San Francisco Bay Area Photo Blog

24 February 2018

San Francisco – Chinatown, Tank Hill, Kite Hill, Billy Goat Hill & Mission Delores Park: February 2018

Click on an image to view the full-size photograph.

A view looking east from Drumm Street near Clay Street. Salesforce Tower seen ahead is under construction. It is now the tallest building in San Francisco.

A Wells Fargo bank branch in downtown San Francisco.

A view of the north portal of the Stockton Street Tunnel. Would you like to see the south portal of the Stockton Street Tunnel? Go Here (it is the last photo in the group of photographs.)

A view in Chinatown.

Looking up Sacramento Street at Grant Avenue in Chinatown.

Waverly Place, Chinatown.

Grant Avenue, Chinatown.

This is the First Church of Christ, Scientist. The cornerstone was laid in 1911, and the building was dedicated in 1913. Edgar A. Mathews was the architect who designed the building. The church is located at the northeast corner of the intersection of Franklin Street and California Street.

A view looking north from the intersection of California Street and Larkin Street. People are waiting in line to have brunch at Olea Restaurant.

A view from Bush Street looking west. Van Ness Avenue is the cross street.

A view from Cole Street looking north. Ahead is St. Ignatius Church.

A view from Tank Hill looking northeast. Ahead is Mount Olympus and directly behind Mount Olympus is Buena Vista Park. Downtown San Francisco is visible in the distance.

A view from Tank Hill looking southeast. Potrero Hill is visible, and the City of Oakland may be seen across San Francisco Bay. The summit of Mount Diablo is detectable approximately 40 miles ahead.

This view is looking north from Kite Hill. Ahead is Corona Heights Park.

Here is a scene of Bernal Heights Hill. The picture was taken from Billy Goat Hill, and the view is looking southeast.

This picture was taken from the summit of Tank Hill. The view is looking northwest.

Here is a view from Mission Dolores Park looking northeast. Mission High School is visible as is downtown San Francisco.

THEN This is a photo of Billy Goat Hill. The view is looking south. The photographer was standing on Castro Street at 29th Street. The photograph was taken in 1930.

NOW Two of the houses standing in 1930 are still standing today.

This is a view of the eastern flank of Twin Peaks. Sutro Tower is on the right.

A view of Market Street as it ascends the east side of Twin Peaks.

Looking down Twenty-fifth Street towards the Mission District.

Helen Diller Playground is located in Mission Dolores Park.

This is the entryway to the Mission Community Pool. It is the only City of San Franciso operated outdoor pool. It was constructed in 1916 and it is located in the Mission Recreation Center.

Street art in the Castro District.

Springtime in the San Francisco Bay Area.

"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera.” Dorothea Lange

"Photography has not changed since its origin except in its technical aspects, which for me are not important." Henri Carter-Bresson

"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." Ansel Adams

"The important thing is not the camera but the eye." Alfred Eisenstaedt

The first volume of the San Francisco Bay Area Photo Blog contains galleries of photographs that were posted on the Internet between 2002 and 2011. Click Here to view those photos.

A Sony camera was used to take these photographs.

Question or comment? I may be reached at neil@mishalov.com

06 February 2018

The last remaining cable car barn in San Francisco: February 2018

Views of the Mason Street Cable Car Barn and Powerhouse.

Click on an image to view the full-size photograph.

The San Francisco cable car system was established in 1875. Between 1875 and 1890, there were twenty-three different cable car lines in San Francisco. Fourteen cable car barns and powerhouses also powered and housed the cable cars. Today three cable car lines remain in operation. The three operational lines are powered by the one remaining cable car powerhouse on Mason Street between Jackson Street and Washington Street. Active cable car lines are Powell/Hyde Street, California Street, and Powell/Mason Street.
This picture shows cable car #18 traveling north on the Powell/Hyde Street route, heading down Hyde Street to the turnaround at Fisherman's Wharf. Alcatraz Island and Angel Island are visible in the background.
Andrew Smith Hallidie was the inventor of the San Francisco cable car system. He was born in London, England, on 16 March 1836 and died in San Francisco on 24 April 1900.

Cable car #4 is cranking up Jackson Street on the Powell/Hyde Street route. Mount Diablo is visible in the distance.

This view from Washington Street shows the south side of the Mason Street Cable Car Barn and Powerhouse. The open entryway just below and to the left of the chimney is where the operational cable cars leave the barn in the morning. The cable cars reenter the barn in the evening on Jackson Street, which is located on the opposite side of this building. This view is looking east.

