Zeppelin comes to San Francisco – A Closer Look - OpenSFHistory

Zeppelin comes to San Francisco – A Closer Look

by Arnold Woods

90 years ago this week, on August 25, 1929, San Francisco was greeted with a never before seen sight…the Graf Zeppelin floated above the city. The huge German dirigible arrived just a little after 6:00 p.m., having completed a trans-Pacific flight from Japan.

Graf Zeppelin above the Cliff House and Sutro Baths, August 26, 1929. (Courtesy of Glenn Koch.)

Named for Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, a leading proponent of lighter-than-air technology and travel, the Graf Zeppelin was close to completing an around-the-world trip that had started at Lakehurst, New Jersey on August 7, 1929. Graf Zeppelin completed the Japan to San Francisco, 6000-mile leg in 68 hours, setting a record for the fastest crossing of the Pacific, beating the old record set by Army pilots in 1924 by several hours.

After leaving Lakehurst, New Jersey on August 7, 1929, under the command of Dr. Hugo Eckener, the Graf Zeppelin landed at its home base in Friedrichshafen, Germany on August 10, 1929. Four days later, it set out for Japan, arriving there on August 19, 1929. The dirigible suffered slight damage when it was being removed from its hanger in Tokyo, delaying its departure in order to make repairs. It finally left Tokyo on August 22, 1929, managed to elude a storm and get through heavy fog, before approaching the Golden Gate on August 25, 1929.

Graf Zeppelin above the Golden Gate with view of Richmond District, Golden Gate Park, and Lone Mountain below it, August 26, 1929. (wnp27.6626; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The keeper of the Point Reyes lighthouse, G.W. Jaehne, was the first to spot Graf Zeppelin with his binoculars at 5:49 p.m., marking the entry in the lighthouse log. Amazingly, it approached the West Coast within eight miles of where it intended to be. A few minutes later, watchers on the Farallon Islands caught sight of it. At 6:05 p.m., eager eyes atop some of the City’s tallest buildings also caught sight of the dirigible. Graf Zeppelin appeared to be heading south toward Los Angeles and there were some initial worries that it would bypass San Francisco. After passing the Farallons though, Dr. Eckener turned the ship to the west and it floated in through the Golden Gate, passing the Mile Rock Lighthouse at 6:25 p.m. Dr. Eckener had timed his arrival into San Francisco for maximum possible dramatic effect.1

Graf Zeppelin over San Francisco, August 26, 1929. (wnp15.1345; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

Throngs of people gathered in downtown San Francisco to watch the airship fly over. Mayor James Ralph radioed a rather flowery greeting message to Dr. Eckener, stating:

“San Francisco greets you, your officers, passengers and crew with profound respect and admiration, as you float over American soil after your stupendous transpacific voyage. You give us new visions of world unity and crown the record of achievement of our age of scientific wonders. We honor your name with those of Magellan, Fulton and Lindbergh, and offer you all our good wishes for your journey to Lakehurst and across the Atlantic to the triumphs that await your homecoming.”2

The crew simply radioed back: “Mayor Ralph, San Francisco. Greetings from Graf Zeppelin. Shortly thereafter, the airship continued its voyage to Los Angeles.

Graf Zeppelin over Embarcadero and piers, August 26, 1929. (wnp15.1344; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The Graf Zeppelin’s globe circumnavigation excursion had been bankrolled by William Randolph Hearst. So on its way to L.A., the airship did a flyby over the San Simeon home of Hearst, but found it dark with no lights on. As it drifted by though, a switch was flipped and Hearst Castle exploded with lights for the benefit of the crew. After radio greetings were exchanged, the Graf Zeppelin continued to Los Angeles, arriving early on August 26, 1929. It would arrive back at Lakehurst, New Jersey on August 29, 1929, completing its worldly voyage in 22 days.

Dirigible travel would continue to expand for the next eight years until the Hindenburg disaster at the same Lakehurst naval base where the Graf Zeppelin began and ended its trip. The Hindenburg explosion and fire destroyed public confidence in airships. Airplane travel would soon take over.

Notes:

1. “The Graf Zeppelin visits San Francisco,” by Glenn Koch, SF West History, April-June 2016 issue (http://www.outsidelands.org/publications/sfwesthistory12.2.pdf).

2. “Zep Exchanges Greetings With Rolph over S.F.,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 26, 1929, page 1.

The Changing Landscape: East from Twin Peaks

by Arnold Woods

With over 40,000 images in our OpenSFHistory collection and so many great viewpoints to be found around San Francisco, it is inevitable that we come across the same view at different points in time. This allows us to appreciate how the City has changed over time. So let’s see the City’s evolution by focusing on images from one spot taken over the years. We’ll start with one of the most iconic views, downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks.

When one looks east from on high at Twin Peaks, one can see right down Market Street to the Ferry Building. This swath of road is instantly recognizable in images going back over a century. If you ventured up to Twin Peaks in 1906, sometime after April 18th, you would have seen the remarkable devastation of San Francisco.

Downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks, 1906. (wnp27.2609; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

Both north and south of Market Street, you can see the widespread destruction that resulted from the earthquake. You can also see the Call Building (now the Central Tower), damaged, but still standing at 3rd and Market. Remarkably, within 10 years, San Francisco had mostly recovered as this image, circa 1915, shows.

Downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks, circa 1915. (wnp37.01948; Marilyn Blaisdell Collection/Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The Call Building still stands as the tallest building in San Francisco in this image. All the destruction seen previously has been replaced with new buildings and San Francisco no longer looks like the post-1906 earthquake wasteland. Another ten years or so later, we begin to see San Francisco build up.

Downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks, circa 1925. (wnp37.01833; Marilyn Blaisdell Collection/Courtesy of a Private Collector)

In this image, a number of skyscrapers dot the San Francisco skyline, so that the Call Building no longer stands out. South of Market, the Pacific Telephone Building towers over neighboring buildings as the new tallest building in San Francisco until the Russ Building matched its height several years later. Over the next ten years, more skyscrapers would be added to the cityscape and two icons would appear.

Downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks, 1935.. (wnp4.1158; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

Notable in this 1935 view from Twin Peaks is the construction of the Bay Bridge then happening and the addition of Coit Tower on top of Telegraph Hill. The tower was built using funds from a bequest from Lillie Hitchcock Coit and was completed in 1933. Taking another ten year leap in time, we find that the City continues to reach for the sky.

Downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks, April 1945. (wnp25.5162; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

By 1945, the Bay Bridge has been in service for eight years and Treasure Island, built for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition, has been added to the Bay just north of Yerba Buena Island. Also new to the view is the new U.S. Mint Building completed in 1937. The Pacific Telephone Building and the Russ Building continue to be the tallest buildings and virtually every available spot of land has been filled. Jumping ahead twenty years, finds San Francisco growing taller.

Downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks, circa 1967. (wnp25.1674; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

By the late 1960s, the title of the tallest building in San Francisco seemingly changed every few years. First came the Hartford Building in 1965, then the Wells Fargo Building in 1967 (both seen in this image), and finally the Bank of America Center in 1969. In 1972, however, the Transamerica Pyramid would be completed and would command the San Francisco skyline for much of the next 50 years.

Downtown San Francisco from Twin Peaks, 2017. (Courtesy Arnold Woods)

As seen in this final image from 2017, San Francisco is littered with skyscrapers, with the Salesforce Building south of Market Street now dominating the City. There are so many skyscrapers that you can barely see the Wells Fargo Building (now 44 Montgomery) that ruled the San Francisco sky in 1967. With the Muni Metro lines now underneath Market Street as part of the early 70s BART construction, you can also see the addition of green center divides along part of Market Street.

From 1906 to the present, the view east from Twin Peaks has been ever evolving. One can only imagine how it will change in the next 100 years.

The J-Church Climb: A Closer Look

by Arnold Woods

Streetcars once rumbled nearly everywhere in San Francisco. We have thousands of streetcar images on OpenSFHistory.org to prove it. As you sift through all the streetcar images, you get accustomed to seeing them in the middle of streets and occasionally in tunnels. So when you see a streetcar image that isn’t in a street or tunnel, you tend to notice it. A recent upload to OpenSFHistory includes one such noticeable image, which led me down the rabbit hole of other similar images on the site. It was this 1942 image of the J-Church streetcar by the Dolores Park streetcar overpass.

Municipal Railway J-Church streetcar #133 on the private right of way through Dolores Park. (wnp14.12345; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

Anyone who has ridden the J-Church Muni Metro line knows that, as it heads south on Church Street, it veers off the street and into Dolores Park at 18th Street. It then travels along the west edge of the park, but instead of re-entering Church Street where the park ends at 20th Street, the line curves southeast, then south again at Liberty to 21st Street. At that point, the line curves back southwest, until finally rejoining Church Street at 22nd Street. The J-Church streetcar line later became the J-Church Muni Metro route. Why the jaunt off the street and into private lands? Let’s look at the history of the line first.

The first thought of rail transit on Church Street came from the Market Street Cable Railway in 1892, when they applied for a franchise for a cable car line that would run from 30th & Church via Church, Duboce, and Fillmore to Bay Street in the future Marina District. This line was not finished but tracks remained on part of Church Street along with a crossing at 24th street for year afterward, much to the chagrin of residents there.

Streetcar tracks construction work at Dolores Park, May 15, 1916. (wnp15.475; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

In 1912, the City engaged Bion J. Arnold to design the growing Muni. For a Church Street line, he was faced with the issue of the steepness of the street as it went over Dolores Heights. Arnold envisioned a right of way through the park, but south of 20th street, his design had the tracks swerve left (east) on 20th and then turn to head through a tunnel for autos and streetcars under the line of Chattanooga Street with Liberty and 21st streets passing above the tunnel. The tracks would have then gone about a half block on Chattanooga before passing diagonally through the block to 22nd & Church. This tunnel plan was one of at least fifteen proposals for the J-Church streetcar line. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors ultimately adopted the private right-of-way plan that circled around the steepest part of the Church Street hill, because it was less expensive than a tunnel and other plans.

