by Frank Dunnigan
As local students head back to their classrooms, it’s time to remember that many San Francisco schools have transitioned to new uses over the years. Let’s take a took at just some of the many re-purposed educational buildings around town.
View south of 25th Avenue from Balboa Street, Cabrillo School at left, May 11, 1936. (wnp14.0335.jpg; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
CABRILLO SCHOOL
Cabrillo School at 24th Avenue & Balboa once served a large population of children who lived at the Presidio of San Francisco during its long tenure as a military base, so the 1994 base closure was a significant factor that diminished enrollment. Early in the new millennium, the property was converted to additional administrative offices for the San Francisco Unified School District. Read more about the history of the Cabrillo School.
Commerce High School at Van Ness and Hayes, 1950s. (wnp32.2190; Courtesy of Emiliano Echeverria)
COMMERCE HIGH SCHOOL
The High School of Commerce, one of the oldest and largest in San Francisco, graduated generations of students destined for business careers, going back to 1884. In 1926, a new Commerce High School was built, incorporating the then-popular Churrigueresque style of exterior ornamentation (similar to the style of Mission Dolores Church—now Basilica—that had similar ornamentation added that same year). Commerce High’s football team (the Bulldogs) was a multi-year City-wide champion, including during the school’s final years. As more families with children moved to the western side of the City, enrollment fell, leading to the school’s closure after its final class of 300 graduated in 1952. Read more about Commerce High’s building taking a slow journey once.
Juan Crespi Home School at 24th and Quintara, date unknown.
CRESPI HOME SCHOOL
Crespi was built at 24th Avenue and Quintara in 1951 to accommodate the large number of baby-boomers who were filling overflowing schools. It was later turned over to Lincoln High School which used it for classroom space into the 1980s, and it has since been a health facility for SFUSD. Read more about the Juan Crespi Home School.
Emanu-El Sisterhood School for Girls at Page and Laguna, October 20, 1923. (wnp27.7896; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
EMANU-EL SISTERHOOD GIRLS’ SCHOOL/RESIDENCE
Commissioned by a Jewish women’s group from Temple Emanu-el in 1921, this imposing brick-clad building at 300 Page Street provided housing for single working women, plus recreational and classroom facilities. Designed by noted architect Julia Morgan, the iron balcony on the building’s street side incorporates the Star of David as part of its design—an architectural element that has remained in place for more than 100 years. The building was purchased by San Francisco Zen Center in 1969, but no major exterior alterations have been made, and it now serves as a meditation and training center. Read more about the Emanu-El Sisterhood School for Girls.
Edgewood campus on Vicente at 29th, circa 1950s. (Courtesy of Edgewood Center for Children and Families)
EDGEWOOD
Opened in 1924 at 1801 Vicente Street in the Sunset District as the Protestant Orphan Asylum, many of the older residents were enrolled at nearby Parkside School, where they fondly referred to themselves as the “P.O. Kids”—Protestant Orphanage—as late as the 1950s-60s while younger residents had on-site classes. The organization long ago transitioned into a new non-profit agency, offering a variety of programs and services to families and children. Read more about Edgewood.
View southeast from Oxford Street toward Good Shepherd Convent and Girls School at left, 1953. (wnp28.1119; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
GOOD SHEPHERD CONVENT/UNIVERSITY MOUND SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
Opened in 1932 by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, the residential school at 601 Cambridge Street in the Portola District operated to serve girls and young women placed there by the juvenile justice system or social service agencies. After 1977, the Sisters began to focus on services to homeless women, offering a variety of recovery programs at the site, while selling off the school building. In 1999, Cornerstone Academy, a private, Baptist-founded school, acquired the space where it now operates its 6th through 8th Grades. In an interesting historical note, the old coat of arms of the San Francisco Archdiocese remains an architectural feature on one exterior wall of the school.
Postcard of Lone Mountain College for Women on Turk, circa 1938. (wnp27.7210; Zan Stark, photographer / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
LONE MOUNTAIN/SAN FRANCISCO COLLEGE FOR WOMEN
Founded as the all-girls Sacred Heart Academy in Menlo Park in 1898, the institution was renamed College of the Sacred Heart in 1921 and moved to San Francisco in 1930, when it was renamed San Francisco College for Woman and located atop Lone Mountain. In 1969, it converted to co-educational status and was renamed Lone Mountain College and remained so until 1978 when the school was acquired by the adjacent University of San Francisco, which renamed it as USF’s Lone Mountain campus.
