st. francis hotel, which was actually a representation of the evolution of elevators. can you tell us more about san francisco history here at the st. francis? >> sure. st. francis demonstrates well the evolution of elevated technology. and substantially damaged the 1906 earthquake and rebuilt in 1907 or 1908, and extend it again in 1913. then a new tower was added in 1932, so there is all sorts of elevator technology you can see at the st. francis that very much represents the building history of san francisco. >> i understand there is a really old elevator still operating here. >> that is right, the elevator installed in the 1913 expansion. we can go look at that. >> let's go take a look. here we are in a spectacular st. francis lobby. here is the clock. when people say "meet me at the clock in the st. francis." let's look at that elevator. >> ok, let's do it. >> here we are in the elevator installed as part of the expansion, and this is the way it was originally installed about 100 years ago. it has a manual switch just like elevators did back then, and it runs on dc

st. francis hotel. this was a different time in san francisco, when police officers were in the business of going after members of the lgbt community. he formed an organization to run educational programs on the topics of homosexuality and provide support for men being ostracized for being gay and were caught up in police raids. in 1961, jose ran for a seat on the san francisco board of supervisors, becoming the first openly gay man to run for elected office in the entire united states. 1961. [applause] as he explained last night during the presentation of his lifetime achievement award, the establishment at the time was so scared that he could very well win that many candidates were recruited for the very purpose of keeping him from being elected to the san francisco board of supervisors. at the end of the day, in a field of 32 candidates, he came in ninth place in 1961 and almost won the seat to the very body. in 1962, he co-founded the tavern guild, the first gay business association in the country.

mining and railroad tycoons built magnificent mansions on top nob hill.ma the grand hotels such as the palace, the st. francis redesigned the skyline. there were three opera houses filled with women in french gowns. it prided itself on nurturing a artists like jack london and mark twain. it had the height ofad sophistication with porcelain bathtubs and velvet covered fatoons, but there was a dark side like poverty, racism, and rats. in addition with the high victorian style of architecture, they had a victorian style of hygiene that consistented of butchers and garbage men hurlini garbage into the bay.ople the little enclave of chinatown, approximately a dozen squareap blocks, ranged along grant street, which was in those days called dupont, sheltered tens of thousands of working poor just p few blocks from the war of wher the rats scuttled into the city. it was vulnerable. the city was set up for plague. like the dispatchers that we've been reading about, and i and my colleagues have been writing about dealing with the sars outbreak from china, this would also produce a cover up, but tha bubonic plague cover