Buena Vista Park

Buena Vista Park is a steep, tree-covered hill that rises above the surrounding city streets. Established in eighteen sixty-seven as Hill Park, it holds the title of the oldest park in San Francisco. While it is now a dense forest of oak, cypress, and eucalyptus, the land was once a barren, sandy slope. The city originally claimed the site by paying squatters nearly ninety thousand dollars to vacate the hilltop.