If Mark Twain did say, (which he never did) “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.” he wasn’t talking about a summer day like yesterday in San Francisco. It was overcast, but it wasn’t cold, it was warm and gentle.
‘Star Wars’ at the Coronet Theater on Geary Blvd. near Arguello in 1977: There’s still a gas station on the corner here, but the Coronet Theater is gone and gas isn’t 60 cents a gallon anymore.
The Palace of Fine Arts: The vintage picture looks like something from a gangster movie. Why is she smiling when she’s being “taken for a ride” by the mob? (SF Chronicle)
Movie buffs will recognize this scene at Fort Point from Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 movie ‘Vertigo’ where Kim Novak jumps into the Bay and is rescued by James Stewart.
The old Murphy Windmill in Golden Gate Park in 1948 and the restored Murphy Windmill today: It’s supposed to be the largest windmill in the western hemisphere, but I don’t know if that’s fair, there probably aren’t a lot of windmills in the western hemisphere.
Seal Rocks from behind the Cliff House in the 1950’s: Since the Musee Mecanique and History Room were removed during the 2000 remodeling, there isn’t a lot of traffic behind the Cliff House anymore. (SF Chronicle)
Another view of the Sky Tram that ran behind the Cliff House from 1955 to 1965: This view is looking from the Cliff House toward Point Lobos. (SF Chronicle)
A bird’s eye view of Seal Rocks from inside the tram: (SF Chronicle)
An old postcard of Fleishhacker’s Pool, now entombed beneath the San Francisco Zoo parking lot: The pool house was behind where the double B signs are in the center photo. The only thing left of the pool house since it burned down in 2012 is the entrance to the building in the bottom picture.
Speaking of 1776, although England and the United States have had long ago differences, (Well, the British did capture Washington DC once, and President Trump hasn’t done that yet) our two countries are as united as any two countries in history, and hopefully that will always be. In the early 1950’s a cross country tour by three of England’s double-decker buses to promote tourism to Great Britain arrived in San Francisco. Here, the buses are traveling east on Market Street at 8th Street. Notice the driver’s on the right side of the bus. Behind the streetcar on the right is the magnificent movie palace the Fox Theater demolished in 1963. (Vintage picture from SF Chronicle)
The buses continue on Market past Jones Street. (SF Chronicle)
The double-decker buses turn right off Market Street onto 4th St.
Now we’re over on Grant Avenue during World War Two just after Pearl Harbor. This building, the Telephone Exchange Building at the time, was considered so vital that sandbags were stacked in front of it to protect the structure if the Japanese ever bombed San Francisco, although, I’ve never been able to understand what good those bags would do in the event of a direct hit. (SF Chronicle)
A view of the Telephone Exchange Building during this period looking south toward Market Street:
I’m still waiting for my ship to come out! Grooooan! Berstein’s Fish Grotto on Powell Street, famous for its ships bow entrance, was a popular restaurant from 1912 until closing in 1981. A Walgreens Pharmacy now occupies the spot.
Market Street west of Grant Avenue after the 1906 Earthquake and Fire: The Mutual Bank Building is the Gothic looking building tucked between other buildings in the center of my picture. The dark building just to the right of the Mutual Building and not labeled in the postcard is the old Chronicle Building, the copper colored building in the center of my picture. The old and modernized Call Building is on the right. The Phelan Building, (they spelled it Philan) destroyed in the earthquake and rebuilt in 1908, is on the far left. Well, I hope that George A. Hyde got a date with Miss Hazel!
The Ferry Building in 1915 and in 2015, both years commemorating the 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition:
The Fisherman’s Wharf Lagoon during World War Two: I’m not sure why it was a restricted area by the U.S. Army and I wonder if the photographer was arrested. Also, I didn’t notice that little Minnie Mouse like doll on the pier when I took my picture. Good advertising for the sport fishing company that berths here! (Vintage picture from SF Chronicle)
“Painted Ladies” and a pretty lady at Alamo Square: The top picture taken after the 1906 Earthquake and Fire is hanging on the wall near the earthquake exhibit at the California Academy of Sciences.
A Totem pole at the Cliff House in 1983: There’s still a totem pole near this spot, but it doesn’t look like the same one, and when a totem pole has a nicer smile than mine I know it’s time to stop taking selfies.
