Polk's Crocker-Langley San Francisco city directory, 1944, Part 2

Author: R.L. Polk & Co
Publication date: 1930
Publisher: San Francisco, Cal. : R.L. Polk & Co.
Number of Pages: 2038

USA > California > San Francisco County > San Francisco > Polk's Crocker-Langley San Francisco city directory, 1944 > Part 2

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Years before, however, Sir Francis Drake brought his vessel, the Golden Hind, close to the Golden Gate and ran her ashore at what is now known as Drake's Bay. This was in 1579 and the first religious service in the English language was held on the Pacific Coast by the chaplain of the Golden Hind.

In 1776 a land expedition commanded by Colonel Juan Bautista de Anza arrived on the San Francisco peninsula and established the Presidio and the Mission Dolores. In 1777 Padre Junipero Serra, father of the California missions, ar- rived in San Francisco. The settlement was known as Yerba Buena until 1847, when it became San Francisco.

In 1806 the Russians attempted to establish themselves in and about San Francisco. They established a settlement at Fort Ross, near Santa Rosa, but after a few years gave it up, disposing of all movable fixtures and arms to Capt. John A. Sutter of Sacramento.

In 1846 war was declared by the United States on Mexico and on July 9, 1848, Capt. John B. Montgomery of the United States Navy arrived in the sloop-of-war "Portsmouth" and raised the American flag in what is now Portsmouth Square; thus without great excitement San Francisco passed from Spanish to Mexican and finally American rule.

San Francisco's greatest excitement perhaps came with the discovery of gold in 1848. People rushed here by every known mode of transportation and in thousands. The population increased steadily and the port became the most important on the Pacific Coast, which position it has steadily main- tained.

Because of the number of lawless individuals during the fifties, the citizens organized the Vigilance Committee and after a short campaign succeeded in ridding the city of the law breakers.

GOVERNMENT

San Francisco has a combined City and County Govern- ment functioning as a Municipal Corporation, which began January 8, 1932, to operate under a new Charter (Freehold- ers). Under this new Charter the Legislative Powers are vested in a Board of Supervisors consisting of 11 members. The Administrative Powers are vested in a Mayor and a Chief Administrative Officer, the latter appointed by the

Mayor. The People elect the Mayor, Assessor, Treasurer, Sheriff, Public Defender, Supervisors, District Attorney, City Attorney, Municipal and Superior Court Judges and the members of the Board of Education.

The salary of the Mayor is $10,000 per year and the major Departments under him include the Police, Fire, Park, Rec- reation, and Library, the Art Commission, the Utilities Com- mission, Civil Service Commission, and City Planning Com- mission.

The Chief Administrative Officer, appointed by the Mayor, receives a salary of $12,000 a year and has under him the following: Departments of Finance and Records, Purchasing, Real Estate, Department of Public Works, Department of Electricity, Street Traffic Advisory Board, Department of Public Health, County Welfare Department, Coroner's Of- fice, Horticultural Inspection Department, and Department of Weights and Measures.

The Controller is responsible to the Mayor and is ap- pointed by him subject to the confirmation and approval of the Board of Supervisors.

HARBOR AND COMMERCE

Centered in the San Francisco Bay Area, San Francisco is an important port of general commerce, handling a large and valuable domestic and foreign trade. Today it is one of the major embarkation centers for the nation's war activity. It is the main gateway of commerce for the vast territory of the Central Pacific Coast Area and Intermountain States. The Bay extends from the Golden Gate to the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers on the northeast, and to a point near San Jose on the south, covering an area of 450 square miles. The deep-water commerce enters San Fran- cisco Bay through the Golden Gate, which is but one mile wide, thus affording natural protection from the ocean to the waters of the San Francisco Bay. To this has been added the most comprehensive docking and berthing facilities, rail and freight connections, modern and well-equipped warehouses, etc. San Francisco harbor has 17.5 miles of berthing space; there are 195.62 acres of pier and wharf area, with a capacity of 4,719,000 tons of cargo; 43 modern piers; facilities to dock the largest vessels; seven drydocks; 160 spur tracks; 51 miles of harbor trackage connecting piers and warehouses; car capacity for 3600 cars; 42 cranes, derricks and aerials.

