"The Donahue Line"
In 1869, the San Francisco & North Pacific Railroad was founded by Peter
Donahue, a San Francisco industrialist. The southern terminus, Donahue's Landing, was
near Lakeville on Petaluma Creek in Sonoma County.
In 1884, . . . — — Map (db m145143) HM
Until 1920s a drawbridge connected
Main Street and Beach Road.
Artist’s studio for the “Society of Six”,
renowned early California Painters.
Moved from 130 Main Street in the 1960’s. — — Map (db m69439) HM
Built in 1911, this concrete barracks building could house 686 men. By WW II, Fort McDowell has quarters for about 4,500 soldiers, including fourteen additional wooden barracks that once stood between the baseball field and this 600-man barracks. . . . — — Map (db m69276) HM
Employees Created a Quiet Place of Their Own
In contrast to the formal landscaping at the front of the Administration Building, the staff gardener created an informal, tree-lined garden walk for the employees and their families to enjoy. The . . . — — Map (db m203565) HM
Angel Island has served many people and their needs for thousands of years. Its secluded harbors and sweeping vistas have provided food, protection, recreation, and even isolation.
Angel Island is alive with history. The island has . . . — — Map (db m203261) HM
In 1775, the packet San Carlos, first known Spanish ship to enter San Francisco Bay, anchored in this cove while her commander, Lieut. Juan Manuel de Ayala, directed the first survey of the bay. Ayala named this island Isla de los Angeles. . . . — — Map (db m143405) HM
A Self-Contained Facility on 13 Acres
Angel Island was modeled after the Ellis Island Immigration Station in New York Harbor. The hub of operations was the Administration Building. It housed intake and interrogation facilities, staff offices, . . . — — Map (db m203426) HM
In 1910, the Immigration Station was moved from the San Francisco waterfront to Angel Island. Like Ellis Island in New York, Angel Island offered an isolated location that could be tightly controlled. Unlike Ellis Island, Angel Island came to . . . — — Map (db m203482) HM
The search for freedom and opportunities brings people to America. California has been a primary Pacific Coast destination since the 1800s. Between 1910 and 1940, about one million people from 80 countries were processed through the Angel Island . . . — — Map (db m203479) HM
Fenced Outdoor Area
Chinese and Japanese men were only allowed outside in the fenced recreation yard. It was opened after breakfast and could be used until dinner time. Women had slightly more freedom and could walk the grounds when . . . — — Map (db m203351) HM
Lieut. Juan de Ayala of the Royal Spanish Navy sailed through the Golden Gate on Aug. 5, 1775. He commanded the packet-boat San Carlos, which was the first known ship in the waters of San Francisco Bay. On the 13th day of August, Ayala anchored this . . . — — Map (db m69206) HM
Center Panel:
Ayala Cove
Preventing the Spread of Disease
Close your eyes and imagine this cove full of ships and sailors, buildings and noisy machines, doctors, cleaning staff, and nervous travelers hoping to complete their . . . — — Map (db m203263) HM
Center Panel
Shaped by People
Humans changed Angel Island in many ways. We cut trees, brought animals, and plants, dug into the mountain, paved roads, and erected buildings. Yet nature persists, creating habitat for countless plants . . . — — Map (db m203632) HM
A great morale builder, Fort McDowell’s bowling alley opened in 1944, sporting six lanes. Fort McDowell’s bowling teams – the “Jail Birds,” “Brass Hats,” and the "McDowell Mermaids” competed against teams from . . . — — Map (db m69299) HM
(Center Panel)
Protecting the West
Camp Reynolds could be a difficult place to live. The harsh wind whistled around wooden buildings the army had intended to be temporary. Over 150 years later, these buildings still stand.
The . . . — — Map (db m203853) HM
Constructed 1876
This building served as a place of worship and a school for the post’s children. The modest one-story building is a good example of vernacular church architecture from the 1870’s — — Map (db m203670) HM
This brick hospital, built in 1904, was the third hospital to be built for Camp Reynolds. The Army located hospitals treating ill and injured soldiers away from buildings housing healthy troops to prevent the spread of disease and fear. — — Map (db m69249) HM
Steam Heat for the Station
The steam heat produced by large oil fired boilers in this building kept employees and detainees warm on chilly days. Steam was also piped to the commercial kitchen for cooking. The building also housed an . . . — — Map (db m203442) HM
In 1954 Angel Island became one of nineteen Nike Missile sites in the Bay Area. There were three underground magazines, each storing 12 Nike – Ajax anti-aircraft missiles. The missiles had a range of 25 miles and were raised to the surface by . . . — — Map (db m203034) HM
In 1931 the Army built this rock crusher to sort and crush serpentine rock from the nearby quarry.
