February 3, 2008
It’s one of San Francisco’s best-loved monuments — the figure of a heartbreakingly beautiful girl balancing lightly atop a granite column high above Union Square. She soars above both pedestrians and pigeons, gracefully clutching trident and victory laurels, lifting her shapely arms in triumph over the city of San Francisco.
It was intended to memorialize Admiral Dewey, a hero of the 1898 Spanish-American war. But in the century since then, it’s honoured this now-obscure naval officer in name only; the statue has become inextricably identified with its model, one of its wealthiest and most notoriously colorful characters in San Francisco history; Alma de Bretteville Spreckels.
How did a poor girl from the wrong side of the tracks end up atop of a column in the middle of Union Square? Better yet, how did this lead to first a scandal, and then the construction of the grandest home in San Francisco — 2080 Washington Street? And how does any of that relate to the history of our beloved Legion of Honor Museum?
Listen in to today’s podcast as I relate the rise of Alma de Bretteville Spreckels from Victorian pinup to eccentric “Great Grandmother of San Francisco”, the wealthiest woman on the West Coast.
For further edification:
» Legion of Honor Museum – official website
» Admiral George Dewey – Wikipedia
» Dewey Monument – inscription
» “Sugar Daddy and the de Brettevilles – Bay Time Reporter
» “‘Mike’ de Young Shot” – New York Times, 11.20.1884
» “Erection of Dewey Monument – San Francisco Call, 7.3.1899
» Union Square Dewey Monument dedication – film, American Mutoscope, 5.14.1903
» Spreckels Sugar – corporate website
» Loie Fuller – bohemian dancer
» Alma and Adolph’s first (and much smaller) home
» Danielle Steele interview – Entertainment Weekly
- SFist: “A Jitney Elopement” — Charlie Chaplin’s San Francisco film
- #7: San Francisco Shanghai
- #50: The Balclutha and the Chantey Sing
- #15: The Golden Gate Bridge and Suicide
- #23: The Wave Organ
musical support:
Thanks to Eric Frampton for the theme track for today’s podcast, “Waltz for James”, and to the Piney Creek Weasels for “The Dog Song”, both courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network. Classical pieces came from Musopen.com, and those fabulously scratchy 78s and wax cylinders were excavated at InternetArchive.org. Image of the Dewey Monument at top of post by Peter Kaminski, protected by a Creative Commons license.
printed bibliography:
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linking policy: Books in print available through your local independent bookstore; out of print books through Abebooks.com
12 responses to “#66: Alma de Bretteville Spreckels”
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Pingback from San Francisco Timecapsule: 02.16.09 » San Francisco History Podcast - Sparkletack
February 16, 2009 at 1:48 am[…] Museum was to be a vehicle for the cultural pretensions of the notorious Alma Spreckels. This social-climbing dynamo envisioned her Museum as a far western outpost of French art and […]
Sparkletack was the blog and podcast of a guy obsessed with diggin' up San Francisco history. The site is on permanent hiatus.
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February 4, 2008 at 11:37 pm
Great episode, Richard! They keep getting better and better.
February 5, 2008 at 2:20 pm
I’m in the middle of listening to the podcast as I type this… so fantastic. You really manage to capture the city so well and your passion for our hometown shines through like nothin’ else! Keep ’em coming!!!
Erin
P.S. Not that I have anything against Maxfields but I would give anything to see it decorated the way it was pre-quake!
February 8, 2008 at 10:53 am
Well, you may not have fallen in love with the people in the story, but I did enjoy the episode… as always. :-)
February 9, 2008 at 7:59 pm
I know you said this episode was “a bit of a slog” but I wouldn’t have known it from the episode. I loved it. I’m a tad biased because I live *right* across the park from the mansion, but it was very fun to hear this story.
February 11, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Glad the episode is hitting the spot! Jen, you’re lucky to live on that history-saturated hill, and the rest of you couldn’t go wrong paying it a visit.
Erin: If you haven’t seen it yet, this website about the Palace Hotel is just out of control!
February 12, 2008 at 2:45 pm
I officially just geeked out on that site for wayyyyy too long! Oh well… who needed to work anyway…
April 18, 2008 at 10:03 am
Hello. I am the editor of a newsletter for a specialist tour operator, Martin Randall Travel, based in London. This edition carries an article about the women behind various Californian art collections, including Alma Spreckels. I would very much like to print an image of her – can you help? Would you be kind enough to provide and let me use one of the pictures featured on this site? Ideally, the photograph of her as a young woman in the enormous hat or, best of all, on top of the Dewey Monument in Union Square.
I look forward to hearing from you.
best wishes
Henrietta Bredin
April 18, 2008 at 10:25 am
Henrietta –
I can’t personally grant permission to print any of these images, but I can give you some suggestions:
I’m not certain who owns the rights to the photo of young Alma in the hat. You may need to contact the estate of the recently deceased Bernice Sharlach, for whom I’m afraid I have no current contact info.
The contemporary shot of the monument was taken by Peter Kaminski, made available to one and all through a Creative Commons license. Contact Peter for details at his Flickr page.
Another resource for photos of Alma is the San Francisco Public Library Historical Photograph Collection.
Best of luck with your project!
April 19, 2008 at 6:41 pm
Have you seen the Surrealist portrait of Alma’s daughter Dorothy, painted by Salvador Dali? It’s at the Legion of Honor, but you can also see it here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/maulleigh/2235053189/
April 19, 2008 at 10:00 pm
Fabulous. I’ve visited Dali’s museum and burial place in Figueras, but somehow missed that portrait in my own backyard. Thanks for sharing …
June 4, 2008 at 11:33 pm
Yet another fantastic ‘cast. I found the site via itunes a week ago while looking for info on SF (destination for my 40th birthday trip in October.
Now every morning adds another detail in my SF Moleskine for me to see when I visit. It’s also a nice contrast to hear about the city while driving through the english countryside.
Thanks Richard – I owe you several Anchor Steams!