PBA Galleries

Marvelous selection of photographs of a wealthy San Francisco family enjoying the fruits of their labors. The Wielands were founders and owners of the Wieland Brewery in San Francisco. The photographs are largely of the recreational activities of the family centering around their large two masted yacht Aggie, which sailed here in San Francisco Bay and in Southern California around the Catalina Island area. Album #1 is labeled "Views of Our Southern Trip, The Aggie etc, 1898" and contains 57 photographs of sailing off Catalina on the beautiful yacht with all people aboard formally dressed, the men in full suits and the women in long white flowing dresses. Almost all the photographs are captioned in pen and ink. Album #2 is labeled "A Meeting Of The P.C.," with 57 captioned photographs of a group of families off for a vacation adventure in the town of Bradley, California, which appears to be a waterfront place accessible by motor launch with much partying etc. These people are all very elegantly dressed and the photographs provide a real window into upper crust San Francisco society as they would vacation. Album #3 is labeled "Views Of Mira Monte and Teal Club, 1897," containing 71 photographs, mostly of men duck shooting, and a party leaving Tiburon for Mira Monte and the Teal Club, which according to Abeloe, Historic Spots in California was an area in the Suisun Marsh that was a famous duck hunting destination for San Francisco sportsmen. There is an image of a tiny primitive train depot identified as Teal Station and views of the Teal Shooting Club and the Miramonte Club. Apparently the area was made accessible by the laying of the Northern Railroad through these swamps. Album #4 is unlabeled, but consists of 92 photographs sailing in and around Catalina Island, dated 1898, including some very nice clear images of the waterfront and town. The families onboard the Aggie are all enjoying themselves immensely. There are scenes of fishing from a small attached skiff, partying aboard under a canopy and performing other nautical activities aboard the vessel. We are grateful for help from Bill Kooiman of the San Francisco Maritime Library for identifying the yacht Aggie which was built in 1880 at the Hall Brothers shipyard in Puget Sound for Charles S. and A.G. Wieland and registered in San Francisco.