The Palace of the Legion of Honor - Revision history

Ccarlsson at 03:34, 9 July 2020

2020-07-09T03:34:46Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 20:34, 8 July 2020
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	[[Image:richmond$legion-of-honor-photo.jpg]]		[[Image:richmond$legion-of-honor-photo.jpg]]

	'''The Palace of the Legion of Honor in the mid-1990s.'''~~<br>~~''Photo: Chris Carlsson''		'''The Palace of the Legion of Honor in the mid-1990s.'''

			''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

			[[Image:Palace-of-Legion-of-Honor 20200607 161602.jpg]]

			'''Palace of the Legion of Honor in the time of Covid-19, June 2020.'''

			''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	<font size=4>'''Over Whose Dead Bodies?<br>Grave Ironies at the Legion of Honor'''</font>		<font size=4>'''Over Whose Dead Bodies?<br>Grave Ironies at the Legion of Honor'''</font>
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	There is even more death around this peaceful hillside. Across the road, tastefully hidden below a corner of the parking circle in the sweep of a 270-degree turn with vistas of the ocean to distract your vision, is a poignant holocaust memorial by George Segal.		There is even more death around this peaceful hillside. Across the road, tastefully hidden below a corner of the parking circle in the sweep of a 270-degree turn with vistas of the ocean to distract your vision, is a poignant holocaust memorial by George Segal.

	[[Image:Holocaust memorial.jpg]]		[[Image:Holocaust-memorial 20200607 161534.jpg]]

			'''Holocaust Memorial adjacent to Palace of Legion of Honor parking lot, overlooking Golden Gate'''

			''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

			[[Image:Holocaust-plaque 20200607 161514.jpg]]

	'''~~Holocaust Memorial adjacent to Palace of Legion of Honor parking lot, overlooking Golden Gate~~'~~''<br>''Photo: Chris Carlsson~~''		'''Explanatory plaque'''

	--from "YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR: A reflection by Bernie Lubell, Dean MacCannell, and Juliet Flower MacCannell" in City Lights ''Reclaiming San Francisco: History, Politics, Culture'' January 1998.		--from "YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR: A reflection by Bernie Lubell, Dean MacCannell, and Juliet Flower MacCannell" in City Lights ''Reclaiming San Francisco: History, Politics, Culture'' January 1998.
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	[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]		[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]

	[[category:Richmond District]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]] [[category:Jewish]]		[[category:Richmond District]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]] [[category:Jewish]] [[category:2020s]] [[category:Landmarks]]

Ccarlsson: added photo

2020-06-02T02:20:08Z

added photo

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:20, 1 June 2020
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	In the early 1990s the museum underwent considerable renovation. The operation included seismic upgrading and massive expansion of the underground portion of the museum to include new work areas and a new restaurant. Excavation uncovered a grisly secret: the Palace of the Legion of Honor had been built atop the unmarked graves of a nineteenth-century potters field. More than 750 graves remained from a cemetery that was supposed to have been relocated to Colma a hundred years before. “It is speculated that Golden Gate Cemetery was in fact never relocated, but instead the headstones were simply removed, leaving the burials for future generations to deal with.” In a final irony, Alma made good her escape from an impoverished childhood in the dunes, but even her proudest accomplishment remains haunted by the poor.		In the early 1990s the museum underwent considerable renovation. The operation included seismic upgrading and massive expansion of the underground portion of the museum to include new work areas and a new restaurant. Excavation uncovered a grisly secret: the Palace of the Legion of Honor had been built atop the unmarked graves of a nineteenth-century potters field. More than 750 graves remained from a cemetery that was supposed to have been relocated to Colma a hundred years before. “It is speculated that Golden Gate Cemetery was in fact never relocated, but instead the headstones were simply removed, leaving the burials for future generations to deal with.” In a final irony, Alma made good her escape from an impoverished childhood in the dunes, but even her proudest accomplishment remains haunted by the poor.

