Polk's San Francisco (San Francisco County, Calif.) city directory, 1957, Part 3

Author: R.L. Polk & Co
Publication date: 1953
Publisher: San Francisco, Calif. : R.L. Polk & Co.
Number of Pages: 2572

USA > California > San Francisco County > San Francisco > Polk's San Francisco (San Francisco County, Calif.) city directory, 1957 > Part 3

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).

Number

TYPES OF BUSINESS

Outlets

1935

Dec. 31. 1955

Sales (*) (000)

Licensed Retail Outlets

10,448

$1,010,648

Apparel stores group

769

99,410

Women's apparel stores

346

48,989

Men's apparel stores

211

21,506

Family apparel stores

103

15,528

Shoe stores

109

13,387

General merchandise group

321

189,462

Limited-price variety stores

130

16,228

Department and dry goods stores

126

168,819

Oother general merchandise stores

4,415

Specialty stores group

1,303

90,268

Gift, art goods and novelty shops

187

5,954

Sporting goods stores

2,015

Florists

146

4,772

Musical instrument stores

5,119

Stationery and book stores

181

24,918

Jewelry stores

165

12,827

Office, store and school supply dealers

20,754

Other specialty stores

363

8,525

Grocery stores

1,422

51,135

Food stores other than grocery stores

225

2,643

Package liquor stores

338

26,732

Eating and drinking places.

2,764

145,760

Candy and Tobacco stores

353

9,626

Other Professional, Social Service Agencies

307

2,650,386

2,038

Nonprofit Membership Organiza-

tions

695

4,965,262

4,811

PRINCIPAL SERVICE GROUPS IN SAN FRANCISCO U. S. CENSUS, 1954 (P)

KINDS OF BUSINESS IN SAN FRANCISCO

No. of Establish-

Sales and Receipts

Payroll Annual (000)

Service Group, Total

7,273

$345,581

$93,541

Proprietors (unincorporated only)

7,613

Personal Services

3,461

57,101

Automobile Repair Services and

609

26,176

Garages

All Other Selected Services

3,203

262,304

BAY REGION MARKET DEVELOPMENTS Population

The Bay Region (13-county) population, on Jan. 1, 1956, was estimated at 3,986,300, an increase of 719,916

134

16,826

INTRODUCTION

544

9,149

Electrical Machinery, Equipment, and Supplies

Photographic equipment and supply stores

5,384

Taxable

Stores

7.803

464,526

ments

XII

INTRODUCTION

since April 1, 1950. The growth between 1940 and 1950 exceeded the growth of all but four states-California, New York, Texas and Michigan-and the 1950 total population exceeded that of 32 states. The Bay Area (nine-county) population on Jan. 1, 1956, was estimated at 3,244,900. The growth in this area between 1940 and 1950 exceeded the growth of all but five states-Cali- fornia, New York, Texas, Michigan and Ohio.

Employment

Estimated civilian employment in the San Fran- cisco Metropolitan Area (6 counties), in April, 1956, totaled 1,035,400 persons. The manufacturing group employed 208,200, or 20.1% of the total; the service group, 227,100, or 21.9%; retail group, 169,900, or 16.4%; wholesale group, 73,800, or 7.1%; transportation and public utilities, 113,000, or 10.9%; finance, 66,500, or 6.4%; construction, 70,200, or 6.8%; government, 87,000, or 8.4%; agriculture, forestry and fishing, 19,800, or 1.7%; the balance, unclassified.

Industrial Development

During 1955 in the Bay Region, 514 industrial projects with outlays of $143,508,546 were reported, compared to 525 projects with outlays of $128,520,273 in 1954. Of the total in 1955, 398 were expansions with outlays of $79,834,241, and 116 were new plants with outlays of $63,674,295.