View south from Portola toward McAteer High School campus, 1974. (wnp27.5278; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
MCATEER HIGH SCHOOL
Once earmarked as a replacement for Polytechnic, McAteer was named for a California State Senator from San Francisco who died unexpectedly during a campaign for Mayor in 1967. Operating from a new campus on Portola Drive from 1973-2002, it closed after a brief 30-year history. Earlier, in 1982, School of the Arts was created and housed at the McAteer campus, though it later relocated to a school space in Parkmerced from 1992-2002. Upon the dissolution of McAteer in 2002, School of the Arts moved back to Portola Drive and in 2005, a new Academy of Arts and Sciences was created as a separate entity, though both now share the campus. School of the Arts was re-named for artist Ruth Asawa in 2010.
MERCY HIGH SCHOOL
Opened in 1952 by the Sisters of Mercy to serve the growing population West of Twin Peaks, the school began with a single first-year class of 200 girls, adding new groups of 200 students each fall until reaching its capacity of 800. That level of enrollment continued until the late 1980s when two local Catholic boys’ high schools went co-ed (Sacred Heart in 1987 and St. Ignatius in 1989), resulting in a decline in Mercy enrollments. The school closed in June of 2020, with nearby Archbishop Riordan High School soon becoming co-ed and offering enrollment/financial aid to former Mercy students. In early 2021, it was announced that the Mercy campus had been sold to the Chinese-American International School which plans to consolidate its multiple sites to the 19th Avenue location near Stonestown.
Notre Dame Convent on Dolores, 1930s. (wnp100.20024; Morton-Waters Co. – SCRAP Print Collection / Courtesy of SCRAP)
NOTRE DAME DE NAMUR HIGH SCHOOL
In 1866, a group of nuns established a boarding/day school for girls on Dolores Street, opposite the original Mission. It built a larger school in 1898, but that building was dynamited by troops in order to stop the spread of the 1906 Fire. Rebuilt on the 1898 foundations, the new building opened in August 1907. Declining enrollment brought about the school’s closure in 1981. Afterwards, the 1907 building, still atop its 1898 foundations, was refurbished and is now home to Notre Dame Senior Plaza, a low-income senior apartment complex.
Lowell High School at Hayes and Ashbury, 1912. (wnp26.1920; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
OLD LOWELL HIGH SCHOOL
Lowell High School, tracing its origins back to 1856, is San Francisco’s oldest public high school and considered to be the premier college prep school in the San Francisco Unified School District. Operating from an imposing city-wide block of brick structures on Hayes Street, between Ashbury and Masonic, the school maintained a reputation for academic excellence and sporting achievements. When the school moved to larger facilities near Lake Merced in 1962, the old buildings were turned over to City College of San Francisco. The John Adams Campus now offers English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) for adults, plus business courses and many certificate programs in health fields. Listen to the Outside Lands Podcast on the history of Lowell High.
San Francisco State Teachers College at Waller and Buchanan, 1921. (wnp37.02715; F. Ray, photographer – Marilyn Blaisdell Collection / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
OLD SAN FRANCISCO STATE COLLEGE/OLD U.C. EXTENSION
The “State Normal School” was a training school for teachers founded in 1899 on Nob Hill. After the 1906 Earthquake & Fire, it relocated to Waller and Buchanan Streets, becoming “San Francisco State Teachers College” in 1921, then “San Francisco State College” in 1935. After the school moved to its new Lake Merced Campus in 1953-54, the old buildings were taken over by the University of California Extension in 1957, operating there until a move to downtown San Francisco in 2003. After much public input, the site has been a rental housing complex with five new buildings and preserved parts of the Art Deco former collegiate science building, Woods Hall, since 2013.
Polytechnic High School from Carl near Hillway, circa 1930. (wnp14.12326.jpg; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
POLYTECHNIC HIGH SCHOOL
With a long local history dating back to 1884, the Frederick Street campus, opened in 1914 to replace what had been destroyed in 1906. Poly was the largest high school in San Francisco for many years, with 2,000+ students and twin gymnasiums—one for boys and one for girls—constructed on either side of the main building. Poly’s last class graduated in 1972 and the classroom building was eventually torn down in the late 1980s for a new housing development, though the gyms were preserved. One of them is now used by a circus school, while the other is occupied by a health club.