	''-- James Brook''		''— James Brook''

	My account of the facts of Alma Spreckels' life relies on Bernice Scharlach, ''Big Alma: San Francisco's Alma Spreckels'' (San Francisco: Scottwall, 1995).		My account of the facts of Alma Spreckels' life relies on Bernice Scharlach, ''Big Alma: San Francisco's Alma Spreckels'' (San Francisco: Scottwall, 1995).
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	When excavation began in the courtyard (beneath Rodin's "Thinker") some archaeological remains were anticipated, although the extent of the finds was both a surprise and a problem. It seems that the palatial memorial to the dead had been built directly atop the graves of paupers from the Gold Rush era. Bodies of gold diggers from all over the world were interred here. These earliest settlers had been buried in the San Francisco Cemetery and were moved to Lincoln Park (the site of the Palace) in the 1870's to make room for the burgeoning city. In 1909 the graves were supposed to have been moved again to [[Dead City: Colma Where San Franciscans go to Die\|Colma]] to make way for a golf course, but most of the graves were never moved--the markers had simply been kicked over and covered with dirt.		When excavation began in the courtyard (beneath Rodin's "Thinker") some archaeological remains were anticipated, although the extent of the finds was both a surprise and a problem. It seems that the palatial memorial to the dead had been built directly atop the graves of paupers from the Gold Rush era. Bodies of gold diggers from all over the world were interred here. These earliest settlers had been buried in the San Francisco Cemetery and were moved to Lincoln Park (the site of the Palace) in the 1870's to make room for the burgeoning city. In 1909 the graves were supposed to have been moved again to [[Dead City: Colma Where San Franciscans go to Die\|Colma]] to make way for a golf course, but most of the graves were never moved--the markers had simply been kicked over and covered with dirt.

			[[Image:Palace of Legion of Honor excavation with bodies.jpg]]

			'''Palace of Legion of Honor excavation with bodies.'''

			''Photo: Provenance unknown''

	When the Palace was built in 1922, its foundation was poured on the redwood coffins of the city's pioneers. Would-be nude bathers routinely find headstones and markers in the gullies that lead down to China Beach. Every time there is any construction human skeletons will appear.		When the Palace was built in 1922, its foundation was poured on the redwood coffins of the city's pioneers. Would-be nude bathers routinely find headstones and markers in the gullies that lead down to China Beach. Every time there is any construction human skeletons will appear.

Lisaruth: changed category from Richmond to Richmond District

2014-08-28T06:51:45Z

changed category from Richmond to Richmond District

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:51, 27 August 2014
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	[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]		[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]

	[[category:Richmond]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]] [[category:Jewish]]		[[category:Richmond District]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]] [[category:Jewish]]

Ccarlsson: Protected "The Palace of the Legion of Honor": finished essays [edit=sysop:move=sysop]

2009-01-18T01:39:26Z

Protected "The Palace of the Legion of Honor": finished essays [edit=sysop:move=sysop]

← Older revision	Revision as of 18:39, 17 January 2009
(No difference)

Ccarlsson at 01:39, 18 January 2009

2009-01-18T01:39:02Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:39, 17 January 2009
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	'''The Palace of the Legion of Honor in the mid-1990s.'''<br>''Photo: Chris Carlsson''		'''The Palace of the Legion of Honor in the mid-1990s.'''<br>''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	<font size=4>'''Over Whose Dead Bodies? Grave Ironies at the Legion of Honor'''</font>		<font size=4>'''Over Whose Dead Bodies?<br>Grave Ironies at the Legion of Honor'''</font>

	No architect or patron could ask for a more dramatic site for a museum of art: designed by George Applegarth for Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, the California Palace of the Legion of Honor sits atop a bluff at Lands End overlooking San Francisco Bay. The Court of Honor, the formal peristyle of the U-shaped, neoclassical memorial to Californians who fell in the First World War, opens via a Roman triumphal arch toward the Golden Gate. Ionic columns march past a copy of Auguste Rodin's Thinker to the museum entrance, framed by Corinthian columns, at the bottom of the U. Over the entrance porch a motto in French admonishes museum-goers: “Honneur et Patrie.” Just over the door is the middle panel of a triptych in relief depicting a suovetaurelia, the Roman ritual sacrifice of a pig, a ram, and bull to Mars, god of war. Panels 1 and 3 of the triptych cap the ends of the U. Equestrian statues of Christian soldiers Joan of Arc and El Cid stand at the ready in the broad sweep of lawn before the Legion, defending the approach to the Roman arch from the parking lot below. The façade at the other end of the building at the bottom of the U turns outward to the Pacific Ocean.		No architect or patron could ask for a more dramatic site for a museum of art: designed by George Applegarth for Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, the California Palace of the Legion of Honor sits atop a bluff at Lands End overlooking San Francisco Bay. The Court of Honor, the formal peristyle of the U-shaped, neoclassical memorial to Californians who fell in the First World War, opens via a Roman triumphal arch toward the Golden Gate. Ionic columns march past a copy of Auguste Rodin's Thinker to the museum entrance, framed by Corinthian columns, at the bottom of the U. Over the entrance porch a motto in French admonishes museum-goers: “Honneur et Patrie.” Just over the door is the middle panel of a triptych in relief depicting a suovetaurelia, the Roman ritual sacrifice of a pig, a ram, and bull to Mars, god of war. Panels 1 and 3 of the triptych cap the ends of the U. Equestrian statues of Christian soldiers Joan of Arc and El Cid stand at the ready in the broad sweep of lawn before the Legion, defending the approach to the Roman arch from the parking lot below. The façade at the other end of the building at the bottom of the U turns outward to the Pacific Ocean.

