I Spy Tours

17/02/2020

Happy Wonder Women Day! * Celebrate with some wonder-full news: I Spy Tours currently ranks #135 (out of nearly 500) SF Tours. That might not seem very high, but considering that our tours focus almost exclusively on *women* in Bay Area history, it's pretty awesome! The ranking seems to jump up a few spots with every 5-star review, and I'd love to make it to the top #100 by March to help more people find the tours during Women's Month. If you've enjoyed a Wonder Women of the Bay Area tour, please consider posting a brief review to spread the word and see if we can tip SF Tours toward the Ladies for Women's Month...

* I made that day up, but doesn't this image brighten your day?

14/02/2020

Happy Galentine's Day to all the Bay Area Wonder Women out there!

28/01/2020

Boost your colleagues' gender IQ by taking them on a "Wonder Women of the Bay Area" walking tour. 🙌 Celebrate the many ways women have contributed to the rich legacy of San Francisco & East Bay. We're currently booking dates in honor of upcoming Women's History Month, and spots are going fast. Contact us to arrange a company offsite / private tour celebrating the inspiring work of the women who marched before us.

http://www.facebook.com/ispytours/events

📷: National Archives and Records Administration Blue pencil.svg wikidata:Q518155

18/01/2020

Some interesting Saturday morning reading Thank you for sharing, Sara! https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/16/arts/design/womens-work-grolier-club.html

A Grolier Club exhibition explores 500 years of women as scientists, midwives, writers, activists, undertakers and more.

24/10/2019

As a little girl watching the planes take off and land from Oakland Airport, Maggie Gee decided the air was the place to be. And so she set her dreams on the runway to reality, flying with the U.S. military during WWII. As the country's 2nd Chinese-American female pilot, she was charting a new course for herself and our nation. Learn more about Maggie and many other women who took a leading role in the East Bay and beyond on the "Wonder Women of the Bay Area" walking tours... http://www.facebook.com/ispytours/events

31/05/2019

The Chinese Historical Society of America's excellent exhibit on Chinese-American women has been extended through the end of the year! Definitely worth a visit (& if you are low on funds, they offer free tickets to SF public library cards through the Discover & Go program) https://chsa.org/2018/10/towards-equality/

Women have played a vital role in the course of human civilization, but much of their accomplishments and contributions have been excluded from history. Throughout California’s history, Chine…

29/05/2019

Had the great pleasure of visiting a 4th grade class yesterday to share stories of in . After meeting such a smart crew, I have full faith in the curious, engaged, talented youth that will guide us into the future!

26/05/2019

Born on May 26, 1895, Dorothea Lange's iconic images embody the isolation of the Great Depression, and the scarcity of the resulting Farm & Migrant Workers movement. Less well-known are her images of the Japanese internment during WWII. The government asked her to document the forced relocation of Japanese-Americans (~120k across the country, over 8k from the Bay Area), thinking the photos would prove evidence of no wrongdoing. Quite the contrary! When the military realized how accurately the images depicted the horror of the situation, they promptly flagged the photos as "Confidential," and hid them for decades. It wasn't until the 1970s that the images were finally made available to the public. Today, much of Dorothea's work can be seen at the Oakland Museum of California. Happy birthday, Dorothea! 🎂

29/04/2019

Enjoyed taking this lovely crew around Chinatown yesterday, sharing the stories of the first female Chinese-American physician (who also influenced legislation allowing women to serve in the U.S. Naval Reserve), an activist who fought for Chinese-American access to public education & set the precedent for the case that would eventually desegragate schools, a hard-working mother who inspired a revolution for worker's rights, and the angry angel who saved thousands of girls from slavery -- among others!

There's another Wonder Women of Chinatown tour coming up in May! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wonder-women-of-sf-chinatown-walking-tour-tickets-60349396670

27/04/2019

Washington Square Park will be closed through the summer, so the "Wonder Women of North Beach" tour may be on hiatus for awhile. There are sill a few spots in tomorrow's event if you want to catch the final event. See comments for details... https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wonder-women-of-sf-north-beach-walking-tour-tickets-60028306280

26/04/2019

From last weekend's "Wonder Women of the Western Addition" walking tour. Images courtesy Sherrie Theriault & Francine Truscello. Thank you for sharing!

