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Midwinter Memorial Museum

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The first museum to occupy space on the north side of Golden Gate Park's music concourse was the repurposed "Fine and Decorative Arts Building" from the California Midwinter International Exposition of 1894. In 1895 the Egyptian-style structure opened as the "Midwinter Memorial Museum", and housed art, curios, and even replicated rooms from a Bavarian palace.

De Young Museum

The building, designed by Charles C. McDougall, was inaugurated as a permanent museum on March 21, 1895. M.H. de Young, publisher of the San Francisco Chronicle and major promoter of the Midwinter Fair, donated much of the original collection.

De Young Museum

The Midwinter Memorial Museum building was demolished in 1929, replaced by a new museum dedicated to de Young and erected just to the west.

De Young Museum and Grant monument

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Images: 1) Midwinter Memorial Museum building, represented in postcards.


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