Ccarlsson: PC and protected

2009-01-18T01:38:41Z

PC and protected

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:38, 17 January 2009
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			'''<font face = Papyrus> <font color = maroon> <font size = 4>Historical Essay</font></font> </font>'''

			''Part One by James Brook''

			''Part Two by Bernie Lubell, Dean MacCannell, and Juliet Flower MacCannell''

	[[Image:richmond$legion-of-honor-photo.jpg]]		[[Image:richmond$legion-of-honor-photo.jpg]]

	'''The Palace of the Legion of Honor in the mid-1990s.'''		'''The Palace of the Legion of Honor in the mid-1990s.'''<br>''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	~~''Photo: Chris Carlsson''~~		<font size=4>'''Over Whose Dead Bodies? Grave Ironies at the Legion of Honor'''</font>

	'''Over Whose Dead Bodies? Grave Ironies at the Legion of Honor'''

	No architect or patron could ask for a more dramatic site for a museum of art: designed by George Applegarth for Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, the California Palace of the Legion of Honor sits atop a bluff at Lands End overlooking San Francisco Bay. The Court of Honor, the formal peristyle of the U-shaped, neoclassical memorial to Californians who fell in the First World War, opens via a Roman triumphal arch toward the Golden Gate. Ionic columns march past a copy of Auguste Rodin's Thinker to the museum entrance, framed by Corinthian columns, at the bottom of the U. Over the entrance porch a motto in French admonishes museum-goers: “Honneur et Patrie.” Just over the door is the middle panel of a triptych in relief depicting a suovetaurelia, the Roman ritual sacrifice of a pig, a ram, and bull to Mars, god of war. Panels 1 and 3 of the triptych cap the ends of the U. Equestrian statues of Christian soldiers Joan of Arc and El Cid stand at the ready in the broad sweep of lawn before the Legion, defending the approach to the Roman arch from the parking lot below. The façade at the other end of the building at the bottom of the U turns outward to the Pacific Ocean.		No architect or patron could ask for a more dramatic site for a museum of art: designed by George Applegarth for Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, the California Palace of the Legion of Honor sits atop a bluff at Lands End overlooking San Francisco Bay. The Court of Honor, the formal peristyle of the U-shaped, neoclassical memorial to Californians who fell in the First World War, opens via a Roman triumphal arch toward the Golden Gate. Ionic columns march past a copy of Auguste Rodin's Thinker to the museum entrance, framed by Corinthian columns, at the bottom of the U. Over the entrance porch a motto in French admonishes museum-goers: “Honneur et Patrie.” Just over the door is the middle panel of a triptych in relief depicting a suovetaurelia, the Roman ritual sacrifice of a pig, a ram, and bull to Mars, god of war. Panels 1 and 3 of the triptych cap the ends of the U. Equestrian statues of Christian soldiers Joan of Arc and El Cid stand at the ready in the broad sweep of lawn before the Legion, defending the approach to the Roman arch from the parking lot below. The façade at the other end of the building at the bottom of the U turns outward to the Pacific Ocean.
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	[[Image:Alma spreckels as young woman AAD-3009.jpg]]		[[Image:Alma spreckels as young woman AAD-3009.jpg]]

	'''Alma Spreckels, 1903, apx. 20 years of age.'''		'''Alma Spreckels, 1903, apx. 20 years of age.'''<br>''Photo: San Francisco History Center, SF Public Library''

