Coit Tower Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Coit Memorial Tower
U.S. National Register of Historic Places

Coit Tower with statue of Columbus in foreground
Location	1 Telegraph Hill Blvd San Francisco, California
NRHP reference No.	07001468
Added to NRHP	January 29, 2008

Coit Tower, also known as the Lillian Coit Memorial Tower, is a tall tower in San Francisco, California. It stands about 210-foot (64 m) high in the Telegraph Hill area. This famous tower is part of Pioneer Park.

The tower was built in 1933. It was paid for with money left by a special lady named Lillie Hitchcock Coit. She loved San Francisco very much. When she passed away in 1929, she left a large part of her money to the city. She wanted it used to make San Francisco even more beautiful. Coit Tower was chosen as a perfect way to honor her gift. The tower was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2008.

Coit Tower is built in the Art Deco style. It is made of plain reinforced concrete. Two architects, Arthur Brown, Jr. and Henry Howard, designed it. Inside, you can see amazing fresco murals. These were painted by 27 different artists and their helpers. Some people think the tower looks like a fire hose nozzle. This is just a coincidence, even though Lillie Coit loved firefighters!

History of Coit Tower
- Lillie Coit's Unique Life
- Lillie's Gift to San Francisco
Amazing Murals Inside
- Who Painted the Murals?
- What Do the Murals Show?
Images for kids
See also

History of Coit Tower

Coit Tower was built thanks to Lillie Hitchcock Coit. She was a wealthy lady who loved San Francisco's early firefighters. Before 1866, San Francisco did not have a city fire department. Volunteer fire companies put out fires, which happened often in the wooden buildings.

Lillie Coit's Unique Life

Lillie Coit was a very unique person. She lived in the North Beach and Telegraph Hill areas. She often did things that were not common for women at the time. For example, she wore trousers long before it was socially accepted.

Lillie had a very special connection with the city's firefighters. When she was just fifteen, she saw the Knickerbocker Engine Co. No. 5 struggling. They were trying to get their fire engine up Telegraph Hill to a fire. Lillie quickly dropped her school books and jumped in to help. She called out to others to help push the engine. Thanks to her, they got the first water onto the fire.

After that day, Lillie became the fire company's mascot. She was always ready to help whenever a fire bell rang. She often rode with the Knickerbocker Engine Co. 5. This was especially true during street parades and celebrations. Throughout her life, Lillie was known as an honorary firefighter.

Lillie's Gift to San Francisco

Lillie Coit passed away in 1929. In her will, she left a lot of money to San Francisco. She wanted about $118,000 "to be spent in a suitable way to add to the beauty of the city I have always loved."

Two memorials were built in her name. One was Coit Tower. The other was a sculpture showing three firemen. One of the firemen is carrying a woman in his arms.

Panoramic view from the top of Coit Tower, showing (l. to r.) Bay Bridge, Ferry Bldg, Financial District, Russian Hill, Golden Gate Bridge, SF Bay, Alcatraz.

Amazing Murals Inside

The Coit Tower murals are a very important part of the tower. They were created as part of the Public Works of Art Project. This was one of the first government programs to help artists during the Great Depression.

Who Painted the Murals?

Ralph Stackpole and Bernard Zakheim were chosen to lead the mural project in 1933. They oversaw many artists. Most of these artists were teachers and students from the California School of Fine Arts.

What Do the Murals Show?

From Maxine Albro's "Agriculture in California"
From Victor Arnautoff's "City Life"
From Bernard Zakheim's "Library"

Many of the murals show scenes from San Francisco Bay. Most of them are fresco paintings. This means the artists painted on wet plaster. One mural is painted with egg tempera. The paintings in the elevator area are oil on canvas.

Most of these beautiful murals are free for everyone to see. They are open during the tower's regular hours. There are also special tours. These tours let you see murals in the spiral stairway that are usually closed to the public.