The harbor is controlled by the State of California and is governed by a board of harbor commissioners appointed by the Governor. Of the 43 piers, during peace-times most of them are assigned to steamship companies having their own fleets and operating their own schedules. San Francisco har- bor facilities are valued at more than $100,000,000.

The water-borne commerce of San Francisco ranked sec- ond in value of all ports in the United States and third in tonnage, and outranking all other Pacific Coast ports by more than 12,000,000 cargo tons in 1940 (latest available).

Exports during 1940 amounted to .$113,683,277 Imports during 1940 amounted to .$ 98,305,839

The principal exports by value have been bulk oil, dried

and canned fruits, cotton, machine parts, barley, fresh fruits, auto parts, canned fish and lead.

The principal imports have been coffee, copra, Chinese wood oil, paper, burlap and raw silk.

The 1941 report of the U. S. Army Engineers shows the distribution of the cargo tonnage, domestic and foreign, dur- ing 1940 as follows:

Total tonnage, San Francisco Bay 30,863,291 Tons

Foreign tonnage 3,641,922

Inland waterway tonnage 8,272,193

Domestic Coastwise tonnage 18,918,176

Besides the movement of commodities by water, there is a large rail traffic in San Francisco; during 1943 it reached 350,815 carloadings and unloadings, not including less-than- carload business.

San Francisco is also the ocean port for the great inland empire of California, 500 miles in length, 50 miles wide and containing 16,100,000 acres of irrigable land, 5,000,000 acres of which is under irrigation.

San Francisco is normally a port of call for 177 steamship lines.

TRANSPORTATION

Converging in San Francisco are seven major transconti- nental rail routes, under normal conditions one hundred seventy-seven steamship lines, more than forty common car- rier truck lines, four transcontinental bus services and four major airlines of the world.

Today San Francisco is the terminus of four Class I rail- roads and a number of short lines. These railroads thoroughly blanket California and neighboring States, and by means of seven major transcontinental routes with convenient connec- tions, provide fast, dependable service to and from all parts of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Passenger trains second to none are operated to and from the city.

All railroads connect with the State Belt Railroad serving the San Francisco waterfront and many industries, and ab- sorb the switching charges on line haul carload traffic. Recip- rocal arrangements between all lines permit efficient handling of cars within the switching limits. Trap car privileges are available. Between all points in the San Francisco switching limits and those of Oakland and Richmond the rate is 75c per ton, minimum charge $16.50 per car.

Overnight freight service, provided to Los Angeles, to most points in the San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys, to numerous points along the coast, to southern Oregon and western Nevada is temporarily discontinued due to war con- ditions but is to be resumed on a more effective basis after the war.

A greater proportion of the territory west of the Rocky Mountains is reached to advantage from San Francisco than from any other Pacific Coast port.

Store door pick-up and delivery for less than carload traf- fic is available between San Francisco and many points in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Idaho and Oregon.

Intercoastal water rates bring San Francisco as close to the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts as Chicago and northern Missis- sippi Valley points; with frequent sailings to Atlantic Coast ports and to Gulf ports under normal conditions.

Departures for the Hawaiian Islands average 20 per month under normal conditions.

In normal times over fifty steamship lines operate between San Francisco and foreign ports providing frequent passenger and freight service to and from the major ports, in the Orient, Australia, New Zealand, the South Sea Islands, both coasts of Central and South America, Northern and Southern Europe and certain ports in Africa. Round-the-world liners call at San Francisco. San Francisco is the home port of some of the most luxurious passenger lines operating on the Pacific Coast.

