Must-see
Lombard Street
The city’s crookedest street, on a hill named for Russian sailors
The story
Before you is Lombard Street, the most famous block in San Francisco. In about six hundred feet the street makes eight sharp turns. The slope here is so steep that many cars could not climb it straight. In 1922, at the suggestion of a property owner, Carl Henry, the road was laid out in switchbacks. It was paved with red brick, with flower beds along the bends. Cars drive here only downhill, and a sign recommends no more than five miles an hour. People on foot use the stairs on both sides. About two million visitors come here every year. The street has been in films, such as the comedy What’s Up, Doc? Remember that people live in the houses around you. Now about the name of the hill. It is called Russian Hill. Russian ships called at the bay from 1806 on. Sailors who died here were buried at the top of the hill. When gold seekers poured into San Francisco in 1849, they found a small Russian cemetery up there. The cemetery was later removed, but the name stayed. Today, at the top of the hill, in a small park on Vallejo Street, there is a memorial plaque placed by the Russian government. From the top of the block you can see the bay and Coit Tower on Telegraph Hill.
Visiting
The crooked block runs between Hyde and Leavenworth Streets. On foot, take the stairs along the bends. The Powell–Hyde cable car stops at the top, on Hyde Street.
Photos
Sources
- Wikipedia (EN) — Lombard Street (San Francisco)
- Wikipedia (EN) — Russian Hill, San Francisco
- FoundSF — Russian Hill Naming
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