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The Saloon, located at 1232 Grant Avenue in North Beach, is currently the oldest saloon of San Francisco and for decades has offered dancing and live music. == History == The Saloon first opened in 1861, and has been in continuous operation ever since.〔Richards, Rand: Historic Walks in San Francisco, Heritage House Publishers, 2008, p. 291〕 This drinking establishment was originally owned by Ferdinand E. Wagner, the son of a liquor merchant in Studweiller (Bas Rhin, France), who named it Wagner's Beer Hall. In 1836 Wagner migrated to Louisiana, married a native of Cannes in 1845, and then opened a saloon there.〔Chalmers, Claudine: French San Francisco, Arcadia Publishing, 2007, p. 62〕 But in 1852 Wagner moved to San Francisco, and first worked as a hotel manager and then as a fruit vendor.〔Richards, Rand: Historic Walks in San Francisco, Heritage House Publishers, 2008, p. 291〕 He brought his family to San Francisco, and by 1868 he opened Wagner's Beer Hall at 308 Dupont Street. When Dupont Street was renamed as Grant Avenue, it was renumbered as 1232 Grant. Ferdinand and his family lived in the two floors above the bar, and one of his sons would continue to operate the business after Ferdinand retired. The building looks very much the same as it does in photographs from the 1870s.〔Chalmers, Claudine: French San Francisco, Arcadia Publishing, 2007, p. 62〕 The elaborate wooden bar which is currently in use was installed in the 1860s, and was constructed outside of America and later shipped to San Francisco. The Saloon is located in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, although in the 1860s its location occurred near the northern border of the Barbary Coast district. During that time the Barbary Coast had scores of dance halls and concert saloons.〔Cressey, Paul: The Taxi-Dance Hall, University of Chicago Press, 1932, p. 179〕 In 1906 San Francisco experienced a devastating earthquake and subsequent fire which destroyed many buildings in the area. However a U.S. Navy frigate which was stationed on the northern waterfront extended a fire hose over Telegraph Hill and pumped water from the bay to fight the flames, thus protecting The Saloon. That same fire hose would also fight the fires of nearby Jackson Square and a wholesale warehouse of liquor, Hotaling's Warehouse, was also spared from the flames. Historians have commented that establishments which housed or served alcohol seemed to get preferential support from firefighters during the great fire of 1906.〔Richards, Rand: Historic Walks in San Francisco, Heritage House Publishers, 2008, pp. 172 - 173〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Saloon」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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