A mansion is tucked away just under the Bay Bridge

Some of the Navy’s most senior officers came and went as residents, including an unfortunate admiral whose entire collection of dress trousers was engulfed in flames in a small house fire in 1934. “Admiral Senn sent the remains of his once-royal wardrobe to be dry cleaned, but no matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t get the clothes back into ship shape,” reported the San Francisco Examiner.

After World War II, the most famous resident of Quarter 1 moved in: Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz. Nimitz was appointed commander of the Pacific Fleet days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. His exploits in the Pacific theater made him a household name around the world and helped the United States win a seemingly unwinnable war of attrition en route to Japan.

The exterior of Nimitz House shows signs of disrepair. (Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)
(Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE)

In 1947, at the age of 62, Nimitz announced that he was retiring as chief of the country’s naval operations. He told the press he wanted to spend his golden years “babysitting” his grandchildren, but maintained an office on Treasure Island in his capacity as special adviser to the Secretary of the Navy. Quarter 1 also belonged to him and was soon renamed Nimitz House.

After a lifetime of war, Nimitz enjoyed the peace and tranquility of retirement. He divided his time between a home in the Berkeley Hills and Nimitz House. In 1963 he was living full-time on Yerba Buena Island, preferring to be close to his office and his beloved San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. He repeatedly turned down interview requests for birthdays, much to the annoyance of the local press. “Few American heroes have ever planned a quieter birthday,” said the Oakland Tribune in February 1964.

“Admiral Nimitz has quietly but firmly declined all interview requests,” the newspaper added, “and is expected to spend most of the day in his quarters on Yerba Buena Island.”

However, he received some very excited visitors that day. He had become friends with the students at the nearby Yerba Buena Elementary School. One Valentine’s Day, he had sent them candy – which their teacher said was very sticky – and the children gave him Valentines in return. At Christmas they came to his door to sing Christmas carols. For his 79th birthday, 19 little students and their teacher, Mrs. MacIntyre, went to Nimitz’s house with a birthday surprise: a book about the San Francisco Bay and a handmade card with a poem.

Five-year-old Steven was asked by the Examiner to recite the poem the children had written for the great war hero. He could only remember one line: “We hope you enjoy the book we sent you, it will not be bent.”

“It wasn’t exactly great poetry,” Ms. MacIntyre admitted. “I let them write what they wanted to write. I guess you would say it came from the heart.”

Two years later, Nimitz suffered a stroke. He died surrounded by his family at the Yerba Buena Mansion just days before his 81st birthday. All air traffic at SFO had to be halted to allow 70 jets to fly over him during his funeral at Golden Gate National Cemetery.

Decades passed, and in the 1990s the Navy announced that it would be permanently withdrawing from Treasure Island. Mayor Willie Brown’s office considered converting Nimitz House into the city’s “official residence” after the last rear admiral had moved out.

“The mayor wouldn’t actually live there. It would be more of a ceremonial residence, maybe a Camp David sort of thing,” a spokesman for Brown’s office said.

Instead, the Nimitz House became a venue, at least temporarily. The city rented it for $500 — not a bad price for one of the most historic and picturesque homes in the Bay Area. But its days as a party venue were short. After the catastrophic collapse of the Bay Bridge during the Loma Prieta earthquake, everyone agreed that the aging bridge needed to be modernized, although for more than a decade there was no consensus on how to do it.

In 1998, the feud between the Navy, which still owned Yerba Buena Island, and Brown went public. Navy officials expressed disappointment that the new eastern route would pass directly through Nimitz House and the nearby historic homes of other officers. A Navy official called the plan “devastating.”

“This particular property is really valuable,” the consultant told the examiner.

Such was the animosity over the fate of Nimitz House that the Navy once prohibited Caltrans engineers from setting foot near the property. But in 2000, the stalemate was finally broken; The federal government transferred the property, including Nimitz House, to the state of California, effectively “depriving the Navy of its only negotiating tool,” the Los Angeles Times reported. On September 2, 2013, the new eastern section of the Bay Bridge opened directly above what was once the royal residences of admirals and officers.

What the Navy feared has come true. The gleaming white facade of the mansion is dulled and blackened by car exhaust fumes. A fan falls from the porch ceiling like a dying tulip dropping its petals. Inside, the stunning reception room still feels bright and cheery, even if the loud hum of commuters has all but wiped out its potential as a wedding venue.

Around the house the hedges are being carefully trimmed and a few trees are resolutely shedding the last spring buds. Signs likely put up by the nearby Coast Guard warn intruders to stay outside.

Under the constant din of traffic, Nimitz House quietly disappears.