Enjoying SF’s Parks… From Home

As we all shelter-in-place and enjoy getting deeply acquainted with our home spaces and our family members, Shaping San Francisco offers some ways to learn more about the history behind our parks and open spaces without having to navigate a safe distance among the surprising throngs of people. 

Shaping San Francisco is a participatory community history project documenting and archiving overlooked stories and memories of San Francisco

Explore Golden Gate Park

In anticipation of Golden Gate Park’s 150th anniversary year (the April 4 community day celebration has been rescheduled), we have been adding more content to our Golden Gate Park category.

Many thanks to the Western Neighborhoods Project folks for their coverage of the park and the many newly scanned photos they have added to OpenSFHistory.org, and for their permission to use these in our Unfinished Histories and Historical Essays.

Discover Little Known Lakes and Park History Facts

Use Shaping San Francisco’s digital archive, Foundsf.org, to enjoy information and photos of little known spots like Alvord Lake, about how decisions about transportation shaped the park (Park and Ocean Railroad and McAllister Car Barn), and on sports teams who used to play in the park (All-American Football Conference: San Francisco 49ers).

We’ve been researching more locations as well, for our upcoming Paths Through Golden Gate Park bicycle tour—still scheduled for mid-April, for now.

Virtual Tour of Wildflowers & Spring Booms

Of course there are many other open spaces you might be newly discovering these days, where you will be seeing some gorgeous wildflowers and spring blooms.

Take our Foundsf.org virtual tour of Historic Habitat & Wildlife Species, learn about the Corwin Community Garden and Seward Mini-Park, and find out how many of our hilltops have been preserved as open spaces in Ecology Emerges.