Several posts back, I made a mention of the “weather in Peter Stratmoen’s 1975 pictures”. Peter Stratmoen took a series of photographs around San Francisco during 1975. I don’t know if his pictures were taken during the fall, winter, spring or a Mark Twain summer, but they’re all overcast and dark. I’ve covered some of them already on my blog. With fall here we’ll be moving closer to gloomy weather similar to “Stratmoen weather”, but not just yet! On this first complete day of fall it’s still sunny and warm in San Francisco. We’ll start downtown at Union Square and follow a route similar to the ‘Barbary Coast Trail’ to Aquatic Park as we track down Peter Statmoen’s 1975 locations. (Peter Stratmoen pictures from Vintage Everyday)
Union Square looking northeast: The building on the far left has been demolished since 1975 and is now where Saks Fifth Avenue is, but other than that the view hasn’t changed a lot except for Union Square.
We’ll head into Chinatown looking north toward Pine Street from Bush Street.
Now we’re looking east down Sacramento Street.
Grant Avenue at Clay Street: Except for the next picture, you won’t see any major differences in the Chinatown of today and 1975.
The quaint gas station at Jackson Street and Columbus Avenue has been replaced by a bank now. It’s too bad that couldn’t have been saved. The gas station was on the south side of the old Sentinel Building on Columbus Avenue.
We’ve moved into North Beach, looking southeast on Columbus Avenue from Chestnut Street. Notice the old Kentucky Fried Chicken on the left when it was still officially called ‘Colonel Sanders’. “Lately, I have been spotted with a Big Mac on my breath; stumbling in to a Colonel Sanders with a face as white as death.” (cf. ‘Junk Food Junkie’) Notice that the cable car tracks ran down the center of Columbus Avenue back then and along the side of the avenue today. This must have been done during the major renovation of the cable car system during 1982/1983 to ease traffic congestion on Columbus.
We’ve ended up in Aquatic Park. Why do I always feel like putting on a sweater when I look at Peter Stratmoen’s photos? Not much of a change here, except there was nobody in Aquatic Park; like a scene from ‘On the Beach’. Maybe it was too cold.
San Francisco Film Locations Then & Now 
The sycamore in the second pair of pictures indicate that the pictures were taken in early or mid summer. That does not narrow it down much. The foliage is too mature for spring, and not tired enough for late summer. The lawn in the last pair likewise indicates that the pictures were taken in spring or summer. Lawns do not need to be watered prior to spring (in San Francisco), and would be browning slightly by autumn. The timing could be narrowed down a bit more if I could see what was blooming.
Wow! That is so. cool that you would know all that! Thank you, Tony!
Well, I am a horticulturist and arborist . . . and only 50 miles away. I sort of know how the climate works there.
👍
There’s an interesting book entitled ‘The Natural World of San Francisco’ by Harold Gilliam, written in 1966, with wonderful text and vintage pictures of the natural environment of San Francisco back then, much of it unchanged today. The hardback copy has two great maps inside the cover pages, and is available on Amazon.com for around $5.00.