Under normal peacetime conditions coastwise lines furnish frequent service between San Francisco and other ports in California, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. A huge fleet of inland water carriers ranging from palatial pas- senger steamers to humble barges navigate San Francisco Bay and waters tributary thereto, carrying an immense ton- nage to and from the ultra-modern docks of the city.

San Francisco is the focal point of two great bridges, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, a link in both U. S. Highways No. 40 and No. 50, and the Golden Gate Bridge, a link in U. S. Highway 101.

Over forty common carrier truck lines provide scheduled services between San Francisco and points in California and neighboring states. In addition, more than 600 truck opera- tors having headquarters or agencies in San Francisco hold intrastate contract carrier, radial common carrier, or city carrier permits from the Railroad Commission of California or interstate contract carrier permits from the Interstate Com- merce Commission. All rates and services are subject to regu- lation by these Commissions.

Bus lines which are also under regulation radiate north, east and south providing fast, commodious passenger service between San Francisco and all important points in California and the eleven Western states. There are also four trans- continental bus services. Sightseeing buses, which normally operate between San Francisco and neighboring points of interest, are temporarily discontinued, as are buses normally available for charter, except when in connection with the war effort.

Three modern air terminals in the San Francisco Bay Area are within thirty minutes of the heart of San Francisco. The recently enlarged Municipal Airport is the focal point of transcontinental and north/south services by the most mod- ern transport planes. San Francisco is the terminus of four major air lines of the world. Three of these lines are main- taining regular service, although many planes are in the service of the nation. Plans are under way for development of air transportation to and from San Francisco on an unprecedented scale.

MANUFACTURES

The manufacturing industries in San Francisco comprise an important part of the city's activities, leading in number of employees and amount of payroll nine major activities in San Francisco. One-quarter of all the people engaged in industry and business in San Francisco are employed by the manufacturing industries. The 1943 estimated annual payroll amounted to $218,000,000 according to San Francisco Cham- ber of Commerce.

The value of manufactures in 1941 amounted to $535,490,- 000, compared to $313,253,000 reported in 1939 by the United States Census, or an increase of $222,238.000 in the two years.

Manufacturing Activity in San Francisco Reported by U. S. Census 1943 Estimate C. of C. 1939

1937

Establishments

2,172

2,030

Wage-Earners

70,000

31,789

39,082

Wages

. $218,000,000 $ 44,723,211 $ 52,466,752

Cost of Materials.

$174,783,186 $187,975,890

Value of Manufactures. .

$313,252,639 $334,930,684

1935

1933

Number of Establishments.

1,959

1,683

Wage-Earners

34,399

30,691

Wages

.$ 40,946,670

$ 33,107,340

Cost of Materials

.$159,145,695

$116,025,328

Value of Manufactures.

.$287,178,844 $221,325,675

The ten manufacturing classifications reported with high- est value of products in San Francisco in the 1939 U. S. Census, latest classifications available are:

Printing and Publishing.

$35,911,032

Bread and Bakery Products

14,947,767

Meat Packing, Wholesale 14,560,954

Bags, Other than Paper.

7,211,634

Canned and Dried Fruits and Vegetables.

7,460,876

Mattresses, Bed Springs

5,831,208

Boxes, Paper

5,758,924

Confectionery

5,638,901

Paints and Varnishes.

5,559,002

Ship and Boat Building (currently very high) ... (unreported)

San Francisco-Oakland Industrial Area*

The value of products in 1939 of the 3,441 manufacturing establishments in this area totaled $960,636,411, the expen- ditures for materials totaled $600,156,725, and the number of wage-earners amounted to 76,374 and wages to $110,964,281. Value added by manufacture amounted to $360,479,686.

(Estimate 1943)

1939

1937

Establishments

3,441

3,261

Wage-Earners

277,000

76,374

88,414

Wages $747,419,000 $110,964,281 $ 122,916,300

Cost of Materials.

$600,156,725 $ 695,532,112

Value of Products.

$960,636,411 $1,052,353,275

1935

1933

Establishments

3,133

2,649

Wage-Earners

76,963

66,313

Wages

.$ 91,273,731 $ 71,108,819

Cost of Materials.

