San Francisco Ferry Building

Why go

San Francisco Ferry Building is defined by the form, materials, and setting of San Francisco Ferry Building. Another layer comes from the sightlines that connect San Francisco Ferry Building with its surroundings. Plan San Francisco Ferry Building by remembering to confirm public access to San Francisco Ferry Building and local conditions.

What to look for

• Look closely at the form, materials, and setting of San Francisco Ferry Building.
• Notice the sightlines that connect San Francisco Ferry Building with its surroundings.

The full story

The San Francisco Ferry Building is a terminal for ferries that travel across the San Francisco Bay, a food hall and an office building. It is located on The Embarcadero in San Francisco, California. On top of the building is a 245-foot tall clock tower with four clock dials, each 22 feet in diameter, which can be seen from Market Street, a main thoroughfare of the city. Designed in 1892 by American architect A. Page Brown in the Beaux Arts style, the ferry building was completed in 1898. At its opening, it was the largest project undertaken in the city up to that time. Brown designed the clock tower after the 12th-century Giralda bell tower in Seville, Spain, and the entire length of the building on both frontages is based on an arched arcade. The present structure was designed in 1892 by A. Page Brown, a New York architect who had started with McKim, Mead & White, and later moved to California. Influenced by studies at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, he designed the clock tower after the 12th-century Giralda bell tower in Seville, Spain.

Useful to know

• For San Francisco Ferry Building, confirm public access to San Francisco Ferry Building and local conditions.
• Pair San Francisco Ferry Building with a geographic companion near San Francisco Ferry Building when the route and opening conditions align.

Your next visit

Estimated · Declared scenario and planning estimates; no live opening, weather, queue or booking service.