- "This charming book immortalizes [a] long-gone settlement, while gently reminding us that ad hoc urbanism didn't begin with Burning Man"San Francisco Chronicle
- "Local historian Woody LaBounty has written an awesome book"San Francisco Bay Guardian
- "LaBounty tells the story of a community of streetcar-inhabiting bohemians with wit and an unexpected depth of detail -- a forgotten chapter in San Francisco's rich neighborhood history."Rob Keil, author of Little Boxes: The Architecture of a Classic Midcentury Suburb.
- "Transit buffs and general historians alike will enjoy this one!"Western Railway Museum
- "LaBounty's approach to describing the history of Carville captures the Bohemian flavor of this unique community in San Francisco. The book is both informative and fun to read."Lorri Ungaretti, author of San Francisco's Sunset District and San Francisco's Richmond District
- "History buffs, train obsessives, and architectural enthusiasts will all be enthralled..."Sunset Magazine
- "A job well done. Carville-by-the-Sea plugs up yet another gap in local railroad historiography."Paul C. Trimble, author of Railways of San Francisco
Carville-by-the-Sea: San Francisco's Streetcar Suburb, a new book by Woody LaBounty, vividly recalls one of the quirkiest communities in San Francisco's rich history.
In the mid-1890s, San Francisco transit companies started selling surplus horse cars and cable cars to the public--$20 with seats intact, $10 without.
Obsolete public transportation soon became bars and restaurants, shoe repair shops, playhouses, laundries, artists' studios, and even houseboats.
A bohemian settlement erupted at the beach as writers, judges, and lady bicyclists arranged, combined, and even stacked old transit cars to create "Carville-by-the-Sea."
This hardcover book contains 144 full-color pages with extensive footnotes. The lush design recalls an antique scrapbook with hundreds of rare images from libraries, archives and private collections.
The book is available at local bookstores, or you can buy copies right here on the site today.