$533,329,610 $ 366,261,604

Value of Products

.$825,618,381 $ 598,290,815

The ten manufacturing classifications reported with the highest value of products in the San Francisco Industrial Area in the 1939 U. S. Census amounted to $326,089,967, or 34.0 per cent of the area total. They are:

Petroleum Refining $112,043,874

Canned and Dried Fruits and Vegetables

40,408,393

Meat Packing

39,179,995

Bread and Bakery Products.

23,207,553

Tin Cans and Other Tinware

22,637,907

Steel Works

21,318,750

Paints and Varnishes.

21,214,450

Printing and Publishing, Newspapers.

19,600,313

"Includes Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo Counties.

Malt Liquors 13,938,049 Ship and Boat Building (currently very high) ... (unreported)

Many of the large key industries in the San Francisco Metropolitan Area, with their plants outside the corporate city limits, have their headquarters in San Francisco, from which they conduct their finances, purchases, and sales.

RETAIL TRADE AND SERVICE ESTABLISHMENTS

Retail trade, one of the major activities in San Francisco, ranks high in number of employees and amount of payroll among the various group activities. Sales in 1943 are esti- mated at $825,305,000 compared to 774,000,000 in 1942.

Trade at retail in San Francisco of 11,339 stores amounted to $383,554,000, according to 1939 U. S. Census reports, or 28.5 per cent above the 1935 sales, compared to 27 per cent in the nation. These stores reported 12,007 active proprietors of unincorporated businesses and 44,829 employees. The annual payroll amounted to $58,135,000.

The per capita in 1939 sales for San Francisco led all other important counties in California. The retail sales per capita in San Francisco amounted to $604, in Los Angeles to $520, and in the State to $462.

FINANCE

San Francisco is the financial and insurance capital of the West. The expeditious handling of financial transactions of all kinds has helped to maintain sound industrial and trade relations in San Francisco and throughout the West.

The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco is the head- quarters of the Twelfth Federal Reserve District, which ranked third in volume of business during 1943 measured by bank debits.

Many hundreds of firms with national reputation have established their Western headquarters in San Francisco.

The San Francisco Stock Exchange, one of the major regional stock exchanges in the United States, is maintained in San Francisco. There is also the San Francisco Mining Exchange.

Six of the 19 banks in San Francisco are among the first 50 banks of the nation. Several of the banks operate branches and a few operate branch systems throughout the State. Of the 19 banks in San Francisco, 14 are under State supervision. Of these 14, 3 are commercial and savings, 1 strictly savings, 1 savings and trust, and 2 title insurance companies operating trust departments. There are 5 national banks, all of which operate trust departments. The trust departments are under State supervision.

San Francisco is the insurance center of the West. More than six and a quarter-billion dollars of life insurance is in force in California. More than 700 authorized insurance com- panies are doing business in California. The premiums and assessments of all groups amounted to $455,697,970 in 1941.

Federal Reserve District Debits-1943

New York

$323,382,192,000

Chicago 124,473,139,000

San Francisco

69,561,899,000

Cleveland

53,237,716,000

Boston 40,036,417,000

Philadelphia 36,855,315,000

Debits to Individual Accounts-1943

New York City

.$296,368,416,000

Chicago

65,737,703,000

Detroit

Philadelphia

27,452,444,000 26,307,761,000

Boston

22,626,509,000

San Francisco

17,489,513,000

S. F. Exchange Transactions

1938

$90,477,407

1939

99,452,140

1940

83,864,070

1941

66,247,391

1942

45,478,533

1943

76,824,225

S. F. Bank Clearings

S. F. Bank Debits

1938.

$ 7,052,520,000

$ 9,482,219,000

1939.

7,350,410,000

9,631,228,000

1940

7,773,877,000

10,095,002,000

1941

9,548,190,000

11,917,685,000

1942.

11,336,876,000

13,996,130,000

1943.

