Brisbane

Brisbane History

 

Beginnings

To discover the early history of Brisbane, one need look no further than the oyster shell mounds found along the canyons and ravines of its creeks. From those mounds, archaeologists have unearthed relics of the first inhabitants of the area: the Costanoan Indians.  The Ohlone Tribe, part of the Costanoan linguistic family group, lived on San Bruno Mountain as long as 5,000 years ago. They built dome-shaped dwellings of boughs and tules.

For a time, the Costanoans coexisted with their Franciscan missionary neighbors in peace. For all its beauty and calm serenity, the Costanoan culture was doomed by the advance of European civilization. By 1776, the Spanish Conquistadors had arrived. The missionaries soon followed leaving numerous large land grants in their wake. With Mexican rule, the lands controlled by the Mission were released to private enterprise.

Brisbane was originally part of Rancho Cañada de Guadalupe la Visitación y Rodeo Viejo, a large tract of land that included the Cañada de Guadalupe (now Guadalupe Valley), and also the Bayshore district of Daly City, the Visitacion Valley district of San Francisco, and San Bruno Mountain, which is known for its views of San Francisco and the native Mission Blue butterfly.

Railroad

Visitacion City, as it was initially known, was platted in 1908 adjacent to the new Southern Pacific rail line that had been completed in 1907 to the east of the town site. However, the town site remained largely undeveloped for many years. The railroad resumed construction of the yard and shops during World War I, and the facilities were completed by 1918.

The Twentieth Century

Following the First World War and the introduction of Prohibition in 1918, a number of San Francisco mobsters employed moonshiners to manufacture liquor in Visitation. As a result of these activities, the area soon became known as a center of speakeasies and gambling dens.

In the 1920s Arthur Annis proposed the name change from Visitacion City to Brisbane. Annis is best remembered as a realtor who helped develop the area for citizens of small means to build their homes, without unreasonable restrictions, as soon as they contracted to purchase their lots. Many of Brisbane's pioneer residents built their own homes with their own hands and with the help of neighbors. During the Depression, 400 homes were built.

In response to the growing popularity of the automobile, Joseph and Charles Mozzetti began promoting their newly built South San Francisco Auto Court, located at the entrance to town. During this time, the Mozzettis also established a school in the basement of their home on Old Country Road. It was a busy year in 1932 as the Parent Teachers Association was organized, the first Girl Scout Troop was formed, and the Brisbane Social Club and the Volunteer Fire Department were created.

In 1933, the Boy Scouts were organized in Brisbane; the following year Brisbane Merchants Association came into existence. By 1936, a larger school was finished with four teachers, four rooms and an auditorium. Finally, in 1937, both the Catholic Church and the Community Baptist Church were founded.

Though Brisbane continued to face a number of difficult problems during the Depression including unemployment, lack of adequate transportation, garbage issues, gambling and other illegal activities, by 1940 the town had grown to nearly 2,500 inhabitants. However, Brisbane also enjoyed something of an economic boom during the 1940 s. The Brisbane Quarry expanded during the war years with workmen excavating huge quantities of rocks for the military home front projects. Operating 24 hours a day, the quarrymen employed new machinery and technology to maximize its war efforts. As a result, Brisbane Quarry products were in demand throughout the Bay Area.

A new wave of Americans came to Brisbane after World War II, and by 1954 the state of California began construction of a new Bayshore Freeway in 1954 to take the place of the antiquated two-lane Bayshore Highway.  In 1961, residents finally voted to incorporate the City of Brisbane.

City of the Stars

Brisbane is called "The City of Stars" because of a holiday tradition dating back to 1940. At the start of the Christmas/Hanukkah season, many residents and business owners place large, illuminated stars, some as big as 10 feet or more in diameter, on the downhill sides of homes and offices throughout Brisbane making for a festive display of light for travelers coming down Highway 101. Many of the stars are kept up all year.

Text courtesy of:

https://www.brisbaneca.org/media/16561

https://www.brisbaneca.org/history

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brisbane,_California  

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/73a1163cc6db48568299468bd9024fa0