The crushed rock was used to pave the roads on Angel Island.
The roads were not paved until the 1930s because the Army was still using mules and . . . — — Map (db m203634) HM
Battery Ledyard, built in 1899, was one of three Angel Island batteries installed to defend San Francisco Bay. Located at Point Knox, it was armed with two five-inch wire wound guns. Battery Ledyard was named for Lt. August C. Ledyard, 6th Infantry, . . . — — Map (db m69251) HM
Little Reed Dairy, which operated across the street from here (circa 1888-1954), was like the other three Tiburon dairies; a complete working community.
The ranch hands were mostly bachelors living in bunkhouses. For the few families there was . . . — — Map (db m203901) HM
Waiting for Freedom
These detention barracks were built for Chinese and Japanese men and women. Shortly after opening, all women were moved to the Administration Building. Because of the restrictive exclusion laws, Chinese immigrants were . . . — — Map (db m203354) HM
THE STONE TOWER (also called the Stone Lodge, the Castle, or just Lyford's Tower) was designed and built about 1889 by the San Francisco architect Gustav A. Behrnd for Dr. Benjamin F. Lyford, retired inventor, physician and scientist, as the gateway . . . — — Map (db m91807) HM
This picture, circa 1930, show remnants of oysters beds used by the Morgan Oyster Company. For an unknown reason, oyster spawn (eggs) would not thrive in the bay so oysters were brought in from Washington State and from the East Coast to be fattened . . . — — Map (db m204079) HM
A Fishing Village on the Bay
For thousands of years the Huimen, a Coast Miwok group, lived here. Abundant food sources, proximity to fresh and salt water, and a natural landing area made this protected cove one of the best places to live on . . . — — Map (db m203488) HM
1889
Rebuilt in 1918
Spiral staircase added in 1956
On pilings until lagoon was filled in 1929. Mrs. Fleming only rented to railroad workers ‘of good character’. — — Map (db m69362) HM
Center Panel
Bustling Army Post
Picture this spot a century ago. You can hear raised voices and the crunch of boots as soldiers drill. The smell of dinner wafts through the air. It’s hard to see the end of the mess hall line.
Fort . . . — — Map (db m203620) HM
Center Panel
Whiling Away the Hours
Stuck on an island far from loved ones – and far from San Francisco’s bars and gambling halls – what was a soldier to do?
Fort McDowell offered almost everything a soldier needed. It had a . . . — — Map (db m203625) HM
The Post Exchange, or PX, was built in 1910 to be a “one stop shopping place” for soldiers at Fort McDowell. Soldiers purchased clothing toiletries, and other supplies here. The PX also offered a restaurant, soda fountain, barbershop, . . . — — Map (db m69279) HM
The Guard House served as headquarters for the Officers of the Guard and the Sergeant of the Guard, and as quarters for soldiers assigned to guard detail. Guard duty could last a day, a week, or longer. Guards patrolled their post for 24-hour . . . — — Map (db m69278) HM
Enlisted men enjoyed few privileges and even fewer comforts at Camp Reynolds. Officers lived in the houses lining the parade ground, with the Post Commander closest to the water. Soldiers lived in barracks opposite officer’s row. One comfort the . . . — — Map (db m203675) HM
(Left photo caption:) The "Hilarita” flagstop station for the Northwest Pacific Railroad, built in 1884, served the Hilarita Dairy. The dairy was
named for Hilarita Reed Lyford, daughter of Hilaria Sanchez and John Thomas Reed, . . . — — Map (db m154818) HM
(Upper left photo:) The Tiburon Trestle, completed in 1883, was a 750-foot redwood structure that spanned mostly marshland before
attaching to earthen berms at each end. The trestle support beams, which are in front of you, and the berm, . . . — — Map (db m154604) HM
In 1979, local restaurant owner "Trader" Vic Bergeron donated this monument in recognition of the contributions of Chinese immigrants to America. Originally located at the site of the former Asiatic Dining Hall, it was relocated to this overlook in . . . — — Map (db m91809) HM
Marker One:
Examination, Treatment, and Quarantine
Any detainee found to have a contagious but treatable disease was sent to this hospital run by the Marine Hospital Service, the precursor to the Public Health Service. The facilities . . . — — Map (db m203546) HM
Five two-story barracks once lined this parade ground. Built between 1864 and 1874, each was designed to hold one infantry company. When housing was short, canvas tents filled the parade grounds to shelter soldiers from the wind and rain. — — Map (db m203778) HM
Family Life on the Island
A number of employee families lived at the station. Island life offered challenges and benefits – older children took the ferry to San Francisco to attend school, wives shopped at nearby Fort McDowell and husbands . . . — — Map (db m203433) HM
Marker One:
The Chinese Exclusion Act
In 1882, Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act. The only law to target immigrants of a specific race, it barred Chinese laborers from entering the United States.
