Field Trip to the top of City Hall

Our destination

As you can probably tell from our previous posts on the Treasurer's Office and Archives 101, archivists in the San Francisco History Center are intrepid about finding and obtaining the City records, personal papers, and organizational records that make up our archival collections. Last week, department staff took a field trip that allowed us to get both a birds-eye view of the city we scour for archives, as well as a close-up, inside look at the civic building that represents that city--we climbed to the top of the dome of City Hall.

In fact, there have been several City Halls in several locations in the course of the city's history. For reports and publications pertaining to them, including working drawings of the current City Hall, click here.

Looking down at the grand staircase

For photographs from the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection showing the City Hall that was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake and fire with its dome intact, click here.

Interlude before climbing further

For additional snapshots documenting how we got to the top, and the marvels we saw along the way, click here. Many thanks to the City Hall building staff who gave us access to this special place and kept us safe!