Students on steps of Presentation High School on Turk, 1967.
PRESENTATION HIGH SCHOOL
Founded in North Beach in 1900s, the Turk Street campus was the final location of the school from 1934 until 1991. Presentation closed due to declining enrollment brought about by the late 1980s conversions of the formerly all-male Sacred Heart and St. Ignatius to co-ed status. The site was acquired by the nearby University of San Francisco for its School of Education, though the Presentation nuns maintain a convent there as a retirement center/infirmary.
Streetcar on 20th near Ortega by Conservatory of Music, January 12, 1938. (wnp67.0401; Jack Tillmany Collection / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
SAN FRANCISCO CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC
Founded in 1917, the school operated from 1956 to 2006 in the former Infant shelter at 1201 Ortega Street in the Sunset District. After it expanded into larger quarters at 50 Oak Street near Civic Center, the site has since been occupied by Lycée Francais de San Francisco International French School’s 6th through 12th Grades, while the Pre-school through 5th Grades are located at the former St. Agnes School in the Haight-Ashbury.
Students at Star of the Sea Academy on 8th Ave, 1950s. (wnp14.4032; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
STAR OF THE SEA ACADEMY
Star of the Sea Academy operated as a small, parish-supported Catholic girls’ high school in the Richmond District from the early 1900s until 1985, numbering thousands of alumnae, including comedienne Gracie Allen. Following its closure, a number of small, private schools have operated from the old high school’s premises.
ST. JOHN URSULINE HIGH SCHOOL
St. John’s operated as one of the last parish-supported Catholic girls’ high schools in San Francisco until 1990 when its relatively small enrollment became cost-prohibitive. The school buildings at 4056 Mission Street in the Bernal Heights neighborhood, constructed in 1957, are now operated as a training facility by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 6. Similar to many buildings with a former religious use (see Emanu-el Sisterhood Girls’ School and Good Shepherd Convent/University Mound School For Girls listed above), the facility retained an architectural cross above the main entryway.
View southwest at St. Paul’s Church and school on 29th Street, circa 1936. (wnp100.20052; Morton-Waters Co. – SCRAP Print Collection / Courtesy of SCRAP)
ST. PAUL HIGH SCHOOL
Another of the parish-supported Catholic high schools, St. Paul’s was the largest Catholic girls’ high school in San Francisco until the development of Mercy High School in 1952. Parish finances and a declining enrollment led to the 1994 decision to maintain/rebuild the parish elementary school but to close the high school. The property was then converted to condominiums.
Student body of St. Paulus School on steps of St. Paulus Church on Eddy at Gough, circa 1930. (wnp33.01225; Gertrude Anderson Collection / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
ST. PAULUS SCHOOL
St. Paulus, the historic Lutheran church in San Francisco with a large congregation dating back to the late 1900s, also operated an elementary school at 930 Gough Street for many years plus a junior high school at 888 Turk. Following the closure of the schools, the Gough Street property is now home to a group of religious women known as Gospel for Asia Missionary Group, while the Turk Street property has been occupied by the Chinese-American International School, now set to consolidate its multiple City-wide locations at the old Mercy High School campus on 19th Avenue near Stonestown.
All girl band at St. Peter’s Academy, 1918. (wnp27.6448; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
ST. PETER’S ACADEMY
The old wooden building that long housed a parish-supported Catholic girls’ high school at 1245 Alabama Street in the Mission District, dates back to the late 1800s. It was closed due to declining enrollment in 1966 and is now home to the non-profit Mission Family Resource Collaborative.
Simpson Bible College on Silver near Cambridge, circa 1960. (wnp25.2829; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
SIMPSON BIBLE COLLEGE
The massive brick structure at 801 Silver Avenue in the Portola District opened in 1928 as a training facility for the Salvation Army. In 1955, it became the new home of Simpson Bible College until 1989 when that institution became Simpson University and relocated to an expanded new campus in the city of Redding, CA. Their former building was then purchased by Cornerstone Academy, but the Loma Prieta earthquake soon required extensive retrofitting by Cornerstone. The school now operates its Pre-school through 5th Grade classes here.
Train Off the Tracks: A Closer Look
by Arnold Woods
On August 19, 1957, some San Francisco drivers beheld a strange sight. There on city streets was a train. Not a cable car, not a streetcar, but an actual Southern Pacific locomotive engine, albeit smaller than normal. What was it doing traveling off the tracks? It seems the little engine that could was on its way to becoming a beloved children’s attraction.
