Silent cities San Francisco : hidden histories of the region's cemeteries

Silent Cities: San Francisco chronicles the impact of cemeteries on American cities through the gold-rush development of San Francisco: the relocation of existing cemeteries and prohibition of burials within the city limits at the turn of the century, spawning America's first necropolis, the tiny town of Colma, and the culture of a place where death is exiled. In 1914, desperate for land after the Gold Rush brought a population explosion to San Francisco, the city exiled its cemeteries, barring burials within city limits and relocating its existing graveyards to the tiny town of Colma, just south of Daly City, spawning America's only necropolis, where the dead outnumber the living 1000 to 1. But there's more to the story of the Bay Area's cemeteries than this expulsion. Silent Cities San Francisco reveals the complex cultural makeup of the Bay Area, where diversity and history collide, pitting the dead against the living in a race for space and memorialization. INTRODUCTION PART I San Francisco THE FAILED STAR THE MISSION THE GLORIOUS DEAD THIS PARTICULAR DEATH WAS NOT INEVITABLE PART II Death & Co. PORTRAITS OF COLMA HOLY CROSS CATHOLIC CEMETERY OLIVET MEMORIAL PARK ITALIAN CEMETERY WOODLAWN MEMORIAL PARK SERBIAN CEMETERY CHINESE CEMETERIES PET’S REST JAPANESE CEMETERY GREEK ORTHODOX MEMORIAL PARK AND GREENLAWN MEMORIAL PARK TESTAMENT: JEWISH CEMETERIES OF COLMA PART III Contra Costa THE EAST BAY LIBRARY OF SOULS THE VIEW FROM HERE EXCLUSIVE USE PART IV What Remains THE GUTTER GARDEN OF INNOCENCE THE SAND TRAP EPILOGUE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS NOTES AND SOURCES ABOUT THE AUTHOR "In 1914, the city of San Francisco exiled its cemeteries, barring burials within city limits and relocating its existing graveyards to the town of Colma, spawning America's only necropolis, where the dead outnumber the living 1000 to 1. This book reveals the complex cultural makeup of the Bay Area, where diversity and history collide, pitting the dead against the living in a race for space and memorialization"-- Provided by publisher