Innovation to Icon: 150 Years of Cable Cars Exhibit Opens

Innovation to Icon: 150 Years of Cable Cars Exhibit Opens
By Jeremy Menzies

We are happy to announce the opening of a special history exhibit at the San Francisco Public Library, as part of the ongoing celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the cable cars. The “Innovation to Icon: 150 Years of Cable Cars” exhibit runs from July 1 to September 30 on the 6th floor of the public library’s main branch library at 100 Larkin Street.

Color photo of cable car 16 climbing hill on Hyde Street with view of San Francisco Bay in background. 150 years strong, San Francisco’s cable car system is a symbol of the city.

"Innovation to Icon: 150 Years of Cable Cars" takes a visual journey through time that brings the incredible history of San Francisco’s beloved cable cars to life. Combining photographs, original documents, and unique memorabilia from the San Francisco History Center and the SFMTA Photo Archive, this exhibit showcases the spirit, ingenuity and timeless allure of a city icon. 

Black and white photo of intersection showing people and cable cars on streets. Cable cars once dominated the transit scene in San Francisco. This 1890s shot was taken at Market and Geary Streets in the center of the city.

Invented in 1873 to conquer the city’s challenging topography, cable cars evolved from a groundbreaking transportation mode to a symbol of San Francisco. The cars have endured multiple boom-bust cycles, nearly becoming extinct more than once thanks to natural, political and economic turmoil. During the post-war era, they rose in popularity locally and nationally and became a “must-see” attraction for visitors.

Color photo of the side of a cable car with people sitting on board and standing on the running boards. California Street cable car passing Grant Avenue in Chinatown in the late 1970s.

Years of use and deferred maintenance in the 1970s left the system battered and unsafe. From 1982-1984, the entire system was shut down and rebuilt from the ground up. Reengineered for improved safety and structural integrity, the new system held onto its 19th century roots.

Today, San Francisco’s cable cars are landmarks of American history and culture. Rather than being static relics from the past, they are living and moving museums, reminding us of what makes San Francisco such an extraordinary place. Drop by during regular library hours to immerse yourself in the world of the “little cable cars” that forever changed our city.

Published July 13, 2023 at 02:53AM
https://ift.tt/7gAq18m

Comments

MTA Board of Directors Welcomes Lydia So

MTA Board of Directors Welcomes Lydia So By Stephen Chun Lydia So, a championed public servant, advocate for the AAPI community and an accomplished urban planner, designer and architect, has joined the SFMTA’s Board of Directors. She was appointed in June 2023 and sworn in by Mayor London Breed on Aug. 23, 2023, at Central Subway’s Chinatown Rose Pak Station, in line with her personal connection with the Chinatown community. So was born in Hong Kong and is fluent in Chinese (Cantonese). She is the founder of the architecture firm SOLYD Architecture, Management and Design. She is a former Historic Preservation Commissioner for the San Francisco Planning Department where she voted in favor of the Potrero Yard Modernization Project that is expected to bring hundreds of housing units to our city while maintaining the functions of the SFMTA. She was the first Chinese American Historic Preservation Commissioner, implemented the Planning Department’s Racial and Social Equity policy and

1 crore COVID-19 cases worldwide; death toll crosses 5 lakh https://ift.tt/2NCSU3C

The world has now seen over 1 crore cases of COVID-19, the illness which started spreading in the very beginning of the year and has now killed over 5 lakh people worldwide. As per latest figures, the world has seen 10,080,224 coronavirus cases including 501,262 deaths. Over 5 million people have also recovered after contracting the virus. from IndiaTV: Google News Feed https://ift.tt/3i81jtT

New top story from Time: The Ballroom Scene Has Long Offered Radical Freedoms For Black and Brown Queer People. Today, That Matters More Than Ever

https://ift.tt/2O8qsKr Marginalized by prejudice, violence, housing insecurity, and HIV infection rates among other burdens, Black and brown transgender and gender-nonconforming people face particular challenges in establishing secure, nourishing communities—both within LGBTQ spaces and in society at large. One response to these stigmas has been the formation of self-sustaining social networks and cultural groups, such as the ballroom scene, a formidable social movement and creative collective for LGBT people of color. Amid what has been called a new golden age for Black culture and storytelling , a particular “Renaissance” in queer Black art and cultural representation is clear. Ballroom culture is now widely seen and celebrated (and appropriated) in the mainstream—across fashion campaigns, music videos, social media and in TV shows like Pose , Legendary , and RuPaul’s Drag Race . And i n this moment, ballroom and voguing as the body politic has much to teach the world abou

FOX NEWS: 9-year-old kid finds $5k in cash while cleaning used car Sometimes, it literally pays to clean your car.

