Westin St. Francis
The St. Francis Hotel washes its coins. This peculiar tradition -- running every piece of change through a coin-washing machine before dispensing it to guests -- began so that ladies in white gloves would not soil their hands handling money. It is a small, strange detail, but it captures something essential about a hotel that has treated extravagance as routine since 1904. Located on Powell and Geary Streets along the entire western edge of Union Square, the Westin St. Francis has survived the 1906 earthquake, hosted every sitting president since Taft, and been the site of one of the most sensational criminal cases of the silent film era.
Earthquake Survivor
The hotel opened in 1904, just two years before the earthquake and fire that destroyed 80% of San Francisco. The two 12-story south wings survived the earthquake but suffered in the fire that followed. The hotel was rebuilt and expanded, with a double-width north wing completed in 1913 for permanent guests. Surviving the 1906 disaster gave the St. Francis a legitimacy that newer hotels could not claim. It had been tested by the worst thing that could happen to a building in San Francisco and had, if not survived intact, at least endured well enough to rebuild on the same foundation. That resilience became part of its brand.
Scandals and Presidents
In September 1921, silent film star Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle hosted a party at the St. Francis during which actress Virginia Rappe fell ill and later died. Arbuckle was charged with manslaughter in a case that became one of the first major celebrity scandals in American history. He was acquitted after three trials, but his career was destroyed. The scandal brought unwanted notoriety to the hotel, which was more accustomed to hosting presidents, diplomats, and society events. The contrast between the St. Francis as a venue for presidential visits and as the setting for tabloid tragedy captures the dual nature of grand hotels: they attract power and spectacle in equal measure.
The Tower and the Square
A 32-story tower addition built in 1972 dramatically increased the hotel's capacity and altered its silhouette against the San Francisco skyline. The tower's modernist design contrasts with the original Beaux-Arts wings, creating a visual timeline of the hotel's evolution. The St. Francis faces Union Square, the central public space of downtown San Francisco, giving guests a front-row view of the city's commercial and cultural life. The square has hosted political rallies, holiday celebrations, and the daily commerce of a major city. The hotel's position at its edge -- simultaneously part of the square and above it -- is a physical expression of its relationship to San Francisco: connected, elevated, and perpetually observing.
From the Air
The Westin St. Francis is at 37.79N, -122.41W, on the western edge of Union Square in downtown San Francisco. The hotel's 32-story tower is visible in the downtown skyline. Union Square, identifiable as a green rectangle surrounded by commercial buildings, is the visual reference. Nearest airports: KSFO 11nm south, KOAK 9nm east.