One of the reasons I decided to write about Haight Ashbury, is the history of the neighborhood. I grew up with a hippie mother, and knew about the 1960s and the impact it had in San Francisco.
Although, I didn’t get to explore the neighborhood as much as I wanted, because of going to school and work full time, the times I did go were delightful.
Everyone I talked to were so kind, inviting and willing to talk to me about anything. I am a very shy person, so sparking up a conversation was very frightening to me, but the atmosphere in the Haight is so laid back.
Even if you work or live there, you have a laid back attitude; people just chilling on their stoops and smoking “something.”
The attitude in Haight is very liberal as well; even though I’m not a conservative person, having homeless people on the streets offer you drugs and other things, shocked me in the beginning. But sometimes you just have to let it slide and go along with it.
The homeless population in Haight was another thing I was nervous about, because I’m a bit of a germa-phobe, but everyone was nice, and singing songs or just talking (to other people, or to themselves). I did learn that most the nicer homeless people tended to remain in the middle of Haight Street, and some of the tougher ones were near the entrance to Golden Gate Park.
I had a great time exploring the area, and seeing the slow transition of hippie stores, turning into new modern stores for young adults. This is definitely a neighborhood in progression, and I’m excited to visit it more.
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Architecture on Haight
Just a few photos of some beautiful architecture in the Haight
Vintage Shops along Haight
Haight Ashbury is one of the best neighborhoods for shopping in San Francisco, because it has a little bit of everything: there are expensive shoe stores, reasonably priced stores for 20-30 year olds, and incredible vintage stores. I have been shopping at thrift stores and vintage shops since I was a little girl, and my mom would wheel me around in our Red wagon Flyer through Flea Markets in Los Angeles.
Here are some of my favorite vintage shops in the Haight (there will be a full story on some of these shops in the coming week!)
Held Over- 1543 Haight St, San Francisco, Ca 94117 (415) 864-0818
When you first walk in, try not to be overwhelmed by the loud music and never ending racks of clothes. Take a deep breath, and dive right in! Everything is organized so you can find denim miniskirts, purses, 1970s paisley collared shirts, and psychedelic printed 1960s mini dresses. Everything your vintage loving heart desires! The employees are more than nice, which doesn’t hurt! The prices are reasonable for vintage clothes, nothing more than $100.
La Rosa Vintage- 1711 Haight St, San Francisco, CA 94117 (415) 668-3744
Definitely a store for advanced vintage shoppers, with more money to burn. La Rosa has a refined collection of vintage, than some other stores in Haight, but the clothes here are certainly worth the money. There are elegant 1950s cocktail dresses, beautifully intact beaded cardigans, and adorable tops. The prices are steep, but for clothes that are still in excellent condition and one of a kind, it’s worth it.
Wasteland- 1660 Haight St,San Francisco, CA 94117 (415) 863-3150
Huge collection! They have a lot of vintage, but they also have a lot of new clothes. Wasteland has a Urban Outfitters type of vibe (lots of young hipsters and indie folk), but the clothes here are in great edition, and fantastic price.
Static- 1764 Haight St, San Francisco, CA 94117 (415) 422-0046
One of my absolute favorites! The walls are a shocking lime green (my favorite color), and you are instantly greeted by the nicest employees. Smaller collection of clothes, but great condition, and decent prices. Static has a great dress collection, and several pairs of vintage ankle boots (had to resist buying them all, had to save some for the rest you!)
Goodwill- 1700 Haight St, San Francisco, CA 94117 (415) 738-5606
The ultimate destination if you are counting your pennies! A typical thrift store; large location, with racks, upon racks of clothes, with everything your heart desires (red, suede, lace-up on the side, bell bottom pants= yes, I found them!) They also have home furnishings, books and movies.
Buffalo Exchange- 1555 Haight St, San Francisco, CA 94117 (415) 431-7733
Great place to sell your clothes (but come early, because the selling line is usually quite long). Great prices, and countless turnstiles of clothes to choose from. Not one of my favorite places, because it is often very crowded, and I prefer room to shop (and dance around in my new clothes).
There are many more shops in the Haight, but these are just a taste for your fashion palette. Don’t forget that if you have some one of a kind pieces at home, and are looking to make some extra dollars, bring them in to some of these shops, because someone else’s trash, is another persons treasure!
Haight Ashbury Crime in March
As the morning fog lifts off the valley in San Francisco, Haight Ashbury residents begin to leave their homes and trudge to work. Store owners open their doors along Haight Street. The homeless emerge from their sidewalk dwellings along the entrance to Golden Gate Park to greet the day. Fashionable young professionals head down to the local coffee shops in Cole Valley to get their morning fix, before the day begins. The air is filled with a mix of morning dew, patchouli, incense and smoke.
