North Beach, San Francisco

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Looking west on Filbert Street, Sts. Peter and Paul Church and Russian Hill are visible.

North Beach is a neighborhood in the northeast of San Francisco adjacent to Chinatown and Fisherman's Wharf. It is the Little Italy of the city. North Beach is sheltered from ocean breezes by Russian Hill to the west and often enjoys sunny days when much of the city is shrouded in fog.

The American Planning Association (APA) has named North Beach as one of ten 'Great Neighborhoods in America':^[1]

Mention North Beach and what comes to mind is a mix of images and contrasts: arts, crafts, and jazz festivals; and a storied history involving known writers and musicians, movie sets and nightclubs. Added to this are several historical landmarks; a compact layout that makes walking enjoyable and easy; and a strong commitment to keeping businesses and stores independently owned and operated. Residents have fought to keep North Beach this way, and will continue to play an essential role in preserving this character.^[2]

Location and description

The San Francisco Chronicle defines the Chinatown, North Beach, and Telegraph Hill areas as bound by Sacramento Street, Taylor Street, Bay Street, and the water.^[3]

North Beach is a San Francisco, California neighborhood bounded by the former Barbary Coast, now Jackson Square, and the Financial District south of Broadway (except North Beach institutions extend down Columbus to Washington and Montgomery, where the Black Cat originally was), Chinatown to the southwest of Columbus below Green, and then Russian Hill to the west, Telegraph Hill to the east and Fisherman's Wharf at Bay Street to the north.

Typical intersections are Union and Columbus, the southwest corner of Washington Square, Grant Avenue and Vallejo, location of Caffe Trieste, Mason and Francisco, places for much shopping and dining.

The somewhat compact layout of the neighborhood consists of three-story buildings painted in light colors dating from the 1920s, when people rebuilt after the earthquake and fire of 1906. The weather is typically San Franciscan: moderate, with occasional sunny hours between noon, after the morning fog burns off, and four, before the fog starts rolling back in from the Pacific Ocean.

History

Carol Doda's Condor Club in 1973

Originally, the city's northeast shoreline extended only to what is today Taylor and Francisco streets. The area largely known today as North Beach was an actual beach, filled in with soil years ago.

This neighborhood, particularly on Broadway east of Columbus, was infamous until fairly recently as home to many of the city's striptease clubs. In the 19th century, the area was the locale of the infamous Barbary Coast. Many of the sex-related businesses seen in Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry movies, Paul Schrader's Hardcore and the television series The Streets of San Francisco have been converted to other, more mainstream uses. The Condor Club, on the corner of Columbus and Broadway, was opened in 1964 as America's first topless bar. It later became a lobster restaurant, then a New-Orleans seafood/jazz bar; now, it is a topless bar again. The Lusty Lady, a peep-show establishment, is notable as the world's only worker cooperative strip club. The Broadway strip was also home to the Mabuhay Gardens, the Stone and On Broadway nightclubs, which were important venues in the punk rock scene of the late 1970s to mid-1980s. By the late 1990s, however, the economic facts of life asserted themselves and the area's diverse nightlife became limited to those places that could afford to stay in business.

Attractions

Looking south-east from Columbus Street (on the left) and Stockton (on the right). The Transamerica Pyramid is visible in the background on Columbus Street. The array of overhead wires supply power for the electric trolley buses such as the one seen on Stockton Street.

There is a street fair on Grant Avenue on Father's Day and a parade along Columbus Avenue to Aquatic Park around Columbus Day. There is a National Shrine at Vallejo and Columbus and Sts. Peter and Paul Church on Filbert north of Washington Square. The Powell Mason cable car line ends in the outer portion of North Beach where there is no beach.

North Beach has a strong Italian American flavor due to its early 20th century history as a neighborhood of Italian immigrants.

An alleyway off of Columbus between Kearny and Broadway is named for Beat Generation writer Jack Kerouac, who once lived there and frequented the famous City Lights Bookstore on the corner of Columbus and Broadway as well as the numerous nearby bars and coffee shops. Baseball legend Joe Dimaggio grew up in the neighborhood and briefly returned to live there with his wife Marilyn Monroe. Prominent trial attorney Tony Serra has his office near the corner of Columbus and Broadway.

The San Francisco Art Institute is located in the Northern end of North Beach, on Russian Hill, while the Academy of Art University has several buildings in the area, including one along Columbus Street and one across Pier 39.

Restaurants

Bars and clubs

Residents past and present

Films featuring North Beach

See also

49-Mile Scenic Drive

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: North Beach

• North Beach Interactive Neighborhood Map: Hilton SF
• North Beach Yahoo Maps
• Guided photo tour
• The Chronicle's standing article about North Beach
• North Beach Neighbors a San Francisco Neighborhood Organization
• Surrounded by Sound: Aurally Exploring the Barbary Coast at en fuego magazine
• Historic North Beach and Telegraph Hill photographs by photographer JB Monaco

References