SF Sister Cities: Research Guide

San Francisco has sister city relationships around the world. This guide points to related materials in the SF History Center (6th Floor) and to San Francisco Chronicle coverage available through SFPL’s databases.

How to use this guide

If you want archives materials, look under “SF History Center” for each city. To access materials, ask staff at the 6th Floor reference desk for help requesting boxes/folders.

If you want newspaper coverage, look under “San Francisco Chronicle” and use the “San Francisco Chronicle, Historical and Recent (NewsBank)” database linked on SFPL’s eMagazines & eNews page. Keyword search by city and filter by date.

Sister Cities

Sydney, Australia (1968)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Sydney, Australia 1968-1983: newspaper and magazine clippings on the SF–Sydney sister cities program, plus the book This is Sydney (Sydney City Council) autographed by the captain of the HMAS Sydney; and 1970 correspondence between the offices of Mayor Alioto and the Lord Mayor of Sydney.

San Francisco Chronicle

  • May 19, 1980 (p. 29) — Business article comparing San Francisco and Sydney, highlighting financial and societal similarities.
  • Oct. 23, 1983 (p. B8) — Editorial on a sister-city goodwill gift: koala bears presented by Sydney’s Lord Mayor to the San Francisco Zoo.
  • Apr. 18, 1990 (p. C3) — Business coverage of an official visit to San Francisco by Sydney’s Lord Mayor with Australian business leaders.
  • May 2, 1991 (p. A24) — Brief article highlighting “San Francisco Week” in Sydney, one year after “Sydney Week” in San Francisco.
  • Jan. 4, 1998 (p. T1) — Travel article highlighting Sydney and San Francisco as premier destinations.

Taipei, Taiwan (1969)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Taipei, Taiwan 1969-1981: clippings and correspondence from Mayor Alioto’s office on establishing sister city status with Taipei and forming the committee; plus the book Taipei Today (Taipei City Government, Dept. of Information, 1972), a commemorative Taipei pin, and two Taiwanese coins. Also present (not in a folder): the book New Image of Taipei (Taipei City Government).

San Francisco Chronicle

  • July 18, 1975 (p. 45) — Brief article about three student musicians visiting San Francisco through Sister Cities committee sponsorship.
  • Dec. 7, 1980 (p. 187) — Article on construction of the Chinese Pavilion in Golden Gate Park as a gift from Taipei, with commentary critical of building large structures in more secluded park areas.
  • May 8, 1989 (p. A9) — Article covering Mayor Agnos’ Asia tour.

Assisi, Italy (1969)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Assisi, Italy 1969–1981: Board of Supervisors resolution copies, Mayor Alioto’s correspondence with Assisi’s mayor, and related St. Francis commemoration materials (including a 1969 proposal letter with photos), plus a small St. Francis artwork and two Assisi-related books.
  • San Francisco Biography Collection Francis of Assisi, Saint (2 folders): pamphlets, prayers, anniversary program materials, clippings, and commemorative items linking St. Francis/Assisi to San Francisco (including Bufano-related ephemera and 1982 first-day issues for the 800th anniversary of St. Francis’s birth).
  • Willie L. Brown, Jr. Papers: Box 19/Folder 19: Photographs of Mayor Willie Brown with Giorgio Bartolini (Mayor of Assisi), likely connected to a May/June 1998 event honoring the City of Assisi.

Haifa, Israel (1973)

SF History Center

Seoul, South Korea (1975)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Seoul 1979, 2013: photocopy of the joint communique recognizing sister-city status between San Francisco and Seoul (signed by Mayor Moscone and counterpart) and photocopies of a “Memorandum of Understanding for Strengthening Cooperation and Exchanges between the City of San Francisco and the City of Seoul” (English and Korean versions), signed by Mayor Ed Lee and counterpart.

San Francisco Chronicle

  • Nov. 24, 1984 (p. 4) — News article regarding Mayor Feinstein’s successful visit to Seoul.
  • Oct. 9, 1997 (p. A22) — Brief article regarding Mayor Willie Brown’s trip to sister cities Seoul and Osaka.

Shanghai, China (1979/1980)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Shanghai, People’s Republic of China 1980–2005
  • Frank (Francis) M. Jordan Papers Box 10, Folders 6-7 “Shanghai”
  • Art Agnos Papers Box 86, “Shanghai, Sister City”
  • Willie L. Brown, Jr. Papers: materials on sister-city trade/goodwill missions, including photographs of Mayor Brown at related events.
    • Box 17, Folder 10 “Shanghai September-October 1998”
    • Box 18, Folder 30 “Shanghai September 1998”
    • Box 29, Box 19, Folder 7 “Shanghai, April 1997” (Photos)
  • GLIDE Historical Records Box 21, “Ensemble performs at World Expo 2010 in Shanghai (6/17/2010)”: World Expo 2010 materials reflecting San Francisco’s sister-city representation (includes program).
    Needs lookup: folder counts for Ephemera “Shanghai, People’s Republic of China (1980–2005)”

Manila, Philippines (1981)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Manila, Philippines 1981–2014
  • Manila–San Francisco Friendship Library Photo Albums: photo albums documenting the library dedication (Mayor Dianne Feinstein in attendance) and related events/staff/visitors, including notable visitors such as Manila Mayor Ramon D. Bagatsing and German Democratic Republic Ambassador Kurt Merkel.
  • Willie L. Brown, Jr. Papers: Box 19/Folder 4 “Manila Trade Mission 1998”: includes photo of “San Francisco–Manila Sister City Committee’s Cultural and Trade Mission, Feb. 8–13, 1998.”

