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Embarcadero in San Francisco City and County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
 

Bryant Street

 
 
Bryant Street Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, December 18, 2014
1. Bryant Street Marker
Inscription. This marker consists of six plaques arranged in a 2 X 3 pattern. The top left plaque is the title plaque and may contain some text. The top right plaque displayed an arrow which points in the direction of the named street. Other plaques contain biographical information on the person for whom the street is named, appropriate quotation(s) and relevant illustrations, cast in bronze.

In February of 1853, the United States Topographical Engineers published their first detailed survey of the city, showing new streets, many named for army and naval officers. Fremont and Folsom were prominent officers; Harrison, Bryant and King held important city and port positions; Spear and Brannan had been pioneers of Yerba Buena before San Francisco had its name.

First publicist of California, Edwin Bryant trekked overland from Missiori to the coast in 1844. Arriving after many hardships, in 1846 he worked to secure California of the United States. His account, What I Saw in California, published in 1848, made the overland journey attractive for legions of settlers. After holding positions of civic distinction in San Francisco, he returned to Kentucky to lead the life of a gentleman scholar. He lived to see the state who's interests he had done so much to advance joined to the Union by the transcontinental railroad, and
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retraced his wagon route by palace car in 1869.

In the mid-1850s a Chinese settlement appeared along the bluff, above a narrow beach - just south of Bryant Street, and west of First Street. Believed to be a small fishing encampment, numbering about 30 small structures on the 1859 Coast Survey Chart, the site has been the subject of archaeological investigation.

"The heads of thousands of grave and prudent men are turned, at the distance of two thousand miles from the scene of enchantment, by the stories of wealth in California to be had for the asking." -- Edwin Bryant, 1849
 
Erected by San Francisco Art Commission for the Waterfront Transportation Projects.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, MusicAsian Americans.
 
Location. 37° 47.219′ N, 122° 23.287′ W. Marker is in San Francisco, California, in San Francisco City and County. It is in Embarcadero. Marker can be reached from the intersection of The Embarcadero and Bryant Street, on the right. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 500 The Embarcadero, San Francisco CA 94107, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. The Matson Line (within shouting distance of this marker); Waterfront Railroad (within shouting distance of this marker);
Bryant Street Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, December 18, 2014
2. Bryant Street Marker
Spear Street (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Bay Bridge (about 500 feet away); Rincon Hill (about 600 feet away); Beale Street (about 700 feet away); Beale Street Wharf (about 700 feet away); Brannan Street (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in San Francisco.
 
More about this marker. This marker is embedded in the sidewalk.
 
Also see . . .  Edwin Bryant (alcalde) - Wikipedia. In 1848, D. Appleton & Company published What I Saw in California: Being the Journal of a Tour, by the Emigrant Route and South Pass of the Rocky Mountains, across the Continent of North America, the Great Desert Basin, and through California, in the Years 1846, 1847, Bryant's account of his westward journey and his time in California. Coinciding with westward expansion and the California Gold Rush, Bryant's book became immensely popular and many emigrants and gold miners used Bryant's book as a guide. (Submitted on March 2, 2016, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.) 
 
Bryant Street Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, December 18, 2014
3. Bryant Street Marker
Bryant Street Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, December 18, 2014
4. Bryant Street Marker
Bryant Street Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, December 18, 2014
5. Bryant Street Marker
Bryant Street Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, December 18, 2014
6. Bryant Street Marker
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 2, 2016, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 476 times since then and 8 times this year. Photos:   1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on March 2, 2016, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.

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Mar. 19, 2024