| History |  |
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The present structure, designed by local San Francisco architect A. Page Brown, opened in 1898, replacing its wooden predecessor, and survived both the 1906 earthquake and the 1989 earthquake with amazingly little damage. Until the completion of the Bay Bridge and Golden Gate Bridge in the 1930s it was the second busiest transit terminal in the world, second only to London's Charing Cross Station. It served as the embarcation point for commuters to San Francisco from the East Bay who rode the ferry fleets of the Southern Pacific and Key System. A loop track existed in front of the building for streetcars. A large pedestrian bridge also spanned the Embarcadero in front of the Ferry building until the late 1940s.
In 2004 it was remodeled and reopened as an upscale gourmet marketplace, office building, and ferry terminal, albeit with much limited service than what it used to experience in the 1930s. San Francisco's largest farmers market is held there on weekends and Friday nights.
On May 11, 2006, an unidentified group sent out a press release claiming the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco will vote on whether or not to change the name of the building to "The Wal-Mart Ferry Building at Embarcadero Center". The group says Wal-Mart is planning to pay millions of dollars for the bid that's expected to last about 12 years. The story has been on several Bay Area radio stations as well as in the San Francisco Examiner. However, this has been shown to be a hoax. |
| Description | |
On top of the building is a large clock tower, which can be seen from Market Street, a main thoroughfare of the city. Architecturally, the clock tower was modelled after the 12th century Giralda bell tower in Seville, Spain.
The main line of the Bay Area Rapid Transit system runs right under the building. The dock area on the eastern side is used as the transition point from the Transbay Tube to the Market Street Subway. |
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