Finance

1955 Bay Area (5 cities) bank debits of $53,206,- 537,000 was an increase of 35.4% over 1950 and 340.7% over 1940.

Trade

Tangible personal property sold at retail through 22,675 outlets in San Francisco during 1955 attained a total of $1,631,823,000 in taxable sales. Sales of food for off-premise consumption and gasoline sales are not in- cluded in taxable sales, but if added, San Francisco's 1955 trade would amount to about $2,000,000,000.

Sales of the 10,448 licensed retail outlets during 1955 amounted to $1,010,648,000; sales of 3,319 personal service establishments amounted to $44,086,000, and sales of 8,908 manufacturing, wholesaling, contracting and miscellaneous outlets amounted to $577,089,000.

The 1956 first quarter taxable retail sales in San Francisco of $393,748,000 exceeded the same period of 1955 by 8.3%, and retail outlet sales of $237,146,000 for the same period were up 5.3%. San Francisco accounted for 36.6% of the nine-Bay-county total tax- able sales during the first quarter of 1956.

Construction and Real Estate

San Francisco building permits value for 1955 amounted to $64,680,018, compared with $57,745,732 in 1954. New residential permits accounted for $21,787,366 of this amount and was down 9.4%, while new non- residential amounting to $25,313,381 was up 31%. Ad- ditions, alterations and repairs aggregating $17,579,271 showed an increase of 22.3%. Newly-constructed single-family dwelling units connected with utilities in the Bay Area division of P. G. & E. were estimated at 41,150 in 1955, compared with 32,450 in 1954. The 1956 total is estimated at 42,550; of this, the San Francisco-San Jose divisions accounted for about 19,900 units; the East Bay, 15,000; and North Bay, 7,650. San Francisco real estate deeds recorded amounted to 18,825, compared with 17,116 in 1954. Mortgages and deeds of trust numbered 17,899 and amounted to $219,757,764 - an increase of 10.6% in number and 28.1% in amount.

Intercity and Interstate Traffic

Golden Gate Bridge vehicle crossings in 1955 es- tablished a new high of 13,968,539, or 10.5% above 1954. Bay Bridge vehicle crossings were also at a new high of 32,382,837 in 1955, or 3.6% above the previous year.

Total daily passenger movements to and from San Francisco through the Peninsula, East Bay and North Bay gateways during the summer of 1954 amounted

to 580,482, compared with 550,349 in 1952; 82.5% of the passengers traveled by automobile and 17.5% by inter- urban transit. Of the total, 49.3% were from the Peninsula, 35.8% from the East Bay and 14.9% from the North Bay.

Automotive travel into California during 1955 established new highs, with out-of-state visitors enter- ing northern California by passenger automobile ac- counting for 47.2% of the state entries, or 2,238,169 persons, a gain of 3.1%. Californians returning through northern California's gateways accounted for another 2,652,169 persons, or 49.6% of the state's total. Pros- pective visitor and newcomer written inquiries to the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce during 1955 topped 1954 by 7.2%.

BUSINESS ACTIVITY IN 1955

Business activity in San Francisco during 1955 attained the highest level in history, and surpassed the preceding year by 8.4%. The San Francisco Chamber of Commerce Index reached 169.5 in December and averaged 139.3 for the 12-months period (1945-1949 average equals 100 index).

The 1955 cumulative business trend in San Fran- cisco started out with a modest gain over 1954 of 5.6% at the end of the first quarter, at midyear the increase amounted to 7.8%, at the end of the third quarter to 8.5%, at the end of 11 months to 9%, then settled back to 8.4% for the full year. The great storm which struck northern California with devastating force, flooding large areas and slowing highway and rail traffic almost to a standstill, seriously handi- capped normal business during the closing weeks of the year.

