City's oldest house wears its new coat well

The revived appearance of the city's oldest dwelling is a tribute to the current owner, Frank Jaros. He has patiently toiled to restore the body and spirit of the marvelous 19th century house, standing on the east side of 45 S. Delaware Avenue, approximately 50 yards south of San Mateo Creek. Known as the William Sands house, its restoration has become quite a time-consuming project, as Jaros has labored to match 21st century building practices with a 19th century building.

"There are still builders in this area who can do this kind of work," Jaros said. "But there aren't many, and they can be hard to find."

Many builders and contractors are apparently accustomed to a standardized, sometimes cookie-cutter approach to construction. Many of the intricacies and handiwork found in historic structures such as the Sands House simply are not as available as they once had been.

While historic restorations frequently involve the work of an entire crew, Jaros has managed the revitalization on his own. Without the substantial financial backing often associated with such endeavors, Jaros work has been incremental and graduate, as time and funds have allowed. The results have already positively impacted this historic residential area of San Mateo.

Jaros recalls when the area along Delaware Avenue surrounding San Mateo Creek was considered one of the more dangerous areas of the city. Now, he says, you can walk down Delaware Street any time, day or night.

The restoration efforts at the Sands House, as well as the historic Brown houses and other structures in the area just east of downtown, has had a two-fold effect: the historic significance of the neighborhood is once again being highlighted, while its safety is being returned.

This neighborhood resides on land once owned by Charles B. Polhemus, the pioneering San Mateo railroad entrepreneur. Polhemus came to San Francisco from South America during the Gold Rush in the late 1850's. He quickly started buying up land along the anticipated corridor of the newly formed San Francisco-San Jose Railroad. Polhemus served as director of the railroad, which would be completed in 1865. As director, he could stipulate the placement of the railroad track; not surprisingly, the track ended up running directly through the San Mateo land he purchased. The land he owned resided on the south bank of San Mateo Creek, from present day Baldwin Street to Fifth Avenue, and between what is now San Mateo Drive and Delaware Street. In all, he put up 176 lots for sale, 40 of which he sold for the creation of the downtown area, which would benefit both the new town and the railroad. William Sands bought one of those lots, reportedly for $300 in the mid 1860's.

William Sands was born in Ireland in 1830, traveling to California in 1857. After living for a time in both Santa Barbara and San Francisco, Sands finally settled in San Mateo in 1862. Purchasing the land for his house from Polhemus, Sands reportedly worked as a teamster, when teamsters drove horses instead of trucks. He both sold and drove horses when carriages and stagecoaches provided the chief mode of transportation along the Peninsula. In 1881, Sands served as an officer of the A.O.U.W., the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He also served several terms as young San Mateo's first constable. William Sands died in 1895.

The Sands house became one of the first private dwellings built in San Mateo. Historians place its construction date somewhere between 1863 and 1868, but Jaros can be more exact. In the early days of his project, Jaros had found a "Seated Liberty" 50-cent piece imbedded in one of the front porch support pillars the wood. Perhaps someone wanted the actual construction date of the house known; the date on the coin is 1864.

Jaros says he has learned a lot through his admirable efforts to restore the Sands House, a project he considers not yet complete. For anyone aspiring toward a historic restoration, he has the following advice: "It requires a lot of patience. Take a good look at what you're going to do, because it can occupy most of your life."