To get around this unjust . . . — — Map (db m203541) HM
For most immigrants, the stay on Angel Island typically lasted two to three days. The Chinese Exclusion Act, however, barred the immigration of Chinese laborers to this country. As a result, Chinese immigrants were subject to a long, intense . . . — — Map (db m203357) HM
A U.S. Quarantine Station was established in this cove in 1891 to isolate people with contagious diseases. The station included more than 40 buildings such as this bachelor officers quarters as well as…
”…commanding officer’s quarters, a large . . . — — Map (db m203262) HM
At this site – 34 Main St.
James Yeh Jau Liu
(1910 - 2003)
World Renowned Chinese Watercolorist
and
Tiburon’s Artist Laureate
Operated Han Syl Studio from 1967 to 2003
Over the 35 years of offering his paintings to . . . — — Map (db m69203) HM
Women’s and Children’s Dormitories
Women and children were separated from the men in their families and housed on the second floor of the Administration Building. During part of this time, World War I enemy aliens – German crewmen from . . . — — Map (db m203356) HM
These three houses were built between 1890 and 1893 for U.S. Marine Hospital Service Officers and their families.
The homes and the visitor center building below are the only remaining evidence of a bustling Quarantine Station.
The houses are . . . — — Map (db m203783) HM
Over 100,000 years ago Angel Island was part of the mainland and the ocean was 26 miles to the west. As glaciers from the last ice age melted, sea levels rose and saltwater filled the ancient river valley below, creating San Francisco Bay and Angel . . . — — Map (db m203781) HM
This chapel ministered to soldiers of all faiths. Built in 1942, in a style similar to other military chapels, it featured a vaulted ceiling and fiber board walls to enhance acoustics. Chapel services included “...Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, . . . — — Map (db m69298) HM
Horse- and mule-drawn wagons moved supplies throughout the immigration station until the 1930s. When cars were brought to the island, these stables were converted to garages. During World War II, the building was used to store linens. — — Map (db m203563) HM
The Army used “mule power” on the island until the 1930s to haul supplies and quarried rock. They pulled graders, mowing equipment, and garbage wagons. Soldiers stabled and cared for the mules in this barn. — — Map (db m203683) HM
Center Panel
Guardians of the Sky
Technological advances during World War II brought new threats to the Bay Area. Traditional weapons were useless against new, fast, high-flying jet planes. This need for better antiaircraft defense . . . — — Map (db m203629) HM
This palm tree marks the location of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad yard. From April 28, 1884 to September 25, 1967 hundreds of workers toiled to keep the railroad system and ferry boats operating. — — Map (db m210130) HM
On January 8, 1907, the Northwestern Pacific Railroad was
incorporated as a consolidation of seven railroads in northern California.
Jointly owned by the Southern Pacific Railroad and the Atchinson Topeka &
Santa Fe Railway, its southern . . . — — Map (db m145141) HM
The San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad (incorporated as the Northwestern Pacific Railroad in 1907) established its southernmost terminal in Tiburon in 1884. To improve freight handling facilities, the SF & NP built the ferryboat Ukiah, . . . — — Map (db m223324) HM
Old St. Hilary's Outhouse is the only "sanitary
privy” known to survive on the Tiburon Peninsula. It was constructed on an unknown date for the convenience of
churchgoers and used until circa 1940.
