Here, on North Point Street, Domingo and his sons began a spectacular building program that extended over 11 years. Ghirardelli Square was the result and is now, of course, a San Francisco landmark. Domingo retired in 1892. In 1894, during a visit to that same little Italian town from which he'd departed more than a half century earlier, Domingo Ghirardelli died. This unique process became the heart of his operations.
Employees relax on marble benches under fruit trees in the sloping courtyard.
The sign is 25 feet tall and 125 feet wide. The Golden Grain Macaroni Company buys the chocolate company and moves it to a modern new facility across the bay in San Leandro. San Francisco newspapers report that the valuable block of land and its buildings are up for sale. Fearing that the historic buildings will be torn down and replaced by a modern apartment complex, two prominent San Franciscans, William Matson Roth, and his mother, Mrs. William P. Roth, purchase the Ghirardelli block. The Ghirardelli sign blazes into life again after an extensive restoration effort.