Welcome to the 2007 Laser PCCs
August 10-12, 2007
Treasure Island History
Naval Station Treasure Island has a long history that dates back to early occupation of Yerba Buena Island by the U.S. Army in 1867 and subsequently by the Navy in 1898. Treasure Island proper was constructed by the New Deal-era WPA in 1938/1939. It was built for the purpose of hosting the Golden Gate International Exposition to celebrate the engineering marvels achieved by the completion of both the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges as well as acknowledge the ascendancy of California and San Francisco as an economic, political and cultural force in the increasingly important Pacific region. Six sites were considered. They included Golden Gate Park, Presidio of San Francisco, China Basin, filled lands south of Hunters Point, the Lake Merced area, and the shoals north of Yerba Buena Island. The Yerba Buena Island site was ultimately chosen because it was accessible from all parts of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Construction
The construction of Treasure Island began in February 1936 and was completed in January 1939. To build the 403 acre Island 29 million cubic yards of sand and gravel were dredged from the Bay and the Sacramento River delta. The name "Treasure Island" refers to the gold-laden fill dirt that washed down from the Sierras into the Bay, the fill which was dredged to create the island. Approximately 259 thousand tons of rock were used to create a rock seawall to contain the Island.
1939 World's Fair
The Golden Gate International Exposition (GGIE) opened in February of 1939. It reopened in May of 1940, and eventually closed in September of 1940. Throughout the GGIE, the Island was adorned with exhibits, temples, pavilions, pools, gardens, gigantic sculptures and monuments from or representing the interests of foreign nations, American states, California cities and counties, and national and local industries. The theme of this international exposition was "Pageant of the Pacific". Hundreds of free outdoor shows and music festivals were held during the GGIE, and attracted such world-famous performers as Irving Berlin and Judy Garland.
Clipper Cove
Pan Am operated its Martin M-130 China Clippers and Boeing 314s, as well as Navy supplied Consolidated PB2Y-3Rs. The two M-130s used out of Treasure Island, the China and the Philippine Clipper, operated between Treasure Island and Honolulu. On January 21, 1943, the Philippine Clipper, inbound from Hawaii, struck a mountain northeast of San Francisco with the loss of all on board. The China Clipper labored on until October 1943, when it was returned to Pan Am after having made 88 trips to Hawaii and back in a year's time. Naval ship traffic became so heavy that in 1944, Pan Am moved its operations to Mills Field - today's San Francisco International Airport. Treasure Island remained an NAAF as Pan Am con tinued to use the facility for seaplane overhaul.
Naval construction eventually took over the airfield. The primary mission of the base was processing of personnel to and from the Pacific Theater. At the peak, 12,000 men a day passed through the station. Treasure Island also served as headquarters of the Twelfth Naval District. Following the war, the Navy traded land at Mills Field for the island. In the ensuing years, Treasure Island housed various activities to support the Naval and Marine forces in the San Francisco Bay area. Pan Am's former terminal housed the Commanding Officer of the Treasure Island Naval Base, the Commandant of the San Francisco Naval Base, and the Navy/Marine Corps Museum. Treasure Island was selected for closure by the 1993 Base Realignment and Closure Commission.
