The story
Lillie Hitchcock Coit, an honorary firefighter for most of her life, left a third of her fortune "to be expended in an appropriate manner for the purpose of adding to the beauty of the city which I have always loved." The 210-foot tower was built with that money between 1932 and 1933, designed by Arthur Brown Jr. and Henry Temple Howard.
Its murals were the pilot project of the Public Works of Art Project, the first New Deal program to employ artists. The opening was canceled over symbols that might be read as communist propaganda. In the end only a hammer and sickle and a "Western Worker" banner were removed, and the tower opened on October 12, 1934.
Everything that was here
- 1933–present · still open
Coit TowerMonument
Lillie Hitchcock Coit left a third of her fortune to beautify San Francisco, and the tower built with it opened in 1934 after a fight over its murals.
See the map in 1934 →
Did you know?
Connected places
Tavern
Bon-Air Cafe and Country Club
Route 66 Drive-In Theatre
Sprague's Super Service Station
Herbert Blitzstein Residence
Tadich Grill
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Nearby history
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