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TBT

Walking Back Through the Years

By
Jeremy Menzies
Thursday, April 7, 2016

This Throwback Thursday (#TBT) happens to be Walk to Work Day, so we kicked up some of the most "pedestrian" photographs in the SFMTA Photo Archive to take you on a walking tour backwards through time, starting in the 1960s.

 

On March 22, 1968, people stroll the popular shopping intersection of Market and 5th streets during BART’s construction. The old Woolworth’s and the Powell cable car turnaround are just out of frame to the left.

On March 22, 1968, people stroll the popular shopping intersection of Market and 5th streets during BART’s construction. The old Woolworth’s and the Powell cable car turnaround are just out of frame to the left.

 

 

Stepping back twenty years to 1947, this photo shows pedestrians navigating construction in a crosswalk at Market Street, Stockton and Ellis streets on the 3rd of July. Many of these photos were shot to document construction projects.

Stepping back 20 years to 1947, this photo shows pedestrians navigating construction in a crosswalk at Market Street, Stockton and Ellis streets on the 3rd of July. Many of these photos were shot to document construction projects.

 

 

It is 1937 and Market Street is bustling with foot traffic. This view is near 8th Street on Market in front of a market known as the Crystal Palace. The street is lined with signs for businesses, and the sidewalk is full of people hurrying to their destinations.

Even back in the 1930s, Market Street was bustling with foot traffic. This view is on Market near 8th Street in front of a market known as the Crystal Palace, on October 1, 1937.

 

 

Women in old-fashioned dresses with stylishly large sleeves and elaborate hats hurry across the cobblestones at Eddy and Fillmore streets. This image was taken on October 2, 1905.

Even women wearing notoriously restrictive Victorian clothing enjoyed stretching their legs. In this photo from October 2, 1905, women in dresses with stylishly large sleeves and elaborate hats hurry across the cobblestones at Eddy and Fillmore streets. This image was taken on October 2, 1905.

 

Travel by foot is the original form of transportation -- and, as these scenes remind us, the further back in time you wander, it was more often the only form of transportation.

To see more historical photos of San Francisco, find us on Flickr, Twitter, HistoryPin, and Instagram and check out the SFMTA Photo Archive online.