Fog City Noir
Books
The Lost Department Stores of San Francisco by Anne Evers Hitz: My birthday is in December, and when I was a kid, my parents would take me to the City of Paris, and I would get to pick out one birthday present. I can remember the Christmas tree that filled the Rotunda every year. It was a pretty spectacular site for a ten-year-old kid.
The Bohemians by Jasmin Darsznik: Although the time period of this book is a little earlier than when Fog City takes place, it gives a nice historical perspective of the political forces in the city before the depression, especially with respect to the ghettoization of Chinatown, and the amazing artists that came out of the 1920s in San Francisco, including Ansel Adams, Imogen Cunningham, Dorothea Lange, and Maynard Dixon.
Internet Sites
Internet sites with references to slang
1920s Slang That Takes You Back to a Different Time
Flapper Slang: Talk the 1920s Talk
A to Z 1920s Slang Guide for Flappers
The Speakeasy Glossary, Queer Slang of the Prohibition Era
Historical Landmarks
History of the Palace Hotel If you ever come to San Francisco, at least a peek at the magnificent Palm Court of the Sheraton Palace Hotel is a must. Then go across the street to the House of Shields, one of the most famous speakeasies in S.F. Allegedly, there is a tunnel between the hotel and the bar so that the patrons at the hotel could mosey on over to the bar for a nip or twenty. Also, I read on one site that when you were dining at the hotel and your date ordered you a bouquet of flowers to be delivered to your table, it would contain a wee bottle of hooch!
Where San Francisco Hid its Speakeasies During the pandemic my husband and I took an afternoon to scout out locations that I wanted to include in this novel. The bars were still closed due to the pandemic (my liver is probably grateful), but we peeked in the window in quite a few, and it’s amazing that many of them are still operating as bars and haven’t changed in probably ninety years.
The History of the St. Francis Yacht Club
Information on the Farallon Islands I found the section on the Egg Wars fascinating!
Transportation
Interactive Maps showing the Key Route System in San Francisco and Oakland I found this incredibly cool!
Cable Car Museum: the Cable Car Routes
A History of San Francisco’s Cab Industry in Advertisements
Video of Car Driving Down Market Street
Fashion
Women's Shoes during the 1920s (Shoes are my passion!)
The Horrifying History of Hair Dye
The Depression
12 Illuminating Photos of San Francisco during the Great Depression
Al Capone Started One of the First Soup Kitchens during the Great Depression
Miscellaneous
Restaurant-ing through History
Digital Archive of San Francisco in the 1920s. There is a wealth of information on this website, ranging from photographs to articles
Interesting History of Funeral Parlors in San Francisco
Labor Unrest
1934 West Coast Waterfront Strikes
History of Pinkerton's History with Union Busting
Wikipedia Article on Charlotte Anita Whitney
Maritime Strike in SF Beginning on 9 May 1934 Although the dock workers’ strikes in San Francisco didn’t gather steam until later in our narrative, the use of police brutality against the strikers is worth noting.
History of Cemeteries in San Francisco
Map of Chinatown, San Francisco, 1885
Key: Brown: General Chinese Occupancy; Pink: Chinese Gambling Houses; Green: Chinese Prostitution; Yellow: Chinese Opium Resorts; Red: Chinese Joss Houses; and Blue: White Prostitution.