A resident of the Haight Ashbury district for over seven years, Sherin Elantably thinks fondly of her little part of the city. “The energy here is beautiful. The residents here can be odd, but I think that’s half the fun of living here,” says the employee at local Haight Street clothing and gift store Earthsong.
Elantably is a key example of the majority of residents in this part of the city. The greater part of inhabitants in this slice of the city, which is named after the corner of Haight Street and Ashbury Street, are a median age of early 30s. These residents mill about the ample shops on Haight Street, which range from modern professional attire, to hippie skirts and tunics, as well as music shops and the some of the most widely known smoke shops.
Walking along these shops, you can still get a sense of the history of the neighborhood, and the famous residents who trolled the streets. Some members of the hippie band The Grateful Dead lived at 710 Ashbury Street (just above Haight) in the late 1960s.
This neighborhood became famous during the summer of love in 1967, when thousands of people flocked to Golden Gate Park for the Human Be-In on Jan. 14, 1967. Described as a gathering of tribes, this happening sparked the counter-culture movement in the late-60s, which San Francisco became famous for.
The vibe in the Haight Ashbury neighborhood in the 1960s could only be described as free: free love, free food, free stores, and free clinics for the homeless who flocked there, and who seem to have never left. Most notably, the Haight Ashbury Free Clinic is still running. It was founded in 1967 by Dr. David E. Smith, who saw a need to serve the residents who were suffering of substance abuse and other medical needs.
As the years have gone by the atmosphere in the vicinity, whose boundaries include Golden Gate Park to the west, Baker Street to the east, and Cole Valley and Frederick Street to the south, hasn’t changed too much. There still is an overwhelming amount of homeless on the streets, most notably around the entrance to the park.
A long time resident of San Francisco, and broadcast graduate at San Francisco State University, Paul Dobie, remembers the time in the 1950s though the 1960s, when deinstitutionalization, the closing of psychiatric hospitals, occurred and he began to witness the rise of homeless in California. “Along with the closing of the hospitals, the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, brought more homeless youth to the city than ever before,” remembers Dobie, who works at Land of the Sun, a hippie-throwback store located on Haight that sells posters, postcards and clothing.
The area is largely known for the historic “painted ladies” Victorian houses, and attractions like the Red Victorian hotel built in 1904, and stores like Positively Haight Street, who design their own tie dye shirts. The estimated value of homes in this area is quite high as well, ranging in the $1.3 million range. Not surprising since of the painted lady Victorian homes sold in 2010 for $4 million. According to city statistics for the Haight Ashbury Neighborhood, roughly 65 percent of residents are white, and are in the median age group of early 30s. The median household income is over that of the city of San Francisco as a whole, which is $70,770. In Haight Ashbury the median income is $84, 915.
Tourists flock to this district, mostly during the summer, for the history of the city. Different groups, like Flower Power, give walking tours of the area, pointing out famous buildings and stores, and you can often see the San Francisco Sightseeing buses driving down Haight Street.
The dining choices are just as diverse as the shopping, with places such as All You Knead for pizza, Clay Oven for Indian, for Mexican head over to Estrella Taqueria in Lower Haight, and the famous Ben and Jerry’s right at the corner of Haight and Ashbury. Shopping choices are bountiful as well, including clothing for the alternative scen e and vintage, like at Piedmont Boutique.There is also a collection of smoke shops like Pipe Dreams, Haight’s original smoke shop. Many sources say that one of the first head shops in the United States was the Psychedelic Shop, opened in 1966 by U.S. Army veteran Ron Thelin. Many tourists delight in seeing these paraphernalia shops that are scattered throughout the neighborhood (10 smoke shops alone are located on Haight Street).
“A lot of San Francisco’s history occurred in the Haight neighborhood. Happenings took place here, and demonstrations on the war and the whole counter-culture movement was based here. You can feel the history in these streets,” says Dobie. Working here, he sees tourists every day and likes to give them the history of the area. “They come here from every part of the world. I have a map with pins on it for all the people I encounter, and those pins are all over the map!”
The history of San Francisco can be seen on the faces of its residents, and in the facades of stores and restaurants that have been there for countless years. Haight Ashbury is no different, with its counter-culture revolution and distinctive residents over the years. This area is one of the reasons why San Francisco is such a unique city.
Map
At the corner of Haight and Ashbury