Transportation

Port of San Francisco revenue tonnage, freight-car movements, bridge truck and passenger vehicle traffic and San Francisco Airport traffic in 1955 all surpassed the previous year by good margins, and a few estab- lished new records. San Francisco Port revenue ton- nage increased 8.5%; freight-car movements, 6.5%; bridge truck movements, 6.3%. Airport traffic estab- lished new highs, with passengers on and off mount- ing to 2,595,808, up 18.5%; air freight, 59,517,932 lbs., up 34.2%; air mail, 35,130,196 lbs., up 19.6%; and air express, 8,210,332 lbs., up 24.2%. Cargo vessel arrivals in San Francisco Bay in 1955 totaled 4,638, compared with 4,662 in 1954. Bridge vehicle crossings set new highs, with the Bay Bridge total for the year amount- ing to 32,332,837 and the Golden Gate Bridge total to 13,968,539.

Living Costs

San Francisco consumer prices in December, 1955, were fractionally higher than a year before, but the four-quarter average was down 0.6% based on the All Items Index reported by the U. S. Department of Labor. Food prices also were down 0.6%, housing 1%, trans- portation 1.8% and personal care 1.1%. Opposing these trends, apparel prices were up 0.9%, rent 2.3%, medical 1%, and miscellaneous, 0.2%.

FINANCE

Financial Capital

San Francisco, the financial and insurance capital of the West, is headquarters of the world's largest bank and is the nation's second most important financial center. Six of the nation's 100 largest com- mercial banks are located in San Francisco, with 1955 deposits of $13,000,000,000.

The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco is the headquarters of the Twelfth Federal Reserve Dis- trict. Member banks in this District did the second largest volume of business in 1955. They reported 8,961 officers and 55,285 employees and accounted for 14% of the total assets, 22% of the time deposits- highest of all districts-17% of taxes on net income, and 15% of net profits of all member banks in Federal Reserve System.

Stock Exchange

The expeditious handling of widely-diversified

INTRODUCTION

financial transactions has contributed greatly to the sound industrial and trade relations between San Francisco and the Western Regional Markets. The San Francisco Stock Exchange continues to hold a prominent place among the nation's largest regional security markets. At the end of 1955, 427 securities were admitted to trading privileges on the Exchange -209 listed and 218 unlisted.

Thirty Large Corporations Headquartered in San Francisco

Thirty large corporations with their national head- quarters in San Francisco have combined assets of $30,800,000,000. Representing a broad cross-section of the national economy, they include finance, utilities, railroads, shipping, manufacturing and trade.

A few of these corporations are among the largest in the nation-one of the banks and the gas and electric company are the nation's foremost-and one of the railroads is next largest in its field. Eight are billion-dollar businesses, and twelve range between $100,000,000 and $1,000,000,000. Many hundreds of firms with national reputation have established their Western headquarters in San Francisco.

Banking

There are 12 banks in San Francisco, several of which operate a number of branches. A few banks with headquarters here operate branch systems throughout the state. Eight banks are under State supervision. There are four national banks and each has a trust department; the trust departments are under State supervision.

Federal Reserve Districts Debits (000)

Districts

1955

1954

New York

$822,767,065

$790,390,514

Chicago

306,693,045

273,013,532

San Francisco

189,020,714

168,589,926

Cleveland

139,091,825

122,786,174

Philadelphia

85,741,091

80,383,384

Boston

80,375,099

74,184,843

San Francisco Clearings and Debits

Clearings

Debits

1940

.$ 7,773,877

$10,095,002 Life

1950

21,982,689

30,906,042

1954

28,019,576

37,964,134

1955

31,492,000

42,335,005

Cities-Debits to Individual Accounts (000)

Cities

1955

1954

New York

$766,889,839

$738,924,560

Chicago

152,424,508

140,650,593

Detroit

72,940,225

59,264,227

Los Angeles

62,335,138

56,083,607

Philadelphia

58,663,015

55,743,019

Boston

42,951,026

40,360,426

San Francisco

42,337,007

37,964,134

Cities-Bank Clearings (000)

Cities

1955

1954

New York

$530,888,000

$532,029,471

Philadelphia

59,954,000

57,147,000

Chicago

52,818,000

48,528,413

Detroit

36,364,000

31,393,549

Boston

32,472,000

30,851,377

San Francisco

31,492,000

28,019,576

San Francisco Stock Exchange Transactions

1940

.$ 83,864,070

1950

257,889,850

1954

301,744,115

1955

376,373,242

San Francisco Savings and Loan Assets

There were 11 savings and loan associations in San Francisco in December, 1955.