Early photographs and an oral history confirm . . . — — Map (db m193335) HM
Marker One:
St. Hilary’s Mission Church was built in 1888 as a place of worship for Tiburon’s Catholic railroad and dairy workers. This iconic hillside structure is one of the few remaining Carpenter Gothic churches in its original setting. . . . — — Map (db m222922) HM
Old St. Hilary’s Landmark is one of the few surviving examples of Carpenter Gothic in original condition and setting. Built in 1886 as a Roman Catholic Church, it was deconsecrated in 1954, and acquired by the Belvedere-Tiburon Landmarks Society in . . . — — Map (db m223554) HM
Marker One:
Roman Catholic Church from October 1888 to January 1954
Dedicated as a historical monument October 1960.
Belvedere-Tiburon Landmarks Society
Marker Two:
St. Hilary’s Mission Church
1888 . . . — — Map (db m222910) HM
Surely this is one of the shortest Main Streets in America...
...and with plenty of character which hasn't really changed that much in spite of more than 100 years
of many fires and buildings being erected, enlarged, dismantled, moved or . . . — — Map (db m154673) HM
Famous for serving food tastier than standard “Army Chow” this mess hall could seat 1,410 soldiers at one time. During WW II there were three seatings for each meal, and the mess hall served more than 12,000 meals a day. A WW I soldier describing . . . — — Map (db m203622) HM
If you listen carefully, you can hear the crack of a bat and soldiers cheering as a Fort McDowell “Indian” rounds third base and heads for home – Cole Field. The ball park was home to the men’s baseball team, the . . . — — Map (db m69275) HM
Completed in 1911, the Administration Building was Fort McDowell’s clerical headquarters. This is where all “official mail” was distributed and personnel paperwork was processed.
The Pay Section, Discharge Officer, and Sergeant Major’s offices . . . — — Map (db m203627) HM
In 1891 the U.S. Marine Hospital Service, now the U.S. Public Health Service, opened a Quarantine Station in Ayala Cove. Marine Hospital Service officers inspected ships looking for signs of illness among the passengers and crew. If contagious . . . — — Map (db m69248) HM
Far-sighted residents captured a treasure for all when, after 84 years, the need for trains disappeared and the former railroad bed became the multipurpose path you are using today.
In this 1908 picture, a big engine steams along the bay right . . . — — Map (db m203898) HM
(Left photo caption:) In this 1947 photograph you see the buildings of the Navy housing on the left, the Hilarita Dairy, and the undeveloped Sugarloaf Mountain.
From the 1840's until WWII Tiburon land was
used primarily for ranching. The . . . — — Map (db m154719) HM
Immigrants were led from the ferry into the Examination Room, where they waited to be registered, processed and given a barracks assignment. Medical examinations were also conducted. Immigrants, particularly those unfamiliar with Western medicine, . . . — — Map (db m203430) HM
Samuel was born to Catherine and Charles Chapman of Mar West Street in Tiburon on April 11, 1916. He worked in his father’s merchandise store on Main Street and delivered mail for his father who also served as Tiburon’s Postmaster from 1915 to . . . — — Map (db m192548) HM
The view ahead could have looked quite different had the Reeds Port Project, a proposed development of several thousand homes, been built over Richardson Bay in the 1950s. Fortunately, this vital habitat was saved by concerned local residents who . . . — — Map (db m203902) HM
Reflecting the racism of the time, segregation existed throughout the Immigration Station. European and other non-Asian immigrants slept, dined, exercised, and were hospitalized separately from “Asiatics” (Chinese and Japanese). Men and women were . . . — — Map (db m203353) HM
Opened in 1910, the Angel Island immigration station hospital had separate doors and stairways during the first few years of its operation. Identified as “European” and “Non-European,” the two entrances were meant to divide immigrants based on race. . . . — — Map (db m203566) HM
In 1969, a visionary named Sam Shapero (who served as Tiburon’s Town Treasurer), decided that Blackie’s Pasture needed to be preserved and protected.
Sam did two things. He bought one-third of the land and donated it to a foundation he created – . . . — — Map (db m204147) HM
During WW I and WW II, Fort McDowell served as a Recruit Depot and later as an overseas Discharge and Replacement Depot. While some soldiers were stationed at Fort McDowell, others were here for only a week before being shipped overseas. During . . . — — Map (db m69280) HM
Cottages for Essential Staff and Families
Famed architect Julia Morgan designed twelve employee cottages. Nine were located along this slope and three were located on the hill above the Central Heating Plant. After the station closed, the . . . — — Map (db m203310) HM
As soldiers arrived at Fort McDowell they were issued uniforms and equipment from the Quartermasters Department operating under the “Director of Supply.” The post engineer’s office, located by the water, planned new buildings and mapped the post’s . . . — — Map (db m203624) HM
Built ca. 1922 after an earlier building was destroyed in the 1921 fire that burned most of downtown Tiburon.
