San Francisco › Places and landmarks
Washington Square
The green heart of North Beach, the Italian quarter, before the white church of Saints Peter and Paul.
Washington Square is one of the oldest parks in the city, laid out in 1847. It is not quite a square, as Columbus Avenue cuts off one corner, and it does not lie on Washington Street. Around it lies North Beach, where Italian fishermen and their families settled from the late 19th century.
On its north side stands the church of Saints Peter and Paul, finished in 1924, with two white spires. Joe DiMaggio, the baseball player who grew up in North Beach, had his wedding photos taken on its steps with Marilyn Monroe in 1954.
In the mornings people do tai chi on the grass, and the cafés and bakeries round the square serve espresso and focaccia. A statue of Benjamin Franklin and a statue of three volunteer firemen, paid for by Lillie Coit, stand in the park. Visit it in 3D ›
More in San Francisco
Transamerica PyramidThe white pyramid of the Financial District, 260 metres tall, the sign of San Francisco’s skyline since 1972.
Ferry BuildingThe ferry terminal at the foot of Market Street, with its clock tower after the Giralda of Seville, now a food hall.
Coit TowerThe slim concrete tower on top of Telegraph Hill, built in 1933 with the money of Lillie Hitchcock Coit.
Dragon GateThe gate into Chinatown on Grant Avenue at Bush Street, with green tiled roofs, dragons and two stone lions.
ChinatownThe oldest Chinatown in North America, along Grant Avenue and Stockton Street, with lanterns over the street.
Union SquareThe square of the big shops and hotels, named after the rallies for the Union before the Civil War.
Cable carsThe last cable cars in the world still running in city streets, pulled up the hills by a cable under the road.
City LightsThe bookshop of the Beat poets on Columbus Avenue, which published Allen Ginsberg’s Howl in 1956.
Golden Gate BridgeThe orange suspension bridge across the mouth of the bay, about five kilometres west of the game’s map.
Lombard StreetThe block of Lombard Street on Russian Hill with eight hairpin bends between flower beds, west of the game’s map.
AlcatrazThe rocky island in the bay, a federal prison from 1934 to 1963, built so that no one could swim away.
Sourdough breadThe sour, chewy bread of San Francisco, baked since the Gold Rush from a living dough.