San Francisco County
Biographies
SAN
FRANCISCO PLAYGROUND DEPARTMENT
The history of the playground department has been prepared as follows:
1898 California Club established and supported for three years the first public playground on
school property at Bush and Hyde streets.
1901 Board of Supervisors gave Board of Education $12,000 to lease and equip a playground
At Seventh and Harrison streets.
1904 Bond issue $740,000. Purchased Southside, renamed Father Crowley, and North Beach
Playground.
1907 Playground Commission established by amendment City Charter.
1909 Jackson. Land transferred by Park Commission to Playground Commission.
1910 Mission. Permission given by Board of Education to use portion of land. Additional
land purchased by Board of Supervisors and Playground Commission. Spring Valley,
Renamed Helen Wills, and Presidio Heights. Permission given by Board of Education
to use land.
1911 Excelsior. Land purchased by Board of Supervisors for Playground Commission.
Hamilton. Land transferred by Park Commission to Playground Commission.
1914 Richmond No. 1. Land transferred by Board of Supervisors for Playground Commission.
1919 James Rolph, Jr. Land purchased by Board of Supervisors for Playground Commission.
1920 Margaret S. Hayward. Land transferred in 1920 and 1922 by Park Commission to
Playground Commission.
1922 Funston. Land transferred by Park Commission to Playground Commission.
Glen Park. Land purchased by Board of Supervisors for Playground Commission.
Julius Kahn. On ninety-nine-year revocable permit from United States Government
land used by Playground Commission.
Ocean View. Original land purchased by Board of Supervisors for Playground
Commission. Additional land purchased by Playground Commission.
1923 Douglass. Land purchased by Board of Supervisors and transferred to Playground
Commission.
1924 Folsom and Portola. Land purchased by Board of Supervisors for Playground
Commission. Permission given by Board of Education to use additional land.
1925 Argonne. Permission given by Board of Education to use land.
1926 Potrero Hill. Land purchased by Playground Commission.
1927 Levi Strauss. Supervised by Playground Commission.
West Portal. Land transferred by Board of Supervisors to Playground Commission.
Dramatic Studio. Building altered for use by Dramatic Department. Property and
building transferred by Public Library and Board of Education to the Playground
Commission, 1921.
1928 St. Mary’s Park. Parcel of land given by Archbishop of San Francisco, balance
purchased by Playground Commission.
1929 Funston Annex. Permission given by Board of Education to use land.
Richmond No. 2. Permission given by Board of Education to use land.
1930 Rochambeau. Permission given by Board of Education to use land.
Hayes Valley Recreation Center. Opened under joint cooperation between
Playground Commission and private funds.
1931 Aptos. Land purchased by Playground Commission over 3-year period commencing
Fiscal year 1927-1928.
The well-rounded programs are giving the people of San Francisco an opportunity to enjoy the recreational facilities of the department to a very worthwhile degree. The following activities are now conducted on the playgrounds:
1. Aircraft Construction 36. Industrial Groups
2. Apparatus 37. Jacks
3. Archery 38. Kite Flying Contests
4. Bocci Ball 39. Marbles
5. Badminton 40. May Days
6. Baseball, Indoor 41. Miniature Golf
7. Baseball, Regulation 42. Miscellaneous Clubs
8. Basketball 43. Music Week
9. Bean Bag Games 44. Nature Study
10. Billiards 45. Operettas
11. Blue Birds 46. Paddle Tennis
12. Boy Scouts 47. Penny Piper Shows
13. Boxing 48. Pet Shows
14. Camp Fire Girls 49. Play Days
15. Camping 50. Picnics
16. Checkers 51. Ping-Pong
17. Chess 52. Pageantry
18. Choral Groups 53. Pallone
19. Circle and Singing Games 54. Parades
20. Circus 55. Practice Golf
21. Croquet 56. Puppetry
22. Doll Shows 57. Quoits
23. Dramatics 58. Radio Programs
24. Folk Dancing 59. Rope Jumping
25. Football 60. Sewing
26. Girl Scouts 61. Ship Modeling
27. Glee Clubs 62. Singing
28. Gymnastics 63. Soap Carving
29. Handball 64. Soccer
30. Handicraft, Miscellaneous 65. Social Dancing
31. Harmonica Bands 66. Story Play
32. Hiking 67. Swimming
33. Hockey 68. Symphony Orchestra,
34. Hopscotch Junior Civic
35. Horseshoes
69. Tap Dancing 75. Tumbling
70. Tennis 76. Volley Ball
71. Tether Tennis 77. Whist and Bridge Parties
72. Tin Can Golf 78. Wood Carving
73. Toy Symphonies 79. Wrestling
74. Track and Field Meets
A mountain camp for summer recreation is maintained at Mather, Tuolumne county, California, one hundred and seventy-five miles from San Francisco.
Transcribed by: Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.
Source: Byington, Lewis Francis, “History of
San Francisco 3 Vols”, S. J. Clarke Publishing Co.,
Chicago, 1931. Vol. 2 Pages 177-181.
© 2007 Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.
GOLDEN NUGGET'S SAN
FRANCISCO BIOGRAPIES