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First Unitarian Church (San Francisco)
The First Unitarian Church is a church structure built in 1889 and is located at 1187 Franklin Street at Geary Street in the Cathedral Hill neighborhood, San Francisco, California.[2] It is also known the First Unitarian Universalist Church, and is nicknamed "Starr King's church".[3] HistoryThe Unitarians built their first San Francisco Church in 1853 at 805 Stockton Street. When the congregation outgrew the first building within a decade, a new church was built on Union Square at 133 Geary Street, under clergyman Thomas Starr King, who was instrumental in advocating for California to join the Union.[4][5] Thomas Starr King died in 1864 and his sarcophagus still remains is on the grounds of the church.[6] In 1889, the church was moved to 1187 Franklin Street, its current location. The building was designed by architects Percy & Hamilton in the Richardson Romanesque-style.[7] After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, the bell tower was rebuilt.[7] Prominent members associated with the early days of the church in San Francisco were James Otis,[8] Leland Stanford, Bret Harte, Andrew Smith Hallidie, and Ralph Waldo Emerson.[2] Later members of the congregation included Julia Ward Howe and Edward Everett Hale.[9] Other ministers after Starr King at this church included Horatio Stebbins (1821–1902) serving from 1864 to 1900;[10] Bradford Leavitt (born 1868) serving from 1900 to 1949;[11] Harry C. Meserve (1914–2000), serving from 1949 to 1957;[12] and Harry Barron Scholefield (1914–2003) serving from 1957 to 1975.[13][14] See also
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