History of the Building

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swissnex:

Swiss Knowledge Network with outposts in:

Boston
San Francisco
Shanghai
Singapore

swissnex San Francisco connects the best of many worlds by bridging the knowledge, energy and competencies in science, higher education, art and innovation between Switzerland, the U.S.A and Canada. Initiated by the Swiss State Secretariat for Education and Research (SER) as a public-private venture, and managed in cooperation with the Swiss Department of Foreign Affairs, swissnex San Francisco is an annex of the Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco. Vital financial support is provided by public and private sponsors sharing swissnex' commitment to connecting the dots.

The brick and timber swissnex building at 730 Montgomery Street was built in 1852 on the site of an older structure destroyed during the 1851 San Francisco fire. At first, the building was used by the early San Francisco literary newspaper "The Golden Era" between 1852 and 1856. The newspaper was a launching pad for literary giants such as Bret Harte and Mark Twain, who found inspiration for his most famous novel, Tom Sawyer, during his time at the newspaper. Even today, many people refer to 730 Montgomery Street as the Golden Era building after its first tenant. Since then, the building has housed a "stove and pipe" store, a crockery shop, a political meeting hall, noted billiard table manufacturer Henry Echert and even a Chinese broom factory.

view from Montgomery Street view from Hotaling Alley

Today, the red brick that once adorned the building's exterior has been covered by a white stucco façade. Having survived two major earthquakes, one in 1906 and the other in 1989, the building was designated a San Francisco Historic Landmark in 1969 and now forms one of the cornerstones of the historic Jackson Square district. swissnex is proud to be part of this history!