Panhandle (San Francisco) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Panhandle |
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The Panhandle from Clayton Street
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| Type | Municipal (San Francisco) |
| Location | San Francisco |
| Created | 1870 |
| Status | Open all year |
| Parking | Street parking |
The Panhandle is a long, narrow park in San Francisco, California. It gets its name because it's shaped like the handle of a pan, connecting to the much larger Golden Gate Park. This park is a popular spot for people to walk, bike, and play.
The Panhandle is about three-quarters of a mile long and one block wide. It's bordered by Fell Street to the north, Oak Street to the south, and Baker Street to the east. Only two streets cross through it: Stanyan Street at the western end (right next to Golden Gate Park) and Masonic Avenue in the middle.
You'll find two paved paths running through the park from Golden Gate Park all the way to Baker Street. One of these paths is perfect for bicycles. In the section between Stanyan Street and Masonic Avenue, there are basketball courts, a public restroom, and a fun playground for kids.
At the eastern end of the park, facing the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) across Baker Street, stands the William McKinley Monument. This monument was officially opened in 1904 by President Theodore Roosevelt. He became president after McKinley was sadly assassinated in 1901.
The Panhandle park also marks the southern edge of the Western Addition neighborhood and the northern edge of the famous Haight-Ashbury neighborhood.
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The Panhandle's History
The area where The Panhandle and Golden Gate Park now sit was once called the "Great Sand Bank" on an 1853 map of San Francisco. In 1870, this land, known as the "Outside Lands", was mostly large, moving sand dunes with very few plants. It was hard to grow anything because of the sandy hills, dry weather, and strong winds from the Golden Gate.
How the Park Was Created
A person named William Hammond Hall had a big plan to create a huge park in San Francisco. He started his work in The Panhandle in 1870. This area became like a special lab for Hall to figure out which plants could grow in the sand dunes.
After trying many different things, Hall discovered a way to make the sand stable. First, he planted barley. Months later, he added sea bent grass mixed with yellow lupin. These plants helped hold the sand in place, so he could then add manure and topsoil without the wind blowing it away. On top of this new soil, he planted trees like Montererey Pines, Monterey Cypresses, and Eucalyptus. These trees were chosen because they grow quickly and have shallow roots, which was perfect for the sandy ground.
Trees from Around the World
Once Hall had tamed the dunes, The Panhandle was ready for many different kinds of trees. Hundreds of tree types from all over the world were planted! Some of these included Bailey's Acacia, Japanese Yew, Black Walnut, Blackwood Acacia, Queensland Kauri, and Italian Alder. Today, after more than 100 years of watering and development, it's hard to tell that the ground underneath was once unstable sand.
Stopping the Freeway
In the 1950s, there was a plan to build a freeway right through The Panhandle. This freeway would have replaced a road in the park called The Avenue Drive. However, citizens in San Francisco strongly protested this idea. This was part of a bigger "freeway revolt" in the city.
Because of these protests, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted against building the Panhandle freeway in both 1959 and 1966. Instead, the road through The Panhandle was completely removed. The streets on either side of the park were changed into wide, one-way streets. Their traffic lights are timed so cars can move smoothly at 20 miles per hour. You can find similar one-way pairs of fast streets in other parts of San Francisco.
Bike Paths Today
Today, a popular bike and walking path runs along the north side of The Panhandle. This path connects to the Fell and Oak Street Bikeways, which lead to an area called the Wiggle and eventually to Market Street. These bikeways have special barriers that separate bikes from the fast-moving car traffic. Building these bikeways was a big deal because it meant removing six blocks of parking from both streets, which is usually very difficult to do in San Francisco, a city known for its many cars.
