Now: The long stretch of The Embarcadero features something to be seen from every decade in San Francisco's history, if you look carefully. The shell of the 19th-century seaport has been inhabited and variously built over in the form of shopping mall, market plaza, ferry terminal, bayfront restaurant, and condominium. On days when the wind and sun are gentle, it's hard not to feel glad to be here with the water on one hand and all of the city on the other.

Then: During the mid to late-1800s, San Francisco residents did not feel the city was big enough. The eastern shoreline was augmented with mud and debris, and a road was built along the new perimeter. The mostly empty docks jutting out from the road once serviced commerce and transport ships.