The Old San Francisco State College Campus at Haight & Buchanan Streets, November 1950

A view of a descending wooden walkway and retaining structure at the original San Francisco State College campus at Haight and Buchanan Streets, photographed in November 1950. The image shows a narrow stairwell or ramped passage leading below grade level, framed by timber supports and fencing. Stacked construction materials are visible at the lower landing. Chain-link fencing to the right suggests nearby athletic courts, while residential buildings of the surrounding neighborhood rise beyond the campus boundary. The photograph captures the dense, multi-level layout of the urban site during its final years of operation. The Haight Street campus served San Francisco State College from the early 20th century through 1952. Rapid enrollment growth in the 1930s and 1940s led to overcrowding, and classes officially moved to the Lake Merced campus in 1953.