	''Photo: San Francisco History Center, SF Public Library''

	In 1902, at the age of nineteen, she took up with an Alaskan gold miner, only to sue him to the tune of $50,000 for breach of promise. She won the case and an award of $1,250; the trial made her famous.		In 1902, at the age of nineteen, she took up with an Alaskan gold miner, only to sue him to the tune of $50,000 for breach of promise. She won the case and an award of $1,250; the trial made her famous.
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	----		----
	'''YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR'''		<font size=4>'''YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR'''</font>

	The Palace of the Legion of Honor was a gift of Alma de Brettville Spreckels in 1922. Conceived as a 3/4 size replica of the Hotel de Siam in Paris, it serves as a memorial to the California soldiers killed in the First World War. The building is surrounded by wind-swept trees and a golf course on the bluffs overlooking the outermost corner of the Golden Gate. There are views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, and the northern part of the city. Below the sheer cliffs are nude beaches, ruined roads, and paths created by people in their search for golf and empty space.		The Palace of the Legion of Honor was a gift of Alma de Brettville Spreckels in 1922. Conceived as a 3/4 size replica of the Hotel de Siam in Paris, it serves as a memorial to the California soldiers killed in the First World War. The building is surrounded by wind-swept trees and a golf course on the bluffs overlooking the outermost corner of the Golden Gate. There are views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, and the northern part of the city. Below the sheer cliffs are nude beaches, ruined roads, and paths created by people in their search for golf and empty space.
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	[[Image:Gg brdg from palace.jpg]]		[[Image:Gg brdg from palace.jpg]]

	'''View of Golden Gate from Palace of Legion of Honor'''		'''View of Golden Gate from Palace of Legion of Honor'''<br>''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	When excavation began in the courtyard (beneath Rodin's "Thinker") some archaeological remains were anticipated, although the extent of the finds was both a surprise and a problem. It seems that the palatial memorial to the dead had been built directly atop the graves of paupers from the Gold Rush era. Bodies of gold diggers from all over the world were interred here. These earliest settlers had been buried in the San Francisco Cemetery and were moved to Lincoln Park (the site of the Palace) in the 1870's to make room for the burgeoning city. In 1909 the graves were supposed to have been moved again to [[Dead City: Colma Where San Franciscans go to Die\|Colma]] to make way for a golf course, but most of the graves were never moved--the markers had simply been kicked over and covered with dirt.		When excavation began in the courtyard (beneath Rodin's "Thinker") some archaeological remains were anticipated, although the extent of the finds was both a surprise and a problem. It seems that the palatial memorial to the dead had been built directly atop the graves of paupers from the Gold Rush era. Bodies of gold diggers from all over the world were interred here. These earliest settlers had been buried in the San Francisco Cemetery and were moved to Lincoln Park (the site of the Palace) in the 1870's to make room for the burgeoning city. In 1909 the graves were supposed to have been moved again to [[Dead City: Colma Where San Franciscans go to Die\|Colma]] to make way for a golf course, but most of the graves were never moved--the markers had simply been kicked over and covered with dirt.
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	[[Image:Holocaust memorial.jpg]]		[[Image:Holocaust memorial.jpg]]

	'''Holocaust Memorial adjacent to Palace of Legion of Honor parking lot, overlooking Golden Gate'''		'''Holocaust Memorial adjacent to Palace of Legion of Honor parking lot, overlooking Golden Gate'''<br>''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	--from "YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR: A reflection by Bernie Lubell, Dean MacCannell, and Juliet Flower MacCannell" in City Lights ''Reclaiming San Francisco: History, Politics, Culture'' January 1998.		--from "YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR: A reflection by Bernie Lubell, Dean MacCannell, and Juliet Flower MacCannell" in City Lights ''Reclaiming San Francisco: History, Politics, Culture'' January 1998.

Ccarlsson: added photo and link

2008-12-01T06:25:39Z

added photo and link

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:25, 30 November 2008
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	Even a casual glance reveals the almost hysterical dedication to empire this building embodies. If the Palace of the Legion of Honor were a dream, you would want to wake up and write it down for historical analysis. . . . How did imperial images of the Greeks, Romans, Spanish, and French become implanted on this spot in San Francisco, and what does this art museum have to do with the California dead of the First World War? Are there deeper meanings to be read from this wish-fulfillment in poured concrete?		Even a casual glance reveals the almost hysterical dedication to empire this building embodies. If the Palace of the Legion of Honor were a dream, you would want to wake up and write it down for historical analysis. . . . How did imperial images of the Greeks, Romans, Spanish, and French become implanted on this spot in San Francisco, and what does this art museum have to do with the California dead of the First World War? Are there deeper meanings to be read from this wish-fulfillment in poured concrete?

