|
in one of its wildest contortions."
and people saw their homes and jobs destroyed."  Panoramic
View: 'Ruins of San Francisco after earthquake and fire, April 18 - 21,
1906, view from Stanford Mansion site,' from Library of Congress Prints
and Photographs Division. Note Post Office on far right (no. 18). [slow
to load]A quote from Gladys Hansen's Earthquake Almanac: 1880-1914 Earthquakes states:
1913
Chevalier Map showing former boundary of eastern shore of mudflat-marshlands
of Mission Bay in vicinity of study area [93 K].View
two additional photos of earthquake damage
near Seventh and Mission [78 K]Aftermath After the 1906 fire, the use of brick and other fire-proof construction materials were required within specified zones. The use of fire-proof construction materials had been encouraged in San Francisco since the devasting fire of June 22, 1851. The city was rebuilt quickly and the same economic patterns continued. North Beach was almost totally reconstructed by 1907. In fact, in that year, 6,000 buildings were completed. By 1909, the city was virtually rebuilt. The newly rebuilt financial and retail districts obtained a common architectural imagery rooted in the Beaux Arts training of many of the leading architects.However, many "lesser" buildings continued to be traditional two-and-three-story brick or frame, including many of the structures located in the Seventh and Mission vicinity. Exceptions to this pattern are the six-story buildings such as the Eastern Outfitting Building just east of Seventh Street, which faces Market Street as well. On Jessie Street, a four-story brick building covers the lot through to Stevenson Street. The Baldwin House at Jesse and Sixth and the Yellow brick Seneca Hotel follow this same building pattern. The large San Rafael Hotel and Apartment House, situated to the southeast across Mission Street from the Courthouse, is impressive. The Odd Fellows Hall, dynamited after the earthquake, had been reconstructed. Still, in 1910, Block 3703 had many vacant lots. In 1915 the citizens celebrated the reconstruction by hosting the Panama Pacific International Expo, on newly filled land in the Marina District. In time for this Expo the present Civic Center was planned and began to rise. Essentially completed about 1935, these governmental buildings so thoroughly embody the City Beautiful ideals of the early 20th century that they were declared a National Historic Landmark in 1987. The city expanded, covering in the downtown about 50% more area than the pre-fire downtown. Hotels moved to an area west and south of the Union Square, and a theater district developed on Market Street southwest of Fifth. The Odd Fellows Hall at Market and Seventh now belongs as a contributory building to the Market Street Theater and Loft District on the National Register of Historic Places. Several other buildings in the 1000 block of Market Street are also contributors to that district (Wolly 1993, personal communication). The Grand Hotel at 30-34 Seventh Street (1907) and the Hotel Odeon at 36-52 Seventh Street belong to this trend. The 1920 census showed the San Francisco population to be 416,912. The building boom went ahead until the crash of 1929. The monumental Pacific Coast Stock Exchange Building was in progress and continued to completion in 1931. Although the depression halted construction, much of the city had taken the physical shape it has today. The Financial District was full of fireproof steel frame skyscrapers clad in historic imagery. The retail district had similar but shorter buildings. The major hotels were in place; buildings were erected for entertainment. Wholesaling, small manufacturing and alley residential were present in the South of Market district. Brick or concrete and stucco multi-unit residential or residential and commercial buildings of 3-6 stories filled Chinatown, the Tenderloin, and Lower Nob Hill Districts. Other apartment buildings, usually frame, but some brick or Class A, covered the rest of the fire-devastated districts. Many outer residential areas were built, along with their neighborhood commercial districts. After the turn of the century architectural choices had changed. Joining the rest of the country in a search for historical roots, San Franciscans turned to Mission, Spanish colonial and Mediterranean Revival designs. Craftsman, Bungalow, and Art Deco came into vogue. The downtown expanded to encompass the area from Market Street to Eighth Street, thus finally bringing the Courthouse and the block under study (Block 3703) into the hub of the city. When the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges opened in 1937 traffic grew as did the demand for new parking garages and lots. We see a move to consolidate lots, to tear down buildings and to provide large pieces of open land. Garages became big business. After World War II the Modern design in architecture died out and architects departed from the past to design in the Corporate International Style: steel and concrete, curtain walls. During the 1960s while the Department of Planning responded to the need for new policies to control the high rise buildings, it also responded to the need to preserve San Francisco's architectural heritage. Thus, in 1967 it established the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board.
 |
Left:
1906 earthquake damage at Seventh and Mission.
Left:
Earthquake damage near Seventh and Mission, looking west.
