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Downtown Association of San Francisco Records
SFH 440
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Table of contents
Title: Downtown Association of San Francisco Records
Date (inclusive): 1907-2004
Date (bulk): 1917-1995
Identifier/Call Number: SFH 440
Creator:
Down Town Association (San Francisco, Calif.)
Creator:
Downtown Association of San Francisco
Physical Description:
17 cartons, 8 flat boxes, 3 bully boxes.
(28 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: The Downtown Association of San Francisco was an organization devoted to the betterment of San Francisco and its Downtown
Business District from 1907 to approximately 2004. The collection contains articles of incorporation, correspondence, minutes,
membership records, subject files, publications to members, newspaper clippings, original artwork and photographs.
Language of Materials: Collection materials are in
English.
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.
Collection on the Downtown Association of San Francisco (SFH 440), San Francisco History Center, San Francisco Public Library.
Donated by Brennan Zerbe in 2016 for the Hearst Corporation, SF Realties Division.
Researchers are encouraged to see also the San Francisco Public Library Online Public Access Catalog.
During processing, the collection was re-foldered and re-housed in acid-free folders and boxes. Some staples remain.
The Downtown Association of San Francisco (DASF) was founded just one year after the 1906 Earthquake and Fire devastated San
Francisco. A temporary business district was established on Van Ness Avenue while the city was rebuilt. In 1907 W.D. Fennimore
and John Hammersmith established the Downtown Association with the purpose of rebuilding and improving the downtown corridor
and to bring business back to downtown from Van Ness Avenue where they feared it would stay. Once downtown was reestablished
as the city’s commercial center, the association shifted its mission to improving the downtown triangle and eventually broadening
its influence to include the entire city of San Francisco and adopting the motto “For the Good of the City”.
Membership to the Downtown Association was offered on a single or collective basis, a collective membership may have had up
to 25 single memberships. Notable members of the association included W.P. Fennimore and Mayor Angelo Rossi along with collective
members Bank of America, Pacific Gas and Electric, Standard Oil, Wells Fargo Bank, Pacific Telephone, City of Paris, FW Woolworth
Co., Gump’s and Macy’s department stores. At the Downtown Association’s apex the association’s participation numbered over
1,000 members.
Regular weekly Luncheons were an important function of the association, usually taking place at the Saint Francis Hotel. Luncheons
served to bring members together and provide a closer understanding of their work and progress. The Downtown Association also
took excursions to Mexico in 1925 and again in 1930. Members and their wives traveled together to Mexico with the intention
of developing trade relations.
The Downtown Association sponsored the first electric lights known as the “Path of Gold” on Market Street in 1916. Inspired
by the lights designed by D’Arcy Ryan for the 1915 International Exposition the DASF invited Ryan to design streetlights for
Market Street. The DASF continued to maintain the lights for several years until the city eventually assumed the cost. Starting
in 1929 the DASF began sponsoring the Christmas decorations and entertainment for Union Square and continued their sponsorship
for many decades. They created the 49 Mile Scenic Drive to promote tourism in San Francisco. They also published a regular
periodical titled the Downtowner (1940-1950) and several other publications for their members.
The DASF participated in and influenced many civic projects including the elimination of litter and newspaper-racks, regulating
street vendors, improving street lighting, reducing traffic, transportation and highway development, and constructing parking
garages. They continued to influence city policy until the latter part of the 20th century when the association lost influence
and eventually dissolved in the late 1990s or early 2000s.
The Downtown Association of San Francisco was an organization devoted to the betterment of San Francisco and its Downtown
Business District from 1907 to approximately 2004. The collection contains articles of incorporation, correspondence, minutes,
membership records, subject files, publications to members, newspaper clippings, original artwork and photographs. The organization
worked to encourage economic growth in San Francisco to build infrastructure, decrease traffic and keep the streets clean
and free of nuisances. They also sponsored the first electric streetlights on Market Street, Christmas decorations in Union
Square and created the 49 Mile Scenic Drive.
The collection is arranged in 9 series: Series 1: Historical Documents; Series 2: Minutes; Series 3: Membership; Series 4:
Promotional Materials; Series 5: Correspondence; Series 6: Subject Files; Series 7: Functions and Events; Series 8: Graphic
Materials; Series 9: Scrapbooks
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Civic improvement -- California -- San Francisco.
San Francisco (Calif.) -- Planning.
City planning -- California -- San Francisco.
Market Street (San Francisco, Calif.)
Rossi, Angelo J. (Angelo Joseph), 1878-1948
Down Town Association (San Francisco, Calif.)
Downtown Association of San Francisco