December, 1940

$ 62,921,198

December, 1950

68,484,459

December, 1953

133,566,063

December, 1954

185,768,795

246,319,834

Deposits and Resources of San Francisco Banks

Date Time Deposits Demand Deposits

12-31-40 .. . $1,584,043,000 $1,525,482,000 $ 3,109,525,000 $ 3,434,606,000

12-31-50 .. 4,113,884,048

12-31-53

5,290,580,378

5,933,185,561 6,532,386,000

11,223,765,939 12,872,889,000

13,418,838,000

14,699,115,000

Income Estimate-San Francisco (a)

1940

$ 719,773,000 1953

$2,143,169,000

1950 2,076,075,000 1954(b)

2,500,000,000

1952 2,073,536,000

(a) California State Chamber of C'ommerce.

San Francisco Postal Receipts

1940

$ 9,969,367

1952

$33,836,971

1949

21,214,354

1953

33,860,371

1950

24,183,789

1954

33,317,363

1951

28,930,841

1955

32.486,445

Insurance

San Francisco is the insurance center of the West, and California headquarters of about 57% of the in- surance organizations authorized to transact business in California. Represented in San Francisco in the fall of 1955 were 675 insurance carriers, agents and brokers, offering all classes of business including the major lines, such as life, auto, disability, liability, health, fire, marine, workmen's compensation, title, fidelity, security, burglary and theft, and extended coverage. The industry employs about 21,200 persons with annual payrolls of about $89,000,000. In addition, San Francisco is the headquarters of some 16 insurance associations including such prominent names as Board of Fire Underwriters of the Pacific, Pacific Fire Rating Bureau, and Insurance Brokers Exchange of California.

Direct premiums written by all insurance groups in California amounted to $1,911,135,153 in 1954, or 3.2% above the previous year. The direct losses paid, $752,078,547, was a decrease of 5.1%. Life insurance in force totaled $26,000,000,000 in California in 1954.

California Direct Premiums Written and Losses Paid- 1954 and Percent Change from 1953

Major Classes

Written

Change

Losses Paid

Change -7.18

Automobile

266,958,166

-2.48

118,950,111

7.14

Liability

245,024,045

1.88

93,282,046

-6.15

Disability

283,319,858

12.78

175,216,234

-12.55

Fire

128,532,425

-13.42

53,656,927

3.88

Workman's

Compensation

155,727,595

-3.98

71,947,108

-4.37

Marine Ocean

16,350,097

-8.77

11,208,508

2.80

Marine-Other

33,426,552

-1.69

15,674,785

-0.78

Title

30,954,882

7.56

538,224

19.21

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 design, surmounted by an immense dome, higher than the dome of the Capitol at Washington; cost, $4,000,000. (2) Civic 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 Cen- ter; cost, $4,000,000, consisting of Civic Opera House, American Legion halls, etc. The San Francisco Federal Building cost $3,000,000.

The 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. Other leading public buildings are the U. S. Mint, located at Market St. and Duboce Ave., built in 1937; the Post Office Building, corner of 7th and Mission streets; and the Ferry Building, at the foot of Market St. on the waterfront, built by the State in 1896 at a cost of $1,000,- 000. The Ferry Building is 659 feet long and 156 feet wide, and in addition to serving as a ferryboat terminal,

Resources

9,309,614,953 10,133,309,844 12,261,969,182 13,417,100,000

12-31-54 6,340,503,000

12-31-55

6,284,791,000

7,134,047,000

Total Deposit

5,195,730,904

.$680,260,316

7.53

$190,981,917

(b) S. F. C. of C.

