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Open Transcript Open Descriptive Transcript TranscriptHello, I’m Ranger Casey. Welcome to Maritime Shorts – I’ll be your guide on this fast and fun voyage through Pacific maritime history. Did you know there are Gold Rush ships buried beneath the streets of San Francisco? We’re standing in front of the rudder of the most famous of those ships, the Niantic. The Niantic was a square-rigged ship which was buried and later excavated from the financial district of San Francisco. This map shows the known locations of buried ships as well as the Gold Rush era waterline of San Francisco and what it looks like today. Hundreds of ships came to San Francisco during the Gold Rush and many of them never left again. Crews would abandon ship for dreams of gold in the hills. San Franciscans would haul these abandoned ships to shore, build wharves around them and use them as storehouses, hotels, shops, even jails. The Niantic was used as a storehouse, and the city grew around the ship. Niantic’s waterfront lot was soon located over three blocks from the water. San Franciscans could pay to store their goods safely aboard the ship until 1851 when a fire swept through San Francisco burning many buildings, including the Niantic, to the ground. What remained of the ship was just the lower hull which served as a solid foundation for the building built atop it, the Niantic Hotel, which stood in various forms until 1977. After multiple construction projects between the 19th and 20th century, many believed nothing remained of the Niantic buried beneath San Francisco until 1978 when new construction uncovered sections of the ship. Artifacts from the Niantic's days as a storehouse were excavated, such as tools, eating utensils, guns and even bottles of uncorked champagne one of which we have on display here in our visitor center, That’s all for this episode of Maritime Shorts, but if you would like to learn more about the Niantic or Pacific maritime history, please visit us at San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park
Descriptive Transcript(This video features panning images of a ship’s rudder exhibited in a museum. The video is accompanied by the sound of waves lapping.) (A male National Park Ranger is speaking in front of the rudder and a map of the present day San Francisco shoreline. The map is overlayed with the San Francisco shoreline of 1848.) Hello, I’m Ranger Casey. Welcome to Maritime Shorts – I’ll be your guide on this fast and fun voyage through Pacific maritime history. Did you know there are Gold Rush ships buried beneath the streets of San Francisco? We’re standing in front of the rudder of the most famous of those ships, the Niantic. (A painting of the Niantic sailing across the ocean with a city in the foreground is shown) The Niantic was a square-rigged ship which was buried and later excavated from the financial district of San Francisco. This map shows the known locations of buried ships as well as the Gold Rush era waterline of San Francisco and what it looks like today. (The Ranger shows a map comparing the differences between present day San Francisco and the 1848 shoreline.) Hundreds of ships came to San Francisco during the Gold Rush and many of them never left again. Crews would abandon ship for dreams of gold in the hills. San Franciscans would haul these abandoned ships to shore, build wharves around them and use them as storehouses, hotels, shops, even jails. (The video pans over a model of Niantic converted into a storehouse. The model depicts the Niantic lodged in mud surrounded by a wooden wharf in front of a city. The masts of the ship have been removed. The roof of a building and a staircase leading up the ship’s side are installed.) The Niantic was used as a storehouse, and the city grew around the ship. Niantic’s waterfront lot was soon located over three blocks from the water. San Franciscans could pay to store their goods safely aboard the ship until 1851 when a fire swept through San Francisco burning many buildings, including the Niantic, to the ground. What remained of the ship was just the lower hull which served as a solid foundation for the building built atop it, the Niantic Hotel, which stood in various forms until 1977. After multiple construction projects between the 19th and 20th century, many believed nothing remained of the Niantic buried beneath San Francisco until 1978 when new construction uncovered sections of the ship. Artifacts from the Niantic's days as a storehouse were excavated, such as tools, eating utensils, guns and even bottles of uncorked champagne one of which we have on display here in our visitor center, (An image of a bottle of champagne with the cork removed is shown) That’s all for this episode of Maritime Shorts, but if you would like to learn more about the Niantic or Pacific maritime history, please visit us at San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park. (The National Park Service arrowhead is shown accompanied by the ringing sound of a ship’s bell)
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Welcome to Maritime Shorts, your fast and fun voyage through Pacific Maritime History. In this episode, we discuss the history of the square-rigged ship Niantic. The Niantic was buried and later excavated from the financial district of San Francisco. |
Last updated: October 31, 2024