I'm an undergraduate majoring in History at Stanford. For my senior thesis, I am researching the historical geography of signage, billboards, and outdoor advertising in San Francisco. One of my major goals is to build a database of current and historic sign photos, so this channel will be an important research tool as I develop content.
Please feel free to send me any interesting photos or stories relating to signage and outdoor advertising in the Bay Area! My research interests range from urban design and way-finding to the outdoor advertising market and municipal regulation. Between the vivid streets of Chinatown, the iconic signage in SoMa, and the natural beauty of the local microclimates, San Francisco is an ideal case study for the history of the public view. As I build this channel, I hope to show that the viewing of signs is a powerful way to literally 'read' this urban space.
I am currently uploading a set of photographs taken by the S.F. Planning Department in 1966. The Highway Beautification Act (HBA) of the previous year required local code enforcers to build inventories of outdoor advertising signs, so city planners drove along the freeways and captured the signs they saw. An especially interesting set of signs stood along the section of the Central Freeway that ran north of Market Street before the Loma Prieta earthquake damaged it in 1989. Throughout the freeway corridors of the southern and eastern neighborhoods, the resulting photographs find a fascinating home on Historypin's street view interface. (Updated 8/27/12)
Find out more at: mrdannytowns@gmail.com
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This photo provides a ground-level perspective on Governor Brown's advertisement. (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
This double-sided roof sign bore an advertisement for Governor Pat Brown (539 Bryant St.). The slogan on the left reads "He cares... He acts!" (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
The Hamm's Brewery sign, as described by poet Thom Gunn (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
The transition between this 1966 photograph and the modern Google Street View illustrates the growth of increasingly dense downtown districts in S.F. (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
The billboard in the background of this shot shows an advertisement for Shasta Cola--in fact, a similar sign from the same era survives downtown on the ... (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
In the index for their 1966 survey, city planners described this sign with a simple handwritten note that reads "3-D COW LIFESIZE." (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
The curved roof of the historic S.F. Armory still commands this vantage point on the S. Van Ness Avenue exit. One of the billboards that was ... (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
The dome atop City Hall was visible from this space in 1966, but structures built during the intervening years block it from view today. (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
This billboard appears to be blank on the Google Street View image--against the sky from the 1966 photo, it's still difficult to see if it bore ... (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
Here was the site of a distinctive billboard advertisement for Yahoo.com between 1999 and 2012. It is one of many Clear Channel signs in San Francisco ... (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
This billboard once commanded a greater portion of the public view--today, a freeway sign makes use of the same space. (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
Volkswagen advertised the Beetle at a price of $1663 in 1966. (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
A large sign bearing Mr. Peanut stood at 500 Paul Avenue. (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
"NEWPORT: tastes fresher!" reads this billboard for Newport brand mentholated cigarettes. Outdoor advertisements for tobacco are now prohibited by law in San Francisco, but the 1966 ... (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
A pair of statues sat atop an old machine shop at Kate Street. (read more)
Signs of San Francisco
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