This two-story structure originally held a billiards hall and soft drink parlor which is believed to have operated as an illegal saloon . . . — — Map (db m69201) HM
In 1863, Civil War was raging in the East and the threat of Confederate ships sailing into San Francisco Bay was real. The United States Army responded by sending Company B of the 3rd Artillery to establish Camp Reynolds as an artillery post on . . . — — Map (db m69250) HM
(Center Panel)
The Last Line of Defense
If you could travel back in time, you might find the earth shaking with the boom of artillery practice. During the Civil War, the army considered this an ideal location to set up guns to protect . . . — — Map (db m203777) HM
This 1974 photo shows the Olson Boat Works, one of the last vestiges of the olden days along the multi-use path. The building was demolished soon after this photo was taken, to make way for a new house on land that was the target of vigorous but . . . — — Map (db m203891) HM
Fort McDowell’s North Garrison was built in 1942 on the area below following the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. North Garrison included several barracks, a 1600-man mess hall, an infirmary, a guard house, and a post exchange. It also included the . . . — — Map (db m70259) HM
Downtown Tiburon and Harbor
Originally name “Punta de Tiburon” (Shark Point) by Spanish explorers in 1775, downtown Tiburon today is a quaint village in an extraordinary waterfront setting. You’ll find delightful shops and enticing . . . — — Map (db m203883) HM
(Left photo caption:)
The trestle, which crossed Tiburon Boulevard, was a landmark for 84 years until it was torn down in 1968, a year after the last train rumbled over its sturdy wooden framework. This picture is from the 1930s. The berm . . . — — Map (db m154670) HM
After a long ocean voyage, an immigrant’s first steps on U.S. soil was on a wharf leading to this Immigration Station. They were soon immersed in unfamiliar surroundings, a foreign language, new customs and an uncertain fate.
”It was a . . . — — Map (db m203484) HM
Constructed in 1885 as
part of the San Francisco
and North Pacific Railroad
Tiburon Terminal, this
Depot was the railroad and
ferry link to San Francisco
until 1967. The Terminal,
opened in 1884, served
passengers and freight.
The Depot . . . — — Map (db m145142) HM
(Left photo caption:) The magnificent ferry, Ukiah, was built in the Tiburon railroad yards and launched in January, 1891. She could carry
4,000 passengers and 16 loaded freight cars.
long and 78-feet wide, she was among the largest . . . — — Map (db m154679) HM
(Upper photo:) With the Tiburon Trestle completed, trains first came to Tiburon in 1884. In 1907, the Northwestern Pacific Railroad was formed and Tiburon was fast becoming a "railroad town.” By 1924, four locomotives a day, . . . — — Map (db m154605) HM
Construction for this 70-bed hospital began in 1911. The hospital treated soldiers returning from overseas for discharge. In 1918, the hospital annex was added to care for men with lingering illnesses.
During the Nike Missile period . . . — — Map (db m69301) HM
Center Panel:
Fencing Out Freedom
Although it is often compared to Ellis Island, Angel Island was not a place of welcome. Instead, it was used to keep immigrants, specifically those from China, out.
The US Immigration Station . . . — — Map (db m203307) HM
Never Enough Water at the Station
Wells, springs and run-off could not supply enough fresh water for the station. This 300,000 gallong concrete reservoir and five large wooden water tanks were built to store water. To keep them full, a barge . . . — — Map (db m203350) HM
“That’s me. I have many happy memories of running down to the road to wave to the trains. Suzie Wosser, Jeff Teather and I did that at least once a day when we weren’t in school.”
Meredith (Linman) Rolfe
Four trains a day . . . — — Map (db m203894) HM
For 84 years, from 1884 to 1967, Tiburon was a railroad town. It started when rail pioneer Peter Donahue moved his North Bay operations down from Petaluma to Point Tiburon to become the rail and ferry terminus for the San Francisco & North Pacific . . . — — Map (db m204399) HM
