Photo from Kevin Connors
Today it is raining in
San Francisco ... after weeks of sun and warmth. Rain and fog makes me always
kind of melancholic when walking through the city in rubber boots. I start
thinking about the city's past and I was questioning myself how many millions
of people did walk already through the streets of San Francisco, did wander
over Golden Gate Bridge in the fog or traveled in its cable cars over the 42
city hills.
Our streets have a lot
of history and I want to share the history of some of the most well-known
streets with you:
Van Ness Avenue
Van Ness Street is the
city's life preserver. Because of the wideness of the street, the fire that
ensued after the 1906 earthquake could not jump it, preserving the other half
of the city from further advantage. Van Ness Street is named after mayor, James
van Ness.
Polk Street
Hop one street over to
the east from Van Ness and you've hit the lively Polk Street, a street
populated by many restaurants and bars, spanning from Nob Hill through Russian
Hill. Polk Street is named after James Polk, the US President who led the US to
victory in the Mexican-American War, which is how California became part of the
US.
Fillmore Street
Named after another
president, Fillmore Street, which was the national center for jazz in the
1940's and 50's and dubbed the "Harlem of the West," is littered with
great music venues, boutique shops and delicious restaurants today. The
president the street is named after is Millard Fillmore, who officially
California as a state of the union.
Haight & Ashbury
The epicenter of the
counter-culture movement and the Summer of Love, Haight and Ashbury have ties
back to the city's early residents. Haight Street is presumably named after
Henry Haight, although it is unclear because there were three Haight brothers.
Henry Haight was an early pioneer of the city and the manager of Page, Bacon
& Co, a reputable bank back in the day.
Ashbury Street is named
after Munroe Ashbury, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
from 1864-1870.
Lombard Street
One of the curviest
streets in the city (the curviest is actually Vermont Street in Potrero Hill)
and the most popular street among visitors has no link to San Francisco. It is
actually named after a street in Philadelphia.
Market Street
The main artery of the
city, Market Street touches everyone's day. Market has seen some much history
from the parades to marches to celebrations. It has seen it all. So what's the
history behind the name our most important street? It is likely named after
Market Street in Philadelphia too. Jasper O'Farrell, the civil engineer who
surveyed the city in 1847, named many of today's major streets, used to live
there.
If you want to take a
deeper dive into the history of our streets, head over to Noah Veltman's map.
The history of San Francisco streets was originally found here from author Dan Rosenbaum.
