Map of Old San Francisco Shoreline and Leidesdorff Mural

A painted map stretches across the brick wall on Leidesdorff Street, tracing the city shoreline as it existed in eighteen forty-nine. The outlines show where the bay waters once lapped directly against the hills before layers of debris and sand pushed the land outward. William Leidesdorff, the man who lends his name to this alley, anchored his own small ship near this very spot. He became one of the city's wealthiest citizens after arriving with a single schooner to trade in hides and tallow.