Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
At the western end of Harvey Milk
plaza, at the junction of 17th and
Market streets (if you head over there,
be careful of traffic and backtrack to
this spot afterward), is a small, leftover
parcel of land known as Pink Triangle
Park, dedicated to the memory of the
gay men persecuted by the Nazis. Each
of the 15 granite pylons represents
about 1,000 of the estimated 15,000
souls exterminated by the Third Reich
simply because of their orientation.
Directly across Castro from Milk
Plaza, facing Market, you'll see the
Twin Peaks Tavern (named for the hills
just west of here), a long-running,
friendly place with picture windows.
Notice that you can see, even here from
across the street, the faces of the cus-
tomers inside. Back in the 1960s and
before, gay-oriented establishments
usually cloaked their businesses with
painted or covered windows; this one,
open since the Nixon Administration,
was one of the first to operate like any
other American business, without hid-
ing or shame.
Turn right (do not cross any streets)
and slowly walk downhill.
3
18th & Castro
The wood-frame, three-story buildings
of this neighborhood are typical of San
Francisco in general; without its second
layer of history, the Castro might be
anywhere in town. In the early days of
the 20th century, it was known as an
enclave for Scandinavian arrivals, and
by its middle decades, for Irish
Americans and some Italians.
Back in the 1970s, dozens of gay
bars lined this street, not necessarily
because gay men are any randier than
any other men, but because for the first
time, homosexuals were permitted to
fraternize with their peers without a
significant fear of abuse. The liberation
created a bar boom. At the time, gay
residents of this area formed a firm
community—many of the more outgo-
ing characters from the period are still
spoken of with affection and reverence,
and there are people who can recall,
shop for shop, what the district looked
like in 1975, the way others can recall
the lineups of the New York Yankees. A
few gay bars are left, especially on the
side of the street where you're now
walking, but there's just a fraction
of the number that the early '70s
supported.
Today, of course, young people in
American cities don't live in fear of
expressing their sexuality. Because
modern young people rarely feel the
need to voluntarily ghettoize them-
selves, the importance of the Castro as
a refuge has greatly diminished. Many
of the area's residents are long-time resi-
dents—now getting up to Social
Security age—and the Castro is too
prosperous for very young settlers to
afford. When younger gay people ven-
ture here at all, it's usually to patronize
one of the neighborhood bars.
When you reach 18th Street at
Castro, stop briefly. This intersection is
considered the heart of this district, and
it was in the building housing the
bistro/bar Harvey's across 18th from
you and the Walgreens now, that the
Elephant Walk bar was once located.
Cross 18th Street. Then cross Castro
and walk down it a little more.
4
Harvey Milk's former camera
store
A city landmark, at 575 Castro St., this
is where Harvey Milk's camera store
(opened in 1973) was once located. At
the time, he lived upstairs. There's a
bronze plaque in front commemorating
him.
