Redstone Building, Labor movement building in North Mission, San Francisco, US
The Redstone Building, also called the Redstone Labor Temple, stands at 2940 16th Street between South Van Ness and Capp. It is one of San Francisco's first steel-frame buildings, reinforced with steel and faced with brick on two sides and masonry on the other. Its 70-by-62-foot main auditorium and 22 office spaces served the San Francisco Labor Council, and a wing was added in 1939.
Planning for the Redstone began in 1910, and most construction took place in 1914; the Labor Temple was dedicated on September 7, 1914, with its grand opening held February 27, 1915. It housed the San Francisco Labor Council and 22 union offices, and it was the scene of organizing during the 1917 United Railroads streetcar strike and the maritime strike that led to the 1934 General Strike. A wing was added in 1939.
The interior walls feature murals created since 1996 that depict the stories of Filipino, Latino, and labor movement communities in San Francisco. These artworks tell the histories of the people who shaped the city's neighborhoods.
The building is generally accessible to visitors, though many spaces inside are private offices and the artworks are best viewed from common areas. Plan time to walk around the corner location and examine the exterior details and street-level murals.
The lobby and first-floor walls carry the Clarion Alley Mural Project murals, dedicated by Mayor Willie L. Brown Jr. on January 25, 1997. Six of them show the labor unions active in the building between 1914 and 1966, and others commemorate the 1934 strike and the Chinese Garment Workers Union picket.
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