Kids posing on Locomotive #1294 near Southern Pacific spur at San Jose Avenue and Sadowa Street, August 19, 1957. (wnp14.2956; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
It all started 33 years prior when an S-14 class 0-6-0 switch engine was built at the Lima Locomotive Works of Ohio for the Southern Pacific Company.1 Switch engines did not travel the country, but instead lived in rail yards moving other railroad cars around. After a career in such service, Locomotive #1294 headed for retirement in the 1950s.
Locomotive #1294 being loaded onto flatbed trailer near Southern Pacific spur at San Jose Avenue and Sadowa Street, August 19, 1957. (wnp14.2954; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Instead of scrapping Locomotive #1294 however, Southern Pacific instead refurbished it and then presented it “To San Francisco Children of All Ages.” With the co-sponsorship of the San Francisco News, some Teamsters locals, and the Sheedy Drayage Company, Southern Pacific sent the little locomotive to…the zoo? Indeed, while the San Francisco Zoo was primarily an animal attraction, it included a children’s playground area. So like the jet in Larsen Park, it was decided to place Locomotive #1294 in the children’s playground area for kids to climb on.
Locomotive #1294 on back of truck blocking traffic on Sloat at 45th Avenue as it enters zoo, August 19, 1957. (wnp14.2970; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Of course, getting a locomotive engine to the zoo was not an easy task as no train tracks went there. So Locomotive #1294 was sent to the nearest Southern Pacific spur at San Jose Avenue and Sadowa Street near where Alemany Boulevard, San Jose Avenue, and Interstate 280 all meet today. There, a heavy-duty winch dragged it on to the back of a Sheedy Drayage flatbed trailer. From there, it was driven approximately three miles on city streets to the zoo’s entrance at Sloat and 45th Avenue.
Locomotive #1294 entering zoo at Sloat and 45th Avenue on back of truck, August 19, 1957. (wnp14.2966; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Driving a locomotive engine around on city streets was not an easy job, particularly navigating corners. Locomotive #1294 was literally overhanging the back of the flatbed trailer, so it had to be very securely fastened. After the loading and securing, the Sheedy Drayage truck and trailer left about noon and stopped traffic at a number of intersections as it slowly made its way.2 The job took about three hours.
Locomotive #1294 on back of truck after its arrival in Children’s Playground area of zoo, August 19, 1957. (wnp14.2967; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Perhaps the hardest part of getting Locomotive #1294 to the zoo was navigating down the switchback walkway from the zoo entrance at Sloat and 45th to the Children’s Playground. Once there, the flatbed trailer was parked and the engine was unloaded the following day. It was placed on a bit of railroad track that was set on the ground. Getting it there was only part of the job though. An oil tender car, which came on a second truck, was connected to it to form a complete switch engine.3 However, you could not simply park a locomotive engine in a playground. Some precautions had to be taken to make it somewhat safe for children.
Children playing on Locomotive #1294 at zoo, October 1958. (wnp25.6061; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Over the next month, Rec and Park employees painted Locomotive #1294, installed guard rails and staircases, and a sand pit around it. Any movable parts in the engine were either removed or welded in place. They even welded the train wheels to the track it was sitting on. Local teamsters contributed $1,000 for this work. The new playground attraction area, which already included a cable car, was dedicated on November 29, 1957.
Children playing on Locomotive #1294 at zoo, circa 1980. (wnp70.0507; Marilyn Blaisdell Collection / Courtesy of Molly Blaisdell)
For the next nearly 24 years, Locomotive #1294 was an integral part of many a child’s trip to the zoo. The children climbed all over it and rang its bell. In 1966, the Grateful Dead posed for an iconic photo by famed rock photographer Herb Greene in front of the engine. However, parked as it was near the ocean, time and the sea air took its toll on Locomotive #1294. By June 1981, the zoo decided it was time to rid itself of the problems associated with it and the rusty switch engine was cut up into pieces by the Alco Iron & Metal Company of San Leandro and later sold for scrap.4 Another fixture of a San Francisco childhood had vanished.
Notes:
1. “The Zoo Locomotive,” by John Martini, SFWest History, July-September 2016 issue, Volume 12, Number 3, pp. 3-4.
