Northeast — District
8
Click the map for street detail of District 8
Map from San Francisco Multiple Listings
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Nob Hill - Telegraph
Hill - Russian Hill -
North Beach - Financial
District
North Waterfront -
Union Square - Van
Ness
This is where San Francisco's history all began. From Fisherman's Wharf up and over the hills to the borders of the Tenderloin and west to the Civic Center complex, home to the newly restored City Hall with its 14 carat golden dome, one of the finest examples of Beaux Arts buildings in the the country. City Hall is neighbored by the grand buildings of Louise B. Davies Hall, the Opera House, Bill Graham Civic Auditorium plus more. On any given Sunday you can hear in the tenderloin gospel music at Glide Memorial Church to the magnificent sounds of Grace Cathedrals organ while ending your day w/ jazz at one of the many North Beach haunts.
Nob Hill was the spot on which all the
Big Four railroad magnates ( Charles Crocker, Mark Hopkins, Leland Stanford
and Collis Huntington) lost their palatial mansions to the infamous fire
of 1906. What you will find now on Nob Hill are luxury hotels such as
Fairmont, Mark Hopkins, Stanford Court and the Huntington. A few elegant
mansions, expensive highrises with crisply dressed doormen, a few homes
or buildings by Julia Morgan ( William R. Hearst hired this young lady,
first woman to ever graduate from the famous Ecole de Beaux Arts in Paris
who orchestrated the building of Hearst Castle in San Semeon). Sharing
this world famous square is the Masonic Auditorium, Grace Cathedral, and
the Huntington Park which provides a playground for the nannies of the
wealthy to the annual Junior League Open Market. The historic cable car
barn pulling all the cable cars by massive drums with standing-room -only
loads of tourists and locals up and down the hills from Union Square to
Aquatic Park. No hill in San Francisco can boast of more history than
Nob Hill! Go to our BLOG for much more information on this neighborhood!
Telegraph Hill, formerly known as " Goat Hill" by the many Italians who lived in this quarter, has lovely vistas that are shared by quaint single-family homes and apartments which are coveted due to the proximity to the financial district and nightlife of North Beach. Lillie Hitchcock Coit, a poker-playing, cigarette-smoking millionaire who loved to ride on fire trucks and became an honorary member of the Knickerbocker Engine Company No. #5, bequeathed one-third of her fortune to having a monument, Coit Tower, built on the very top of Telegraph Hill. Today, Coit Tower homes the revolutionary frescoes of Diego Rivera and other less known painters who were financed by the Federal Art project of 1933. Hundreds of tourist a day can be counted while by night lovers parked to enjoy the city lights laid out like a blanket, just steps away from the surviving wooden houses from the 1906 fire that once covered the hill.
Russian Hill Homes with an eclectic
assortment of 19th century Italianate facades, apartments, condos and
single-family residences to structures designed by famous architects such
as Willis Polk share this arena. Also, Vallejo Street Crest District w/
its National Register of Historic Places site to the infamous "crookedest
street in the world" Lombard Street are all used as settings of countless
books and films. Several lovely parks, plenty of good restaurants, and
shopping on Polk and Hyde streets make this a highly sought after urban
and centrally located area to live or rent.
The Filbert Steps embrace the small alleys full of cottages and gardens growing on 45 degree slopes with the headquarters of the firm of Levi Strauss at the bottom.. The Embarcadero wraps around the east to north borders offering restaurants, Pier 39 for shoppers/tourist and piers for the many cruise lines that dock daily.
Financial District, directly south of North Beach, claims this predominately commercial center of historic banks, highrise office buildings, a smattering of upscale apartments and condominiums (though the demand for urban lifestyle living screams for more), and TransAmerica Pyramid. The Jackson Square Park is the only green space for a respit from the hurried environment of commerce all around. Portsmouth Square with its many Chinese grandmas practicing their Tai Chi daily is the opening of Chinatown to the west.
Nestled between Nob Hill, the Financial District and North Beach you can find Chinatown. As SFGate describes it, "The reality of Chinatown is that there are two Chinatowns: One belongs to the locals, the other charms the tourists. They overlap and dance with each other, drawing more visitors annually than the Golden Gate Bridge. Why the popularity? Because visitors expect something they won't find anywhere else. They expect to be stunned and enchanted and stuffed with great food. And they will. You don't need an itinerary to tackle Chinatown. Wandering aimlessly, weaving between locals and ducking into shops is enough of a plan. Main Street for tourists is Grant Avenue, which is more about cheap and kitschy plastic Buddhas than the long heritage of Chinatown. It should definitely be seen, but moving on to the next block can be more rewarding." **
The North Waterfront includes, "Fisherman's Wharf... Roughly speaking it encompasses the northern waterfront area of San Francisco from Ghirardelli Square or Van Ness Street east to Pier 35 or Kearny Street. It is mainly a tourist attraction, known for being the location of Pier 39, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, Ghirardelli Square, Ripley's Believe it or Not, the Musée Mécanique, ferry rides to Alcatraz and restaurants that serve seafood, most notably dungeness crab. Transportation to Fisherman's Wharf can be an attraction of itself, the F Market runs through the area, the Powell-Hyde cable car lines runs to Aquatic Park, at the edge of Fisherman's Wharf, and the Powell-Mason cable car line runs a few blocks away. Other popular areas in San Francisco, such as Chinatown, Lombard Street and North Beach are all located in proximity to Fisherman's Wharf." *
SFGate says, "Union Square, one of San Francisco's main retail and cultural centers, also refers to the actual park bordered by Geary, Powell, Post and Stockton streets. Set aside as a park in 1850 and named before the start of the Civil War as a tribute to the frequent demonstrations in support of the Union troop, the park got a major renovation and restoration in 2002." Read more. **
Though not officially a residential neighborhood, the Van Ness/Civic Center area has its share of live/work lofts as well as the somewhat infamous 151 Alice B. Toklas Pl. Named after San Francisco's eccentric inhabitant who died in 1967, she is best known for her cookbook filled with "cannabis concoctions". Read more. *
* source - Wikipedia
** source - SFGate
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