Picture Perfect! - The F.C. Sheldon House

by Sandee Wilhoit • Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation Dec. 12, 2025

The F. C. Sheldon House

(1886)   

1233 Island Avenue

Architects: Comstock and Trotsche

Architectural Style: Queen Anne

San Diego in the 1880s, was a city booming with growth, a burgeoning population and infinite possibilities. It was even being touted as a rival of San Francisco, not only because of its natural harbor and trading opportunities, but also because of the new transcontinental railroad, which brought investors to San Diego. Its increasingly divergent population and its proximity to the exotic foreign country of Mexico served as the catalyst for tourists, opportunists and those looking for a healthy climate and a fine place in which to settle down. There was ,indeed, something for everyone.

What had begun as a modest waterfront gathering of frame buildings, was now becoming a cosmopolitan city . Many who had come west to make a fortune had succeeded and were now in a position to exhibit their success and prosperity. One such means was to build an impressive house and grow your family.

Many, if not most, of these elaborate new houses were built in the ornate and imaginative Queen Anne style. These multi-storied wonders featured

exquisite excesses of color, stained glass, porches, balconies , roof finials, gargoyles and  statuary, cantilevered upper stories , patterned shingles and brackets and decorative chimneys.  Most also boasted turrets or towers. In a Queen Anne house more was always better! There was no such thing as “too much!” They were a joy to behold from any angle,, and a smooth wall was to be avoided at all costs!

Dr. Frederick C. Sheldon,  successful and wealthy,  and also the father of nine children, selected Master Architects Comstock and Trotsche to design his high-style residence. He was rewarded with the architects’ efforts, as the resulting structure is easily one of the most exceptional examples of the grandeur of the Queen Anne in all of San Diego county. 

The residence is a three story frame structure with an asymmetrical facade and a stunning wrap- around corner entry porch. There are several steeply pitched gabled roofs, many dormers and tall vertical windows. In addition to the abundant use of cutwork shingles, elaborate spindle work and ironwork, the most defining feature is the use of stained glass in every window in the house. This was rather extravagant even for a Victorian Queen Anne house! Different colors of paint were used to further define the decorative elements of the home. Muted shades of terra cotta, brick red, dark green, tan and mustard served as the pallet for the structure.

Unfortunately, Dr. Sheldon did not get to enjoy his fine new home for long, as he died shortly after construction was completed. In fact, his funeral was the first event to be held in the house.

According to local lore, the good doctor caught pneumonia while taking his family on a celebratory cruise down the coast of Mexico. Aboard the ship he and his family met a young couple, possibly on their honeymoon, who were sleeping on the deck. The kind and noble doctor thoughtfully  gave the couple his room. Unfortunately, a storm came up, and Dr. Sheldon was forced to sleep in the wind and rain all night. He returned home with a terrible cold, which developed into pneumonia. No good deed goes unpunished!

Mrs. Sheldon, the grieving widow, was now left with nine children and no means of supporting herself and her brood. However, she did have a brand new, nine bedroom, three bath home, complete with two fireplaces. She quickly converted it into a boarding house. It rapidly became a most lucrative business. As her fortune increased, she eventually had the house moved by the Palmer Brothers House Movers to its present location on Island Avenue. The original location was on 11th and D Streets. With the remainder of her profits, Mrs. Sheldon had another home built at the location originally chosen by her husband.

Throughout the years, this lovely building has had many owners. According to current records it is owned by the Island Partners. Although it appears uninhabited, the property is beautifully maintained. The appraised value is listed at $1,639,895.00. As it now also provides parking for eight, cars and a two -bedroom guest house, that seems a bargain for such a stunning edifice. Think of how lovely it would look decorated in Victorian Christmas splendor.  A ghost of Christmas past!

Sandee is the historian for the Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation. She can be reached at swilhoit@cox.net