Early Building at the Lake Merced Campus, circa 1950–1955 (Updated two months ago)

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A small early structure at San Francisco State College’s Lake Merced (19th Avenue) campus, photographed during the transition from the Haight & Buchanan site to the new location in the early 1950s. The sandy, undeveloped surroundings reflect the campus’s formative stage, when permanent academic buildings were still being constructed and temporary facilities supported growing enrollment. Larger classroom buildings are visible in the background, illustrating the gradual development of the new campus.

Tags: sf state buildings and architecture

Added to SFSU Over the Years on July 31, 2026.

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Information

  • Identifier: TP-ATA-0466
  • Context: <p>The old San Francisco State College campus at Haight &amp; Buchanan Streets operated from the early 20th century through 1952. As enrollment rapidly grew in the 1930s, the campus became overcrowded and a search for a larger location began. Classes officially moved to to the 19th Avenue location in 1953.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Credits:</strong>&nbsp;Some descriptions were developed with the assistance of ChatGPT, an AI language model by OpenAI.</p>
  • Geographic Coverage: San Francisco, CA
  • Temporal Coverage: 1950s
  • Type: Still Image
  • Format: 9x5 Print
  • Source: San Francisco State University Archives
  • Rights: Public

Content

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Version history

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Update by DIVA Digitization Team two months ago
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