Golden Gate Park
Golden Gate Park is the largest
urban park in
San Francisco, California,
USA. At 1017 acres (4.1 km²), it is in the shape of a long rectangle, similar in shape but 174 acres (0.7 km²) larger than
Central Park in New York.
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The domed Conservatory of Flowers is one of the world's largest. It is built of traditional wood sash and glass pane construction. It has been extensively renovated several times since its construction |
In the
1860s, San Franciscans began to feel the need for a spacious public park like the one that was taking shape in New York. Golden Gate Park was carved out of unpromising sand and shore dunes that were known as the "outside lands." The tireless field engineer
William Hammond Hall prepared a survey and topographic map of the park site in 1870 and became commissioner in 1871. He was later named California's first State Engineer and developed an integrated flood control system for the
Sacramento Valley when he was not working on Golden Gate Park. The actual plan and planting were developed by Hall and his assistant, John McLaren, who had apprenticed in
Scotland, the source of many of the
19th century's best professional gardeners. The initial plan called for grade separations of transverse roadways through the park, as
Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. had provided for Central Park, but budget constraints and the positioning of the Arboretum and the Concourse aborted the plan. In 1876, the plan was almost exchanged for a racetrack favored by "
the Big Four" millionaires,
Leland Stanford,
Mark Hopkins,
Collis P. Huntington, and
Charles Crocker. Hall resigned and all the park commissioners followed him. Fortunately for the city, the original plan was soon back on track. By 1886,
streetcars delivered over 47,000 people to Golden Gate Park on one weekend afternoon; the city's population at the time was about 250,000. Hall selected McLaren as his successor in 1887.
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The North Windmill |
The first stage stabilized the ocean dunes that covered three-quarters of the park area with tree plantings. By 1875, about 60,000 trees, mostly
Blue Gum Eucalyptus,
Monterey pine and
Monterey cypress were planted. By 1879, that figure more than doubled to 155,000 trees over 1,000 acres (4 km²). Later McLaren scoured the world through his correspondents for trees. Only
Bolivia escaped his net. When McLaren refused to retire at age 60, as was customary, the San Francisco city government was bombarded with letters: when he reached 70 a charter amendment was passed to exempt him from forced retirement. He lived in
McLaren Lodge in Golden Gate Park until he died at age 90, in 1943.
In 1903, a pair of Dutch-style windmills were built at the extreme western end of the park. These pumped water throughout the park. The north windmill has been restored to its original appearance and is adjacent to a flower garden, a gift of
Queen Wilhelmina of the
Netherlands. These are planted with
tulip bulbs for winter display and other flowers in appropriate seasons. Murphy's Windmill in the south of the park is currently being restored.
Most of the water used for landscape watering and for various water features is now provided by the use of highly processed and recycled effluent from the city's sewage treatment plant, located at the beach some miles away to the south near the
San Francisco Zoo. In the
1950s there was some consternation caused by the use of this effluent during cold weather, with the introduction of artificial detergents but before the advent of modern biodegradable products. These "hard" detergents would cause long-lasting billowing piles of foam to form on the creeks connecting the artificial lakes, and could even be blown upon the roads, forming a traffic hazard.
Japanese Tea Garden
The five acre (20,000 m²)
Japanese tea garden at Golden Gate Park, an immensely popular feature.
The Music Concourse Area
The Music Concourse is an open area with three water fountains surrounded with maple trees positioned uniformly. There is also a stage on the east side. The buildings near the concourse area include The California Academy of Sciences and De Young Museum.
In 2003, the Music Concourse is also undergoing a series improvements to include an underground 800-car parking garage, narrowing of the roadways in the Music Concourse, the addition of bike lanes, and the elimination of existing surface parking.
De Young Museum
The
De Young Museum was opened January 1921. Its original building had been part of The
California Midwinter International Exposition of 1894. The
California Academy of Sciences, a complex of a library, a research lab, a planetarium, an aquarium and a natural-history museum, is also located in Golden Gate Park. The de Young has been completely rebuilt and re-opened in 2005.
Academy of Sciences
The
California Academy of Sciences is a Natural History Museum which also houses the Steinhart Aquarium and the Morrison Planetarium. The Academy of Sciences carries exhibits of reptiles and amphibians, astrology, prehistoric life, various gems and minerals, earthquakes, and aquatic life.
