San Francisco has been a magnet for travelers for 170 years. The beauty of its setting on one of the world’s great natural harbors is unquestioned. Yet San Francisco’s front door once was ugly.
History Features
Memories of the Market Street Railway
By Bruce L. Battles, Market Street Railway Member
Cars of many colors
Visitors to San Francisco today frequently comment on the multi-colored fleet of streetcars on Market Street. But it’s not the first time that’s happened.
Completing a century: Muni 1983-2012
Final installment of our six part series on Muni’s birth and first century.
Modernizing Muni: 1963-1982
Fifth of six installments in our history of Muni’s birth and first century
Rails to rubber: Muni 1946-1962
Fourth of six installments in our history of Muni’s birth and first century
Muni at war: crushloads & consolidation 1941-1945
Third of six installments in our history of Muni’s birth and first century
The people’s road: Muni 1912-1941
Second of six installments in our history of Muni’s birth and first century
How Muni was born: 1900-1912
First of six installments in our history of Muni’s birth and first century
Forty frustrating years underground
The idea of a transit subway under Market Street goes back to the first years of the 20th century, but it took more than 70 fitful years to become reality. That’s a complex and fascinating story we tell in this companion post, which explains the compromises that harmed Muni’s subway operation from the get-go.
Archive: All Posts