Street signage. Every city and town seems to have their own format for street signs, from the colors and lettering to the format and shape of the signage itself. In my eyes, one city stands out more than any other, San Francisco.
Seeing the all-caps, modern large black letters on a white background just gives me the goosebumps as soon as I enter the city. Being able to capture two signs at once at an intersection, like at Beach and Larkin when visiting Ghirardelli Square, priceless.
Having spent so much time in San Fran, seeing specific streets brings back memories of yester-year, while also highlighting great things about the city. When I see Grant, Jackson and Stockton that means I’m in-and-around Chinatown and the Transamerica Pyramid.
Lombard makes me immediately think of the famous curvy road and Hyde Street evokes thoughts of being on a San Francisco manual cable car going up a very steep incline.
The Embarcadero signage brings the sea lions at Pier 39 into focus. One street over, Beach brings back memories of trying to park to go to Fisherman’s Wharf and The Embarcadero haha. Great Highway is the first street I hit up when in town, as it rides right along Ocean Beach and the Pacific.
Van Ness Avenue just makes me think of multiple lanes in each direction and a busy street. I was really careful capturing its street signage. Octavia and Hayes Streets brings me back to memories of the Hayes Valley neighborhood whereas 15th Street is where I usually park when going for a morning coffee at Four Barrel in “The Mission”.
In regards to San Francisco and its historic street signage, unfortunately it is not all sunshine and roses. Now days, as you roam S.F., you might notice some signs featuring mixed-case lettering, with the first letter only being capitalized. This is to conform with the goals of the Federal Highway Administration that signs be easier to read. What?! You’ll notice I didn’t capture any signs of this format.
On the plus side you still have time to experience the capital letting as you move about the city. Due to the federal mandate, street signs will get swapped out only when they need to be replaced. Though the Moraga and 23rd Street signage looks a little rough, there is still something historic and beautiful about them.
A few more pics of that vintage and memorable San Francisco street signage for the road.
What city or town contains memorable, historic and/or well-designed street signage in your eyes that you have come across in your travels?
