With the advent of cable cars in the 1870s , the residential trend shifted towards new mansions built on the taller hills north of Market Street , especially Nob Hill . In '' The Wrecker '' ( 1892 ) , Robert Louis Stevenson described Rincon Hill as " a new slum , a place of precarious sandy cliffs , deep sandy cuttings , solitary ancient houses and butt ends of streets . " The 1906 earthquake and fire destroyed the remaining Rincon Hill mansions . In their place , a number of rudimentary earthquake shacks sprung up and remained for decades . While much of San Francisco was quickly rebuilt following the earthquake , Rincon Hill remained relatively undeveloped in the ensuing decades . Following the quake , the Marsden Manson report on reconstruction recommended that Rincon Hill be removed entirely to provide more flat ground close to the waterfront . Although the plan was never enacted , it resurfaced in 1913 and 1927 , discouraging real estate developers from building on the hill
1906 earthquake and fire
1906 San Francisco earthquake
Rincon Hill, San Francisco