Mission St. at Duboce Ave. | map |
Opened: Robert B. Woodward opened the grounds of his estate to the public in 1866 calling it Woodward's Gardens. He felt the city encroaching a bit much and had decided to move to Napa.
Admission was 25 cents. The amusement complex was two blocks in size and bounded by Mission St., Duboce Ave., Valencia St. and 14th St. Mission between 13th and 14th streets was the way the address was listed in an 1882 theatre list.
Woodward kept adding attractions over time. The grounds eventually included a zoo, aquarium, roller rink, museum, art gallery and concert pavilion. Plus there were occasional special exhibits.
Closing: 1892. Woodward had died in 1876 and his heirs didn't have as much enthusiasm for the project. It kept going but the popularity waned as competition increased from other parks and attractions. What was left of the Gardens burned in 1906.
The Mission St entrance to the Gardens. It's a San Francisco Public Library photo that they date as being taken between 1866 and 1892. Art Siegel notes that the photo also appears on the Open SF History project site where it's dated 1877 and credited to Turrill & Miller. Art adds that we're looking northwest with 14th St. at the bottom of the image.
Opened: Robert B. Woodward opened the grounds of his estate to the public in 1866 calling it Woodward's Gardens. He felt the city encroaching a bit much and had decided to move to Napa.
Admission was 25 cents. The amusement complex was two blocks in size and bounded by Mission St., Duboce Ave., Valencia St. and 14th St. Mission between 13th and 14th streets was the way the address was listed in an 1882 theatre list.
Woodward kept adding attractions over time. The grounds eventually included a zoo, aquarium, roller rink, museum, art gallery and concert pavilion. Plus there were occasional special exhibits.
Closing: 1892. Woodward had died in 1876 and his heirs didn't have as much enthusiasm for the project. It kept going but the popularity waned as competition increased from other parks and attractions. What was left of the Gardens burned in 1906.
The Mission St entrance to the Gardens. It's a San Francisco Public Library photo that they date as being taken between 1866 and 1892. Art Siegel notes that the photo also appears on the Open SF History project site where it's dated 1877 and credited to Turrill & Miller. Art adds that we're looking northwest with 14th St. at the bottom of the image.
One of the park's entrances. Photo: San Francisco Public Library - undated
Another entrance view. Thanks to Richard Zappelli for sharing this one in a post on the San Francisco History to the 1920s Facebook page. He credits it to the San Francisco Public Library collection.
The reptile house, aviary and restaurant. Photo: San Francisco Public Library - 1880
The art gallery. Photo: San Francisco Public Library - 1876
A look across the grounds. It's an undated photo by T.E. Hecht that's in the San Francisco Public Library collection. Richard Zappelli, in a post of the image on the San Francisco History to the 1920s Facebook page, quotes Woodward:
"A visitor to the Mission District of San Francisco sees an improvised, rundown, somewhat intimidating section of the city. A local recognizes a neighborhood with heart, undergoing rejuvenation. I find the landmark of my childhood and recall how it looked nearly fifty years ago..."
And also a quote from James R. Smith's 2005 book "San Francisco's Lost Landmarks":
"What no one sees is evidence of the magic that existed here just over a hundred years ago, or more when Robert Woodward opened his gardens to the public. Robert B. Woodward earned his fortune c.1849 with sweat and foresight, not in the gold fields of California but by opening a grocery store just off San Francisco’s waterfront. Like most successful businessmen, he knew when to say, 'enough is enough' as the trend changed from a need for staples to a need for services. Woodward started investing his wealth in the burgeoning new economy."
More Information: The San Francisco Public Library has about 40 more photos of the Gardens in their collection. Many photos from the collection appear on the "Woodward's Gardens c.1860" page on the Found SF site. The page includes articles by Charles Lockwood and Christopher Craig.
Woodward's Gardens is one of the venues covered in Rae Alexandra's 2022 KQED article "5 Long-Lost San Francisco Attractions the City Should've Kept."
Check out Woody La Bounty's article "Woodward's Gardens: A Closer Look" on the Open SF History Project website. It includes six photos from the project's collection. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for spotting the article.
Bob Emerson wrote a fine article describing the Gardens' history and facilities as a 2015 post on the Facebook page San Francisco History.
See the article "Woodward's Gardens Final Years" on the site San Francisco Memories. The Gardens got a mention in the 1912 book "San Francisco: as it was, as it is, and how to see it" by Helen Throop Purdy. See Bob Ristelhueber's post of the pages on the BAHT Facebook page.
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Check out Woody La Bounty's article "Woodward's Gardens: A Closer Look" on the Open SF History Project website. It includes six photos from the project's collection. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for spotting the article.
Bob Emerson wrote a fine article describing the Gardens' history and facilities as a 2015 post on the Facebook page San Francisco History.
See the article "Woodward's Gardens Final Years" on the site San Francisco Memories. The Gardens got a mention in the 1912 book "San Francisco: as it was, as it is, and how to see it" by Helen Throop Purdy. See Bob Ristelhueber's post of the pages on the BAHT Facebook page.
| back to top | San Francisco Theatres: by address and neighborhood | alphabetical list | list by architect | pre-1906 theatre list | home |
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