ABOUT

Hi, my name is Hudson. Pondering a number of San Francisco street names eventually led me into the work of digging up lost stories of the city’s past. I’ve been working on a book off-and-on for the past six years titled, Fern Hill: the Lost History of San Francisco’s Nob Hill. I’m the historian of the Nob Hill Association, the oldest neighborhood association in the city. Also, I serve on the Publications Committee of the San Francisco Historical Society.

I sometimes guide walking tours of San Francisco. For more info see http://www.fernhilltours.com

From the head of California Street, circa 1854 – Hermann J. Meyer

As for the name Fern Hill: within The Annals of San Francisco–the first history book about San Francisco published in 1855–this was the name on the map given to Nob Hill’s original neighborhood. With the population explosion surrounding the California Gold Rush of 1849, not only did the “instant city” of San Francisco expand into and over the water, but also up hill to the west.