Coit Memorial Tower
Also known as: Coit Tower
Why it's listed
Rising 180 feet above Telegraph Hill in San Francisco, Coit Tower is a fluted concrete Art Deco shaft built in 1932-1933 to honor the city's volunteer firemen. Architect Arthur Brown, Jr., assisted by Henry Howard, designed it with a budget of $125,000, funded by a bequest from Lillie Hitchcock Coit plus city money. It is built as three concrete cylinders, one inside another, on a polygonal base so that it presents the same profile from every direction. Inside, the bare walls of the rotunda were turned into a gallery in 1934 when San Francisco artists painted frescoes of California life under the Public Works of Art Project. Social Realist murals fill the ground floor, while Regionalist works are upstairs. The listing rests on the tower's importance in art, as an early and influential example of New Deal mural work that foreshadowed thousands of later federally sponsored projects. The surrounding park, road and parking area also remain largely intact.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the tower is significant under Criterion C in the area of art, at the state level, as an excellent example of Public Works of Art Project (PWAP) art and the American Scene movement. Its interior frescoes, painted in 1933-1934 by many San Francisco artists, served as a pilot and prototype for later New Deal art programs. The murals are presented as a representation of Depression-era art.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 07001468, listed January 29, 2008. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 1 Telegraph Hill Blvd., San Francisco |
|---|---|
| County | San Francisco |
| Listed | January 29, 2008 |
| Reference number | 07001468 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1933-1934 |
| Architect / builder | Brown, Arthur, Jr. |
| Architectural style | Modern Movement: Art Deco |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Art |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Retains a high degree of integrity; some murals were restored in 1960 and 1975; the two upstairs galleries are closed to the public except by special arrangement; the original manually operated elevator is still functional. |
| Acreage | 1.7 |
| Within district | Port of San Francisco Embarcadero Historic District |
| Coordinates | 37.80311, -122.40586 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 07001468.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q1107297
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.