Niantic (whaling vessel)

The Niantic rests deep beneath the pavement of the Financial District. This former whaling ship arrived in San Francisco in eighteen forty-nine, filled with gold-seekers rather than oil. When the crew deserted for the gold fields, the owners beached the ship in the shallow mudflats of Yerba Buena Cove. They converted the hull into a hotel and warehouse, cutting doorways into the sides. A fire eventually gutted the wooden structure, and the city simply built the modern streets directly over the wreckage.