The Mission District

The center of San Francisco's predominantly Hispanic
neighborhood is 24th Street, a colorful collection of
restaurants, taquerias, Mexican bakeries, fresh
produce markets, butchers, and specialty shops. 24th
Street, is a historic, tree-lined street, known as El
Corazon de la Misione, or "the heart of the Mission."
The festival of altars is located in Garfield Park, at
25th and Harrison, just one block south.

Mission Dolores at 16th and Dolores Streets is the
oldest structure in San Francisco. Many of The City's
pioneers are buried in an adjacent cemetery. The
Mission District is famous for its murals, huge
painted scenes on the walls and facades of buildings,
which are part of a long established tradition in our
city. There are nearly 600 murals in San Francisco,
with the richest concentration in this neighborhood.
Some of our favorite murals are on the front facade of
the Women's Building on 18th & Valencia, Balmy Alley,
which is on the Day of the Dead processional route,
and the Garfield Park pool house which is on the
opposite end of the altars. Many of these wonderful
pieces are created by Precita Eyes on 24th street.

May is an especially high-spirited month in the
Mission District. That's when San Francisco celebrates
Cinco de Mayo and Carnaval, each culminating with
exciting parades. Carnaval is considered The City's
version of Mardi Gras. November hosts our Annnual Dia
de los Muertos event, where thousands of people come
to the Mission to celebrate their loved ones that have
passed on. There are classes and workshops on creating
altars, sugar skulls and papel picado at the Mission
Cultural Center, Casa Bonampak, and Encantada Art
Gallery.

Stroll along the Mission's wide avenues and you'll be
struck by the profusion of taquerias, pupuserias,
produce markets, Salvadoran bakeries, salon de
bellezas (beauty salons). You'll also notice plenty of
beautifully painted victorian homes, cafés, thrift
shops and used-book stores that cater to students,
artists, and activist that have historically been
drawn to the Mission.

The Mission has always been home to political and
social activists. Today it embraces neighborhood
activist groups such as the Mission Anti Displacement
Coalition, Dance Brigade, San Francisco Day Labor
Program, and Global Exchange to name a few.

The Internet boom brought on an intense shift in the
Mission-- trendy restaurants and boutiques blazed in
and have settled in next to the neighborhood
mainstays. Today, there's an interesting mix of places
that survived the changes and new arrivals that are
trying to make the Mission home. The different
neighborhoods in the Mission are filled with people of
different ages, races, and colors, one of the
veritable mixing pots of San Franncisco.

Whether you're looking to take in the newer,
locally-owned stores and cafes or get a taste of the
neighborhood's history and Latin culture, the Mission
is crawling with things to see and do, theater, parks,
art galleries, restaurants, bars, shopping, people
watching. While the flavor of the neighborhood
changes subtly from block to block, you can easily
walk from one to the other. Generally speaking, the
24th Street area is the culturally rich heart of the
Mission, the stretch from Dolores Street through to
Valencia Street is young and upscale, the area around
16th and Valencia streets hops with nightlife.

In a city where geography matters, The Mission, tucked
into a nearly weatherproof valley between Potrero Hill
and Twin Peaks, has a penchant for sunshine, even on
days when the rest of San Francisco is silvery with
fog.

For more information on local businesses and
happenings in The Mission, please visit the following
webpages:

http://www.sfmission.com/
http://www.missionmerchants.org/

HISTORY
On June 29, 1776, Father Francisco Palou, part of an
expedition sent from Mexico, celebrated mass at the
site selected for a new mission church. The settlers
had gathered near the northwest edge of today's
Mission District, a sunny valley that seemed good for
farming—and a good place to introduce European ways to
the wilds of Alta California.

The newcomers enlisted Costanoan Indians as converts
and laborers to build a church. Completed in 1791,
Mission Dolores is now the city's oldest building. The
settlement was a qualified success; by 1841, it had no
priest and a population of only about 50. But the Gold
Rush would soon transform California, especially San
Francisco.

Two sandy, hilly miles separated Mission Dolores from
the center of the new town at Portsmouth Plaza. The
Mission remained fairly remote until a plank road made
it easily accessible in 1850. Soon, racetracks,
bullfight arenas, and other raffish attractions sprang
up by the church. The Mission District had become the
place to go for a good time.

Rapidly expanding westward, urban San Francisco
finally reached Mission Dolores, and in the 1860s the
land around it was subdivided into housing plots.

The new neighborhood soon became a stopping-off point
for successive waves of immigrants. As Germans, Irish,
and Italians arrived, its working-class identity was
solidly established.

An influx of Latin Americans that began in the 1930s
became a flood in the '50s, when the area embraced the
bright, extro-verted character we celebrate today.

Text written by Via on line, Trip Advisor, SF Gate.