July 30, 2014 11:30 AM EDT
F or the latest edition of our “Great Cities” series, LIFE.com features classic photographs of that smallish, hilly gem by the Bay: San Francisco. For a town its size—with a population of 800,000, it has just a quarter as many people as, for example, Brooklyn—San Francisco holds a forceful grip on the imagination of people around the country and around the world.
From the legendary, wide-open debauchery of the Gold Rush years to the Beat poets of North Beach in the 1950s; the Haight-Ashbury era and the brief (over-romanticized) Summer of Love of the Sixties; the locavore restaurant revolution, which arguably started in the East Bay with Chez Panisse ; the unstoppable flowering of gay rights; the first stirrings of “maker culture” and the dawn of the Digital Age (Wired magazine, etc.), San Francisco and environs have been at the center of countless movements and “isms” for more than a century and a half.
The pictures here document The City (as San Franciscans habitually call it) from the 1930s to the early 1970s—a handful of decades during which SF transformed itself as dramatically as any metropolis in America. Despite all the upheaval it’s endured, however, San Francisco remains a singular place. It’s at-once whimsical and tough, self-absorbed and endearing—a cultured, world-class city that retains some of its Wild West character, while harboring neighborhoods that feel like distinct, companionable hamlets.
So, let’s celebrate a great American city. Whatever you do, though, do not call it “Frisco.” San Franciscans young and old get weirdly worked up about that nickname. You’ve been warned.
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LizabethRonk .
See San Francisco Before the Tech Boom Skip Wheeler and his wife groom their horses after Veteran’s Day Parade, Folsom at 2nd Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Longtime neighbors, Langton at Folsom Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Chinese Jumprope in front of Bessie Carmichael School, Folsom Street, 1980 Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Boy lifting weights, Langton Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Jill Scott and Perry Lancaster in their studio, 71 Langton Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Pat serving coffee at the Gordon Café in the Budget Hotel, 7th at Mission Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Johnny Ryan, Blacksmith, Klockar’s Blacksmith and Metal, 443 Folsom Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Office workers on lunch break near the site of the new convention center, 4th at Minna Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney David, Father Leo Joseph’s roommate, 60 Langton Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Saturday afternoon, Howard between 3rd and 4th Streets Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney 10th at Folsom Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Russ Street Apartments Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney View of the Financial District from south of Market Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney 2nd at Market Street Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Langton between Folsom and Harrison Streets Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney Vanessa and Lalett Fernandez with their son, Langton Street Residents Image courtesy of the artist. © 2014 Janet Delaney At the scene of the 1939-1940 Golden Gate International Exposition, San Francisco, 1938. Alfred Eisenstaedt—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images At the scene of the 1939-1940 Golden Gate International Exposition, San Francisco, 1939. Horace Bristol—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Ferry near the the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, 1941. Peter Stackpole—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Fong-Fong bakery and ice cream parlor, 1941. Peter Stackpole—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Diego Rivera working on pencil sketches for huge mural depicting Pan-American unity, Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco, 1941. Peter Stackpole—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Shipyard ironworkers, San Francisco, 1942. Hansel Mieth and Otto Hagel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Streets of San Francisco, 1942. Hansel Mieth and Otto Hagel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images San Francisco, 1942. Hansel Mieth and Otto Hagel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images A civilian observer and plane-spotter, San Francisco, 1942. Hansel Mieth—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Cemetery of Mission Dolores, San Francisco, 1942. Hansel Mieth—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Newspapers welcome Madame Chiang Kai-Shek to San Francisco, 1943. Hansel Mieth—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Troops Embarking from San Francisco Peter Stackpole—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Author Gertrude Atherton and her dog outside of her home in San Francisco, 1946. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Cable car turnaround, San Francisco, 1947. Charles E. Steinheimer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images View of San Francisco, 1947. Andreas Feininger—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images San Francisco, 1947. Charles E. Steinheimer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Drive-in theater, San Francisco, 1948. Allan Grant—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Golden Gate Bridge at sunset, 1951. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images South San Francisco, 1951. Margaret Bourke-White—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Dancing the mambo at San Francisco's Macumba Club, 1954. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Pacific Heights, 1955. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images The Tin Angel, a waterfront nightclub, San Francisco, 1955. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images View of the Golden Gate Bridge toward the hills of Marin County, 1955. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images San Francisco 1956 Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Getting one's hair done in San Francisco, 1956. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Lawrence Ferlinghetti at City Lights, 1957. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Kenneth Rexroth at a poetry reading, 1957. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Housing construction in San Francisco, 1958. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Looking at Alcatraz, 1958. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images San Francisco Giants-ball Team George Silk—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Opening of the boating season on San Francisco Bay, 1958. Nat Farbman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Opening Day at Candlestick Park, 1960. Allan Grant—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Palace of Fine Arts, San Francisco, 1962. Walker Evans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images 'Beatles' at press conference in San Francisco airport. Bill Ray—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Brand new BART, 1967. John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Vietnam War protestors, San Francisco, 1967. Ralph Crane—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images San Francisco, 1969. Lee Balterman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Above San Francisco, 1969. Lee Balterman—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Black Panthers protest, San Francisco, 1970. Ralph Crane—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Author Richard Brautigan with his daughter, San Francisco, 1970. Vernon Merritt III—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Dianne Feinstein, San Francisco mayoral race, 1971. Michael Rougier—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images Anti-war march, San Francisco, 1972. Ralph Crane—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images More Must-Reads from TIME Why Trump’s Message Worked on Latino Men What Trump’s Win Could Mean for Housing The 100 Must-Read Books of 2024 Sleep Doctors Share the 1 Tip That’s Changed Their Lives Column: Let’s Bring Back Romance What It’s Like to Have Long COVID As a Kid FX’s Say Nothing Is the Must-Watch Political Thriller of 2024 Merle Bombardieri Is Helping People Make the Baby Decision 