We’ll stay out at the Cliff House for awhile. This is the old Point Lobos Sky Tram that ran behind the Cliff House and the Sutro Bathhouse from 1955 to 1965. The ruins of the Sutro Bathhouse that burned down in 1966 are on the left. (Vintage picture from SF Chronicle)
The old Rustic Bridge at Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park was ERECTED AD 1893, and it’s as peaceful of a setting as you’ll find in San Francisco. A couple of movies have filmed scenes here, “Fatty” Arbuckle’s ‘Wished on Mabel’ in 1915, and ‘Scaramouche’ in 1952.
“Git along, lil dawggies.”
Heading in.
The Midway: I get dizzy just looking at it!
The kiddie rides: You know, the ones I can handle.
I stood here last fall dying for the smell of an Italian Sausage sandwich!
Two views from the horse racing grandstand.
The Maritime Museum at Aquatic Park with Ghirardelli Square in the background in 1939: The old and now closed Art Deco restroom and snack bar is on the right. (opensfhistory.org)
The WPA built Maritime Museum opened in 1936 as a casino. Here it’s seen in a picture from 1955. (opensfhistory.org)
The steps behind the Maritime Museum with the Hyde Street Pier in the background in 1972: (opensfhistory.org)
Hyde and Beach Streets in 1971: The Buena Vista Café sign can be partially seen on the right in both photos. (opensfhistory.org)
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, in 1939 my 17 year old mother took a train from Grand Forks North Dakota to spend the summer with her cousin Frances. Here they are swimming in the Bay behind the Maritime Museum that summer. My mom is the teenager on the left, She also took a picture of “The Rock” that day. There were still some pretty rough characters out on Alcatraz at that time, including Alvin Karpis from “Ma” Barker’s gang, and “Machine Gun” Kelly.
Four images of the church: The top photo is Old St. Mary’s before the 1906 Earthquake and Fire. The church survived the earthquake in relatively good shape but was gutted by the fire that destroyed most of San Francisco, as seen in the second picture. The third photo is a rebuilt St. Mary’s in 1951 and the way the church looks today is the bottom picture
Looking down toward Grant Avenue and a burned out St. Mary’s from the south side of California Street: “Old S. F. is a place of the past.” That was probably true; the tong wars and opium cribs of Chinatown were gone, some of the corrupt politicians that ran the town would be forced out of office or put in jail, and Bank of America was founded by a. P. Giannnini. (I used to work for them so I thought I’d throw that in.) Have you spotted the goof up yet? The picture isn’t looking up California Street, but down California Street.
A photo from the Old St. Mary’s Church website shows the beginning of the rebuilding of San Francisco from the north side of California Street, although, St. Mary’s is still in ruins.
Jade Fon was a artist that I learned of when researching for this blog post. He painted a number of images around Chinatown in the 1940’s and 1950’s, but I haven’t learned the date of this painting from the CalArt.com collection I found on Pinterest. Jade took a little artistic license here with his image of St. Mary’s from Quincy Alley that runs past St. Mary’s Square between Pine and California Streets, but that’s okay. You can see Beniamino Bufano’s statue of Sun Yat-sen in St. Mary’s Square on the right in the painting. Only the pedestal of the statue can be seen through the trees from here today.
The statue of Sun Yat-sen in 1959 and today: (Vintage photo by Fred W. Clayton)
One of San Francisco’s legendary figures, “Emperor” Norton collapsed and died during the period of his “reign” In front of St. Mary’s on the corner of California Street and Grant Avenue, (then called Dupont Street) in 1880.
A painting of St. Mary’s Church looking up California Street, (this time we are looking up California Street) from 1981:
A picture at the west side of St. Mary’s on Grant Avenue taken in 1943 during World War Two from a blog entry I posted in October of 2016:
Inside St. Mary’s Cathedral in 1927: I couldn’t get a picture from the balcony because it was locked but it’s still just as impressive from pew level.
I hopped on the F Line in front of the Ferry Building, but not on this one. Like the cute girl in the old photo, I caught one going in the other direction.
I waved goodbye to the old Southern Pacific Building as we started off; it may be hours before I return!
