San Francisco streets first lit by coal gas, 1854

Background. The San Francisco Gas Company was incorporated on August 31, 1852, with $150,000 in authorized capital. Its gasworks were located south of Market Street, bounded by First, Fremont, Howard, and Natoma streets. Construction began in November 1852 and concluded a few months later, enabling the company to fulfill its franchise to install street lamps.

Infrastructure Development. Prior to the lighting event, James had secured a franchise from the Common Council in July 1852 to erect a gasworks and lay pipes. During the period when gas lighting was widespread, its principal fuel was coal gas, though no supplied passage states which fuel the San Francisco Gas Company used. By the end of 1855, the network had expanded to over 6.5 miles of pipe.

Historical Context. Baltimore was the first American city with gas street lights, where Peale's Gas Light Company lit its first street lamp on February 7, 1817. San Francisco's 1854 lighting was that city's own first instance of gas-lit streets, achieved through the efforts of the San Francisco Gas Company. Separately, gas utilities in California, including San Francisco Gas Light, later faced new competition with the introduction of electric lighting.