Monkey Block San Francisco's Golden History
Retelling forgotten stories from San Francisco's golden past, 1776 - 1906, based on newspapers, books, and personal accounts, of the time. San Francisco enthusiasts, California gold rush fans, and garden variety history geeks can discover this boom and bust city, built on the discovery of gold. Ho boys ho! For Californio! *I do my best to accurately reflect the facts, and sources, in my episodes.*
Episodes
34 episodes
S4 E5 Was Montgomery's Landing "near this spot"?
The history I’ve read regarding July 9th, 1846, states that the USS Portsmouth pulled up to the shoreline at Montgomery and Clay Street, marines disembarked from the ship and onto land, then marched up Clay Street to raise the American flag in ...
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Season 4
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Episode 5
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36:01
S4 Ep4 Drinking in Yerba Buena 1847 - Seven Rules and Regulations at Public Houses
Have you ever felt like some stories should feel more connected than they do in your brain but instead they feel like untethered facts that are somehow connected? This episode is about just that. I want to understand how my...
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Season 4
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Episode 4
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39:00
S4 Ep3 The Laws of the Town of San Francisco 1847 "Your Water Has a Strange After Taste"
By January 30, 1847, the Pueblo de Yerba Buena was officially renamed the Town of San Francisco. Mexican laws weren't very well written, if written at all, which left the US military in charge of creating order in a land (Alta Cali...
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Season 4
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Episode 2
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43:44
S4 Ep2 Give Me Back My Horse, Charles Weber, Part 2 of the Battle of Santa Clara
In the last episode I discussed the lead up to the Battle of Santa Clara. I chased this rabbit hole of a topic to figure out why Washington Allon Bartlett, Yerba Buena's first American alcalde, was missing for a period of time during his very s...
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Season 4
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Episode 2
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40:01
S4 Ep1 The Spaniards Are in the Brush Part 1 Prelude to the Battle of Santa Clara
Today’s episode is about the changing landscape of Yerba Buena from July 1846 - 1847, just after the US takeover and the early broken promises to Californios. In the middle of all the changes, Yerba Buena's first American appointed...
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Season 4
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Episode 1
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51:46
S3 Ep7 3rd Yr in Review, Sparkletack Interview Host Richard Miller
Listen to me fan girl Richard Miller, the host of Sparkletack. The original podcast on San Francisco history, 2006 - 2009. I modeled my podcast after Sparkletack so getting to interview him was a huge honor.
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41:24
S3 Ep6 Part 2 of Interview with Edwin Bryant
Today, we do not cover Edwin Bryant's best 1848-selling book but I do have a friendly conversation, with Mr. Bryant. Please sit back and enjoy the rest of my talk with Edwin Bryant.
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Season 3
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Episode 6
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32:54
S3 Ep5 Interview With Edwin Bryant, 1848 Best Selling Author
Today, I virtually interview Edwin Bryant, the author of the 1848 best seller, “What I Saw in California, Journal of a Tour, 1846- 1847”. Through the magic of AI generated voices, I simulate a virtual conversation with Edwin Bryant; a journalis...
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36:03
S3 Ep4 Where Juana Lived - Jonathan Lammers Interview
Today’s episode is an interview with a new listener and accidental friend of Monkey Block’s Facebook Page that led to IMs on Facebook, a rabbit hole on Juana Briones, and then to an online interview.
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Season 3
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Episode 4
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33:50
S3 Ep3 Hudson Bay Co. in Yerba Buena and William Glen Rae 1845
The story of the Hudson Bay Company, in Yerba Buena, has been reduced to a few sentences that are very Hudson Bay Company-centric. “That place was miserable, and we didn’t make any money, so we left.” It always felt like the guy who say...
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Season 3
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Episode 3
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31:39
S3 Ep2 La Plaza Yerba Buena 1835-1846
I have found myself drawn to a specific piece of land that figuratively and literally became central to the Pueblo de Yerba Buena. Why was it left empty? And, considering it shows up on every Yerba Buena and early San Francisco map, why is it h...
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Season 3
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Episode 2
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29:56
S3 Ep1 The Battle of Yerba Buena
If the Battle of Yerba Buena doesn’t sound familiar, there’s a good reason for that. The events, just before and after ‘The Battle of Yerba Buena’, tell the story. There are two events, in my opinion, that make up the ‘Battle of Yerba Buena’.