XIII

December, 1955

XIV

INTRODUCTION

contains many State offices. The Customs House and U. S. Appraiser's Building represents an expenditure of more than $4,000,000. In Golden Gate Park are located the deYoung Memorial Museum, Academy of Sciences, Steinhart Aquarium, Museum of Anthropology, and the Morrison Planetarium. 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, costing $35,000,000, was opened to traffic in May, 1937, and the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, costing $78,000,000, was opened to vehicular traffic Nov. 12, 1936. San Francisco East Bay Terminal (at Mission and 1st streets) is a $2,000,000 structure opened to in- terurban train service Jan. 15, 1939. The $2,730,000 Rincon Annex Post Office was opened in 1940. (See also "Social Features.")

PARKS

San Francisco is noted for its beautiful and extensive parks. There are 52 parks, with 3,080 acres, and 74 rec- reation units, with 280 acres. Still others are under de- velopment. In addition to the municipal parks, the sev- eral Government reservations, the largest of which is the Presidio, comprising 1,542 acres, all go toward augmenting the aggregate. The area given does not in- clude 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 rare flowers, shrubs and giant trees. Even lakes, streams, waterfalls, hills, val- leys and dales were developed by man, to say noth- ing 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 1,013 acres and is about three miles long and a half-mile wide, extending from Stanyan St. 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 and monuments, 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 driveways in the park. Wild animals of many species are found here, while every bird and squir- rel known to California flies or roams 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. It was given to San Francisco by its owner, the late Capt. Roald Amundsen, explorer and discoverer of the South Pole. 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 FEATURES

Events-The cosmopolitan character of San Fran- cisco is well portrayed by the interesting and diversified events which take place daily. The citizen or visitor will find many educational things of interest, such as lec- tures, concerts, readings, recitals, and special exhibits of drawing, painting, sculpture, and other works of art.

Art Galleries-Three public art galleries and several semi-public galleries offer exhibits and collections of national and international fame. The M. H. deYoung Memorial Museum, the San Francisco Museum of Art, and the California Palace of the Legion of Honor attract hundreds of thousands of visitors annually.

Library-The main public library is located in the Civic Center. There are 24 branches and one deposi- tory. This system has 695,346 volumes. About 2,871,000 books were circulated for home reading during the past year. In addition to the public libraries, there are nearly 100 private and special libraries, including technical and institutional. There are also numerous circulating libraries.

Public Buildings-The Civic Auditorium with a seat- ing capacity of 9,136, contains a magnificent organ and

is used for conventions and a variety of events. The War Memorial Opera House and the War Memorial Building provide a home for opera, the symphony orchestra, and a permanent war relics museum. San Francisco was the first city of the nation to have a civic opera house. It has a seating capacity of 3,285. The War Memorial Opera House and the War Memorial Building were chosen for the meeting places of the United Nations delegates from April 25 to June 26, 1945, to construct the Charter of the United Nations, and in 1955 for the Commemorative Session of the U. N., and for the Japanese Peace Conference in September, 1951.

Clubs-There are numerous societies, clubs, lodges, and fraternal groups beside the civic, historical, mili- tary, religious, and sporting groups. San Francisco contains many foreign colonies where the daily life and social events familiar to their native countries have been re-established here.

Churches-San Francisco has 438 churches, repre- senting many denominations. The congregations of the churches include people of many nationalities, such as English, German, Italian, French, Spanish, Scandinavian, Russian, and Chinese.

PUBLIC HEALTH

San Francisco public health facilities include a bacteriological laboratory, a chemical laboratory, con- solidated inspection services, the San Francisco Hospi- tal, the Laguna Honda Home for aged indigents, the Hassler Health Farm for convalescent tuberculosis cases, six emergency hospitals, child welfare centers, well-baby clinics, and other health-control facilities scattered throughout the city.

