LEWIS ARK (Houseboat)
historic place
The Lewis Ark is a historic houseboat, representing a unique maritime architecture from the San Francisco Bay Area. These houseboats, known as "arks," developed in the 1880s, serving as summer cottages for residents. The Lewis Ark, a wooden vessel approximately 44 feet long and 25 feet wide, was likely built between 1890 and 1900, originally moored in Belvedere Lagoon. After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, some arks temporarily housed city refugees. By 1939, many arks, including the Lewis Ark, were moved ashore and became land dwellings. Rear Admiral Robert Lewis and his wife resided aboard from 1959 to 1968, lending the ark its name. In 1969, the Lewis Ark was donated to the State of California and moved to San Francisco's Hyde Street Pier. Here, it opened for public display, preserving a distinctive piece of Bay Area history.