2. “Old 1294’s Last Ride,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 20, 1957, p. 3.
3. “Old No. 1294 Rides Piggyback to Zoo,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 20, 1957, p. 10.
4. “Zoo choo-chooses to dump engine,” San Francisco Chronicle, Jun 7, 1981, p. B9.
The San Francisco Open: A Closer Look
by Arnold Woods
At the dawn of the 20th century, golf was an emerging sport on the West Coast. The Presidio Golf Club was one of the first courses built in California in 1895 when the Presidio commander allowed the San Francisco Golf and Country Club to build a nine-hole course. It was followed in 1902 by a 3-hole course in Lincoln Park. Later, five courses would spring up in the Lake Merced area–the Ingleside Course, Harding Park, the Olympic Club, the San Francisco Golf Club, and, just across the border in Daly City, the Lake Merced Golf Club. The latter four still exist. In 1951, Golden Gate Park would add a 9-hole, par 3 course in the western end of the Park.
With the growing popularity of golf came an increasing number of golf tournaments. While primarily contested initially in Eastern and Midwestern states, California clubs began hosting tournaments in the early months of the year because weather permitted play during those months. In 1930, San Francisco decided to get in on the action.
First round of the San Francisco Open at the Olympic Club, January 11, 1946. (wnp14.10983; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
It started with the grand sounding name of the San Francisco National Match Play Open. Match play is a style of golf competition where two golfers face off against each other to see who can win the most holes. The Junior Chamber of Commerce initiated the event as way to show off the City as a winter golf destination.1 The new San Francisco tournament began play on December 4, 1930 at the Olympic Club’s Lakeside course. In the final, Leo Diegel, one of the top golfers of the day, crushed Al Espinosa 6-and-4 (meaning Diegel had won 6 more holes than Espinosa with 4 holes to play, ending the match) for the inaugural victory.
Byron Nelson teeing off during first round of San Francisco Open, January 11, 1946. (wnp14.10991; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
For the next eleven years, the tournament continued as the San Francisco National Match Play Open. It was rotated among San Francisco’s major golf courses. Besides the Olympic Club, this included the Presidio course, the Ingleside links, the Lake Merced Golf Club, and the San Francisco Golf Club. It attracted many of the best golfers of the day, such as George Van Elm, Craig Wood, Harry Cooper, and, most notably, Jimmy Demaret and Sam Snead. Demaret won the title in both 1938 and 1940, the first golfer to win the tournament twice.
Lawson Little chipping from the fringe during first round of San Francisco Open, January 11, 1946. (wnp14.10986; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Despite San Francisco’s wish to become an attractive winter golf destination, the weather gods did not always cooperate. The San Francisco National Match Play Open was plagued over the years with rain, wind, cold temperatures, and even snow.2 The 1942 event scheduled for January was initially canceled days after the Pearl Harbor attack on December 7, 1941. However, a public outcry to retain the tourney led to it being held as scheduled.
Jug McSpaden putting during first round of San Francisco Open, January 11, 1946. (wnp14.10994; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
The 1942 edition featured two changes. The tournament was renamed the San Francisco Open and the competition was switched from match play to stroke play. Under that format, players competed to see who would have the least amount of strokes over the course of the tournament. As with prior years, the tourney was twice postponed because of bad weather. In the end, two of the biggest names of the day, Ben Hogan and Sam Snead fought a duel in the fading light, with Hogan taking victory by three strokes.3
Lawson Little putting at 18th hole during first round of San Francisco Open, January 11, 1946. (wnp14.10987; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
With World War II raging, the decision was made to cancel the 1943 San Francisco Open. However, before the year was out, the decision was made to revive the tournament in December 1943, only to find that the planned dates conflicted with the Miami Open.4 So new dates in mid-January 1944 were chosen in order to coincide with a war bond effort called the Victory Loan Drive. To make the association complete, the event was renamed as the San Francisco Victory Open. Another golf legend, Byron Nelson, proved victorious by six strokes at Harding Park.5
Betty McKenzie, one of five women selected as Golf Queens at the San Francisco Open, January 13, 1946. (wnp14.10993; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
11 months later, Nelson returned to Harding Park in December 1944 to repeat as champion, this time by just one stroke. The 15th and, as it turned out, last San Francisco Open was held in January 1946 back where it began, at the Olympic Club’s Lakeside course. With $25,000 in prize money, it was the richest tournament in the PGA Tour’s west coast swing that winter.6 Along with the tournament itself, the American Women’s Voluntary Services organization had a contest to select five “Golf Queens” that would be announced at the award ceremony for the event.7
Byron Nelson holding winner’s trophy at San Francisco Open award ceremony, January 13, 1946. (wnp14.10990; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
For the third consecutive time, Nelson took the prize, this time by a whopping nine strokes.8 20,000 people gathered to watch him do it, which set a record for the largest crowd at a winter tour event. Leading by six strokes going into the last day, Nelson carded a 68 in the final round, the lowest single day score in the tournament.
