The Barbary Coast: An Informal History of the San Francisco Underworld

I first read this intense book about ten years ago when I was helping to research a San Francisco walking tour for a colleague. I've revisited the title several times doing further research, and just for the plain old pleasure of reliving the wild glory days of the old-west again. Like his tell-all histories of New York, New Orleans, and Chicago he goes for the rough-and-tumble sensational aspects of the past, and has a good old time of trying to separate the fact and the fiction. The style is a bit on the journalistic dry side of the era it was written, but the eccentric characters and situations more than make up for his style with pure drama. This was one of the books which proved influential in delving even deeper into the legend and lore of old San Francisco, which has resulted after six years of planning, in opening a Victorian Parlor performance venue right on Union Square where so much of the history took place. The San Francisco Magic Parlor has now opened with our very "Herbert Asbury" sytle show: Eccentrics of San Francisco's Barbary Coast ...a magical escapade! If you love to go deep into the roots of a city, and love the high and low trivia to be found in one of the most fascinating places in the world, you'll really enjoy all his titles, but this one for sure.

The history of the city of San Francisco has always intrigued me, and this book gave me insight and glimpses that I might never have been exposed to otherwise. Given the fact that this book was written in the early 1900s, Asbury was able to speak with and interview people that actually lived in SF in the late 1800s, and these first hand accounts are invaluable. Anyone interested in SF history should definitely pick up this book!

Fabulous book about San Francisco from 1849-1900's! Well written easy to follow, and interesting and funny history of the Barbary Coast. I lived there for a good part of my life and can tell you it was fascinating to read how it began...I had no idea!

San Francisco is an amazing city. Each time I visit I discover something new along its narrow alleys, panoramic vistas and historical landmarks. North Beach has always been my favorite SF neighborhood. It is amazing to me that such wickedness prevailed on these streets in the not so distant past. When I picked up the Barbary Coast, I was surprised that it was an older novel (first published in the 1930's). Don't let that persuade you from reading it. Asbury's frank and colorful descriptions of the old Barbary Coast will capture your imagination from the first page. Starting with the gold rush, Asbury describes the incredible influx of people onto the peninsula within a few short years and the lawlessness that followed. The stories of the prostitutes, gamblers, thieves, gangs, saloon keepers, brawlers, and corrupt politicians are all richly told in Asbury's colorful language that keeps the reader's attention all the way through. This book is a must for anyone interested in the history of the gold rush and San Francisco's past.

I'd seen this book on the shelves at the library, but I had always passed over it because it was too non-linear for my research. Boy, was that a mistake. This is THE best book about San Francisco's Barbary Coast in existance. It came to my attention again because of 'Gangs of New York', and I went ahead and bought it this time. Read this book and find out how tame everyone from San Francisco is these days in comparison.