13,267,105,000

17,489,513,000

Bank Clearings-1943

New York City

$248,559,000,000

Philadelphia

32,515,000,000

Chicago

23,622,000,000

Boston

17,767,000,000

Detroit

17,458,000,000

San Francisco

13,267,105,000

Building and Loan Association Assets

There were twelve associations, six state and six federal, in San Francisco in December, 1942.

December, 1939

$65,463,637

December, 1940

62,921,198

December, 1941

67,117,430

December, 1942

67,170,209

December, 1943

60,271,713*

Deposits and Resources-San Francisco Banks

Time Deposits

Demand Deposits

12-31-37

$1,455,331,436

$1,102,258,890

12-31-38.

1,515,423,628

1,179,609,061

12-31-39

1,514,591,894

1,317,168,861

12-31-40.

1,584,043,000

1,525,482,000

12-31-41.

1,651,486,000

1,842,890,000

12-31-42.

1,722,131,300

2,722,358,440

12-31-43.

2,060,477,734

3,682,042,628

Total Deposits

Resources

12-31-37.

$2,557,590,326

$2,836,353,780

12-31-38.

2,695,132,689

2,982,907,202

12-31-39

2,831,760,755

3,112,173,475

12-31-40.

3,109,525,000

3,434,606,000

12-31-41.

3,494,376,000

3,819,965,000

12-31-42

4,444,489,740

4,771,184,723

12-31-43.

5,742,520,362

6,085,920,409

Postal Receipts

1938

$9,386,480

1941

$10,529,683

1939

9,939,027

1942.

11,662,103

1940.

9,969,367

1943.

17,498,351

Individual Incomes in San Francisco

1936

$715,738,000

1939 $720,964,000

1937

738,950,000

1940. 774,000,000

1938

686,562,000

1941. 917,000,000

"One company made a surplus adjustment in excess of $13,000,000 during year.

Insurance Premiums and Assessments All Groups in California

1940

$414,591,335

1941

455,697,970

1942*

482,547,063

PUBLIC BUILDINGS

First comes the group in the Civic Center, declared by the Duke of Connaught to be the finest thing of its kind in the world. The group consists: (1) City Hall, of classic de- sign, surmounted by an immense dome, higher than the dome of the Capitol at Washington: cost $4,000,000. (2) Exposition Auditorium, seating capacity of 12,000 in the main auditorium, with numerous small halls; cost, $2,000,000. (3) San Francisco Public Library; cost, $1,500,000. (4) State Building; cost $1,000,000. (5) War Memorial group of buildings, as a part of. Civic Center; cost, $4,000,000, consisting of civic opera house, American Legion halls, etc. A Federal Building; cost, $3,000,000.

California Palace of the Legion of Honor, in Lincoln Park, overlooking the Golden Gate, is a replica of the Palace of the Legion of Honor in Paris. It was presented to the city. The structure cost $2,000,000. United States Mint, located at Market street and Duboce avenue, built in 1937; Post Office Building, corner of Seventh and Mission streets; Ferry Building, at the foot of Market street on the water- front, built by the State in 1896 at a cost of $1,000,000. It is 659 feet long and 156 feet wide, and in addition to serving as a ferryboat terminal, contains many State offices. The Cus- toms House and United States Appraiser's Building will represent an expenditure of more than $4,000,000. In Golden Gate Park are located the De Young Memorial Museum, Academy of Sciences, Steinhart Aquarium, Museum of An- thropology. At Kearny and Washington streets is the Hall of Justice, erected in 1910 at a cost of $1,000,000, containing police courts and the criminal department of the superior court. The Golden Gate Bridge cost $35,000,000, was com- pleted early in 1937 and opened to traffic in May, 1937, and the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, at a cost of $78,- 000,000, was opened to vehicular traffic November 12, 1936. San Francisco East Bay Terminal (at Mission and First streets) is a $2,000,000 structure opened to interurban train service January 15, 1939. The $2,730,000 Rincon Annex Post Office was opened in 1940.