Wow, look at all of the people at Pier 15 heading out to Fisherman’s Wharf in September of 1937! It looks like I picked the right year to go there!
I had the best spot in the house standing at the back of the old number 1895 streetcar built in Milan, Italy in 1928.
I jumped off at Fisherman’s Wharf, feeling slightly under dressed in my old Giants Jersey as compared to that femme fatale from circa 1960 in the center of the old photo.
After taking a pleasant walk around the fishing boat lagoon, I headed into Alioto’s for lunch.
The northeast corner of Masonic and Haight: Drogstore!!! They were originally called the Drugstore Cafe, but had to change their name over objections to the obvious drug use in the area. (Vintage Everyday) 
The northeast corner of Haight and Ashbury with Napoleon and Josephine: 
1418 Haight Street: Notice a lack of “Keep off the grass” signs. 
1535 (now 1541) Haight Street: I wonder if that’s her granddaughter? (Vintage Everyday)
Haight, between Cole and Schrader: I felt like taking my shoes off when I walked past here. 
During the Summer of Love George and Pattie Harrison flew to San Francisco (probably via Trans Love Airways). They walked through Haight-Ashbury to Golden Gate Park and sat with a crowd right here on “Hippie Hill”. George borrowed a guitar from one of the people gathered around them and sang a few songs. After a short time, they left, and I don’t know if George Harrison ever returned to San Francisco. The bottom photo is Hippie Hill today.
Today, on the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Midway, I visited the aircraft carrier USS Hornet CV-12 in Alameda. CV-12 was commissioned in November of 1943, nearly a year and a half after the battle of Midway, but she saw plenty of action from World War Two through the Viet Nam War. It was also CV-12 that picked up the astronauts Neil Armstrong, “Buzz” Aldrin, and Michael Collins after their historic first trip to the moon in July of 1969. The previous Hornet CV-8 which was at the Battle of Midway was lost in November of 1942. It was at this same spot that Hornet CV-8 sailed out from Alameda with the Doolittle Raiders when they bombed Japan in April of 1942.
The command center of the aircraft carrier is called “the island”, seen in the top photo in April of 1945. I was able to take a tour of the island on Sunday.
World War Two fighter planes on the aft or rear section of the flight deck in 1945 and the aft of the flight deck with San Francisco in the background from the control section of the island:
A plane lands on the aft of the flight deck during World War Two: Notice another plane in the upper right preparing to land. The bottom picture is the fore or forward section of the flight deck seen from the island.
Fort Mason from the air during the 1920’s and Fort Mason on Saturday: Fort Mason was a major embarkation point for the Pacific Theater of the Second World War, and the scope of activity that took place here during the war is hard to comprehend. (Vintage photo from OpenSFHistory.org)
The entry gate to Fort Mason in 1953: (OpenSFHistory.org)
It was here at the old Fort Mason Train Tunnel that Clint Eastwood encounters three hoods while trying to deliver ransom money in one of my favorite scenes from 1971’s ‘Dirty Harry’. The bottom photo is where Harry entered the tunnel today. There has been much talk about reopening the tunnel for bicyclists or an extension of the F Line of streetcars, but nothing has come about yet.
The unveiling of the Fort Mason stone marker in 1925: The wording is different today and I’m not even sure it’s the same stone, but it’s still impressive.
Besties in the 1950’s on the Baker Street steps in Pacific Heights:
An interesting picture showing the filming of a scene with sisters Katrin and Christine Hanson (Barbara Bel Geddes and Peggy McIntyre) walking down Kearny Street on Telegraph Hill for the 1948 movie ‘I Remember Mama’. I’m guessing that the guy looking out the window was just somebody living there at the time. (Vintage photo from Vienna’s Classic Hollywood)
Victorian besties above the old gingerbread Cliff House:
1940’s besties at the tea house in the Japanese Tea Garden. Period pictures like this are historical today; after Pearl Harbor the name of the Japanese Tea Garden was changed to the Oriental Tea Garden and all Japanese cultural artifacts were removed. The lady waiting on the two “besties” was probably Chinese. The teahouse is still inside the garden today.
Besties at the Top of the Mark:
San Francisco Film Locations Then & Now 