	Digging a little into the dream life of Alma Spreckels turns up some answers. Born in 1881 to poor Danish immigrants trying to [[Sand Dunes in the Richmond\|farm the sand dunes]] at the edge of San Francisco, Alma de Bretteville was a descendant of a French nobleman who had fled to Denmark during the Revolution. She left school early to help her mother with the family laundry business before working first as a stenographer and then as an artists model. Nude portraits of this teenager with “a buxom, Rubenesque figure” gained pride of place in San Francisco watering holes of the time. In 1902, at the age of nineteen, she took up with an Alaskan gold miner, only to sue him to the tune of $50,000 for breach of promise. She won the case and an award of $1,250; the trial made her famous.		Digging a little into the dream life of [[Alma Spreckels\|Alma Spreckels]] turns up some answers. Born in 1881 to poor Danish immigrants trying to [[Sand Dunes in the Richmond\|farm the sand dunes]] at the edge of San Francisco, Alma de Bretteville was a descendant of a French nobleman who had fled to Denmark during the Revolution. She left school early to help her mother with the family laundry business before working first as a stenographer and then as an artists model. Nude portraits of this teenager with “a buxom, Rubenesque figure” gained pride of place in San Francisco watering holes of the time.

			[[Image:Alma spreckels as young woman AAD-3009.jpg]]

			'''Alma Spreckels, 1903, apx. 20 years of age.'''

			''Photo: San Francisco History Center, SF Public Library''

			In 1902, at the age of nineteen, she took up with an Alaskan gold miner, only to sue him to the tune of $50,000 for breach of promise. She won the case and an award of $1,250; the trial made her famous.

	Soon she modeled for a memorial statue to President William McKinley, who had been assassinated the year before by anarchist Leon Czolgosz. Adolph Spreckels, son of sugar baron Claus Spreckels, who had made his fortune in Hawaii, was chairman of the selection committee. Alma's lightly draped form is still on view atop the Dewey monument erected in Union Square to celebrate the [[SAN FRANCISCO'S ROLE IN THE WAR IN THE PHILIPPINES\|American fleet's victory]] at Manila Bay that spelled the end of the Spanish Empire and the beginning of the American domination of the Pacific.		Soon she modeled for a memorial statue to President William McKinley, who had been assassinated the year before by anarchist Leon Czolgosz. Adolph Spreckels, son of sugar baron Claus Spreckels, who had made his fortune in Hawaii, was chairman of the selection committee. Alma's lightly draped form is still on view atop the Dewey monument erected in Union Square to celebrate the [[SAN FRANCISCO'S ROLE IN THE WAR IN THE PHILIPPINES\|American fleet's victory]] at Manila Bay that spelled the end of the Spanish Empire and the beginning of the American domination of the Pacific.

Lisaruth: categories clean up

2008-11-29T00:58:41Z

categories clean up

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:58, 28 November 2008
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	[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]		[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]

	[[category:Richmond]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings~~]] [[category:museums~~]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]] [[category:Jewish]]		[[category:Richmond]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]] [[category:Jewish]]

Ccarlsson: added missing photos

2008-08-07T06:56:33Z

added missing photos

← Older revision		Revision as of 23:56, 6 August 2008
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	The Palace of the Legion of Honor was a gift of Alma de Brettville Spreckels in 1922. Conceived as a 3/4 size replica of the Hotel de Siam in Paris, it serves as a memorial to the California soldiers killed in the First World War. The building is surrounded by wind-swept trees and a golf course on the bluffs overlooking the outermost corner of the Golden Gate. There are views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, and the northern part of the city. Below the sheer cliffs are nude beaches, ruined roads, and paths created by people in their search for golf and empty space.		The Palace of the Legion of Honor was a gift of Alma de Brettville Spreckels in 1922. Conceived as a 3/4 size replica of the Hotel de Siam in Paris, it serves as a memorial to the California soldiers killed in the First World War. The building is surrounded by wind-swept trees and a golf course on the bluffs overlooking the outermost corner of the Golden Gate. There are views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, and the northern part of the city. Below the sheer cliffs are nude beaches, ruined roads, and paths created by people in their search for golf and empty space.