Despite the success and large crowds of the 1946 San Francisco Open, the Junior Chamber of Commerce announced soon thereafter that it was abandoning the event due to a “lack of public interest.9” Professional golf did not disappear from the City though. Numerous tournaments have been held here since the San Francisco Open’s demise, including majors like the 1958, 1981, and 2007 U.S. Amateurs at the Olympic Club, 1955, 1966, 1987, 1998, and 2012 U.S. Opens also at the Olympic Club, and the PGA Championship just last year at Harding Park. In addition, many other tournaments on the men’s, women’s, junior’s, and amateur tours have taken place on the City’s links and will continue to do so. In fact, the 2028 PGA Championship and 2033 Ryder Cup will be coming to the Olympic Club. Professional golf is here to stay.
Notes:
1. “National Match Play Open Competition Starts Today At Lakeside,” San Francisco Chronicle, December 4, 1930, pp. 1H.
2. “They Just Can’t Guess Right On S.F. Open Golf,” San Francisco Chronicle, December 28, 1942, p. 3H.
3. “Hogan Wins Open,” San Francisco Chronicle, January 27, 1942, p. 1H.
4. “S.F. Open Golf Tourney Now Set for Jan.,” San Francisco Chronicle, December 3, 1943, p. 1H.
5. “Bryon [sic] Nelson Triumphs In Victory Open,” San Francisco Chronicle, January 18, 1944, p. 1H.
6. “Nation’s Best Start S.F. Open Today,'” San Francisco Chronicle, January 10, 1946, p. 1H.
7. “Golf Queens,'” San Francisco Chronicle, January 14, 1946, p. 1H.
8. “Nelson Wins By Nine Strokes,'” San Francisco Chronicle, January 14, 1946, p. 1H.
9. “As Bill Leiser Sees It,'” San Francisco Chronicle, January 27, 1946, p. 3H.
The Esplanade Phase 2: A Closer Look
by Arnold Woods
We previously told you about the the first phase of the Esplanade project at Ocean Beach that began in 1915 and was completed in 1917. Despite plans to extend the Esplanade further down the beach though, San Francisco eliminated further funding in May 1917. This and other cuts allowed the City to avoid cutting what some called a bloated payroll.1
View north along Great Highway with Phase II construction work started, circa 1919. (wnp4/wnp4.0649; Courtesy of a Private Collector)
After nearly two years of newspaper editorials and public calls for monies to extend the Esplanade, the Board of Public Works finally appropriated $85,000 on March 19, 1919, but not for extension of the Esplanade.2 Instead the funds were to be used for the paving of the Great Highway from the north end of the Esplanade to Sloat Avenue. A contract for the paving work was awarded by the end of April 19193 and work started soon thereafter. The work caused the shutdown of the Great Highway for two months.4 The initial work was criticized however for being insufficient to bear heavy traffic.
Construction of Public Comfort Station along Esplanade, May 11, 1920. (wnp36.02273; DPW Horace Chaffee, photographer – SF Department of Public Works / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
On March 20, 1920, the City signed a deal with contractor John Spargo to build a “public comfort station,” aka, a restroom, by the Esplanade.5 Although money for the Esplanade extension and Point Lobos Road had also been earmarked, City supervisors voted in November 1920 to instead use that money to improve Laguna Honda Boulevard.6
View south of Great Highway at Sloat with boardwalk on right, 1923. (wnp30.0327; Emiliano Echeverria/Randolph Brandt Collection / Courtesy of Emiliano Echeverria)
Meanwhile, at the south end of the Great Highway at Sloat Boulevard, the City had approved the construction of a wooden boardwalk that would extend from Sloat to Lincoln Way on the beach side of the Great Highway.7 The contract was awarded to the Hanna Brothers, but with one caveat. Only $15,000 was appropriated for the work, so the boardwalk would only extend as far north as the money lasted. City Supervisors were planning on including more money for the Esplanade in the following fiscal year’s budget.
