The Women Who Built SF City Hall
Female Architects and Artists Who Shaped San Francisco's Iconic Landmark
San Francisco's magnificent City Hall stands as one of America's finest examples of Beaux-Arts architecture, completed in 1915 as a testament to the city's resilience after the devastating 1906 earthquake. While history predominantly records the contributions of male architects and artists like John Bakewell Jr., Arthur Brown Jr., and sculptor Henri Crenier, the building also contains important connections to the women of the era—both through the pioneering female architects working in San Francisco at the time and through the symbolic female figures adorning its architectural elements.
This exploration reveals the often-overlooked feminine presence in City Hall's creation and design, offering wedding photographers unique opportunities to incorporate these meaningful elements into their photography of couples celebrating their unions in this historic space.
Pioneer Women Architects of Early 20th Century San Francisco
Julia Morgan: Breaking Barriers
While not directly involved in City Hall's construction, Julia Morgan's pioneering presence in San Francisco architecture during this period represents the emergence of women in a male-dominated field. As California's first licensed female architect (1904), Morgan was establishing her practice in San Francisco precisely when plans for the new City Hall were being developed.
Between 1904 and 1910, when City Hall was being designed and the competition for its architect was held, Morgan was completing significant works that demonstrated women's capacity for architectural excellence, including:
- El Campanil bell tower at Mills College (1904) - which survived the 1906 earthquake intact, establishing her engineering expertise
- The Bell Tower at Mills College (1904)
- Hearst Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley (1903-1904)
- St. John's Presbyterian Church in Berkeley (1908)
- Multiple YWCA buildings throughout California
Morgan's structural innovations, particularly her expertise in reinforced concrete demonstrated during post-earthquake rebuilding, paralleled techniques that would later be employed in City Hall's construction. Her exclusion from consideration for such major civic projects reflects not a lack of capability but the gender barriers of the era.
Emily Williams: San Francisco's Pioneer
Another remarkable figure was Emily Williams (1869-1942), who moved to San Francisco in 1901 and studied drafting at the California School of Mechanical Arts. With her partner, Lillian Palmer, Williams designed and built her own home, showing tremendous determination in an era when women were largely excluded from construction sites.
Williams designed multiple homes in the Bay Area during the precise period when City Hall was being conceptualized. Although not part of the City Hall project team, her presence in the architectural landscape of San Francisco demonstrates that qualified women were practicing in the city during this transformative period.
Female Symbolism in City Hall's Architecture
While women may have been largely excluded from the design and construction process, feminine symbolism features prominently in City Hall's decorative elements. Henri Crenier, the principal sculptor, incorporated numerous female figures representing abstract virtues and ideals throughout the building.
Medallion of Equality
Located in the central Rotunda, the Medallion of Equality presents a cloaked female figure holding an equilateral triangle. The triangle symbolizes balance and harmony, while the feminine form represents the nurturing aspects of social equality. In the background stands a figure believed to represent Quintilian, the Roman philosopher who wrote about justice and honorable conduct.
Photography Tip
Position couples below this medallion for portraits that symbolize the equality and balance in their partnership. The triangle motif can be echoed in the composition.
Medallion of Liberty
This medallion features a female figure extending an olive branch in a gesture of peace and liberty to all people. The feminine embodiment of Liberty continues a long tradition in Western art and civic architecture of representing freedom as a woman, most famously seen in the Statue of Liberty.
Photography Tip
Capture couples from the Fourth Floor Gallery with the Liberty medallion visible above them, symbolizing the freedom found in committed partnership.
Medallion of Learning
The Medallion of Learning depicts a female teacher imparting the skill of reading to a group of small children. This representation acknowledges the historical role of women as educators and nurturers of future generations, particularly significant in an era when teaching was one of the few professional roles accessible to women.
Photography Tip
For couples who work in education or value lifelong learning together, incorporate this medallion as a meaningful backdrop that honors the teaching and growth that happens within a marriage.
The Woman and Child with Father Time
High above the Mayor's Balcony, the Father Time sculpture features mysterious cloaked figures of a woman and her child who appear to flee the stern gaze of Time. This poignant representation speaks to the universal human experience of time's passage and our attempts to preserve precious moments—particularly resonant for wedding photography.
