Jump to Content

Collection Guide
Collection Title:
Collection Number:
Get Items:
Jasper O'Farrell correspondence
SFH 207  
View entire collection guide What's This?
Search this collection
Collection Overview
 
Table of contents What's This?
Description
Six documents relating to O'Farrell's survey of Yerba Buena (San Francisco) and one relating to his survey of Sonoma town.
Background
Jasper O'Farrell was born in Ireland in 1817 and came to California in 1843 via Chile. Trained as a civil engineer, he was appointed Surveyor-General of Alta California in 1844. In 1846, under American occupation, O’Farrell was asked by Alcalde Washington A. Bartlett to survey the town of Yerba Buena, and O'Farrell based his map of San Francisco after Benjamin Buckelew’s, but added Market Street on a diagonal; he established many of the street names in the area bounded by Post, Leavenworth, and Francisco streets. O'Farrell had property in Sonoma County, died in 1875, and is buried in Bodega, California.
Extent
8 folders
Restrictions
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the City Archivist. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the San Francisco Public Library as the owner of the physical items.
Availability
The collection is open for research.