Collection Guide
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Finding aid to the City and County of San Francisco Sheriff's Department Records (1889-2012)
SFH 79
SFH 79
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Title: City and County of San Francisco Sheriff's Department Records
Date (inclusive): 1889-2012
Date (bulk): 1889-1942
Date (bulk): 1956-2012
Identifier/Call Number: SFH 79
Creator:
San Francisco (Calif.). Sheriff's Department
Creator:
Hennessey, Michael, Sheriff
Physical Description: 30 boxes. 17 cartons, 1 mss, 8 OV flat boxes, 4 OV bully boxes.
(30 Cubic Feet)
Contributing Institution:
San Francisco History Center, San Francisco Public Library
100 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 557-4567
info@sfpl.org
Abstract: Founded in 1850, the City and County of San Francisco Sheriff Department's (SFSD) primary function is to operate the system
of county jails. The SFSD also provides security and law enforcement in several locations in the city. From 1850-1890 the
Sheriff Department also oversaw executions in San Francisco.
Physical Location: The collection is stored onsite.
Identifier/Call Number: 1207
The collection is available for use during San Francisco History Center hours, with photographs available during Photo Desk
hours. Collections that are stored offsite should be requested 48 hours in advance.
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.
[Identification of item], City and County of San Francisco Sheriff's Department Records (SFH 79), San Francisco History Center,
San Francisco Public Library.
The collection was obtained through two aquisitions. The first - containing materials about the jail from the late 19th and
early 20th centry - has an unknown provenance. The second aquisition came from Sheriff Michael Hennessey in 2011 and 2012.
Researchers are encouraged to see also the San Francisco Municipal Reports and the SFPL online catalog. In particular Michael
Hennessey's book, San Francisco Sheriff, 1846-1861.
During processing, parts of the collection were re-foldered and re-housed in acid-free folders and boxes. Some metal staples
remain.
Photographs are located with the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection.
Founded in 1850, the City and County of San Francisco Sheriff Department's (SFSD) primary function is to operate the system
of county jails where there is an average population of 2,200 inmates (as of 2016), and a number of individuals on supervised
release programs.
The SFSD also provides security and law enforcement in the following locations in San Francisco: the civil and criminal courts,
City Hall, the Public Library, the Emergency Communications and Dispatch Center, San Francisco General Hospital, Laguna Honda
Hospital, and several public health clinics.
The SFSD is a separate organization from the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD). However, SFSD deputies and SFPD officers
have all attended a Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) mandated police academy, and are duly sworn California peace
officers.
From 1850-2016, 34 elected Sheriffs have served the city. John Coffee Hays (1850) served as the first sheriff and as of 2019,
Vicki Hennessy serves as the first women sheriff. From 1850-1890 the Sheriff Department also oversaw executions in San Francisco.
In 1891 legislation removed that duty to the state level.
The collection is broken into two sections by date. Early materials include jail records from the late 19th and early 20th
century, registers and discharge lists of prisoners, and financial records. Later jail records include reports of escapes
from 1956-1981 and assaults from 1974-1981. The second portion includes materials dating to Sheriff Michael Hennessey's terms
in office (the longest tenured sheriff in San Francisco history, 1980-2012) including publicity; reports and articles collected
by Hennessey; research files he collected while researching the history of the Sheriff's Department, office papers, audio
visual and graphic materials in various formats.
The collection also includes photographs including the Garden Project: a program which rehabilitated prisoners by training
them to garden. The collection is strong in the late 19th early 20th century and 1956-2012, but does not have materials from
1942-1956. The collection is also significant for its records of the Mission Rebels – a community organization active from
1966-1968 – which focused on at-risk youth in the Mission.
The collection is arranged in 8 series: Series 1: Annual Reports, Series 2: County Jail, Series 3: Mission Rebels, Series
4: Publicity, Series 5: Reports/ Articles, Series 6: Research Files, Series 7: Office Papers, Series 8: Audio Visual and Graphic
Materials. Some series furthur divided into Sub-Series.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Jails -- California -- San Francisco -- History
Mission Rebels In Action
San Francisco (Calif.). Sheriff's Department