 September 2008Potrero Hill: Then and NowSan Francisco spent an intense nine years rebuilding itself after the 1906 Great Earthquake and Fire. In 1915 it was ready to show the world that it was “the City that knows how” when it played host to the spectacularly popular Pan-Pacific International Exposition. Shortly thereafter the City turned its attention to other infrastructure tasks, such as grading and paving streets in “outlying” neighborhoods, Potrero Hill being one of them. This month’s photo shows a steam shovel snarling and grinding as it crunched its way along 20th Street between De Haro and Carolina streets in November 1915. The campanion photograph shows the same stretch of street today, looking serene and tidy. Last month Peter Linenthal and I delivered our second book about Potrero Hill to our publisher, Arcadia. The title is Then & Now: Potrero Hill and, if all goes well, it should be in your favorite book or grocery store before the end of the year. – Abigail Johnston, The Potrero Hill Archives Project. |
This Month's StoriesPublic Benefits Delayed in Eastern Neighborhoods New Economy Emerges in Dogpatch Historic District Channel Street Used As Private Parking Lot Attack on Bicyclists Claims Four Victims, Two in Potrero Lack of Transparency Dogs Community Trust Fund Parking Restrictions Coming to Tennessee Street Property Owners Grapple with Rent Control Regulations “Dogpreneur” Becomes Latest Career Trend Steady Flow of Newcomers Call Potrero Hill Home Jewish Film Festival Turns Thirty On-going Features
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