Mission District Tour #4, Centers Around-23rd St.Shops-Row Houses-To Wider Area

(Photo above: an Omnibus Co. horse drawn streetcar, runs on Howard Street, in front of grand homes, 1886. Horse drawn street cars started running in the Mission in the 1850s.)

We're embarking on following series of thirteen heritage, history and architecture tours of the Mission District. The SF Planning Dept. has designated these (1-13, plus the Liberty-Hill Historic District, grandfathered in.) as Historic Districts within the Mission.

1. Shotwell St., Victoriana
2. South Mission-Avenues & Alleys
3. East Mission-Florida-to-Hampshire Sts.
4. Horner's Addition East
5. Gottlieb Knopf Block
6. Von Schroeder-Welsh Block
7. 23rd St. Shops & Row Houses
8. Alabama St., Pioneers
9. Hampshire St., False Fronts
10. Juri Street
11. Olsen's Queen Anne Cottages
12. O'Donnell-Fowler Homes
13. Orange Alley Stables & Lofts

• and Liberty-Hill Historic District

Today enjoy, (numbers from above), #4, #7, #10, #13 and part of the L-H Historic District, for a Victorian heritage, architectural walking tour, of this part of the Mission District. It's an area centering around, 23rd St. between Mission & Valencia Sts. as well as properties on and around Mission, Bartlett and Valencia Sts.
This center residential/commercial corridor part of the tour in the heart of the Mission District is an architecturally consistent grouping of Italianate style and Stick style flats above shops and dwellings. The area is representative of the late 19th century character of the most urban, densely populated part of the Mission District, the blocks located between the commercial and transit corridors of Mission and Valencia Sts.
This is an extremely interesting with some surprises other then Victorian homes, that will be fun to explore and discover the ins and outs, nooks and crannies and architectural pathways.

All and all by the time the first round is done (this is the last of the groups, before we start repeating in the fall months ahead). We'll have found the fourteen San Francisco Planning Dept. designated Historic Districts, that we've (I received a lot of help from the initial attendees, Thank you all.) turned into tours in the Southeast Mission. Don't miss this one.

To make a comparison between the East Coast's early history and San Francisco's: Having grown up on the East Coast in Philadelphia, I've lived, worked in and visited some of the well known, large and small, famous historic districts: most well known, Beacon Hill in Boston, Greenwich Village in NYC, Georgetown in D.C., Society Hill in Philadelphia (I lived there for twelve years.). Unfortunately San Francisco lost its most historic downtown areas in the 1906 Earthquake & Fire. But a large portion of the other side of town survived. Thus the Mission, SF's oldest neighborhood becomes San Francisco's most historic neighborhood.

What do the Victorian houses look like out there? In every neighborhood in SF the Victorians differ. In each instance a unique group of people came together to build a single house or a cluster. Something like a group coming together to make a Hollywood movie. People relying on each others strengths, experience, knowledge and talent to get something done. What is created is unique. A piece of their past in our present.

The SF Planning Dept., has done extensive studies of the history, buildings and architecture of several City neighborhoods.
An excellent Historic Context statement exists for the Mission District which will add greatly to knowledge of this area.
We're meeting in front of Jay's Cheese Steak Shop. Jay's has always been so nice to always let us use their restroom. But I've never bought a Cheese Steak there. Being from Philly you know I like Cheese Steaks so let's get some take-out on the way back. A walk over to Dolores Park for a picnic would be nice.