This is a view of the cable car barn area where cable cars are refurbished and repaired. This is cable car #50.

A cable car is being repaired and refurbished.

Cable cars in differing states of repair. Cable car #19 is identifiable.

Cable car #13 is in the shop.

This is a map of the three current cable car routes.

Cable car #28 is rolling up Jackson Street on its way to the Hyde Street turnaround at Fisherman's Wharf.

Cable car #9 is heading down Washington Street to the Powell Street turnaround.

Cable car #10 is turning onto Powell Street, while on the Powell/Mason Street route. Its destination is the Powell Street turnaround.

Cable car #25 is turning onto Mason Street and heading to the Mason Street turnaround.

Here is cable car #1 traveling south down Powell Street. The cable car is within a few blocks of the Powell Street turnaround.

Cable car #60 is traveling on the California Street route. It is crossing Powell Street and is heading west on California Street to the terminal at Van Ness Avenue.

Cable car #14 is turning onto Jackson Street. It will travel one block on Jackson Street, then turn north on Mason Street to the Taylor Street turnaround.

Here is another view of cable car #1. It is now traveling north, up Powell Street.

Rick Laubscher is the president and founder of San Francisco's Market Street Railway. Amongst market Street Railway's endeavors is preserving San Francisco's historic streetcars and cable cars.
This photo was taken on 3 February 2018, and Mr. Laubscher is at San Francisco's West Portal Branch Library, where he is talking about the history of the Twin Peaks Tunnel. The streetcar tunnel commenced operation precisely one hundred years ago on 3 February 1918. The West Portal Branch Library is across the street from the west portal of Twin Peaks Tunnel.
In celebration of the one-hundredth anniversary of the Twin Peaks Tunnel, Mr. Laubscher wrote "Tunnel Vision," a splendid article about the tunnel's significant benefits as bestowed on the people of San Francisco. Mr. Laubscher has also authored "On Track: A Field Guide to San Francisco's Streetcars and Cable Cars." It is an impressive book about the many cable cars and streetcars that roll up, down, and around the streets of San Francisco.

THEN A photo was taken on 1 June 1951 at the west portal of the Twin Peaks Tunnel. Car #150 was constructed in 1914, and Car #1001 was built in 1951. This photo is courtesy of Market Street Railway.

A view of the World War II Liberty Ship SS Jeremiah O'Brien. Her keel was laid in Portland, Maine, on 6 May 1943 and launched on 19 June 1943. In 1994 she steamed from San Francisco to Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the invasion of Nazi-held Europe. She is docked at Fisherman's Wharf and is open for public viewing.

This is the MS Costa Luminosa cruise ship. She entered service on 5 May 2009 and is now making a port call in San Francisco while on a world cruise. Her port of registry is Genoa, Italy.

A view of the north side of Telegraph Hill. Coit Tower is sited on the summit.

The Grand Princess cruise ship was built in Italy in 1998, and San Francisco is her home port.

This picture was taken from Hawk Hill Park; the view is looking east. Mount Davidson, the St. Francis Wood neighborhood, the Forest Hill neighborhood, and the West Portal neighborhood are all visible. On the right, in the distance, is San Bruno Mountain.

This is a view from Ina Coolbrith Park, the high point of Nob Hill. On the far right is Salesforce Tower, which is the tallest building in San Francisco. The Transamerica Pyramid, partially hidden by the trees, recently had the distinction of being the tallest building in San Francisco.

This photo was taken from Hawk Hill Park in the Sunset District, and the view is looking down Rivera Street. Abraham Lincoln High School is visible. If you look closely at the horizon, you can see the Farallon Islands, which are located approximately 30 miles from the coast.

A view of the south portal of the Stockton Street Tunnel. Bush Street crosses above this entryway. The tunnel was built as a convenient method for streetcars to take people between downtown San Francisco and the Marina District. The tunnel became operational on 29 December 1914 and continued to be used as a streetcar tunnel until 20 January 1950, when buses replaced the streetcar line. Would you like to see the north portal of the Stockton Street Tunnel? Go Here. (It is the third photo in the group of photographs.)

Here is an additional posting about San Francisco streetcars: Market Street Railway-Holiday decorations for a streetcar built in 1928 and a cable car built in 1887.

"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera." Dorothea Lange