The Crazy History Of This Spectacular Hotel Built On San Francisco’s Cliffs

Since its opening in 1863, the Cliff House has been a focal point of the San Francisco area. The property’s rich history and dramatic location have made it into one of the most enrapturing spots in the city. Yet hard times have fallen on this place, and its future is uncertain at the time of writing.

On the plus side, the place has repeatedly reinvented itself over the decades, so there’s reason to think it’ll bounce back. In fact, there have actually been several different buildings calling themselves the Cliff House on that incredible spot along the cliffs. Between closures and blazing infernos, the establishment has needed to start again so many times.

Word began to spread in December 2020 that the place was shutting down, though it wouldn’t be the first time that trouble has descended upon the spot. Granted, the property’s problems are certainly tough these days. But if the Cliff House’s remarkable past is anything to go by, this won’t be the last we hear of it!

The Cliff House has been loved by people from all walks of life – be it the rich and powerful or everyday, working people. At various points in time, the property has served each demographic and consequently became a beloved part of San Francisco. And it’s a site that would be sorely missed should it close down for good.

In recent times, the Cliff House complex was actually split into a number of different establishments. There were three restaurants operating there called Sutro’s, the Bistro and the Terrace Room. It was also home to a pair of drinking establishments called Sutro’s Bar and the Zinc Bar.

The Cliff House is situated in Point Lobos – a reserve famed for its natural beauty and wildlife. The building’s connection to nature, in fact, is probably what makes it so special. On a good day, you could listen out and hear sea lions calling to each other in the ocean before you.

Jutting out of the sea beneath the Cliff House is a collection of tiny islets known as Seal Rocks. Two species of sea lion used to frequently sunbathe on these rocks, which is where the name came from. More recently, though, you’re more likely to spot birds resting on the formations.

Aside from potential sightings of sea lions, the Cliff House has plenty of other draws, too. The cliffs upon which it’s built are themselves breathtaking, while there’s also plant life and old ruins to capture your attention. And in years gone by lucky onlookers were even treated to the occasional whale sighting.

John Martini is a historian from the area, so naturally he has his thoughts on the Cliff House. He told The Guardian in December 2020, “There’s something about the place that draws you. Maybe it’s the classic American westering – keep moving west, keep moving west. This is as far as it goes. This is the edge.”

Maybe Martini is onto something, because the Cliff House really does appear to capture people’s imaginations. There are, after all, a whole host of books, films and video games set there. Novelist Jack London has used the spot in a couple of his stories, while the Ubisoft game Watch Dogs 2 also includes the area. Plus, rock band Blue Öyster Cult included an image of the building for the cover of their album Imaginos.

The Cliff House and its surrounding area have also inspired their fair share of ghost stories. One, for instance, tells of a woman who once stood looking out at the sea – waiting for her partner to come home after fighting in World War I. With a broken heart, she passed away, and there are those who say they’ve seen her spirit.

This mysterious woman is far from the only apparition that’s supposedly been seen around the Cliff House, though. The ghosts of people who lost their lives in the water have also apparently been sighted. And it’s said that if you place a candle down in a haunted tunnel of the property, then a spirit will toss it straight into the sea.

What conclusion can we draw from all these ghostly tales, then? Well, either the Cliff House really is haunted, or the spot’s rich history and striking landscape have inspired people’s imaginations. You can make your own decision as to what you believe, but the building’s real-life history is undeniably gripping stuff.

The Cliff House claims that it has hosted a grand total of five different American presidents over the years. These were Teddy Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley and Rutherford B. Hayes. And on top of these leaders, the famous writer Mark Twain has also shown up for a visit.

The Cliff House’s past is full of twists and turns, but its early history is a little tricky to pin down. According to some sources, it was Samuel Brannon who first set up a place on that particular spot. Brannon was the first person to become a millionaire during the Gold Rush era and is famous for exclaiming, “Gold! Gold on the American River!”

Others say that the Cliff House was actually constructed under the direction of Captain Junius G. Foster. Another theory is that a man by the name of Charles Butler was responsible. But regardless of the truth here, there’s no question that the building quickly became popular once it was built.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Mark Twain was one famous figure who initially fell in love with the Cliff House. Though the time after that was apparently less positive. The newspaper notes that he later wrote, “The wind was cold and benumbing. It came straight from the ocean, and I think there are icebergs out there somewhere.”

The Cliff House’s history becomes a little more clear from 1883 onward, after the site was taken over by Adolph Sutro. And it was under his ownership that the place became truly popular, with large numbers of tourists drawn to spend time there. Alas, it wasn’t smooth sailing for very long.

Disaster struck a few years after Sutro took over the Cliff House. A boat sailing past got caught up in bad weather and ended up running aground. If that wasn’t bad enough, the ship had been transporting a rather troublesome load. The website SFGATE notes that it had been carrying 42 tons of explosives!

You can probably guess what happened next: the ship blew up. And with all those explosives on board, it was a big one. The website claims that the blast was so intense that it could be sensed from Sacramento – more than 100 miles away. In fact, people actually mistook the explosion for seismic activity.

