[Yerba Buena Island Panoramic Photograph]

Description

This panoramic photograph by F. W. Metzgar shows the U.S. Naval Training Station on Yerba Buena Island in San Francisco Bay.

The view is oriented towards the north, towards Clipper Cove and the later site of Treasure Island (built in the late 1930s for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition). On a parade ground at left, naval cadets line up in formation for what appears to be a formal ceremony, while a few others walk along a path at right.

The U.S. Navy acquired Yerba Buena Island (also known as Goat Island) in 1898 and built a naval training facility, the first of its kind on the West Coast, in the first years of the 20th century. Eventually, nearly 30 buildings were constructed, housing some 400-500 apprentice seamen at a given time. The training station was closed in 1923 and relocated to San Diego, while the Navy continued to use the island as a receiving ship for several years afterward. After Treasure Island was built, the Navy also established facilities on the island. The combined naval station closed in the late 1990s, and only a handful of buildings remain, one of which is Naval Quarters 1, Nimitz House, visible atop the hill at left here (it is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places). 

The photograph is undated but must date to later than 1898, when the Naval Station was established, and to later than 1899, the date on the large building at left. The electrical lines in the foreground suggest a later date, but the use of a ship equipped with sails indicates a date closer to 1900.

Publication information

This photograph was taken by F. W. Metzgar, based in San Francisco. It is undated, and little is known about Metzgar; however, it was likely taken in preparation for a photograph book about the Naval Station, prepared by Metzgar and C. W. Hahn, and published in 1909 (OCLC 19610177). The only other known example of this photograph is held by the Photography Collections of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (Call Number P2008-35-001).