Geary Boulevard

Geary Boulevard

Geary Boulevard, looking eastbound at 36th Avenue, in a residential part of the Richmond District
Namesake	John W. Geary
Length	5.8 mi (9.3 km)
Location	San Francisco
East end	Kearny Street
West end	48th Avenue

Geary Boulevard (designated as Geary Street east of Van Ness Avenue) is a major east–west 5.8-mile-long (9 km) thoroughfare in San Francisco, California, United States, beginning downtown at Market Street near Market Street's intersection with Kearny Street, and running westbound through downtown, the Civic Center area, the Western Addition, and running for most of its length through the predominantly residential Richmond District. Geary Boulevard terminates near Sutro Heights Park at 48th Avenue, close to the Cliff House above Ocean Beach at the Pacific Ocean. At 42nd Avenue, Geary intersects with Point Lobos Avenue, which takes through traffic to the Cliff House, Ocean Beach and the Great Highway. It is a major commercial artery through the Richmond District; it is lined with stores and restaurants, many of them catering to the various immigrant groups (Chinese, Russian, and Irish, among many others) who live in the area. The boulevard borders Japantown between Fillmore and Laguna Streets.

Geary Boulevard carries two-way traffic for most of its route, but the segment east of Gough Street carries only westbound traffic; at Gough, eastbound traffic is diverted by a short curved street, Starr King Way, onto O'Farrell Street, which runs parallel to Geary until it reaches Market Street.

The roadway was originally called Point Lobos Avenue, a name which survives as a branch and extension of the current street. The modern name pays tribute to John W. Geary, the first mayor of San Francisco after California became a U.S. state. (Later, he also had the unique distinction of serving as governor of both Kansas and Pennsylvania.)

Geary Boulevard also has the highest address and block numbers in San Francisco, with the highest address being 8344. In addition, although it is unsigned and contains no habitable structures, the city's GIS database records the underpass of Masonic Avenue as the 8400 block.^[1]