23/04/2019

Wanna meet a gal with guts? Back in the 1870s, when San Francisco was still the wild west and mostly populated by men, Clara Shortridge Foltz was told she couldn't be an attorney because she was female. So she battled it out with the California legal system, authoring the bill that changed this sexist law, and becoming the first woman admitted to the CA state bar. And because we are stronger together: she joined powers with another Lady Rebel, Laura de Force Gordon, to sue the University of California, which had denied them entry based on their gender. Clara would also eventually become the first woman to run for governor of CA, just ten years after women won the right to vote. She was 81 years young at the time, and feisty as ever! Learn more about Clara & other impressive women at this weekend's "Wonder Women of SF" tours... http://ispytours.eventbrite.com

18/04/2019

Alice Eastwood was a bad-ass botanist who wore a skirt while hiking through the wild west with a plant press on her back, sleeping on cliff-sides so she could reach even more remote destinations -- 'cause that's where she'd find more interesting plants. Following the earthquake that shook San Francisco on this day in 1906, she dashed into the flaming California Academy of Sciences and saved nearly 1,500 plant specimens, most of which were irreplaceable. Learn more about Alice and other hardcore athletes, artists, educators, & explorers (who also happen to be Ladies) on this weekend's "Wonder Women of Golden Gate Park" tour: http://ispytours.eventbrite.com

Images via: https://www.cpp.edu/~larryblakely/whoname/who_east.htm

18/04/2019

A couple of spaces just opened up for Saturday's walk through the Western Addition. It's a great way to learn the evolution of a dynamic neighborhood, through the lens of the strong women who stood up for their communities. As as a bonus, you can celebrate after at the Cherry Blossom Festival 🌸

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wonder-women-of-sf-western-addition-walking-tour-tickets-59306524411

A walking tour to honor the many women who have contributed to San Francisco's legacy.

16/04/2019

📷: Francine Truscello

Photos taken by Francine Truscello on our recent walking tour through Downtown, Uptown, and Adams Point in Oakland.

15/04/2019

Tu me manques, Notre Dame 😔 It's a sad day for history. I'm feeling grateful to have seen Notre Dame in person. As an odd coincidence, I had been planning to share this link to Cal Poly's impressive collection of Julia Morgan artifacts, and on the cover there's an image of her standing in front of the Notre Dame in Paris, 1901. Now it seems even more relevant, as a reminder to savor the history that we've managed to preserve.

https://lib.calpoly.edu/support/findingaids/ms010-morgan/

Papers contain architectural drawings and plans, office records, photographs, correspondence, project files, student work, family correspondence, and personal papers from the estate of California architect Julia Morgan, who practiced in San Francisco during the first half of the twentieth century. T...

25/03/2019

Judi rocking her Wonder Woman cuffs at yesterday's Golden Gate Park tour. Way to shine, superlady! 🌟

05/03/2019

To celebrate Women's History month, we've scheduled "Wonder Women of SF" tours all through the month. Each tour explores a different neighborhood and shares the stories of a new & inspiring set of ladies. See you there! http://www.facebook.com/ispytours/events

Walking tours that reveal San Francisco's hidden history.

25/02/2019

29/01/2019

Had to pause on the way home last night to appreciate the lighting over downtown...

28/01/2019

I Spy Tours is finally listed on TripAdvisor! But alas, our page there is currently naked. 🤭 How embarrassing! If you've been on a tour, please do us a favor by posting a review...

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g60713-d15841498-Reviews-I_Spy_Tours-San_Francisco_California.html

22/01/2019

📷 courtesy of Connie Foley

Beautiful images of our Julia Morgan tour, kindly shared by Connie Foley & Charmain Giuliani