Glen Canyon Park
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Glen Canyon Park is a park in San Francisco, California. It occupies about 70 acres (28 hectares) surrounding a deep canyon close to the middle of the city, near the Glen Park and Diamond Heights neighborhoods. Of this, approximately 60 acres (24 hectares) are designated as Natural Area. O’Shaughnessy Hollow, which is a 3.6 acre (1.5 hectares) Natural Area, lies immediately to the west. Elevations in Glen Canyon Park range from approximately 225 feet (69 meters) above sea level at the south end of the park to 575 feet (175 meters) above sea level at the north end and along the east rim of the canyon. [2]
A branch of Islais Creek flows through the canyon. It is the largest remaining creek in San Francisco with public access. The bottom of the canyon, where Islais Creek flows, is irregular but moderate in slope, dropping 350 feet (107 meters) over a distance of about 1 mile (1.6 kilometer). The creek is presently surrounded by willow thickets. In earlier times, the creek had an open water channel sustained by a much larger water flow; urban development has reduced the watershed of Islais Creek by as much as 80 percent.[2]
The scenery of Glen Canyon Park is also distinguished by numerous large outcrops of rock. The most striking of these consist of reddish, layered " Franciscan" chert. These outcrops have clearly visible banding (see photo) which is due to the different weathering of the layers. The banding reveals folding of the rock that is attributed by geologists to enormous tectonic forces that lift up, bury, and slide around enormous masses of rock.[1] The walls of the canyon are extremely steep, with many slopes approaching a length-to-height ratio of 1:1 (100 percent).
Recreational facilities in Glen Canyon Park include the Silver Tree Day Camp, a community recreation center, ball fields, playgrounds, a ropes course, and formal and informal trails. The park is also well-used by local rock climbers, who consider it one of the best "bouldering" sites near San Francisco.
[edit] History
The park's history commences with Adolph Sutro's purchase in the 1850's of 76 acres of the canyon, which he named "Gum Tree Ranch" after the blue gum eucalyptus trees he had planted. The first commercial manufacturing of dynamite in the U.S. occurred in the canyon; on March 19, 1868, the Giant Powder Company began production at its first manufacturing plant, under exclusive license from Alfred Nobel to produce his new explosive in America. The factory did not last long. On November 26, 1869, an explosion completely destroyed the entire facility, turning every one of the buildings on the place, and the surrounding fencing, into "hundreds of pieces," according to a newpaper account.[3] The Crocker Real Estate Company bought the canyon in 1889 to develop a neighborhood that would attract homebuyers. Crocker installed a mini-amusement park with an aviary, a mini-zoo--bears, elephants and monkeys, a bowling alley, and, for extra thrills, hot-air balloon rides, and an intrepid tight-rope walker who performed on a wire stretched across the canyon. From 1907-1922, Glen Canyon Park was operated as a picnic ground -- mainly for adults. Crocker Real Estate added tables and benches, a baseball diamond and a running track. It was fenced and rented to organizations for company picnics that often turned into boisterous drinking brawls. Neighborhood children had to find other places to play. Concerned residents urged the San Francisco Recreation Commission to acquire the property for use as a playground, and in 1922, the city bought the 101 acre Glen Canyon Park and Recreation site. [4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Sloan, Doris (2006). Geology of the San Francisco Bay Region (University of California Press). ISBN 978-0520241268.
- ^ a b San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department, "Significant Natural Resources Areas Management Plan," section 6.3 "Glen Canyon Park and O’Shaughnessy Hollow," (Final Draft Plan, February, 2006). This section contains several detailed maps on "Soils, Land Features, and Trails," "Vegetation," and "Sensitive Species and Bird Habitat." Retrieved February 3, 2007.
- ^ Citation for California Landmark 1002, "Site of the First Dynamite Factory in the US.".
- ^ Alexander, Jeanne. "Glen Canyon Park and Rec Center," website of the Neighborhood Parks Council. Retrieved March 30, 2007.
[edit] External links
- Friends of Glen Canyon Park, a volunteer citizen stewardship group that was organized in 1886, has contact information listed at the Glen Park Association website.
- Stubbs, Joseph (2001). "Glen Canyon" website. Stubbs rates Glen Canyon Park as the third most attractive in San Francisco. Retrieved March 31, 2007.
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps or Yahoo! Maps
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
- Satellite image from Google Maps or Microsoft Virtual Earth
- Surrounding area map from the United States Census Bureau
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