RECREATION AND CULTURE

San Francisco is a city of supreme and exotic beauty, a city of many interesting aspects, and a cultural and vacation center for those who like to explore. The vaca- tion experts, Californians, Inc., say-"There is the story- book part that is not on the map-the things of the city that guidebooks only hint at-small in area as great cities go, it is America's most cosmopolitan city. Almost surrounded by the sea, it's like being on shipboard all the time-there's salt in the ocean breeze, filling you with buoyant energy."

Some Outstanding Points of Interest and Their Characteristics

The Waterfront-"Threshold to all the world."

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge -- "World's larg- est, with foundations of greatest depth."

Golden Gate Bridge-"Longest single span in the world."

Latin Quarter-"Spreads up the slopes of Telegraph Hill and on to Fisherman's Wharf."

Educational Institutions-"Few cities in the world offer finer or more diversified facilities."

Chinatown-"Largest Chinese settlement in Amer- ica.'

Hotels, Restaurants-"Distinguished and distinc- tive."

Theatres-"Bid you to come forth for entertain- ment."

Downtown San Francisco-"Atmosphere all its own."

Civic Center, Auditorium, Opera-"First city to have a civic opera house and symphony concerts."

Parks, Museums, Sports-"Enough for days and days for spectators and participants alike."

Scenic Drives, Evenings-"Stunning vistas framed in the afterglow of sunset, and then, the lights."

Other facilities for outdoor activities embrace many golf courses in and adjacent to the city, including three San Francisco municipal courses; a yacht harbor; and several boat and swimming clubs.

A tour of San Francisco is refreshing and filled with many pleasant surprises. The city's delightful setting amidst sparkling waters and high hills is inspiring.

INTRODUCTION

Beautiful vistas, lovely homes, a happy climate, com- fortable living, all combine to spread a romantic aura over the whole community and lend to its distinction.

CLIMATE

San Francisco is a clean city with a cool, bracing, equable, open-all-year-around climate. The daily mean maximum temperature is 62.6 degrees. The daily mean minimum temperature is 50.4 degrees. The average daily temperature range is 12.2 degrees.

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

San Francisco is one of a few of nature's air-condi- tioned cities, relatively warm in winter and cool in summer. The long-time record of the Weather Bureau reveals that the sun shines in San Francisco during 66 of every 100 possible hours.

POPULATION AND CHARACTERISTICS San Francisco Residents

The population of San Francisco on April 1, 1950, was 775,357 according to the U. S. Census, or 140,821 above 1940, and ranking San Francisco among the leading cities in the U. S. in numerical population gain. On Jan. 1, 1956, the population was estimated at 807,000. It is the eleventh largest city in the nation, based on pop- ulation, but ranks close to first in several economic and social developments.

On April 1, 1940, the resident population, reported at 634,536, included 630,785 civilians and only 3,751 mili- tary. At about the peak of the nation's war production, on April 1, 1944, the resident civilian population had risen to 683,340 and the resident military had soared to 103,250, bringing the total resident population to 786,590. Near the end of the war, on Aug. 1, 1945, the special U. S. Census reported that San Francisco had 827,400 resi- dents, including 59,753 military, 20,416 seamen on ships registered to San Francisco, and about 30,000 hotel oc- cupants, or nearly 110,000 persons other than those living in owner-occupied and tenant dwellings.

EDUCATION Fine Facilities for Education and Research

The educational facilities available in San Francisco and the Bay Area cover all fields and are outstanding in the West and in their rank among national institu- tions. Few cities in the world offer finer or more diversi- fied educational opportunities.

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Polk's San Francisco (San Francisco County, Calif.) city directory, 1957, Part 3

Author: R.L. Polk & Co Publication date: 1953 Publisher: San Francisco, Calif. : R.L. Polk & Co. Number of Pages: 2572

Author: R.L. Polk & Co
Publication date: 1953
Publisher: San Francisco, Calif. : R.L. Polk & Co.
Number of Pages: 2572