Photography Tip
Frame couples beneath this sculpture for a composition that subtly evokes the timelessness of their commitment against the inevitable passage of time—a perfect metaphor for wedding vows.
Feminine Architectural Elements and Wedding Photography
Beyond the specific medallions, City Hall incorporates numerous feminine design elements that can add depth and meaning to wedding photography. The Beaux-Arts style itself balances masculine structural elements with feminine decorative features, creating perfect symbolic backdrops for marriage ceremonies.
Incorporating Female Symbolism in Wedding Photography
1. The Grand Staircase: Ascension and Transition
The sweeping curves of the Grand Staircase represent feminine design principles amid the building's otherwise rectilinear structure. In many cultures, curved elements are associated with feminine energy while straight lines represent masculine energy.
Photography Technique
Position the bride on the curve of the staircase, with her dress flowing along its contours, creating a visual connection between the feminine form and the architectural curves. This composition celebrates the feminine presence in both the human and architectural subject.
2. Light and Shadow: The Dome's Illumination
The dome allows natural light to filter into the Rotunda in a diffused, gentle manner that has traditionally been associated with feminine qualities in art and architecture. This soft illumination creates ideal conditions for portraiture.
Photography Technique
Position couples in the center of the Rotunda at midday when light streams down from the dome. This creates a natural spotlight effect that recalls classical depictions of divine feminine illumination in Renaissance art.
3. Symbolic Female Virtues
The four medallions representing feminine embodiments of civic virtues (Equality, Liberty, Strength, and Learning) create opportunities for wedding photographers to incorporate meaningful symbolism into their compositions.
Photography Technique
Create a series of portraits with each medallion as a backdrop, framing the couple beneath these feminine representations of values many couples aspire to in their marriages: equality, liberty, strength, and continual growth together.
4. Telling a Complete Story
Just as the history of women's contributions to City Hall has been partially obscured, wedding photography can reveal layers of meaning that might otherwise go unnoticed.
Photography Technique
Create a photo narrative that begins with wide shots showing the grand, traditionally masculine aspects of the building, then progressively focus on the feminine details and symbols throughout. This visual journey mirrors the historical process of recognizing women's contributions to architecture and civic life.
The Legacy of Women at City Hall Today
While women may have been largely excluded from the original design and construction of City Hall, their presence has grown significantly over the decades. Today, the building houses the offices of numerous female civic leaders, including past and present female mayors, supervisors, and department heads.
The Mayor's Balcony, once a space where few women would have been welcomed in official capacities, has now hosted numerous ceremonies led by and honoring women. This evolution mirrors broader societal changes regarding women's roles in civic life and leadership.
City Hall's function as a wedding venue itself represents another connection to women's history, as the wedding industry has traditionally been a space where women exercised significant professional agency, from planning to photography to design.
Conclusion: Revealing the Hidden Feminine
San Francisco City Hall stands as both a monument to its era's gender limitations and a testament to the symbolic importance of feminine principles in civic architecture. While Julia Morgan and her female contemporaries were designing groundbreaking buildings elsewhere in the city, their direct contributions to City Hall were limited by the conventions of their time.
Yet the building itself honors feminine virtues through its sculptural program, incorporating female figures that represent the highest ideals of civic society. For wedding photographers, these elements offer rich opportunities to create images that connect couples to deeper symbolic meanings and histories.
By highlighting these feminine elements in wedding photography, photographers not only create more meaningful images for their clients but also participate in the ongoing project of recognizing women's visible and invisible contributions to our architectural heritage. The female forms adorning City Hall's spaces remind us that even when women were excluded from the drafting table, their symbolic presence was still deemed essential to represent the highest virtues of civic life.
About the Authors
Toni Bailey & Ken Mendoza are award-winning San Francisco wedding photographers specializing in City Hall ceremonies and elopements. With backgrounds in visual storytelling and fine art photography, they bring a cinematic eye to every wedding they document. Their work has been featured in numerous wedding publications, and they maintain a deep appreciation for San Francisco's architectural and cultural history, which informs their photographic approach at City Hall and beyond.