The Garfield Building, designed by the Reid Brothers, is an excellent example of the retail building type that was constructed in the aftermath of the 1906 Earthquake and Fire.

The original owner of the Garfield Building, Elise Abigail Drexler, was one of the first active woman landowners/developers in San Francisco. She was born in 1866 in Mendocino as the daughter of businessman William Kelly. She attended Mills College and later moved to San Francisco, where she had some local prominence.

Drexler began acquiring real estate under her own name in the early 1890s. In 1893 she wed Louis P. Drexler. Upon his death in 1899, she inherited his estate, which she then managed for over fifty years.

Adapted from San Francisco Planning Commission Resolution 16806 approved 3 June 2004

The Reid Brothers

Some buildings designed by the Reid Brothers:

• 1894: Selfridge Houses, 2601-2611 California
• 1894: Breeden House, 2770 Broadway
• 1896: Weed House, 1919 Sacramento Street
• 1898: Call Building, 703 Market Street
• 1899: Spreckels Temple of Music, Golden Gate Park Music Concourse
• 1899: Spreckels House, 2083 Pacific Avenue
• 1901: Irwin Mansion (Destroyed by fire in 1956), 2190 Washington Street
• 1901: Geneva Car Barn
• 1902: Hale Brothers Department Store
• 1906: Fairmont Hotel, Mason Street Between California and Sacramento
• 1907: Hale Brothers Department Store Earthquake Repair
• 1907: Merritt Building, 612 Howard Street
• 1908: Drexler Estate Building, 938-942 Market Street
• 1908: David Hewes Building, 995 Market Street
• 1908: Rose Building / W. & J. Sloane Co., 216-220 Sutter Street
• 1908: Polo Grounds Stadium, Golden Gate Park Polo Field
• 1909: Cliff House, Point Lobos Road
• 1909: Murphy Windmill Keeper's House, Golden Gate Park
• 1910: California-Pacific Building, 105 Montgomery Street
• 1910: Drexler & Preston Estates Building, 117-129 Post Street
• 1910: Hale House, 26 Presidio Terrace
• 1913: Colombo Building, 1-21 Columbus Avenue
• 1914: Call-Post Building, 74 New Montgomery Street
• 1914: First Congregational Church
• 1916: New Mission Theater, 2550 Mission Street
• 1916: Royal Theater, 1529 Polk Street
• 1916: Theatre St. Francis (Lefty O'Doul's Bar & Grill), 333 Geary Street
• 1917: Residence, 2646 Vallejo Street
• 1918: Colisuem Theater, 745 Clement Street
• 1919: Hotel Lankershim, 55 Fifth Street
• 1923: Alexandria Theater, 5400 Geary Boulevard
• 1923: Bullock & Jones Building, 340 Post Street
• 1924: Roosevelt Theater, 2781 24th Street
• 1924: Metropolitan Theater, 2055 Union Street
• 1926: Balboa Theater, 3630 Balboa Street
• 1926: Harding Theater, 616 Divisadero Street
• 1927: Avenue Theatre, 2650 San Bruno Avenue
• 1927: Riviera Theatre, 562 Haight Street
• 1927: Co-Op Apartments, 1100 Union Street
• 1927: Rapp Building, 121 Second Street
• 1928: Amazon Theater, 965 Geneva

For more about the Reid Brothers, see NRHP Listing 01001206, New Mission Theater.