9-year-old kid finds $5k in cash while cleaning used car Sometimes, it literally pays to clean your car. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/3fTmQpQ

FOX NEWS: California couple gets married at 'most beautiful' Taco Bell: 'It was the best of both worlds' Analicia Garcia, 24, and Kyle Howser, 25, from Sacramento, California, got married on Tuesday, Oct. 26 and had their reception at the famous Pacifica, California, Taco Bell.

California couple gets married at 'most beautiful' Taco Bell: 'It was the best of both worlds' Analicia Garcia, 24, and Kyle Howser, 25, from Sacramento, California, got married on Tuesday, Oct. 26 and had their reception at the famous Pacifica, California, Taco Bell. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/3BKWsrb

FOX NEWS: 19-year-old shelter cat adopted after his birthday party goes viral: 'Open your heart' A senior shelter cat named Sammy was quickly adopted after going viral on TikTok.

19-year-old shelter cat adopted after his birthday party goes viral: 'Open your heart' A senior shelter cat named Sammy was quickly adopted after going viral on TikTok. via FOX NEWS https://ift.tt/3xXcnkE

New top story from Time: ‘Some Seeds Are Being Planted.’ How Yasuke Paves a New Path for Black Creators in Anime

https://ift.tt/2PCZdsF It was around 13 years ago when LeSean Thomas first learned of Yasuke. At that time, Thomas came across the 1968 Japanese children’s book Kuro-suke by Kurusu Yoshio and saw illustrations of the real-life African warrior who arrived in 16th century Japan and served under Oda Nobunaga—a greatly influential feudal lord who is widely regarded as the first unifier of the country. “It kind of felt like a secret treasure,” Thomas said. He found it particularly fascinating that the story of Yasuke, largely considered to be the first foreign-born samurai, was told in a Japanese work. “I just thought it was really cool that there was someone in Japan who was validating this because a s a concept in the West at that time, it was kind of viewed as a self-insert culturally to put a Black man with someone who was one of the unifiers of Japan,” Thomas told TIME in a recent Zoom interview. “Even at the time I didn’t believe it.” That disbelief has since faded, a

Nitish Kumar will ditch BJP to join RJD after poll results: Chirag Paswan https://ift.tt/3kByTcP

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his party Janata Dal (United) have done preparations to ditch the BJP and join Rashtriya Dal Party (RJD) after the poll results are out, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Chirag Paswan said on Wednesday. Firing a fresh salvo at Kumar, Chirag Paswan said he has done preparations to leave the BJP and go with the RJD after the elections.

New top story from Time: How a Long History of Intertwined Racism and Misogyny Leaves Asian Women in America Vulnerable to Violence

https://ift.tt/3dLVkcS In the weeks since eight people, six of whom were Asian women , were killed in a mass shooting at three massage businesses in the Atlanta area, the conversations prompted by the event have continued—as has the fear felt by many Asian and Asian American women, for whom the violence in Georgia felt intimately familiar. The mass shooting followed a year of increased anti-Asian violence and racist attacks , which advocates say has been fueled by xenophobic rhetoric about the COVID-19 pandemic. Stop AAPI Hate, a reporting database created at the start of the pandemic as a way to chart the attacks, received 3,795 reports of anti-Asian discrimination between March 19, 2020 and Feb. 28, 2021; of those attacks, women reported hate incidents 2.3 times more often than men. However, in a press conference following the shooting spree, Captain Jay Baker, a spokesperson for the Cherokee County, Ga., sheriff’s office, said that the suspect, a white man, claim

Delhi Metro services hit due to farmers protest; entry, exit gates at 6 stations closed https://ift.tt/3dSxmN0

In view of “Delhi chalo”, a massive protest march by farmers from Punjab, Haryana and other parts of India, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) on Friday announced the closure of entry & exit gates at six metro stations on the Green Line. The Delhi Metro authorities had earlier announced that services from neighbouring cities will remain suspended on Friday

My precise view

Search This Blog