Lloyd Lake

At Golden Gate Park's Lloyd Lake, there sits a small portico of columns. It's a charming little scene that looks like a lovely place to explore, but this isn't just some decorative gazebo meant for picnics and pictures... it's also a tribute to one of the worst natural disasters in modern history.  The pillars once belonged to the mansion of Alban Nelson Towne, a rich industrialist who built a grand home on California Street in Nob Hill. The mansion was one of the many buildings destroyed in the 1906 earthquake (and ensuing fires that lasted for several days since the earthquake's destruction made it hard to get water and help to said fires) that ultimately left 80% of San Francisco in ruins. Given that the disaster was so prolific, it's hard to believe that the pillars are the only memorial to the incident, widely considered one of the top 3 worst natural disasters in American history. The remains of the mansion were moved to Lloyd Lake at the behest of Towne's wife in 1909, and the memorial was christened "The Portals of the Past". It is a fitting tribute, though. One of the most iconic pictures of the disaster, shot by famed photographed Arnold Genthe, was taken framed by the mansion ruins. Genthe's pictures of the devastation are definitely impressive, but they don't even begin to cover how immense the damage was. Over 30 fires destroyed 25,000 buildings across almost 500 city blocks; 3,000 people were left dead by the earthquake and its aftermath aftermath.  The Portals have played a major role in San Francisco history since 1906 as well. The site gets a mention in Hitchcock's Vertigo, and countless couples have taken wedding and engagement photos at the Portals. Despite the horrific disaster, there's no denying that the pillars have somehow managed to retain their opulent charm... just like the city itself. -Roadtrippers Lloyd Lake is a lake in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, that is the home to a wide variety of non-native, non-migratory birds. Birds to be found within the lake area include geese, Pekin ducks, Muscovy ducks, Campbell ducks, mallards, gulls and pigeons. The lake is also home to some early San Francisco architecture : the remains of Alban Nelson Towne's 1101 California Street, Nob Hill house can be found by the lake, between JFK Drive and Crossover Drive. After the 1906 earthquake and fire devastated the building, his wife presented the portico, popularly known as "Portals to the Past", to the park in 1909. Lloyd Lake is named in memory of Reuben Headley Lloyd, the park commissioner. The site is mentioned in Alfred Hitchcock's film "Vertigo" (1958) as a place where Madeleine Elster (Kim Novak) enters a trance and becomes possessed. In their book "Footsteps in the Fog", Jeff Kraft and Aaron Leventhal note the care with which Hitchcock described the precise location of "Portals of the Past" even though the site is never actually shown in the film. A number of urban myths exist concerning both Lloyd Lake and the Portals. Some relate sightings of ghostly figures or small floating luminous globes. The location was described by Spiritualists of the early 20th century as "a place that opens the receptive soul to dangerous influences. It should not be visited carelessly." No corroboration or evidence of any kind exists to support such urban legends concerning Lloyd Lake. The Portals are often referred to by locals as the "Shadowbox" because of supposed occult occurrences and sightings. Arthur Conan Doyle, an avid Spiritualist, visited the site during his 1923 stay in San Francisco. There is no record of Conan Doyle's reaction. "Portals to the Past" also play a significant role in the novel License to Ensorcell (2011) by Katharine Kerr.