THE HUMBOLDT COUNTY
CONVENTION & VISITORS
BUREAU
1. 423 FIRST ST (1st & F St.)
Originally: BUHNE GENERAL STORE
Style: Greek Revival - Built: 1869
This is one of the oldest buildings in Old
Town. Constructed as a general store for
Captain H.H. Buhne (who also brought the
first large group of settlers into Humboldt Bay
in 1850).
INVITES YOU TO:
Step back in time and take a self
guided tour through Eureka’s Old
Town Waterfront District.
Having missed the Urban Redevelopment
phase of the 60's, Eureka now finds itself as
one of the few remaining reminders of the old
commercial centers
Eureka was established in 1850, not as the
lumber town it eventually became, but as a
transportation and supply center for the Gold
Rush that was happening along the Klamath
and Trinity Rivers. Since Humboldt Bay was
the source of all commerce at that time, a
business district developed along the
shoreline with offices, merchant shops and
saloons.
Today, the Old Town and Downtown district
is one of Eureka’s greatest assets. These
blocks of vintage commercial buildings have
been lovingly restored, and now contain
bookstores, restaurants, coffee houses,
galleries, museums and a variety of unusual
boutiques. Walk the blocks of this National
Register Historic District, Eureka’s original
waterfront district where time remains in the
victorian era of the late 1800’s
2. 422 FIRST ST - FIRST STREET
GALLERY, H.S.U. E.E. JANSSEN BLDG.
(1st & E St) Style: Italianate Built: 1875
Highlights of this building are the six cast-iron
columns on the main floor in front and the
corniced label moldings located above each
of the five second floor windows. Housed
the first elevator in Northern California.
Today: The gallery showcases Humboldt
State University’s outstanding & sometimes
edgy fine arts program.
3. 102 F ST – CAFÉ WATERFRONT
Originally: THE WAVE SALOON/THE
WEAVER BLDG. (1st & FSt)
Style: Eastlake Built: 1892
This building remains substantially unaltered
from its original design. Originally the Wave
Saloon, a gathering place for fishermen,
stevedores and later on, loggers. “The
Bluebird Rooms” (a brothel) were on the
second floor. Today: You can still get a
drink, but it’s going to be a micro-brew or
chardonnay to accompany the daily seafood
special. Stay a night at the Bed & Breakfast
that now occupies the second floor.
4. 108 F ST Originally: D.C. MCDONALD BLDG.
SUPPLY STORE (1st & F St)
Style: Classical Revival Built: 1904
Constructed in brick and molded concrete
designed to imitate stone. This was the site
of a building supply outlet up until the early
l960’s. Today: A boutique clothing store.
5. THE GAZEBO (2nd & F St)
The Ferry Terminal that was located at the
foot of F street, original entrance to city,
made this the busiest street in town. Today:
A Gazebo occupies this old town square.
Still a gathering space, especially on the 1st
Saturday of every month when the pigeons
make way for vendors and entertainers.
6. 123-131 F ST– THE LINEN STORE
Originally: Odd fellows Hall (2nd & F St)
Style: 2nd Empire/Italianate Built: 1882
The original main entrance on Second St.
is a two-story classical pavilion supported
by cast-iron Ionic & Corinthian columns.
The second floor was a meeting hall for
the Odd Fellows until the early 1950’s.
The main floor, a dry goods store.
Today The Linen Store, - fine linens &
sleepware among an eclectic assortment
of other items.
7. 208 F ST- MANY HANDS GALLERY
Originally: The Pacific Pharmacy Bldg.
(2nd & F St) Style: Queen Anne
Built: 1893
The gables, roof and façade are
representative of the Queen Anne style.
Started out as the Pacific Pharmacy and
continued as a pharmacy until the 1980’s.
Today: You can find many fine art and fun
collectables at Many Hands Gallery. Here
you will find a nautical section complete with
pirate flags. Some of the other shops in this
complex offer fine arts, jewelry, antiques and
beads.
8. 320 2nd St. – EUREKA BOOKS
Originally: Lowenthal’s Haberdashery –
The Louvre Café in 1925
(2nd & F St)
Built: 1873
With humble beginnings as a café, the
Louvre transformed into a tough logger bar,
the ‘High Lead Saloon,’ as the logging
industry grew in this area. (High lead is
reference to a term used for the main cable
of a tramway used in transporting logs).
Today: A treasure trove of old and out of
print books.
to seat 1,400. The theater closed in 1912.
Only used for H.S. gradutions until 1923.
Today: The Discovery Museum, an
educational fun place where kids can
interact with science, art & technology
exhibits.
9. (Alley way 2nd & FSt)
Back entrance in alleyway to the old Louvre
Café, now Eureka Books. This sign is
probably 100 yrs old.
10. 416 Second St (between E & F St)
Originally: The Cousins Building.
