Where I Live

[frisco-kid]

For all the sailors on here.

[Bill Farnie]

Great pictures Tom

In picture with the streetcar, I love the building on the corner that?s on a 45 degree angle. I think they are cool. Quite a few old ones around where I live. The street light, is it still gas or has it been converted to electricity?

My Homie knows all about Yerba Buena

[QM3steve]

It seems that as you get out of the city area that there's some beautiful countryside. How is the temp during the year?

Another thread; "Where do you live"? How 'bout it?

[frisco-kid]

Originally posted by Bill Farnie Great pictures Tom

In picture with the streetcar, I love the building on the corner that?s on a 45 degree angle. I think they are cool. Quite a few old ones around where I live. The street light, is it still gas or has it been converted to electricity?

My Homie knows all about Yerba Buena

Me too, Bill. Some weekend I'll drive around The City and get some pictures of some of the architeture. There are some beautiful Victorians around. After the 1906 Earthquake and Fire that destroyed most of San Francisco, they built alot of three story flats; one family per floor. These were to get as many people as possible back into housing quickly. These were what I grew up in. Most of them had beautiful trim and mouldings in them; bay windows in the living rooms [parlors]; and ornate mantles and fireplaces. And this was the cheap housing! I remember many of the gas chandeliers and wall sconces still working.

The gas street lamps were converted to electricity years ago, but have been preserved where possible.

Yerba Buena: Yeah, those conquistidores and missionaries were a happy bunch .

[frisco-kid]

Originally posted by QM3steve Another thread; "Where do you live"? How 'bout it?

Sounds good to me, Steve. Why don't you start one off with your contribution. Should be fun if everybody participates.

[39mto39g]

SF may get a new bridge, Or at least a new bridge name .
Emperor Nortan Bridge?

Ron

[Zinzendorf]

And speaking of temps in SF, Mark Twain was supposed to have said, "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco." He may just have hit the nail on the head...

[frisco-kid]

Originally posted by 39mto39g SF may get a new bridge, Or at least a new bridge name .
Emperor Nortan Bridge?

Ron

Ron, I heard this proposed a while back but haven't heard anymore about it.

Emperor Norton was quite a character in a city known for it's characters. Joshua Norton showed up in San Francisco in 1849 with a sizable fortune that he had made in South Africa. After looking around at the many investment possibilities in the growing city, he decided to try to corner the state's rice market. Just as had just about succeeded in doing it, a whole fleet of ships loaded with rice sailed into San Francisco Bay. The bottom fell out of the market, and he lost everything.

Norton fell out of sight for 6-8 yrs.. No one really knows much about those years, but when he returned to SF he proclaimed himself to be "The Emperor of California and The Protector of Mexico." Ol' Josh had gone completely around the bend, never to return.

For the next 20-some yrs. Norton would walk around in a uniform, complete with appaulets on the shoulders and a feathered hat, in a city that had a sense of humor big enough to play along with the lunatic. Norton was welcome in any upscale saloon in the city for the free lunch; could get served at the fanciest restaraunts; he had his own money printed up [quite valuable now] and it was accepted by any emporium in the downtown; the local newspapers would run his "Proclamations" for free; and some of the best tailors in the city would give him a new uniform when needed.

In a couple of his "Proclamations" he demanded that a bridge be built from San Francisco to the East Bay [the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge], and from Lands End to Marin County [the Golden Gate Bridge]. He proclaimed that these would be paid for by the Union Pacific Railroad. Seems that The Emperor was ahead of his time in foresight. This is why his name came up for a possible name for the new Bay Bridge.

When Norton died his funeral procession was said to consist of 20-30,000 mourners. Must have been quite a party.


Zinzendorf: That is an accurate Twain quote.

A side note: Emperor Norton had two stray mutts that befriended him. Their names were Bummer and Lazurus, and accompanied the Emperor everywhere for years. When Lazurus died, his obituary was written by Mark Twain who was a reporter for one of the local newspapers at the time. True story.

[WateringHole]

Great pictures frisco. San Francisco and it's surronding area has always been a beautiful place.
Love those big seafood markets they have.

[QM3steve]

Presenting...The Emperor