Structure Type: built works - religious structures - cemeteries
Designers: Jones and Emmons, Architects (firm); Frederick Earl Emmons (architect); Archibald Quincy Jones (architect)
Dates: constructed 1952-1953, demolished 2000
2 stories
Following World War II, Daphne developed an interest in Modern architecture, and enlisted the assistance of Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) but broke off dealings with him before a design was finalized. Following his break with Wright, Daphne was traveling in Palm Springs, CA, where he became impressed with buildings in the Town and Country Center (1948) designed by architects Paul R. Williams (1894-1980) and his one-time employee, A. Quincy Jones (1913-1979). (Jones worked for Williams in 1939-1940.) He engaged Jones and his partner, Frederick Emmons (1907-1999) who produced this startlingly open and non-traditional building for Daphne. Writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, 07/31/1999, writer Ken Garcia summarized the importance of the Daphne: "[It] is considered a sterling example of mid-century modernism, a simple yet sophisticated blend of angles, surfaces and materials that fit in superbly with its elevated surroundings. Designed by famed Southern California architect A. Quincy Jones, the building uses redwood, brick and generous amounts of glass in a innovative design that combines indoor/outdoor chapels and mortuary rooms. A number of architectural historians consider the building one of Jones' finest works, although he received more attention locally for his designs for Eichler homes. The idea for a modernistic funeral home was the idea of maverick mortuary owner Nicholas P. Daphne, who became known for low-cost funerals and earned the ire of his competitors in the process. Daphne, who died in 1990, helped break the monopoly of price-fixing in his industry, and he served as a consultant to Jessica Mitford, the late Bay Area writer, for her famous expose on the funeral industry, 'The American Way of Death.' Daphne wanted an iconoclastic design to fit within his marketing scheme, which is how he selected Jones, who was making a name for himself as a pioneer in modernistic buildings in Los Angeles. The mortuary, considered the first Modern funeral parlor, has been included in a number of books on notable buildings in the Bay Area and has been called by preservationists one of the greatest commercial buildings in San Francisco and a 'modernistic masterpiece.'" (See Ken Garcia, "Calling Out Landmark Brigade; Daphne, New Mission have come under siege," San Francisco Chronicle, 07/31/1999, Accessed via LexisNexis, 06/17/2011.)
According to San Francisco County Assessor records, the Daphne Funeral Home had 25 rooms and 5 baths; construction began in 1952.
Demolished. Proposed demolition of this Modern building sparked a flurry of protests c. 1998-2000. The San Francisco Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board (LPAB) ruled in a hearing on 04/21/1998 meeting: "The architectural integrity of the building's design had been compromised by the alterations." Other comments about the building included: "The building presented itself as light and delicate, an example of an "utopian" modernist building--one that didn't belong in San Francisco." (
PCAD id: 16582