Brown studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris, the world's preeminent architectural school, graduating in 1901.

[3] In 1975, construction commenced on United Nations Plaza, designed by noted landscape architect Lawrence Halprin and located next to the Federal Building.

The Federal Building is a contributing element to the San Francisco Civic Center, which the Secretary of the Interior designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987.

The Federal Building is an excellent example of Second Renaissance Revival architecture, displaying style-defining features such as distinct horizontal divisions, a rusticated base, and classical ornamentation including columns on the exterior elevations.

The attic story is set back from the wall plane of the building and is surrounded by a classical balustrade and topped by a molded cornice.

Secondary entrances are located on the southeast and southwest corners of the building, where the meeting points of the exterior walls have been designed as concave arc configurations.

Round arches with ornate medallions placed on the keystones also mark these entrances, and Doric porticos are located above the second story of the corners.

The carvings sport different horticulturally themed headpieces, including corn, wheat, cat tails, and oak leaves.

Above the wainscot, the cast-stone walls spring into the barrel vaulted ceiling, which features molded hexagonal, rectangular, and diamond-shaped decorative coffers and shell motifs.

A detailed cornice and doorway surmounted with a triangular pediment add to the classically inspired design of the entry spaces.

The former Collector of Internal Revenue office contains a similar cornice and paneled wood wainscot covers the walls.

[3] In 1977, after frustration that the secretary of the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare had delayed signing regulations implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for four years, disability rights protestors marched to this federal building and began a sit-in that became a 26-day occupation.

[11] In November 1985, activist Cleve Jones organized a candlelight march in remembrance of the 1978 assassinations of San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk and Mayor George Moscone, and he asked people to write the names of loved ones lost to AIDS-related causes on signs.