San Francisco's Cliff House has lived many different lives so many in fact that people
today are still questioning how many versions there even were and it's safe to say that it's
experienced its fair share of tragedies from unfortunate fires to an exploding sailboat
and now All That Remains are its forgotten ruins today we discover the odd history of
California's Cliff House I'm your host Ryan silcash and you're watching its history
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victim to scams and get real-time alerts when your information could be at risk to set the
stage Let's Travel back to 19th century California on January the 24th 1848 James Wilson Marshall
found flanks of gold at the base of the Sierra Nevada mountains Marshall was a carpenter hailing
from New Jersey who at the time was building a water-powered sawmill owned by John Sutter in
Marshall's own words quote it made my heart thump for I was certain it was gold though Marshall and
Sutter tried their best to keep the discovery a secret word still managed to spread in no time the
Press was hot with news about the large quantities of gold being turned up at sutters Creek as you
can imagine most residents of San Francisco were initially reluctant to believe such claims but it
was proven to be true when a storekeeper Named Sam Brennan returned with a vial of gold from
the American River some people even claimed that making a fortune was as easy as dipping a pan in
the water as a result people came from far and wide as far away as Chile Peru and even China
in the hopes of striking it rich and by the time these immigrants started arriving in bulk Gold
Fever was in full swing many men risked everything to travel to California in hopes of striking gold
and in the process leaving the women and their families an unusual opportunity to run the farms
and businesses just a year after Marshall first found gold flakes in Sutter's Creek the non-native
population of California numbered around 100 000 compared to the pre-1848 number of under
one thousand many gold mining towns were built at this time to accommodate the steady stream of new
arrivals even despite these slow disappearance of surface gold which began in 1850 California's
population Rose yet again to 380 000 by 1860. this exponential population increase in turn attracted
the attention of those who sought to build on the scenic Cliffs and saw an opportunity for profit
the origins of the first Cliff House differs between sources some say that Samuel Brennan
used lumber salvaged from a shipwreck to build the first version of The Cliff House at Point
Lobos others state that it was built in 1863 by Senator John Buckley and CeCe Butler and managed
by Captain Jonas Foster though the structure was modest a one-story building consisting of a wooden
frame a Widow's walk balcony and a hipped roof its view overlooking the Seal Rock was breathtaking
regardless of its origins The Cliff House saw a quick rise to local Fame and rapidly became
an exclusive destination for wealthier Citizens at this time it saw many esteemed guests from
U.S presidents and politicians to established San Francisco families such as the stanfords however
even despite the addition of two new wings and the quadrupling of its original size in 1868
its popularity had already started to stagnate in hopes of drawing in even bigger crowds The
Establishment began offering gambling and alcohol however this only Drew in more on Savory guests as
a result its reputation was severely damaged and many former regulars were driven away in
1883 Adolf Sutro the future mayor of San Francisco purchased the Cliff House from its original owners
under his management the site regained much of its lost popularity then with the introduction
of street cars in the opening of Golden Gate Park there was yet another rise in tourism to the Cliff
House and just two years later when everything seemed to be going great the first and strangest
tragedy in the cliff House's history would occur despite the success let me explain in 1887 a
two-mast sailboat called The Parallel ran aground on the beach below the Cliff House it was loaded
with 42 tons of illegally packed Dynamite which unfortunately exploded people have yet to reach a
consensus on whether or not the explosion was an accident some believe that the crew merely rode
away in panic and abandoned The Vessel without extinguishing the oil lamps others feel that the
crash was purposeful one asked the boat owners claimed that that the parallel should have never
been that close to San Francisco and that it must have been aimed at the resort regardless the ship
exploded in the early morning of January the 16th the resulting explosion was so intense that people
from all across the bay could hear it reportedly people over 100 miles away in Sacramento thought
that it was an earthquake the fire smashed every window and destroyed half of the Cliff
House and it wasn't long before a crowd of around 80 000 people gathered to see the damage and the
remains of the ship the Cliff House was patched up following the tragedy put back into operation
