The Parrots of Telegraph Hill

Owen and I were going on the hunt for parrots. The wild parrots of Telegraph Hill. Dave has read the book, I have seen the movie and Owen wanted to see the real thing....

Do you know the story? Mark Bittner lived in North Beach in the 1970's, he never had a job but managed to get by. While living on the eastern slope of Telegraph Hill, he discovered a flock of wild parrots. Although these birds were wild, Bittner developed a fascination and relationship with them that no other human has managed. He developed a friendship with them over 6 years, gave them all names, fed them and tended to the sick when they needed him. Some people questioned whether they were still wild if they came to him for food and attention but Bittner never claimed them as his own as they maintained their freedom to fly freely in the city.

So, Tuesday morning after dropping the girls off, that's what we decided to do. It was raining, so we were not off to a good start but we smiled and carried on, hoping that the weather would clear up as the morning went on. Unlike other parts of the city, Telegraph Hill has one road that curls up and around the hill with steep stairways cutting their way through the greenery and housing. It is quite a beautiful part of the city with glimpses out through the trees to the Bay and surrounding streets. At the top of the Hill stands the majestic Coit Tower. This concrete column raises 180 feet above Telegraph Hill and was designed by Henry Howard in 1933 on a budget of $125,000 donated to the City by Lily Hitchcock Coit. She has a funny little history with the city and the fire brigade and "Coit Tower is the tangible result of her flamboyant love affair with the city."



Once inside the Tower we faced some incredible murals. These frescoes were commissioned by the U.S Government with the idea of covering the bland concrete walls of the lower part of the tower. 25 artists took part in the project, each creating their own social criticism. What struck me about the works was that although each section was painted by a different artist, their styles were so similar that it was hard to tell each section apart. Social Realism is a style connected with the 1930's and combines everyday living with gritty social comment. Some of the images on the walls were so controversial of the time that the government were unsure about putting them on view to the public in 1934. Owen and I were fascinated by the images and spent a long time observing the details and reading the interpretations on each on. My particular favorites was No.11 Department Store and No.13 California.

The lift up to the top of Coit Tower was the original 1933 elevator with a lovely little man who spouted off loads of facts and numbers that neither Owen or I could understand.... It was still raining when we got to the top so, although the view was spectacular, there was a grey dampness about everything. We took a few photos and spotted a few land marks but hurried back down again quite quickly.

We never did see the parrots.... Maybe another day.