Evening star., 1936-12-20
The San Francisco.
Oakland Metropolis
BY FREDERIC }. HASKIN.

works carried out by the New Deal. 1t
seems TO be more than that. AS an engi-
neering work 1t is being discussed all over
the world. It's picture Is shown in pub
lications and on motion picture screens
from Shanghai to Lima. OF enduring
importance to those more Immediately
concerned Is the fact that this aerial link
transforms two cities into one great me-
tropolis, for San Francisco and Oakland
now have become virtually one.
The opening Of the San Francisco
Oakland Bridge at this time seems espe-
cially epochal as this year marks the one
hundredth anniversary Of the founding.
While the Spanish Mission of Saint
Francis Of Assist was established in l776.
the town of Yerba Buena, which was
destined to become the present city Of
San Francisco, was not founded until
1885.
1t is customary for Americans to think
Of San Francisco in relation to its earlier
romantic history-the discovery of gold,
the Vigilantes. the Barbary Coast-little
realizing that today the city represents q
change to q modern industrial, CONNER
cial and financial center. At the time of
the discovery Of gold in l848, the popula-
ton Of the place was about 300. BY 1S49
1t had risen to 10000. BY the close of
the century 1t was near 100000, and to-
day the metropolis created by the con-
nection of San Francisco and Oakland
has produced metropolitan community
of 100000 bringing it within that ex-
elusive confraternity Of cities of the world
having 100000 or more people, a group
numbering only %.
n
Although the discovery of gold gave
San Francisco its first great impetus and
although California remains a leading
gold producer, commerce began early.
Having one Of the finest harbors in the
world such an activity was especially
favored. Some strange stories 60 with
the development Of the commerce of San
Francisco. While few ships had touched
there before the gold days, chiefly TO COLI
lect hides to be sailed back around Cape
Horn to the Eastern seaboard, the har-
Dor was not thronged But when the gold
rush started the stransest sort of COM
merce took place.
There appeared the unprecedented phe-
nomenon Of a ore-way commerce Prac-
tically every ship that came into the har-
bor-and they came rapidly-came to
stay. BY 1850 some 500 ships we're lying
in San Francisco Bay. abandoned by
crews as we'll as the passengers they had
brought. All hands had rushed to the
gold hills. Those ships never sailed
again. They rotted and sank in the bay.
One of the weirdest chapters of foreign
trade which ever has been written con.
Germs the laundry business. With almost
every one in the region intent on gold
and nothing but gold it was practically
impossible to get anything done. AL
though 1t was rich country, food became
scarce because no one would bother to
purvey 1t. Bread reached 81 loaf be-
cause no one would stop to bake. There
seemed to be not a soul to wash clothes.
So some enterprising person. perhaps
disappointed in his gold search, hit on
the scheme of shipping the community's
laundry to China. This was done and
started the most extraordinary business.
A ship would set forth laden with the
soued garments and, months later, return
with the clean. This accounted for the
introduction of the Chinese laundryman
into the United States. The Chinese
quite naturally thought it would be more
sensible TO 90 to the wash instead Of hav.
ing the wash cross and recross the broad
Pacific.
Today that foreign trade which had
started in 50 fantastic manner amounts
to more than 81 900 900, 900 year. The
commerce Of the city, in the course Of
this tremendous expansion, called for
an important banking structure, and to.
day San Francisco is a financial center
Of world significance, in touch with every
other center on the globe.
One does not think of the San Fran.
cisco-Oakland metropolis as a manufac.
turing center as a rule. yet it ranks close
after such cities as Pittsburgh and st.
Louis. It Is the foremost, by third, Of
all cities on the Pacific Coast. Like the
rest of the country, the Golden Gate
suffered from the great depression. but,
also like other regions, 1t experienced a
year of great prosperity in 1929. In that
year the value Of its manufactures
reached the astounding total Of sl,12s,-
oil, 1,246. This was brought far down in
the years to 1888, but already has made
q strong recovery and soon is expected
to pass the 1929 figures.
1t is said that the region suffered less
from the depression than many other
communities because Of the nature Of its
production. In such cities as Detroit,
Akron, Grand Rapids and Pittsburgh,
where the major effort is given over to
the manufacture of one product. serious
depression means practically complete
stoppage with accompanying unemploy-
ment and distress The San Francisco
Oakland metropolis has been more for.
tunately organized. 1t has no outstand-
ing manufacture In the way that Detroit
has In the way of automobiles, Akron,
tires, and so on.
A great variety OF consumers goods
manufactured at the Golden Gate re-
suited in q spread and left the community
in much better position. The refining
Of petroleum is the largest single in
dustry, but accounts for only 10 per cent
Of the total value Canning Of fruits and
vegetables ranks next with per cent Of
the total value Of manufactures. Print.
ing and publishing, meat packing, baking,
brewing, the making Of paints, foundry
and machine shop products, chemicals
and women's clothing follow next In or
der.
San Francisco has sustained q number
OF disasters which might have been ex.
pected to discourage. There have been
several large fires, but the earthquake
and fire of 1905 constitute the greatest
disaster. It has been estimated that the
loss sustained approximated $500, 900 900.
Yet this loss was repaired with astonish-