Earthquake Shacks

These extremely modest cottages were built by the city as emergency housing after the 1906 earthquake. With cedar-shingled roofs and redwood-plank walls, they were packed into tight rows and painted dark green to help them blend into parks and squares. When the temporary refugee camps closed, the inhabitants moved the shacks to private lots across the city. Out of approximately 5,300 tiny cottages, only a few still remain (two are on display at the Presidio). When they’ve come on the market in recent years, the exorbitant amounts of money they’ve fetched serve to underscore the ridiculousness of the San Francisco housing market.