In September 12, 2005, Academy of Sciences started a complete reconstruction, with completion scheduled for 2008; until then it is temporarily located downtown in the
SoMa area.
Strybing Arboretum
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A trail through the redwood forest section of the arboretum. |
The
Strybing Arboretum was laid out in the
1890s, but funding was insufficient until Helene Strybing willed funds in 1926. Planting was begun in 1937 with
WPA funds supplemented by local donations. This 70 acre (280,000 m²)
arboretum contains more than 6,000 plant species.
Aids Memorial Grove
The
AIDS Memorial Grove has been in progress since 1988 and is still the only national
AIDS memorial in the
U.S.. The Grove's executive director, Thom Weyand, has said that "part of the beauty of the grove is that as a memorial which receives no federal money, it is blessedly removed from the fight over the controversy of AIDS."
Stow Lake
Stow Lake surrounds the prominent Strawberry Hill, now an island with an electrically pumped
waterfall. There are rowboats and pedalboats available for rental at the boathouse. Much of the western portion of San Francisco may be seen from the top of this hill, which at its top contains one of the reservoirs that supply a network of high-pressure water mains that exclusively supply specialized fire hydrants throughout the city.
Spreckels Lake
Spreckels Lake is located on the northern side of the park near 36
th Avenue. One can usually find
model yachts sailing on Spreckels Lake. Many of these are of the type used before the advent of the modern
radio controlled model. The yachts are set up by their owners and most include either an auxiliary wind vane or main sheet linkage to control the rudder in response to varying wind conditions. The yachts are then released, and pole handlers will walk down each side of the lake with a padded pole to prevent the yachts from colliding with the lake edge. The lake has been specifically designed for this type of operation as it has a vertical edging (allowing the yachts to closely approach the shore) and a paved walkway around the entire edge. At one location near a grassy area "duckling ramps" allow young wildlife to safely exit the pond.
Conservatory of Flowers
The
Conservatory of Flowers is one of the world's largest conservatories built of traditional wood and glass panes. It was prefabricated for local entrepreneur
James Lick for his
Santa Clara, California estate, but was still in its crates when he died in 1876. A group of San Franciscans bought it, offered it to the city, and it was erected in Golden Gate Park and opened to the public in 1879. In 1883, a boiler exploded and the main dome caught fire. A restoration was undertaken by
Southern Pacific magnate
Charles Crocker. It survived the
earthquake of 1906 only to suffer another fire in 1918. In 1933 it was declared unsound and closed to the public, only to be reopened in 1946. In 1995, a severe storm with 100 mph (160 km/h) winds damaged the structure, shattering 40% of the glass and had to be closed again. It was cautiously dissected for repairs and finally reopened in September 2003.
Kezar Stadium
Kezar Stadium, the one-time home of the
AAFC and
NFL San Francisco 49ers, was built between 1922 and 1925 in the southeast corner of the park. The old, 59,000 seat stadium was demolished in 1989, and replaced with a modern, 9,044 seat stadium.
John F. Kennedy Drive
John F. Kennedy Memorial Drive was the new name for North Drive, winding from the East end of the park to the
Great Highway after the Kennedy Assassination. The portion east of the 19th ave. park crossing is closed to motor traffic on Sundays and holidays, providing a popular oasis for pedestrians, bicyclists, and skaters. In 1983 the other major transverse road, South Drive, was renamed as
Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
There are also a number of more naturalistically landscaped lakes throughout the park, several linked together into chains, with pumped water creating flowing creeks.
A paddock corrals a small herd of
bison, captive in the Park since 1892.[
1]
*
Park History with maps from San Francisco Recreation and Park Department*
Park Map*
Google map including satellite image ca. early 2004*
Friends of the Music Concourse - local preservation and advocacy group*
Conservatory history.*
Another capsule biography of Hall*
Park history from San Francisco Historical Society*
Golden Gate Park Virtual Tour*
Article regarding Golden Gate Park Playground*
Photos of Golden Gate Park - Terra Galleria*
Golden Gate Park Concourse Authority redevelopment program
*
Brief vita of John McLaren, the park superintendent
