Under the Almond Trees by Linda Ulleseit

Author:Linda Ulleseit
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: gold rush, california history, womens rights, santa cruz history, women pioneers
Publisher: Linda Ulleseit

Ellen VanValkenburgh, Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, circa 1901

Chapter 17: San Francisco 1901-1902

Emily Williams

San Francisco, the largest city on the Pacific Coast, simply bustles with life. With the biggest port, it has become the most important financial center despite the Charles brothers’ assertion that San Jose would eclipse its northern neighbor. San Francisco has been called the Paris of the West, and it houses the California School for Mechanical Arts. In my wildest dreams I study in Paris with Julia Morgan, but in reality I love being in San Francisco where I can be near a school I might actually attend.

To my overjoyed astonishment, Lil agrees to come to the city with me, asserting she can be a journalist anywhere. I am humbled by her generosity and that of her parents. Unable to stomach Fannie’s pressure to marry, I moved in with the Palmers shortly after Papa’s death. They are my wonderful second family, supportive and encouraging. I had no idea parents could be so. Lil and I, with her parents’ help, find a place in the city on 14th Street, just off Van Ness. It’s not Russian Hill, but still a respectable neighborhood in the Mission District. This will be our home as we work our daily jobs and encourage each other to pursue our dreams. An added benefit is that the perpetual cool fog seems to calm my asthma. Hopefully it won’t worsen over time from the damp.

At first, we glory in being residents of the most exciting city in the world. We ride the cable cars, sip steam beer on the wharf, and watch the ferries arrive at the Ferry Building. Alive and connected to every country on Earth, San Francisco’s people, food, fashion, and most importantly the architecture, blend many cultures. San Francisco is an industrial port city, very dirty and yet, so beautiful. Lil and I temporarily set aside the fight for our future and just enjoy the present.

I continue to write to Bernard Maybeck, and we quickly become pen pals. I have read about his work in magazines while we have been corresponding, and when he invites Lil and me to visit him at the Berkeley campus I am thrilled.

“He’s known for his eclectic designs,” I whisper to Lil as we approach Maybeck’s office.

“We should be eclectic enough to appeal to him,” she says, smiling indulgently. Her arm rests comfortably around my waist, and her thumb traces circles on my back. Dear Lil never shows impatience with me even though I fill her head with tidbits about this great man all the way from our Mission District home.

The man himself appears eccentric. His grizzled beard, white and unkempt, is still fuller than the wispy strands on his head. He wears the sort of knickers I’ve seen on young boys, with colorful argyle socks. He grins when he sees us, and ushers us into an office crowded with books and papers.

“Lovely of you to come, ladies! Miss Williams, you are interested in architecture?”

He knows I am from our correspondence.

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