			[[Image:Gg brdg from palace.jpg]]

			'''View of Golden Gate from Palace of Legion of Honor'''

			''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	When excavation began in the courtyard (beneath Rodin's "Thinker") some archaeological remains were anticipated, although the extent of the finds was both a surprise and a problem. It seems that the palatial memorial to the dead had been built directly atop the graves of paupers from the Gold Rush era. Bodies of gold diggers from all over the world were interred here. These earliest settlers had been buried in the San Francisco Cemetery and were moved to Lincoln Park (the site of the Palace) in the 1870's to make room for the burgeoning city. In 1909 the graves were supposed to have been moved again to [[Dead City: Colma Where San Franciscans go to Die\|Colma]] to make way for a golf course, but most of the graves were never moved--the markers had simply been kicked over and covered with dirt.		When excavation began in the courtyard (beneath Rodin's "Thinker") some archaeological remains were anticipated, although the extent of the finds was both a surprise and a problem. It seems that the palatial memorial to the dead had been built directly atop the graves of paupers from the Gold Rush era. Bodies of gold diggers from all over the world were interred here. These earliest settlers had been buried in the San Francisco Cemetery and were moved to Lincoln Park (the site of the Palace) in the 1870's to make room for the burgeoning city. In 1909 the graves were supposed to have been moved again to [[Dead City: Colma Where San Franciscans go to Die\|Colma]] to make way for a golf course, but most of the graves were never moved--the markers had simply been kicked over and covered with dirt.
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	There is even more death around this peaceful hillside. Across the road, tastefully hidden below a corner of the parking circle in the sweep of a 270-degree turn with vistas of the ocean to distract your vision, is a poignant holocaust memorial by George Segal.		There is even more death around this peaceful hillside. Across the road, tastefully hidden below a corner of the parking circle in the sweep of a 270-degree turn with vistas of the ocean to distract your vision, is a poignant holocaust memorial by George Segal.

			[[Image:Holocaust memorial.jpg]]

			'''Holocaust Memorial adjacent to Palace of Legion of Honor parking lot, overlooking Golden Gate'''

			''Photo: Chris Carlsson''

	--from "YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR: A reflection by Bernie Lubell, Dean MacCannell, and Juliet Flower MacCannell" in City Lights ''Reclaiming San Francisco: History, Politics, Culture'' January 1998.		--from "YOU ARE HERE (YOU THINK)*: A SAN FRANCISCO BUS TOUR: A reflection by Bernie Lubell, Dean MacCannell, and Juliet Flower MacCannell" in City Lights ''Reclaiming San Francisco: History, Politics, Culture'' January 1998.
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	[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]		[[SIMMONS FAMILY \|Prev. Document]] [[Seacliff \|Next Document]]

	[[category:Richmond]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:museums]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]]		[[category:Richmond]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:museums]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]] [[category:Jewish]]

Ccarlsson: added Jim Brook's great essay on Alma Spreckels to this page

2008-08-07T01:18:17Z

added Jim Brook's great essay on Alma Spreckels to this page

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 ''Photo: Chris Carlsson''
 The Palace of the Legion of Honor was a gift of Alma de Brettville Spreckels in 1922. Conceived as a 3/4 size replica of the Hotel de Siam in Paris, it serves as a memorial to the California soldiers killed in the First World War. The building is surrounded by wind-swept trees and a golf course on the bluffs overlooking the outermost corner of the Golden Gate. There are views of the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, and the northern part of the city. Below the sheer cliffs are nude beaches, ruined roads, and paths created by people in their search for golf and empty space.
@@ Line 24: / Line 87: @@
 [[SIMMONS FAMILY |Prev. Document]]  [[Seacliff |Next Document]]
-[[category:Richmond]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:museums]] [[category:cemeteries]]
+[[category:Richmond]] [[category:1870s]] [[category:1880s]] [[category:1840s]] [[category:1850s]] [[category:1900s]] [[category:1920s]] [[category:1990s]] [[category:buildings]] [[category:museums]] [[category:cemeteries]] [[category:Power and Money]] [[category:Famous characters]]