Thursday, June 22, 2017

By Susan King


The City By the Bay is a favorite tourist destination for people all over the world. Every year millions pass through the city and enjoy its many amenities including temperate weather, beautiful views, fine dining, trolley cars, and unique history. Most want to take something home to remind them of their time spent in this unusual and distinctive city. Prints are a popular choice. Golden Gate Bridge views may be the obvious option, but there are a number of other historical prints San Francisco collectors recommend.

One things a lot of visitors want to do is eat at the famous Cliff House. There a number of photos depicting the structure, that seems to teeter precariously above Ocean Beach. Adolph Sutro's renovation, which turned it into something reminiscent of a gingerbread house, is arguably the most famous. It would make a great memento of your time in this city.

Adolph Sutro, a mining engineer, who bought Cliff House and restored it to its most famous incarnation was also the force behind the famed Sutro Baths located just north of Cliff House. He began with a ocean pool aquarium that he expanded into the largest indoor bathhouse in the world. At one time Sutro Baths included seven pools, natural history exhibits, paintings, sculptures, and even Egyptian mummies. No longer in existence, the Baths can only be enjoyed in photographs.

Food is one thing this city is rightly famous for. If you spent time at the local markets, you could purchase a print of Market Street bustling with trolley cars and horse drawn carriages circa 1900. The famous Flat Iron Building is front and center in many of these pictures.

You might have spent a night at the Mark Hopkins Hotel on Nob Hill and enjoyed the view from the Top of the Mark. If you did, you must have noticed the photography highlighting the original mansion that once stood in its place. Many believed it to be the gaudiest and most vulgar building ever built, but others admired the size and grandeur of the designer's endeavor. Although fire brought on by the 1906 earthquake destroyed it, the Mansion still lives on in print.

San Francisco is no stranger to colorful characters, and one that is still remembered fondly today is Emperor Norton. The local citizenry accepted his eccentricities and looked forward to his latest proclamations and decrees. His reign as self-proclaimed Emperor of the United States lasted almost a quarter of a century. During that time he was a welcome guest at theaters and restaurants throughout the city.

The 1906 earthquake was a defining moment in the city's history, and there are numerous old prints showing the devastation that occurred as a result of the quake and the fires that ignited after it. The scenes of what was left of City Hall and the Call Building are very interesting.

There is no city quite like San Francisco. Instead of burying and denying its past, it has embraced it and made it part of the culture. This is one of the reasons people love to visit the City By the Bay and return again and again.




About the Author:



Related Posts:

0 commentaires:

Post a Comment

Popular Posts