Cloverdale in Sonoma County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Gould--Shaw House

Photographed By Loren Wilson, September 13, 2014

1. Gould--Shaw House Marker

Inscription. Gould-Shaw House Thomas Jefferson Gould, an Indiana born blacksmith, built this house, which has become an important part of the town’s history, in 1862. One of the few surviving examples of Gothic Revival architecture, the house is the oldest documented dwelling in Cloverdale. Isaac Ellis Shaw bought the house from Gould in 1875 and lived there with his wife and two children. Following his wife’s death Shaw remarried, moved his new wife Minerva, into the house and had another two children. Shaw died in 1905 and his wife lived here until her death in 1938. The house was purchased by the Cloverdale Historical Society in 1983 and underwent major renovations and retrofitting in the late 1990’s.

Erected 2014 by Sam Brannan #1004 and Yerba Buena #1, E Clampus Vitus.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Landmarks • Notable Buildings • Notable Places • Settlements & Settlers. In addition, it is included in the E Clampus Vitus series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1862.

Location. 38° 48.405′ N, 123° 1.107′ W. Marker is in Cloverdale, California, in Sonoma County. Marker is on North Cloverdale Boulevard (Highway 101), on the right when traveling south. The Plaque is located

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on an east wall of the Cloverdale History Center, adjacent to the Gould-Shaw House. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 215 North Cloverdale Boulevard, Cloverdale CA 95425, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 16 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Isaac E. Shaw Building (within shouting distance of this marker); Icaria-Speranza Utopian Colony (approx. 2½ miles away); Italian Swiss Colony (approx. 3.9 miles away); Frog Woman Rock (approx. 7.7 miles away); Hopland and the Brewery (approx. 12.7 miles away); Site of First Adobe Home, Lake County (approx. 15.2 miles away); Harmon Gregg Heald (approx. 15.7 miles away); March/Heald Flour Mill (approx. 15.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Cloverdale.

More about this marker. East wall of the office just north of the office entrance

Regarding Gould--Shaw House. When Indiana-born blacksmith Thomas Jefferson Gould built his house on Cloverdale’s West Street in 1862, he had no way of knowing it would one day be known as the Gould Shaw House, much less that it would become such a significant part of the town’s history. Located at 215 Cloverdale boulevard, the house is the oldest documented dwelling in Cloverdale and one of the rare surviving examples of the Gothic Revival architecture. This is an architectural style of the Victorian

Gould--Shaw House image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Loren Wilson, September 13, 2014

2. Gould--Shaw House

era that is characterized by steeply pitched roofs, pointed-arch windows, elaborate trim along the roof edges, and high dormers.

Isaac Ellis Shaw bought the house from Gould in 1875, He lived there with his wife Louisa and their two children, Charles and Ella, until Louisa’s untimely death in 1878. Shaw remarried the following year and moved his new wife, Minerva, into the house. They eventually had two children of their own, Frank and Gertrude. Shaw died in 1905 and Minerva continued to live there until her death in 1938.

The year his first wife died, Shaw had formed a business partnership with John Bowman. They built a large brick building on the northwest corner of West Street at Second Street where they operated a mercantile store known as the Shaw Bowman Company. The building changed hands several times over the years, with the last owners being Ray and Bernice Donnelly, who operated Donnelly Department Store until 1971. The building was razed in 1975 to make room for a parking lot, which is still what it is today.

In the early 1880’s, banking activities were conducted out of the Shaw Bowman Building. A bank charter was officially obtained by Shaw and six other merchants on February 25, 1884. First called the Cloverdale Exchange Bank, and later the Bank of Cloverdale, Shaw was the first president. After Minerva’s death, the house had several owners

1900

3. This picture was taken in 1900. Members of the Shaw family can be seen standing on the front porch.

Photo courtesy of the Cloverdale Historical Society

before the Cloverdale Historical Society purchased it in 1883 with the idea of turning it into the Cloverdale Museum. The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1992 and underwent a major renovation and earthquake retrofitting in the late 1990’s.

On Saturday, July 21, 2012, the citizens of Cloverdale were invited to attend a celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Gould-Shaw House. An old fashioned ice cream social was held on the garden patio accompanied by birthday cake and balloons. Tours of the new History Center were a feature of the afternoon.

By Mary Jo Winter,
Cloverdale Historical Society

Additional commentary.
1.
The Gould-Shaw House was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 10, 1992 (listing #92001244).

— Submitted June 14, 2022, by Alvis Hendley of San Francisco, California.

circa Unknown

4. Gould--Shaw House

Photo courtesy of the Cloverdale Historical Society

Credits. This page was last revised on June 14, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 14, 2014, by Loren Wilson of Sebastopol, California. This page has been viewed 539 times since then and 29 times this year. Last updated on November 13, 2017, by Greg Rogers of Cloverdale, California. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on September 14, 2014, by Loren Wilson of Sebastopol, California. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.