Alamo Square is a residential neighborhood and park in San Francisco,
CaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, in the Western Addition, a district of the city's fifth Supervisorial district, and are served by several
Muni bus lines including the 5, 21, 22, and 24. Alamo Square Park consists of four city blocks at the top of a hill overlooking much of San Francisco, with a number of large and architecturally distinctive mansions along the perimeter. It is bordered by Hayes Street to the south, Fulton Street to the north, Scott Street to the west, and Steiner Street to the east.
Attractions and characteristics
The part of the Western Addition surrounding the park is often referred to as the Alamo Square neighborhood. Its boundaries are not well-defined, but are generally considered to be Webster Street on the east, Golden Gate Avenue on the north, Divisadero Street on the west, and Oak Street on the south. It is characterized by
Victorian architectureThe term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
that was left largely untouched by the
urban renewalUrban renewal is a program of land redevelopment in areas of moderate to high density urban land use. Renewal has had both successes and failures. Its modern incarnation began in the late 19th century in developed nations and experienced an intense phase in the late 1940s – under the rubric of...
projects in other parts of the Western Addition. The Alamo Square area contains the second largest concentration of homes over 10000 square feet (929 m²) in San Francisco, after the Pacific Heights neighborhood.
The park includes a playground and a tennis court, and is frequented by neighbors, tourists, and dog owners. On a clear day, the
Transamerica PyramidThe Transamerica Pyramid is the tallest skyscraper in the San Francisco skyline and one of its most iconic. Although the building no longer houses the headquarters of the Transamerica Corporation, it is still strongly associated with the company and is depicted in the company's logo...
building and the tops of the
Golden Gate BridgeThe Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate, the opening of the San Francisco Bay into the Pacific Ocean. As part of both U.S. Route 101 and California State Route 1, the structure links the city of San Francisco, on the northern tip of the San Francisco Peninsula, to...
and
Bay BridgeThe San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge is a pair of bridges spanning San Francisco Bay of California, in the United States. Forming part of Interstate 80 and of the direct road route between San Francisco and Oakland, it carries approximately 270,000 vehicles per day on its two decks...
can be seen from the park's center. The
San Francisco City HallSan Francisco City Hall, re-opened in 1915, in its open space area in the city's Civic Center, is a Beaux-Arts monument to the City Beautiful movement that epitomized the high-minded American Renaissance of the 1880s to 1917. The structure's dome is the fifth largest in the world...
can be seen directly down Fulton Street.
A row of
Victorian houseIn the United Kingdom, and former British colonies, a Victorian house generally means any house built during the reign of Queen Victoria...
s facing the park on Steiner Street, known as the "
Painted Ladies"Painted ladies" is a term used for Victorian and Edwardian houses and buildings painted in three or more colors that embellish or enhance their architectural details. The term was first used for San Francisco Victorian houses by writers Elizabeth Pomada and Michael Larsen in their 1978 book...
", are often shown in the foreground of panoramic pictures of the city's downtown area. A number of movies, television shows and commercials have been filmed in or around Alamo Square. The opening sequence of the American sitcom
Full HouseFull House is an American sitcom television series. Set in San Francisco, the show chronicles widowed father Danny Tanner, who, after the death of his wife, enlists his best friend Joey Gladstone and his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis to help raise his three daughters, D.J., Stephanie, and...
(1987-1995) features a romp in Alamo Square Park with the famous row of Victorians in the background. There are many architecturally significant mansions on the perimeter of the park, including the Archbishop's Mansion, the residences of the Russian and German Imperial consuls in the early 1900s, and the mansions on the block diagonally across from the Painted Ladies.
The demographics of the neighborhood are characteristic of other urban neighborhoods that have undergone
gentrificationGentrification and urban gentrification refer to the changes that result when wealthier people acquire or rent property in low income and working class communities. Urban gentrification is associated with movement. Consequent to gentrification, the average income increases and average family size...
: many young people and upper-middle-class homeowners, in addition to a diverse older population. Divisadero Street, which divides Alamo Square from
North PanhandleThe Panhandle is a park in San Francisco, California that forms a panhandle with Golden Gate Park. It is long and narrow, being three-quarters of a mile long and one block wide. Fell Street borders it to the north, Oak Street to the south, and Baker Street to the east. The Haight-Ashbury District...
, is home to a number of small businesses including a growing collection of hip and popular restaurants and bars. Efforts on the part of Alamo Square and North Panhandle residents and merchants have led to restrictions on chain stores on the corridor. The Harding Theater on Divisadero, closed for many years, is a local symbol of the power of a number of non-profit groups to stymie development, in spite of efforts to put forward a variety of proposals to use this potentially valuable piece of property.
Neighborhood groups include the Alamo Square Neighborhood Association and the Haight-Divisadero Neighborhood Merchants Association.
Notable residents
Author
Alice WalkerAlice Malsenior Walker is an American author, poet, and activist. She has written both fiction and essays about race and gender...
lived in one of the "Painted Lady" Victorians across from Alamo Square park up to the mid-1990s.
See also
- Parks of San Francisco
-Federal:National Park Service*Golden Gate National Recreation Area , including**Alcatraz**China Beach**Fort Funston**Fort Mason**Fort Miley **Lands End**Ocean Beach**The Presidio, including***Baker Beach***Crissy Field***Fort Point...
- 49-Mile Scenic Drive
The 49-Mile Scenic Drive in San Francisco highlights many of the city's major attractions and historic structures.Opened on September 14, 1938 as a promotion for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition, it...
External links