Quote:
Originally Posted by dimondpark
amazing thread...that old city hall was a real beaut.
|
Yeah, but
Quote:
1872 Old City Hall begins construction at Larkin Street near Grove. Burials are moved to Golden Gate Cemetery.
1899 Old City Hall is finished in a swirl of scandal after 27 years of construction and $6 million in costs.
April 18, 1906 Earthquake of magnitude 8.3 on the Richter scale subjects Old City Hall to peak ground acceleration of from .40 to .60 gravity forces. The building that took 27 years to build falls in 28 seconds of significant seismic motion—only the dome remains intact.
|
Source:
http://www.ceitronics.com/New_Pages/memorablefacts.html
The same reference says a subsequent investigation indicated the construction had been done properly but I'm pretty sure I've read there were a lot of questions about that at the time (the "swirl of scandal" mentioned above).
Also, the city hall we've got now may be somewhat less ornate, but it's actually more classically proportioned and, in the view of many, better architecture: "April 1978 San Francisco City Hall receives a special award from the American Institute of Architects as one of the finest examples of French Renaissance architecture in the country" and it has one of the 6 largest domes in the world (same source as quoted above)--the other 5 being St. Peter's, the US Capitol, Les Invalides in Paris, Il Duomo in Florence and St. Paul's in London.
Threaded Mode