View south at Ocean Beach Esplanade construction, December 27, 1921. (wnp36.02685; DPW Horace Chaffee, photographer – SF Department of Public Works / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Finally, after continued cries for the Esplanade to be extended from the public, improvement clubs, and the press, the City set aside $150,000 for extension of the Esplanade in its 1921-22 budget.8 City Supervisor Ralph McLeran stated that the Esplanade could be completed in short order if annual appropriations were made. Mayor James “Sunny Jim” Rolph signed off on this budget on June 7, 1921.9 The Clinton Construction Company was the lowest bidder for the work and was awarded the contract at a Board of Public Works meeting on August 19, 1921.10 Work on the Esplanade extension began before the end of the year.
View south of Ocean Beach Esplanade construction, April 6, 1922. (wnp36.02711; DPW Horace Chaffee, photographer – SF Department of Public Works / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
Concurrent with this work extending the Esplanade, the City was also widening and paving Point Lobos Avenue That work was finished by June 1922 and a dedication ceremony for its opening and the further portion of the Esplanade to Cabrillo Street was held on June 11, 1922.11 The day before, Mayor Rolph signed the budget for the 1922-23 fiscal year, which included another $150,000 for the Esplanade work.12 The contract for the next section of the Esplanade, taking it to Fulton Street, went to the Healy-Tibbitts Company on August 23, 1922.13
View north at Ocean Beach esplanade construction, August 11, 1922. (wnp36.02888.jpg; DPW Horace Chaffee, photographer – SF Department of Public Works / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
As the Esplanade construction made its way to Fulton Street, City Engineer Michael O’Shaughnessy declared he would not seek funds for further extension in the 1923-24 budget because the City could not afford a big expenditure and constructing the Esplanade in the piecemeal way they had been doing was making it more expensive than it should be.14 He stated that he preferred to wait until the City could afford to make a large appropriation. The following year, O’Shaughnessy’s recommendation remained the same.15
View south of Ocean Beach esplanade with Ocean Beach Pavilion, Chutes at the Beach, and Old Beach Chalet (dimly visible), February 25, 1925. (wnp27.0509; DPW Horace Chaffee, photographer – SF Department of Public Works / Courtesy of a Private Collector)
So, like seven years before, work on the Ocean Beach Esplanade had come to a halt with O’Shaughnessy refusing to seek funds for a further extension until bigger amounts could be appropriated. For now, the Esplanade stretched from Point Lobos Avenue to Fulton Street near the Old Beach Chalet that was on the west side of the Great Highway. It was an attractive addition to the oceanfront, but there was more to come. We will get to that story.
Notes:
1. “Finance Body’s Budget Estimates Avoid a Cut In Fat City Payroll,” San Francisco Chronicle, May 15, 1917, p. 11.
2. “Paving Plans Approved,” San Francisco Chronicle, March 20, 1919, p. 13.
3. “Contract for Great Highway Awarded,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 29, 1919, p. 12.
4. “City Confesses To Shutting Up Great Highway,” San Francisco Chronicle, July 24, 1919, p. 11.
5. “Paving in Sunset District Ordered,” San Francisco Chronicle, March 13, 1920, p. 13.
6. “Cash For Road In New Park Voted Away,” San Francisco Chronicle, November 24, 1920, p. 13.
7. “Work Begun On Second Part of Esplanade,” San Francisco Chronicle, March 24, 1921, p. 8.
8. “McLeran Reports City Budget For San Francisco for Fiscal Year Beginning July 1, 1921,” San Francisco Chronicle, May 19, 1921, p. 2.
9. “Budget Approved For Fiscal Year Signed by Mayor,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 8, 1921, p. 17.
10. “Award Of Contract,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 20, 1921, p. 17.
11. “Ocean Esplanade Will Open Today,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 12, 1922, p. CC11.
12. “1922-3 Budget Is Signed By Mayor Rolph,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 11, 1922, p. CC1.
13. “Esplanade Contract,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 24, 1922, p. 3.
14. “City Engineer Asks $897,000 Under Budget,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 11, 1923, p. 10.
15. “$851,000 Asked To Carry On Street Work,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 8, 1924, p. 3.