FOR-SITE FOUNDATION

The Presidio of San Francisco is a 1,491-acre national park site and is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The Presidio was in continuous use as a military post from 1776 to 1994, spanning the Spanish, Mexican, and United States periods. In 1994, after the post became excess to military needs, it was transferred to the National Park Service.

The Presidio in its entirety is a National Historic Landmark District. It houses one of the finest collections of military architecture in the United States with approximately 469 historic buildings contributing to its landmark status. The Presidio’s landscapes, including the historic forest, Main Parade Ground, golf course, San Francisco National Cemetery, and historic gardens, also contribute to the park’s landmark status. The area’;s transformation from mostly open dunes into a richly forested and designed setting is one of the Army’s most impressive accomplishments in landscape architecture.

Over millennia the Presidio’s geology, topography, and climates created a mosaic of natural landscapes. Many generations shaped these wilds, from the Native Americans who were first sustained here to the Spanish, Mexican, and American settlers who brought their traditions and created an enduring military presence at the Golden Gate.

The Presidio is a refuge for once-abundant and diverse ecological communities that have been all but lost in the urban Bay Area. The park’s remnant natural areas contain some of the last examples of San Francisco’s once-extensive dune and serpentine native plant communities. The Presidio is home to thirteen different native vegetation communities supporting 300 native plant species, ranging from wildflowers to oak woodlands. Sixteen are rare or endangered, including five protected by the Endangered Species Act. Examples include San Francisco lessingia, Presidio clarkia (wildflowers found in only two locations worldwide), and Raven’s manzanita.

The park’s habitats support a wide range of wildlife. More than 200 bird species ranging from year-round residents like Anna’s Hummingbirds, Red-shouldered Hawks, and Great Egrets to migratory species like Violet-green Swallows and Red-throated Loons can be spotted here. Migratory invertebrates, such as monarch butterflies, also visit the Presidio. The park is home to mammals, reptiles, and aquatic species, including the native gray fox, alligator lizard, and three-spined stickleback fish.

In 1996, Congress created the Presidio Trust to manage the park. The Trust’s mission is to preserve and enhance the Presidio as an enduring resource for the American public. Its work encompasses the natural areas, wildlife, and native habitats of the park, as well as the historic structures and designed landscapes that make the park a National Historic Landmark District. The Presidio Trust is dedicated to ensuring that visitors to this spectacular place have the opportunity to gain a broader understanding of the Presidio, its place in American history, and the plants and wildlife that once thrived throughout the region.

Information on the Presidio is primarily excerpted from the website of the Presidio Trust, www.presidio.gov/trust.

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