until 1889 when yet another tragedy would strike during a series of exterior and interior
Renovations guests hardly had the time to enjoy the new amenities as a chimney fire caused by a
defective Fire Duck on Christmas day of 1894 burnt the building to the ground Sutro was quick to
make plans to build a brand new Cliff House after the fire calling it The Gingerbread or Victorian
Cliff House costing seventy five thousand dollars the new Cliff House was a massive seven-story
structure resembling a castle topped with lofty spiers and turrets and even an observation tower
guests could enjoy many incredible amenities including the Resort's art and photo galleries
a gem exhibit private lunchrooms and an open-air Veranda it was like nothing the city had seen
before especially given the opening of the nearby Sutro Baths these baths were amazing boasting six
massive swimming pools a skating rink and even a museum all at a much more affordable cost though
the Cliff House survived the 1906 earthquake it was unfortunately still doomed it too burnt down
just a year later on September the 7th 1907 the fires caused was unknown but it was reportedly so
Fierce that the entire structure had been consumed by the time the first fire truck reached the site
some people captured photos of the blaze many of which you can still find today by the time
the fire died out all that remained of sutro's magnificent Castle was a few brick chimneys
sutra's daughter Emma Sutra Merit who had taken over his properties after his death in
1898 obtained approval to construct a third Cliff House soon after because of the now glaring fire
hazards she elected to have the structure made of fireproof steel reinforced concrete this third
iteration had a much simpler and subtler design in the neoclassical architecture style the new
Cliff House was designed by the Reed Brothers who had also designed the Fairmount Hotel
the Land's End era was not exempt from the lingering effects of the Great Depression
and the Sutro estate ended up selling the property to the Whitney brothers who also owned the nearby
Playland at the beach the deal took place around 1936 and the Cliff House was then remodeled as an
upscaled Roadhouse the building was remodeled once again between 1949 and 1950 called the mid-century
Cliff House the refurbished Cliff House was fitted with redwood and given a brand new fourth-story
dining room at one point a sky tram ran across the Basin of the Sutro Baths bringing visitors
from Point Lobos across an artificial waterfall to the exterior balcony of the restaurant the Whitney
version of The Cliff House also boasted a false chimney in a bar with Windows facing the ocean
and steel rocks because of its refurbishments it looked entirely new with elements of the original
1909 building bear buried beneath the siding all that was visible of its remains was its West Wall
however in June of 1966 yet another fire would raise the Sutro Baths the circumstances of which
many still consider suspicious Playland at the beach closed in 1972 and just five years later
the National Park Service acquired The Cliff House and made it a part of the Golden Gate National
recreational area three the site was renovated again seeing the addition of a new two-story Wing
overlooking the remains of the Sutro Baths but sadly after the National Park Service could not
reach a long-term contract with its operators it was closed permanently on December the 31st 2020
this was because of the cost of maintaining the building during the pandemic had become
much too expensive for its operators but with that being said the Cliff House has had many
ups and downs and it's believed that in the coming years things will work themselves out
the cliff House's future as a museum seems most promising previously it served as the site of a
temporary Museum exhibit called nyad Cove which honored the Lands End Neighborhood the Sutro
Baths and the Playland at the beach the sutropaths exhibit included vintage bathing suits and even a
locker room from the old building posters and photos aligned the exhibitions and the actual
ruins of the bath were visible just outside the window signs from Playland at the beach occupied
another room complete with the amusement park Ambiance a wooden Cowboy figure Etc the kitchens
displayed period photos and videos from The Cliff House the restaurant even displayed various place
settings and menus typical to each period one member of the western neighborhood's project
probably some things are best quote I think this is what makes this exhibition so wonderful
and so powerful you're really experiencing this history in the place that created it
as the National Park Service continues to search for a tenant to open a new
restaurant in the Cliff House many wonder what comes next in his story is there a
future for this Grand building and if so what will it continue as let me know your thoughts
in the comment section below don't miss our playlist on California history and consider
subscribing or joining the channel for more until next time this is Ryan silkash signing off