by Woody LaBounty
Dolores Park, a nexus of the popular Castro, Noe Valley, and Mission District neighborhoods and a logical meeting point after Market Street parades and rallies, has suffered from too much love in the last few years. As many as 10,000 people will picnic and play on its lawns on sunny weekends. In 2017, 43,000 gallons of trash were collected in the two blocks of Dolores Park—more than in all 1,017 acres of Golden Gate Park. An online search for “Dolores Park trash” brings up hundreds of articles, thought pieces, and social media screeds, often directed at the eternal easy target—disrespectful young people.
A dozen 1964 negatives in the OpenSFHistory collection we recently scanned and posted offer a view of the park that feels both familiar and remote to the Dolores Park of today.
Couple embracing in Dolores Park, 1964. (wnp14.4565.jpg, Courtesy of a private collector.)
Couple sunbathing in Dolores Park, 1964. (wnp14.4564.jpg, Courtesy of a private collector.)
These two above were no doubt the cool kids then and would be the cool kids now. Don’t forget the sunscreen!
Teen in Dolores Park with transistor radio, 1964. Hamm’s Brewery tower in distance. (wnp14.4562.jpg, Courtesy of a private collector.)
No, that guy isn’t looking at his phone, but rather a transistor radio.
Teens in Dolores Park, 1964. (wnp14.4558.jpg, Courtesy of a private collector.)
While it’s illegal to smoke in city parks today, I think it may still occasionally be seen in Dolores Park (if not primarily tobacco). Blackjack on the lawns, however, is a rarity in 2019.
Teen on bicycle drinking soda in Dolores Park, 1964. (wnp14.4567.jpg, Courtesy of a private collector.)
Bikes? Absolutely. Sugary soda? Please pass the Vitamin Water instead.
Teens in Dolores Park, 1964. (wnp14.4566.jpg, Courtesy of a private collector.)
Maybe it’s time to call it a day? Please deposit any trash in that garbage can behind you.