The Marines' Memorial Club in

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

at 609 Sutter Street (at Mason), is a 501(c)19 nonprofit veterans charity and private social club for

United States Marines The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expedi ...

and other veterans of the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. U.S. United States Code, federal law names six armed forces: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States Navy, Na ...

. The nonprofit Marines' Memorial Association owns the large building in the Union Square neighborhood of San Francisco that houses a hotel, theater, restaurant/bar, sports club, special event facilities, library, museum,

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects such as home ...

, and a military history bookstore. The facility was built as the Western Women's Club in 1926.

Western Women's Club

The Western Women's Club building is a 12-story Beaux-Arts-style building, designed by the firm of Walter Danforth Bliss and William Baker Faville, and built in 1926. The Western Women's Club was a member of the

General Federation of Women's Clubs The General Federation of Women's Clubs (GFWC), founded in 1890 during the Progressive Movement, is a federation of approximately 2,300 women's clubs in the United States which promote civic improvements through volunteer service. Community Serv ...

. The Western Women's Club building was bought by the Marines Memorial Association in 1947. Western Women's Club had a later location at 111 O'Farrell Street.

Marines' Memorial Club

As a

port city A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manche ...

, San Francisco has, since its founding by

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, been associated with military personnel – especially the navy – and merchant mariners. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

it was a point of embarcation for many service personnel in for the Pacific Theatre. Those who passed through the city before deployment would remember their experience and return after the war. The Marines' Memorial was opened as a club for veterans of the Marines, although membership is open to all United States servicemembers. Early in 1946, the

Commandant of the Marine Corps Commandant of the Marine Corps may refer to: * Commandant of the Marine Corps (Indonesia) * Commandant of the Netherlands Marine Corps * Commandant of the Philippine Marine Corps * Commandant of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps * Commandant of th ...

, General

Alexander A. Vandegrift Alexander Archer Vandegrift (March 13, 1887 – May 8, 1973) was a United States Marine Corps highly decorated four-star general, Medal of Honor recipient, and a Commandant of the Marine Corps. During World War II, he commanded the 1st Marine Div ...

, had proposed a "living memorial" to Marine

casualties A casualty (), as a term in military usage, is a person in military service, combatant or non-combatant, who becomes unavailable for duty due to any of several circumstances, including death, injury, illness, missing, capture or desertion. In c ...

from the

War in the Pacific The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

. A group of Marines arranged to buy a building owned by a

women's club The club movement is an American women's social movement that started in the mid-19th century and spread throughout the United States. It established the idea that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform public policy. While wome ...

at Mason Street and Sutter Street in San Francisco, whose members they had met through their participation in the wartime

WAVES United States Naval Reserve (Women's Reserve), better known as the WAVES (for Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service), was the women's branch of the United States Naval Reserve during World War II. It was established on July 21, 1942, ...

program. The club opened on November 10, 1946, the anniversary of the founding of the Marine Corps. The theater predates the club, and was part of the original 1926 building. In its early days it hosted nationwide radio broadcasts by

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

, Jack Benny, and

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

. It later housed the San Francisco

Actor's Workshop The Actor's Workshop was a theatre company founded in San Francisco in 1952. It was the first professional theatre on the west coast to premiere many of the modern American classics such as Arthur Miller's ''Death of a Salesman'' and ''The Crucib ...

, which produced plays by

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the three ...

, and

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

. It was also the first home of the

American Conservatory Theater The American Conservatory Theater (ACT) is a nonprofit theater company in San Francisco, California, United States, that offers both classical and contemporary theater productions. It also has an attached acting school. History The American ...

. Today the association has 21,000 members from all branches of the United States military,

NOAA The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas, conducting deep-sea exploratio ...

, and the

Public Health Service The United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) is a collection of agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services which manages public health, containing nine out of the department's twelve operating divisions. The Assistant Se ...

, mostly from California.

Amenities

The most noticeable features are a 650-seat repertory theater and a lobby display of military memorabilia, most notably the

ship's bell A ship's bell is a bell on a ship that is used for the indication of time as well as other traditional functions. The bell itself is usually made of brass or bronze, and normally has the ship's name engraved or cast on it. Strikes Timing of shi ...

from the USS ''San Francisco''. It also includes two restaurants (including the club's "

Leatherneck Leatherneck is a military slang term in the U.S. for a member of the United States Marine Corps. It is generally believed to originate in the wearing of a "leather stock" that went around the neck. Its original purpose was to protect the neck fr ...

Grill" steakhouse) and a Club One fitness center. The building also includes the Tribute Memorial Wall, a private

to American troops killed in the

Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...

and

war in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC), the conquest of Afghanistan by the Macedonian Empire * Muslim conquests of Afghanistan, a series of campaigns in ...

References

External links

*
Official theater website
{{commons category, position=left Clubs and societies in California Buildings and structures in San Francisco Union Square, San Francisco Clubhouses in California Theatres in San Francisco Gentlemen's clubs in California Culture of San Francisco Organizations based in San Francisco Organizations associated with the United States Marine Corps

Western Women's Club

Marines' Memorial Club

Amenities

See also

References

External links