Cork, Ireland (1984)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Cork, Ireland 1983-1986, 2017
  • Frank (Francis) M. Jordan Papers Box 3, Folder 5 Cork Sister City: sister city materials filed under “Cork Sister City” (folder title provided; folder count not provided).
  • Sweet Bells Beside the Lee (porcelain; Patrick O’Hara, sculptor; 1985): gift to the City on the occasion of Mayor Feinstein’s visit to Cork (July 26, 1985); displayed in the SF History Center public reading room.

Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire (1986)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Abidjan 1987–2009
  • Frank (Francis) M. Jordan Papers Box 1, Folder 1 “Abidjan Sister City”
  • GLIDE Historical Records: documents and correspondence on planning the San Francisco–Abidjan Sister Cities Committee, including materials noting Rev. Cecil Williams’ membership on the committee.
    • Box 10, “San Francisco–Abidjan Sister Cities project 1987–1988”
    • Box 31, “San Francisco–Abidjan Sister Cities Committee 1986”
    • Box 40, “San Francisco–Abidjan (Africa) Sister City project 1987”

Thessaloniki, Greece (1990)

SF History Center

  • Art Agnos Papers
    • Box 86, “Thessaloniki, Sister City”
    • Box 83, Folder 5 [Thessaloniki, Greece?] 1990 (Photograph)

San Francisco Chronicle

  • Aug. 1, 1990 — “Favorite Son Goes to Greece”: announces Mayor Art Agnos’s trip to Greece to sign papers establishing ties with Thessaloniki and discusses his connections to the Greek community in the Bay Area.

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (1995)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 1995: newspaper clippings on the first U.S.–Vietnam partnership after President Clinton lifted the trade embargo, including an article showing Mayor Frank Jordan presenting a gift to Trong-Tan Sang (Chair of Ho Chi Minh City’s People’s Committee).
  • Frank (Francis) M. Jordan Papers Special Assistant 1992-1995: Ho Chi Minh City: memorandum of understanding for a San Francisco–Ho Chi Minh sister city program; talking points for Mayor Frank Jordan on a possible sister city relationship; and a memo outlining contacts and activities.

Paris, France (1997)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Paris 2012: Memorandum of Understanding. Sister city renewal.
  • Willie L. Brown, Jr. Papers
    • Box 19, Folder 10-18, Box 22, 26-28 “Paris Trip, Nov. 1996” (Photographs)
    • Box 21, Box 19, Folder 9 “Paris Delegation, French Consulate, 1996-1997” (Photographs)
    • Box 21 “Consular Corps-France-Paris Reunion Party, Jan. 23, 1997” (Photographs)

San Francisco Chronicle

  • November 4, 1996 – “Au Revoir, Les Enfants.”

Zurich, Switzerland (2003)

San Francisco Chronicle

  • Nov. 14, 2003 — Article on Mayor Willie L. Brown, Jr. signing an agreement (Nov. 13, 2003) with Zurich Mayor Elmar Ledergerber; notes that Richard Fredericks (former U.S. Ambassador to Switzerland) helped with the agreement.

Bangalore (Bengaluru), India (2009)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Bangalore 2009-2013: two program booklets, “San Francisco–Bangalore Sister City Initiative: Inaugural Trade and Friendship mission to Bangalore, Nov. 27–Dec. 5, 2009” (includes itinerary and letters from Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Mayor Gavin Newsom); and “San Francisco–Bangalore Sister Cities: Executive Mayoral Delegation to Bangalore, Dec. 1–4, 2013” (includes itinerary and letter from Mayor Ed Lee).

Kraków, Poland (2009)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Krakow, Poland 2009: printed/photocopied materials documenting the sister-city partnership, including a 2009 Partner Cooperation Agreement signed by the mayors of San Francisco and Kraków, plus related coverage from Jweekly.com (July 9, 2009) and Nowy Dziennik (2009).

San Francisco Chronicle

  • Apr. 25, 2009 (p. 11) — “Krakow, Poland, is the newest S.F. sister city.”
  • July 2, 2009 (p. 60) — Garchik column (L. Garchik).
  • July 10, 2009 (p. 66) — Garchik column (L. Garchik).

Barcelona, Spain (2010)

San Francisco Chronicle

  • July 20, 2010 (p. 21) — “Barcelona new S.F. sister city.”

Amman, Jordan (2010)

SF History Center

Kiel, Germany (2017)

SF History Center

  • San Francisco Ephemera Collection Sister Cities: Kiel, Germany 2017-2018: includes “Memorandum of Understanding between The City and County of San Francisco, United States of America and The City of Kiel, Germany” (Sept. 22, 2017) and a photo book, Sisters: Kiel, San Francisco (2018): black-and-white photographs by Pepe Lange of Mayor Ed Lee’s visit to Kiel (Sept. 2017), hosted by Ulf Kämpfer (Lord Mayor of Kiel), with other German politicians and dignitaries.