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Season 3
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Episode 1
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26:10
S2 Ep 14 Second Year in Review
Today we are celebrating our second year in review. If you’ve been on this journey with me the two years, thank you for making it to this milestone. And, a journey is exactly what this has been. Last year, we travele...
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Season 2
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Episode 14
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21:30
S2 Ep13 Letters From California - The Farthest West June 1846
Letters from CaliforniaThree letters, were anonymously mailed from the Pueblo de Yerba Buena, dated between June 10th and June 29th 1846. The letters were, and probably still are, quite the mystery, not only because no one definit...
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Season 2
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Episode 13
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27:37
S2 E12 Bear Flag Part 3 Sonoma Insurrection June 1846
In this episode, we continue with the Bear Flag Revolt, with lots of perspectives and parallel subplots. In this episode, we re-live one part of a bigger story, that starts the revolt. Out of context, this is sheer comedy. ...
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Season 2
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Episode 12
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36:44
S2 E11 Bear Flag Part 2 Fremont Affair Jan - March 1846
Today’s episode is on ‘The Pathfinder’ John Charles Fre’mont and a conflict he found himself in, four months before the start of the Bear Flag Revolt. The differing takes, and spun storylines made today’s topic especially hard to ‘eliminate leg...
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Season 2
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Episode 11
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42:09
S2 E10 SFHS Presentation on Smuggling in Yerba Buena
This is a recording of my live talk at the San Francisco Historical Society, on September 9, 2022. You can watch the live talk and see the accompanying slides here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=boQslzG2XcQ&t=1867s
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Season 2
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Episode 10
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56:42
S2 E9 Bear Flag Revolt Preceding Events 1846
The Bear Flag Revolt is a pivotal point in California’s history, and the events that led up to the actual revolt are … just as complex as the actual event. Today we take a look at a few preceding storylines leading to the Bear Flag Revolt...
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Season 2
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Episode 9
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27:30
S2 E8 John Sutter Part 2 Arrives in California 1837 - forward
In the last episode, we covered the early United States related history of John Sutter. Today, I pick up where I left off in John Sutter’s timeline. This episode will be longer than my usual episodes, and, frankly, took more...
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Season 2
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Episode 8
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31:49
S2 E7 John Sutter Part 1 1803 - 1837 Before California
Today’s episode is about the complicated life of Johann Augustus Suter, better known as John Sutter. There is more to this man’s story than I anticipated, and, I went into this knowing there would be a lot to tell. I underestimated
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Season 2
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Episode 7
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24:15
S2 E6 Walking With Spirits, Interview with Mick's Bootique SF Ghost Tours
While my intro states I extract legends and tell the real stories, today’s episode is a mix of legends and real stories. Today, I am interviewing a connection made via this podcast.Today’s guest does San Francisco history ghost tours, fo...
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Season 2
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Episode 6
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33:58
S2 E5 Accidental Annexation of California 1842
October 1842, Commodore Thomas Ap Catesby Jones believes he is about to place his name in the records of American expansionist history, stating Mexico made a declaration of war against the United States, He plans to seize <...
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Season 2
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Episode 5
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24:43
S2 Episode 4, Monkey Block Year in Review
I launched my podcast, last year, 2021, on January 30. Over the past year, I’ve shared some fun stories about early San Francisco, changed my perspective of lots of things, and met new people, all while gathering information for my podcast. I a...
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Season 2
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Episode 4
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18:00
S2 Episode 3, Yerba Buena's Original Shoreline and Development
In previous episodes, I’ve mentioned the importance of Alta California’s Yerba Buena Cove to the overall commerce in the District of San Francisco, consisting of the local rancheros, the Mission, and other local inhabitants. This cove was advan...
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Season 2
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Episode 3
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25:45
S2 Episode 2 Part 2 William Heath Davis Part 2 1838 - 1846
I’m diving into Davis’ story because it directly captures Yerba Buena and early San Francisco history, with an insiders look at how one, socially, and financially privileged, foreigner, experienced Yerba Buena, among other … socially and financ...
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Season 2
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Episode 2
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25:56