The damage to the Cliff House was catastrophic, according to SFGATE. Half the building was totally destroyed, while each and every window was left shattered. Worse still, there were people who got caught up by the blast and were horrifically injured. The episode was clearly nothing short of a disaster. Sadly, as things would play out, it would be the first of many.

Locals in San Francisco apparently flocked to the Cliff House after hearing about the disaster. As per SFGATE, some 80,000 people showed up! Sensing a way to capitalize on the unfortunate circumstances, the owners put together a makeshift “open” sign and started serving customers in the remaining parts of the building. Before long, the place was totally repaired and back in business properly.

Seven years after the boat incident, though, things again went drastically wrong. During the Christmas season, a fire engulfed the Cliff House and left it in ashes. The San Francisco Chronicle ran a story laying out the damage following this latest disaster. It read, “The Cliff House is a smoldering ruin where the silent ghosts of memory hover pale and wan over the blackened embers.”

Again, the Cliff House needed to be rebuilt. This time, though, its owner Adolph Sutro decided to totally reimagine the building. He had a massive Victorian Gothic mansion built on the site, which split opinion. As per the Chronicle, the new building “struck some as a romantic castle, while others described it as a sensational monstrosity.”

Sutro was clearly a man of ostentatious taste – as we can see from another of his schemes. At the same time as this new mansion was being built, he also arranged for an elaborate swimming pool complex to be constructed alongside it. Then, just a couple of years after the project’s competition, Sutro passed away.

Eight years after this, the infamous 1906 San Francisco earthquake ripped through the city and left the structure severely damaged. But in spite of its tendency for ruin, the Cliff House survived. You may have presumed that the building’s fortunes were finally changing – yet just a year later it burnt down once again! And nobody knows how this inferno started.

The Cliff House would never again recover to its full glory after Sutro’s mansion was lost. Though his daughter Emma Merritt did build on the site once again. This time, it was neoclassical in style and reinforced with steel and concrete. In theory at least, the building would now survive for a long time.

Predictably, though, the eatery soon ran into trouble. Yet this time, it wasn’t a fire that did the damage. It was actually the military and the U.S. government, which, according to the Cliff House’s official website, dictated in 1918 that “all establishments within a half mile of military installations are to halt the sale of liquor.” Without the sale of alcohol, though, business was certain to struggle.

Sure enough, by 1925 the Prohibition Era was in full swing and the Cliff House had to shut down entirely. The alcohol ban didn’t last forever, though, and in 1937 the owners of the Ocean Beach theme park close by bought the property and apparently turned it into a roadhouse diner.

The Cliff House never totally got back on top of things, though, and it drifted into decline following WWII. With more cars and roads available to the inhabitants of San Francisco following the war, people could travel to other beaches further away. So, the Cliff House suffered. And to make things worse, the Sutro Baths went up in flames in 1966.

According to SFGATE, rumor has it that the fire was started on purpose as an insurance scam. The baths weren’t totally destroyed, mind you, and their shell remained. These ruins, then, gave the site a certain eerie feel that added to the whole site’s beauty and mystique.

In 1977 the Cliff House and its surrounding land was bought by the National Park Service, which brought it into the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Public assemblies were held in order to make a decision about how the site could be redeveloped. Many people, however, called for it to be left alone. They loved the creepy ruins of the Sutro Baths as they were.

The Cliff House wasn’t the only establishment to be built along those cliffs, though. Another place called Louis’ Restaurant opened up there in 1937 and operated until 2020. It was originally run Tom Hontalas’ grandparents, and he would later take over the business himself.

Reflecting on the location, Hontalas told The Guardian, “When you think of a national park, you think of Yosemite, you think of somewhere you drive to. But this is in a city. That makes it really special. People actually live here and visit it every single day, just like we did when we went to work.”

As for the Cliff House specifically, it was renovated yet again in 2003. In addition to cosmetic changes to the building itself, an entirely new wing was also raised. This sat above the Sutro Baths, which then allowed people to enjoy the beautiful ruins as they dined in the restaurant.

Sadly, like so many other places, the Cliff House fell on hard times in 2020. For generations, the place had gone through economic downturns, natural disasters and possible sabotage. But the lockdown proved to be a struggle too far, and its owners have been forced to cease operations.

The closure of the Cliff House is hugely significant for the people of San Francisco. The building has been an institution in the city for generations, even though it’s gone through several iterations down the years. From the rich and powerful to the everyday working person, the site has been important for so many.

But even though the Cliff House has been forced to close down, you’d have to imagine that it’ll come back some day. Someone else is bound to buy the site and to start a new chapter in its already rich and gripping history. After all, it’s happened so many times already.

In February 2021 the San Francisco Chronicle reported that the National Park Service had plans to allow the Cliff House to become a restaurant once more. So, if everything goes well, people won’t have too long to wait for a new development. Maybe we’ll soon get to see what comes next in the story of the Cliff House.