Legion of Honor - San Francisco, CA
Posted by: 
DougK
N 37° 47.075 W 122° 30.039
10S E 543969 N 4182031
The Legion of Honor is one of two fine arts museums in San Francisco, California.
Waymark Code: WMBTP3
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 06/20/2011
Views: 14
The Legion of Honor is one of two
Fine Arts Museums in San Francisco, California. Admission includes same-day admission to the
de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park, about a 10 minute drive away.
San Francisco’s Legion of Honor was inspired by the Palais de la Légion d’Honneur in Paris and is a 3/4 scale model. The Legion of Honor was given to the people of San Francisco by Adolph and Alma Spreckels to honor the thousands of Californians who died in the First World War.
Mrs. Spreckels had military records painstakingly searched for the names and hometowns of Californians who died in the war. A calligrapher then inscribed the approximately 3,600 names in the Book of Gold.
It is shown annually at the Legion during the month of November to honor California veterans.
The Legion has a magnificent pipe organ built by the Ernest M. Skinner Organ Company in Boston. Skinner developed a customized plan to accommodate the 4500 pipes seamlessly within the structure of the museum, primarily through a canvas apse painted to look like marble in this gallery. This organ is comparable to Skinner's other organ achievements at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City and at Washington Cathedral in Washington, DC.
A bronze casting of Rodin's The Thinker sits in the courtyard.
The Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco is a member of the French Regional and American Museum Exchange (FRAME). FRAME is a formal collaboration of museums in twelve cities in France, twelve museums in the United States and one associate member in Canada and serves as a catalyst for cultural exchange between France and the United States.