Union Square
A 97-foot column topped by Nike — modeled on a real Danish-American stenographer — rises from what was once a sand dune and a Civil War rally ground.
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San Francisco's first American mayor John Geary dedicated this 2.6-acre plaza in 1850 on reclaimed sand dune. Abolitionists packed it for pro-Union rallies before the Civil War, which is how the square got its name and its California Historical Landmark designation. The 1903 Dewey Monument layers on a Spanish-American War naval victory, a recently assassinated president, and a sculptor's very specific muse.
What to look for
- The 97-foot Dewey Monument at the plaza's center, dedicated to Admiral Dewey's 1898 victory at the Battle of Manila Bay
- The 'Victory' statue atop the column — sculptor Robert Aitken modeled it after Alma de Bretteville, a Danish-American stenographer who later married one of SF's richest citizens
- The California Historical Landmark marker, rooted in Thomas Starr King's pro-Union rallies held here on the eve of the Civil War
Free public plaza at the corner of Geary, Powell, Post, and Stockton Streets; an underground parking garage built 1939–1941 runs directly beneath the square.
Union Square is one of 31 sights worth the detour in San Francisco, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the San Francisco pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in San Francisco
- Golden Gate BridgeOpened May 27, 1937 as simultaneously the world's longest and tallest suspension bridge — you can walk the 4,200-foot main span yourself.
- Alcatraz IslandFor 29 years, cold Bay tidal currents did what bars alone could not — make escape nearly impossible.
- Transamerica PyramidAn 853-foot pyramid that ruled San Francisco's skyline for 45 years — still on the Transamerica logo even though the company quietly moved its HQ to Baltimore.
- Golden Gate ParkSan Francisco turned three miles of bare shifting sand dunes into the country's third-busiest urban park — starting from scratch in 1870.
- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA)The West Coast's first museum devoted solely to 20th-century art, now stretched across 170,000 square feet after a 2016 expansion that nearly sextupled public space.
- Alcatraz Federal PenitentiaryA 9-by-5-foot cell surrounded by cold bay currents — the federal government once staked its reputation on the claim that no one could leave.