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Early Morning in Little Chile
The southern slope of Telegraph Hill, was originally known as Little Chile. After the announcement of the gold discovery, Chileans were one of the first to arrive in San Francisco. A brig out of Valparaiso arrived in 1848 and those aboard immediately headed off to the gold fields. Soon however those Chileans were overwhelmed by Anglo-European miners who resented the Chileans working high-producing claims. Racial tension in the Gold Country during 1849 brought the "Chilean War" where several deaths, on both sides, led to the expulsion of Chilean miners from their claims. Eventually as the mines started to give out the racial tension eased, the Chileans moved away and began to blend into the greater California Hispanic community. Little Chile developed into an Italian neighborhood and was renamed North Beach.
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