Style: Classical/Mission Revival
Rebuilt: 1905 after a fire
Constructed in the 19th century, and rebuilt
with this eclectic façade after a fire in 1905.
The scroll parapet – a Mission Revival style
also has elements of Classical Revival. One
standout is the window frames with "bound"
garland.
11. 403-11 2nd (2nd & E St)
Originally: C.W. Long Building
Style: Italianate Built: 1877
This commercial building has the standard
Italianate simple detail, brick with a
decorative cast-iron storefront, representative
of the commercial buildings of this era.
Today: You can stop in at Los Bagels for
breakfast, lunch or a snack and then browse
the retail shops along this block.
12. 325 2nd St (Between E & D St)
Originally: DREAMLAND
Style: Classical Revival Built: 1908
Originally known as Dreamland, where you
could buy a dance for a dime. It then
became a theater, skating rink and Old
Town Bar & Grill. Special features of this
building are the highly decorative concrete
window surrounds.
13. 217 D ST (2nd & D St)
Originally: The Metropole Hotel
Style: Classical Revival Built 1903
20th century Classic Revival style in wood.
The upper floors were furnished rooms and
the corner was once the Eureka Chop House
restaurant. Today: Apartments occupy the
upper floors with retail at street level.
Ground floor corner is Humboldt Herbals.
14. THE EAGLE HOUSE INN
(2nd & C St)
Built: 1886
This Eureka Landmark began as a hotel &
restaurant. In 1893. Competition from a
nearby hotel inspired the owners to split the
building into two sections, move them aside
and erect a three story edifice on the site,
incorporating the original sections as wings.
Alteration in 1984 added a theater &
penthouse giving the structure a 4th floor.
15. 240 E ST (3rd & E St)
Originally: THE BANK OF EUREKA
Style: Classical Revival Built 1911
Constructed for the Bank of Eureka and
designed by Albert Pissis an important San
Francisco architect. This building features a
granite base with brick walls covered in
glazed architectural terra cotta, typical of this
style. Today: The Clarke Historical
Museum, houses artifacts of Humboldt
history with ever changing displays, including
the Victorian period. The Native American
Wing features a world-recognized collection
of baskets, regalia, stone and wood objects.
16. 227 F ST (3rd & F St)
Originally: THE INGOMAR THEATRE
Style: Sullivanesque Built: 1892
The Carson Block - In the face of a logging
and milling recession, Wilam Carson decided
to erect this building, designed by Samuel
Newsom. In addition to office, commercial
and residential spaces, it contained the
Ingomar Theatre, an opera house designed
17. 527- 531 3RD ST (3rd bet. F & G St)
Originally: The J RUSS BUILDING –
Style: Queen Anne Commercial
Built: 1883
This building stylizes a commercial building
with Queen Anne features. The main floor
officed a real estate firm that handled many
of the timberland sales. Upstairs was a
private men's club. Today: A good spot to
look for that missing piece of antique
victorian glassware to complete your set.
Eureka’s waterfront could give
the Barbary Coast a run for its
money, so much so that writer
Jack London came here in
search of authentic tough guys
on which to base his
characters. People still talk
about what happened to
London when in 1912 he got
on the wrong side of a local
lumberman in the Oberon
Saloon.
buildings, to institutional structures.
Common characteristics are: Vertical
proportions - Tall, rounded windows and
doors - Stone trim with incised foliated
ornament - Intricate wood or pressed metal
cornices.
Today: The once hotel rooms are now
apartments with stores lining the street. Stop
in at the Himilayan Rug Company for that
one of a kind hand woven rug from
Katmandu.
\
18. 600 2ND ST (2nd & G St)
Originally: THE BUHNE BUILDING
Style: Renaissance Revival Built: 1884
The outstanding features on this building is
the cast iron storefront and brick elevations
and arched windows. This was designed for
commercial and residential use with a public
hall on the 3rd floor for social events.
Today: Artist studios have taken over the
offices. Humboldt Rug & Gallery main floor.
20. 516 2ND (2nd bet G & F St)
Originally: THE OBERON SALOON
Style: Classical Revival Built: 1886
Clientele from the Vance Hotel frequented
this saloon where the walls were once
decorated with oil paintings and tapestries. It
is most remembered for a fight started by
Jack London in 1910.
22. 117 F ST – VANITY (F bet. 1st & 2nd)
Originally: THE SNUG BLDG., A Saloon
Style: Italianate Built: 1890
Originally outfitted as a saloon, then a
barbershop and bathhouse. Located at the
very entrance to town from the port, it would
have been a very busy place. Today: From
“hair raising” to “hair styling,” it is now Vanity,
a hair salon and spa.
