Sausalito in Marin County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Celebrating 50 Years of Sisterhood: Sausalito & Viña del Mar

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

1. Celebrating 50 Years of Sisterhood: Sausalito & Viña del Mar Marker

Inscription. On the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of The Proclamation of the Sisterhood between the cities of Sausalito and Viña del Mar proclaimed on March 5th, 1960, celebrated in the year of the Bicentennial of the Republic of Chile 1810-2010.

The Consulate General of Chile in San Francisco presents this plaque to the friendly People of Sausalito

Sausalito, March 5th, 2010

Erected 2010 by Consulate General of Chile in San Francisco.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Notable Events. A significant historical year for this entry is 1960.

Location. 37° 51.36′ N, 122° 28.768′ W. Marker is in Sausalito, California, in Marin County. It is on Bridgeway, on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 690 Bridgeway, Sausalito CA 94965, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in California’s San Francisco Bay Area,

in the North Coast,

and specifically on the Coast Ranges.

It is also on the American Pacific Coast.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Bank of Sausalito (a few steps from this marker); Sausalito World War I Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Old Sausalito City Hall / 1894 Old City Hall (within shouting distance of this marker); Fiedler's General Store (within shouting distance of this marker); Princess Theater (within shouting distance of this marker);

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Becker Building (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Old Purity Market (about 300 feet away); Restored Victorian (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sausalito.

More about this marker. The marker is located on the base of a statue of an elephant, one of two elephant statues located in Viña del Mar Park.

Also see . . . Sausalito’s First Sister City: Viña del Mar.

The People-to-People Committee studied various possible sister city candidates. “The preference was soon narrowed to South America because of its importance and because teaching of Spanish had just been introduced in Sausalito’s elementary schools,” according to comments by Representative Clem Miller of California in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Mrs. Herman noted: “Chile appears to be the country in which it would be most likely to find a waterfront community which would possibly affiliate with Sausalito.”

Eventually, contact was established with Viña del Mar. Rep. Miller reported that the mayor of Viña, “took up the idea with equal enthusiasm.” So, the relationship began.

In February 1960, the City Council renamed the old Depot Park “Viña del Mar Plaza.” A kick-off ceremony was held at the
Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

2. Celebrating 50 Years of Sisterhood: Sausalito & Viña del Mar Marker
Alta Mira Hotel attended by, among others, Sausalito Mayor Howard Sievers, Mrs. Herman, and Chile’s Consul General in San Francisco. Chilean artist Luis Guzmán presented a statute of a Chilean woman to Sausalito as a gift commemorating the event.

(Submitted on September 14, 2025, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon.)

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

3. Celebrating 50 Years of Sisterhood: Sausalito & Viña del Mar Marker

Sister City Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

4. Sister City Marker

A plaque on the north elephant statue reads:
Plaza Viña del Mar
Sausalito, California
March 5, 1960
Dedicated to
Our Sister City in Chile
This Plaque Presented by
The Sausalito Lions Club

Viña del Mar Park fountain image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 26, 2025

5. Viña del Mar Park fountain

Credits. This page was last revised on September 19, 2025. It was originally submitted on September 14, 2025, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon. This page has been viewed 79 times since then and 14 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on September 14, 2025, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.