Angel Island
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| Like a bigger Alcatraz, Angel Island is an "away" place for the city, now as a park, but formerly as a site for activities undesirable in the midst of the city. Since the first use of the island as an artillery station in the 1860s, it has hosted many generations of gun batteries, up until 1962. Meanwhile it served as the Bay Area's primary quarantine and "disinfection" station, as the immigrant processing and detention center known as "the Ellis Island of the West," and as a prisoner of war camp during World Wars. Now it is operated as a State Park, though the ruins of the former uses of the island dominate the atmosphere. The most built up portion of the island is the former East Garrison of Fort McDowell, where numerous empty buildings lurk, including the "1,000 man barracks," one of the earliest examples of tilt-up architectural construction. The Immigration Station on the north end of the island was a processing and detention center for new immigrants from 1910 to 1940, and a POW and internment camp during WWII. Many of the original structures remain, in a state of arrested decay, and a museum and memorial are open to the public. Point Blunt, the southeastern tip of Angel Island, is still closed to the public. A coast guard station, with a single residence, occupies the lower levels, while a Nike missile battery, abandoned in 1962, is above it. |
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San Francisco Bay
(POINT(-122.4310665818 37.8605957031))
(show on map)
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CA
Marin County |
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| Ferries travel to Angel Island on a regular basis from a number of locations including San Francisco and Tiburon. No private cars are allowed, or necessary, as the island is less than a square mile in size. A trolley travels the loop road around the edge of the island, taking an hour and offering interpretive tour headsets. Despite some steep inclines and being prohibited from some of the trails, bicycles are perhaps the best way to get around, and can be rented at the ferry terminal or brought on the ferry. Food and water, as well as books and maps, are available at the ferry terminal area. The abandoned buildings are mostly off-limits, though some have access. A museum at the immigration station is open on some weekends. Angel Island at night is a world unto itself. |
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http://www.angelisland.com/
http://www.angelisland.org/
http://www.parks.ca.gov/default.asp?page_id=468
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Cultural, Former Defense Site
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