The shoreline of Yerba Buena Cove before the Gold Rush of 1849.

The present day site of the Transamerica Pyramid and 608 Commercial, home of the San Francisco Historical Society.

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Main entrance of the San Francisco Historical Society Museum at 608 Commercial Street.

A 17ft-long photograph of San Francisco in 1878 taken by Eadweard Muybridge

The SFHS Museum at 608 Commercial has been shuttered since March 2020, but that hasn’t stopped them from moving forward with important work. The staff and volunteers used the time to unpack and inventory thousands of items from the SFHS collection, which has been in a storage facility for years. They’ve brought the best of the collection to the museum. Over the next few months, they’ll be creating a permanent exhibit to share with visitors to the museum.

If you haven’t had a chance to visit the museum, or if you’d like to revisit it, you can now take a virtual tour, courtesy of SF Travel. Click HERE for a 360-degree tour of the SFHS Museum.

Detail of Gold Rush and 1906 artifacts from the glass case in the museum's main entrance lobby.

Detail of Gold Rush and 1906 artifacts from the glass case in the museum's main entrance lobby.

Detail of Gold Rush and 1906 artifacts from the glass case in the museum's main entrance lobby.

1906 San Francisco

Detail of Gold Rush and 1906 artifacts from the glass case in the museum's main entrance lobby.

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The Muybridge panorama of San Francisco in 1878

Lana Costantini & Jim Butcher

Whitney Kelly & Matt Kelly

Jim Butcher & Tiffany Claflin

Ed Herny & Richard Everett

Ed Herny & Richard Everett

Marc Scheuer & Thom Jackson

Jim Butcher & Kevin O'Brien

Tiffany Claflin & Sheila Ash

Richard Johns & Eleanor Johns

Father Michael Healy

Ed Herny

Ed Herny with his collection of memorabilia and ephemera from The Midwinter International Exposition of 1894.

The Golden Gate International Exposition, held at San Francisco's Treasure Island, was a World's Fair celebrating, among other things, the city's two newly built bridges. The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge opened in 1936 and the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937.

Treasure Island

Artifacts for the sunken Gold Rush ships in San Francisco's Financial District

San Francisco during the California Gold Rush 1849-1853

Nancy Everett & Doug Woodward

Nancy Everett

Richard Everett & Jeff Marshall

Doug Lofholm & Diane Gibson

Postcard Images of the Golden Gate International Exposition of 1939-40

Richard and Nancy Everett & Doug Woodward

Roberta Morris

Diane Gibson & David Lofholm

Mark Scheuer, Anita Denz, & Thom Jackson

Steve Poitras

Richard Johns, mayor Willie Brown, & Eleanor Johns

Pia Hinkle & Chris M.

Pia Hinkle & Chris M.

Frank Allocco, Don Reid, Father Micheael Healy, & Kevin O'Brien

Mayor Willie Brown & Kevin O'Brien

Mayor Willie Brown & Kevin O'Brien

Tom Owens, John Briscoe, & Mayor Willie Brown

Nancy and Richard Everett

Doug Woodward & Richard Everett

Executive Director Lana Costantini & CEO Kevin O'Brien

Lana Costantini & Kevin O'Brien

Lana Costantini & Kevin O'Brien

Lana Costantini & Kevin O'Brien

Lana Costantini & Kevin O'Brien

Anita Denz & Richard Everett

Anita Denz & Richard Everett

Richard Everett & Carson Everett

Ron Henggeler & Anita Denz

Ron Henggeler & Anita Denz

Ed Herny, Richard Everett, Ron Henggeler, & Richard Heller

The San Francisco Historical Society exists to uncover, preserve, and present, in engaging ways, the colorful and diverse history of our city from its earliest days to the present.

sfhistory.org