Barbary Boundary

Here are the boundaries of the district, which isn't exactly a cube and has no namesake square.



The historic architecture, much of it brick, is a defining feature of the neighborhood and what separates it from everything else around it. The destruction of the Produce District in the 1950s and 60s to make way for the Golden Gateway development changed the nature and boundary of the southern and eastern edge, cutting it off essentially from the waterfront. Slowly, that divide is being repaired. The iconic Transamerica Pyramid is the former site of the Montgomery Block, a key vector for much of early 20th Century's artistic life, including one resident, Samuel Clemens, who made quite a Mark in the World. As The Pyramid, however, it is a fortress of money and power that is entirely given to The Financial District and no longer relates to Jackson Square. Merchant Street, just east of The Pyramid, though, is historic and also features Cafe Prague, once located more centrally within Jackson Square, but still spiritually and gastronomically of it. I included Sydney Walton Square within my boundary line, as it is the only open space and was once the site of the great Colombo Market. Today all that remains is the entry arch and a very peaceful park where once a teaming streets full of hawkers, produce, restauranteurs and shoppers added soul and a full belly to The Barbary Coast's dissipated minions. Telegraph Hill rises steeply to the North, although there are buildings along Battery that are central to the neighborhood's story. Broadway is a natural divide, and Kearny Street separates Chinatown from Jackson Square and North Beach.
This story is here within these bounds.