 Washington had been saved.
Pictured is reconstruction of 2000 Washington following the 1906 earthquake and fire. Amazingly, we see that one third of the house has been demolished preparatory to reconstruction. This means that the Drawing Room, Music Room, and Causerie featured earlier represent all new post-quake construction. What would that cost today? A huge expense, especially since the house itself was demolished in its entirety 15 years later about 1922.
View From the Rear
Buried in the archives were two small panoramic images of San Francisco bay, taken from the rear of 2000 Washington street. Slide them together and we see that the photographer intentionally created a long panoramic view of the bay. My best guess for date is after the 1906 earthquake, likely same year.
Guess What?
We’re not even close to showing all the rooms in the Tillmann residence — on ground level are billiards room, wine cellar, and garage; on the second story are upper hall and four bedrooms; on third story are the game room — packed with deceased Uncle Henry Mangels’ collection of trinkets from world travels — and a private theater with stage where Agnes Lilly, cousins, and friends (the “Attic Amateurs”) acted comedies in costume for the Pacific Heights crowd. Enough for a second article.
Credits
Copyright 2021 by Mark H. Reed. Unless otherwise noted, all images from Tillmann Family Archives.