STYLES:
Classical Revival – Based on the
architecture of ancient Greece and Rome,
was one of the most widespread styles in the
United States during the late 1800s and early
1900s. Its versatility was adaptable to a wide
range of building types and budgets.
Common characteristics: Symmetrical
facades - Minimal use of bays, towers or
other projecting building elements - Classical
ornament, including columns, cornices, and
triangular pediments -Variety of materials,
including brick, stone, terra cotta, and wood.
19. 525 Second ST (2nd & G St)
Originally: THE VANCE HOTEL
Style: 2nd Empire / Classical Built: 1872
Built for the lumber pioneer John Vance, as a
first class hotel. It originally featured a third
story octagonal cupola which was replaced
in 1902 with a full two-story addition. An
interesting feature is the wood siding which
is scored to resemble stone. This is one of
the largest all-wood buildings in California
and the first commercial building in Eureka
to install electric lights in the mid 1880’s.
21. 203 - 215 F ST (2nd & F St)
Originally: C.S. RICKS BUILDING
Style: Italianate Built: 1878
Iron columns graced with Corinthian capitals.
Built for C.S. Ricks who established the first
water company in Eureka. Today: Bon
Boniere’s, a café with great desserts. This
original “candy store” is one of the oldest
businesses still operating in the district. .
Greek Revival - Based on ancient Greek
temples. Common characteristics: Overall
cubic form – Classical Greek ornament, such
as columns – Gable roofs combined with
pediments.
Italianate - One of America's most popular
19th-century styles, derived from the
architecture of Italian villas. It was popular in
the late 1800’s for a wide variety of building
types, from houses and small apartment
Eastlake/Stick - The decorative possibilities
inherent in machine-manufactured wood
were promoted by late 19th century
architects. Name refers to Charles Eastlake,
an English architect and the use of wooden
“stick work.” Common characteristics:
wood construction – Decorative wooden
planks (stick work) outlining the underlying
wood frame structure – intricate wooden
details such as lathe-turned spindles &
jigsaw-cut brackets.
Queen Anne - Buildings in this style have
asymmetrical shapes characterized by bays
and prominent, varied rooflines. Common
characteristics: Rich but simple ornament –
Expansive porches – Pressed metal bays &
turrets – Irregular roofline with many dormers
& chimneys – variety of materials.
Second Empire - Inspired by the elaborate
architecture of the late 1850’s & 60’s in Paris
– when it was rebuilt by Napoleon III.
Common characteristics: Intricate stone
ornamentation surrounding doors & windows
– Sloping “mansard” roofs, often with multicolored sate shingles & elaborate dormers –
Prominent cornices.
Mission Revival – derived from Spanish
missions of California. Common
characteristics: Smooth stucco – fluid arches,
arcades & balconies – Tiled roof
Sullivanesque - An influential architect in the
late 1800’s, Louis Sullivan developed this
style using terra cotta. Common
characteristics – Masonry walls – Terra
cotta ornament.
Visit the Samoa Cookhouse
A historic lumber camp restaurant & logging
museum and
The Humboldt Bay Maritime Museum.
Just 4 minutes from Eureka, across the Samoa
Bridge
Humboldt Bay Discovery
Virtually invisible from sea,
Humboldt Bay was one of
The Clarke Historical Museum
A significant part of the Redwood Coast’s
pioneer heritage is interpreted at the Clarke
Historical Museum located at 240 E Street
(see No. 15) open Tuesday to Saturday
11:00am to 4:00pm. The museum was
founded by schoolteacher Cecile Clarke in
1960, and since that time its collection of
Humboldt County artifacts has steadily grown
through donations and acquisitions.
The Madaket – Bay Cruise
The Madaket is the last survivor of seven
original ferries that transported mill workers
and families around Humboldt Bay. Built in
1910 and refurbished in 1989, she remains as
a reminder of Eureka’s bustling waterfront era.
The Madaket, along with her sister ships,
carried passengers, barged lumber, ties,
shingles and log rafts to awaiting ships and
mills. These vessels operated seven days a
week, 24 hours a day, plying the waters with
no fewer than 1,200 to 1,500 people a day.
Today you can step aboard the Madaket and
learn the history of Humboldt Bay and
Eureka's waterfront during a 75-minute
cruise traveling along the shores of the
bay. Operates June thru September. Call
for schedule (707) 445-1910.
Architectural Tour of
Historic Old Town Eureka Waterfront
“A Victorian Seaport”
Don’t Miss
FIRST SATURDAY NIGHT
Of every month
Arts Alive!
6PM – 9PM in Old Town
Visit the artist studios that
now reside in some of these
buildings.
The Vance Hotel on 2nd and G Streets was the social
and commercial center of town for many years.
Compliments of:
Humboldt County Convention & Visitors Bureau
1034 Second St., Eureka, CA 95501
707.443.5097 800.346.3482
Hwww.redwoods.info