Embarcadero (San Francisco)

The Embarcadero

The Embarcadero photographed from southeast, with the Ferry Building to the right and Alcatraz Island in the distance.
Maintained by	San Francisco DPW
Nearest metro station	Embarcadero station
Southeast end	Second and King Streets
Major junctions	Folsom Street Howard Street Mission Street Market Street Broadway Kearny Street
Northwest end	Pier 45
Central Embarcadero Piers Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Location	Piers 1, 1½, 3 and 5, The Embarcadero San Francisco, California
Coordinates	37°47′55″N 122°23′49″W / 37.7986°N 122.3969°W / 37.7986; -122.3969
Area	6.6 acres (2.7 ha)
Built	1918
Architectural style	Beaux Arts
NRHP reference No.	02001390[1]
Added to NRHP	November 20, 2002

The Embarcadero (Spanish for "Embarkment") is the eastern waterfront of Port of San Francisco and a major roadway in San Francisco, California. It was constructed on reclaimed land along a three mile long^[2] engineered seawall, from which piers extend into the bay. It derives its name from the Spanish verb embarcar, meaning "to embark"; embarcadero itself means "the place to embark." The Central Embarcadero Piers Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 20, 2002.^[1]

The Embarcadero right-of-way begins at the intersection of Second and King Streets near Oracle Park, and travels north, passing under the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. The Embarcadero continues north past the Ferry Building at Market Street, Pier 39, and Fisherman's Wharf, before ending at Pier 45. A section of The Embarcadero which ran between Folsom Street and Drumm Street was formerly known as East Street.

For three decades, until it was torn down in 1991, the Embarcadero Freeway dominated the area. The subsequent redevelopment and restoration efforts have, according to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, "contributed to a remarkable urban waterfront renaissance", with the Embarcadero Historic District serving as a "major economic engine for the Bay Area".^[3]