PARKS

San Francisco is noted for its beautiful and extensive parks. There are 53 parks and 94 recreational units, with a total acreage of 4450, others are under development. In addition to the municipal parks, the several government reser- vations, the largest of which is the Presidio, comprising 1542 acres, all go toward augmenting the aggregate area of the city parks. The area given does not include the numerous golf courses in and about the city. More than $15,000,000 has been expended on municipal parks since 1870. All of San Francisco's parks are "man-made." Originally only sand dunes marked the spots where today are gardens of rarest flowers, shrubs and giant trees. Even lakes, streams, water- falls, hills, valleys and dales were worked out by man, to say

"Insurance premiums and assessments for workers' compensation jumped nearly $20,000,000 between 1941 and 1942, due to developments in war industries in state, while a drop of $11,000,000 occurred in the automobile division.

nothing of the miles of walks, bridle paths and boulevards traversing the parks. Golden Gate Park is one of the world's most noted playgrounds. It comprises 1013 acres and is about 3 miles long and a half-mile wide, extending from Stanyan street on the east to the Pacific Ocean on the west and lies in the midst of San Francisco's choice residential districts.

In the park are many museums, monuments, an aviary, aquarium, music temple, stadium, tennis courts, baseball grounds, football grounds, trotting and packing horse track, athletic field and running track paddocks, and children's playgrounds. There are more than 25 miles of improved drive- ways in the park. Wild animals of many species are to be seen, while every bird and squirrel known to California roams or flies at will through the dense woods and shrubbery. At the western end of the park is to be seen the sloop "Gjoa," the only vessel that ever navigated the Northwest Passage, and which was given to San Francisco by its owner and explorer, Captain Roald Amundsen, discoverer of the South Pole also; the gift was accepted by San Francisco June 16, 1909. The ship was hauled upon the beach and is protected by a high iron fence.

SOCIAL

San Francisco has more than 340 churches, representing many denominations. The congregations of the churches in- clude people of many nationalities, such as English, German, Italian, French, Spanish, Scandinavian, Russian and Chinese.

There are numerous societies, clubs, lodges and fraternal groups beside the civic, historical, military, religious and sporting groups, San Francisco contains many foreign col- onies, where the daily life and social events familiar to their native countries have been reestablished here.

The cosmopolitan character of San Francisco is well por- trayed by the many interesting and diversified events which

take place daily. The citizen or visitor may find many educa- tional things of interest, such as lectures, concerts, readings, recitals, special exhibits of drawing, painting, sculpture, and other works of art.

There are two public art galleries and several semi-public galleries which offer exhibits and collections of national and international fame.

There is a main public library in the Civic Center with 21 branches and 6 depositories. This system has 550,000 vol- umes. There are nearly 100 private and special libraries, including technical and institutional. There are also numerous circulating libraries.

The Municipal Auditorium, with a seating capacity of 12,000, contains a magnificent organ and is in use for a variety of events daily throughout the year. The Civic Opera House and the War Memorial Building provide a home for opera, the symphony orchestra, and a permanent war relics museum. San Francisco is the first city in the nation to have a civic opera house. It has a seating capacity of 3285.

HEALTH

San Francisco is a clean city with a cool, bracing equable open-all-year-around climate. The daily mean maximum tem- perature is 62.6 degrees. The daily mean minimum tempera- ture is 50.3 degrees. The average daily temperature range is 12.3 degrees.

The hours of fog over San Francisco Bay recorded by the Lighthouse Service averaged only 153 per year.

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Polk's Crocker-Langley San Francisco city directory, 1944, Part 2

Author: R.L. Polk & Co Publication date: 1930 Publisher: San Francisco, Cal. : R.L. Polk & Co. Number of Pages: 2038

Author: R.L. Polk & Co
Publication date: 1930
Publisher: San Francisco, Cal. : R.L. Polk & Co.
Number of Pages: 2038