He described modern bathrooms, spacious and well-appointed servant's quarters, easy cleaning and maintenance, good ventilation and ample fireplaces.

[5] Mindful of the severe damage caused by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, London and Farr incorporated great strength and durability into the design of the structure.

He also hired his older sister Eliza London Shepard (1867–1939) as his ranch superintendent, and she was involved in the day-to-day management of the construction.

[3] The structure of the home was built of five primary materials, all obtained locally: Coast Redwood logs with bark intact, boulders, chunks of volcanic rock blasted out of the ground and otherwise unquarried, blue slate, and concrete.

[5] Construction of Wolf House was almost complete and the Londons were planning to move in when a fire began late on the night of August 22, 1913.

Charmian London later wrote that Eliza was "scarred to her soul" and that the foreman Forni was "like a father who had lost his child, and in danger of losing his reason".

[6] His wife also wrote that "the razing of his house killed something in Jack, and he never ceased to feel the tragic inner sense of loss".

The National Union Fire Insurance Company later featured a thank you letter written by London in an advertising campaign.

[3] Jack London pledged to rebuild the house, and his workers began to cut fresh redwood logs, which had to be dried and cured for 18 months before reconstruction could begin.

In 1995, a forensic analysis of the cause of the fire was completed by a team of ten experts led by Robert N. Anderson, a retired engineering professor from San Jose State University.

Earlier on the day the fire started, a linseed oil finish was being applied to the "magnificent" oak and walnut interior cabinets and woodwork.