J-Church streetcar line dedication ceremony, Dolores Park, August 11, 1917. (wnp36.01687; SF Dept. of Public Works/Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The J-Church streetcars began operating on August 11, 1917. As was his custom, then Mayor James “Sunny Jim” Rolph, acted as motorman for the first streetcar to travel the route. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Rolph received a union motorman’s cap, card, and button at the dedication ceremony for which he declared that he was “exceedingly proud.” In Rolph’s speech, he stated that the “new Mission,” through which the J-Church streetcar would run, was the most prosperous part of the City.

J-Church streetcar entering private right-of-way south of Dolores Park, June 2, 1962. (wnp14.3865; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The original J-Church route went down Market Street, then to Geary, Van Ness, Market (again) and Church and its right-of-way to 30th Street. This line was changed to run down Market from Church, directly to the Ferries on June 1, 1918. There is still a climb as the line goes through Dolores Park and the neighborhood to the south. The grade is 9% in this area, the steepest climb in the Muni Metro system. However, the J-Church’s neighborhood meandering avoids the worst of the hill. Originally, at 30th Street, the J-Church line used a switchback, as the cars were double ended (i.e., operated from either end). After 1957, when single ended PCCs took over operation, a triangular junction called a “wye” to turn the streetcars around was used.

J-Church streetcar in private right-of-way approaching Liberty Street, 1962. (wnp14.3864; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

Ironically, this steep grade saved the J-Church line from being replaced by buses. After World War II, San Francisco began replacing the streetcar lines with buses, but the Church Street hill proved too steep. In fact, the new 1949 trolley coaches had a sign on their roll signs indicating a line 46 Church. However, the J-Church streetcar continued to operate. It would continue in service until 1981 when it was converted to Muni Metro light rail trains. It was the last streetcar line to be converted to light rail. (Light Rail is really a modern term for a streetcar capable of running in trains.) After the conversion to light rail, Muni extended the line to Balboa Park through the Bernal Cut previously used by the San Francisco & San Jose Railroad and later the Southern Pacific Railroad.

J-Church streetcar re-entering Church Street at 22nd Street, circa 1940. (wnp67.0677; Jack Tillmany Collection/Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The J-Church streetcar line was not the only line to leave the streets and tunnels of San Francisco, but it is always interesting to see the rarer images of streetcars in parks and private right of ways.

(Valuable information for this article was provided by Emiliano Echeverria, a veritable font of Muni information)

The View From Edgehill: A Closer Look

by Richard Brandi

The various hills around the City provide spectacular views now and in the past. Often they offer glimpses into what once was. Take this view from Edgehill Mountain, which is just to the north of Portola Drive near West Portal for instance.

View southeast from Edgehill Mountain. (wnp14.0400; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The photographer is standing where a rock quarry called the Claremont Quarries was once located (where Waithman Street and the New Life Church of the Nazarene are now located). The quarry was on land Alfred Meyerstein bought in 1912 for his Claremont Court subdivision which is now part of the West Portal neighborhood. Dynamite stored in the quarry may have been stolen and used in the July of 1916 Preparedness Parade bomb explosion that killed 10 and wounded 40 people. Detectives traced the explosives to a batch stolen from the Claremont Quarries or the State Highway Commission or both. According to a San Francisco Chronicle article then: “A.L. Meyerstein, owner of the Claremont quarries, admitted last night that a quantity of dynamite was stolen about two months ago. Meyerstein was not communicative. He said he did not know whether the police had investigated the disappearance of the explosive or whether anyone connected with the bomb suspects had worked in his quarries.”1

West Portal from Edgehill, 1920. (wnp30.0298; Emiliano Echeverria/Randolph Brandt Collection; Courtesy of Emiliano Echeverria)

Edgehill Mountain is one of the lesser known of the 46 hills and mountains of San Francisco. It lies across Portola Drive and northwest from Mount Davidson. To the west, you can see the West Portal area, as seen in the image from 1920 above.

View north from Edgehill Mountain to Laguna Honda Hospital, October 1, 1926. (np36.04098; DPW Horace Chaffee; SF Dept. of Public Works/Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

To the north of Edgehill Mountain lies Laguna Honda and the Laguna Honda Hospital. The 1926 image above came from the extensive Department of Public Works’ collection of images from around San Francisco.

View northeast from Edgehill Mountain to Twin Peaks, circa 1953. (wnp28.1078; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

The majestic Twin Peaks rise high to the northeast of Edgehill Mountain. In this image from around 1953, you can see Laguna Honda Hospital again on the left side and some of the Midtown Terrace and Twin Peaks neighborhoods.

Car on Edgehill Drive, 1921. (wnp15.688; Courtesy of a Private Collector.)

Edgehill Way runs on the north side of Edgehill Mountain. In 1921, when this image of a Buick automobile was taken, there were no houses on Edgehill Way on the other side of the road from Edgehill Mountain, like you would find today in the neighborhood known as the Forest Hill Extension.

Notes:

1. “ “Doctor Has Important Evidence in Bomb Case.;…Detectives Declare They Are Satisfied That They Have Traced Dynamite Used to Its Source,” SF Chronicle, 8 August 1916