The Fisk House, San Francisco

Houses aren't alive, are they? Families who have lived in the Fisk House describe the feelings of protection and strength, just a "presence." Perhaps like the way some will speak about a "life" that lives on in a new way...ancient trees ripped from the land, cut apart and reassembled in a geometric form. Others point out how energy or "qi" moves around and can be channeled for good energy flow to support the family. Or perhaps it was the families who lived here, five families, all who experienced growing up, growing old, and life beginning or ending here.The house speaks to us...for 140 years it has witnessed so much history here in San Francisco. It began talking as we restored and put back missing pieces of the structure during the first few years we lived here.Telling the house's story starts with its original design and location, so we begin there. Then, each family will be introduced, and their separate journeys that brought them to this extraordinary house will be told and will be the central part of The Fisk House, San Francisco: The Beginning and the Families.