According to Karla Andersen's article "The Octagon House", San Francisco hosted up to eight octagon -shaped houses in the Victorian era. Two remain today: the Feusier House on Russian Hill, a private residence, and the Cow Hollow house built for William C. McElroy in 1861. The octagon house illustrated in Dorgeloh's lithograph is the McElroy house before it was moved.
In 1951, PG&E decided to develop the property and sold the house for $1.00 to the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America. The organization moved the house across the street to 2645 Gough Street (at Union Street) and restored it. The exterior is in its original condition and the building is on the National Register of Historic Places.