San Francisco: a gate named before gold, a phoenix, an orange bridge

San Francisco is a city everyone pictures — hills, fog, a famous bridge. This quiz takes you through its history in 20 questions with pictures.

Who really named the entrance to the bay, and when? Why does the old mission carry a name that is not its official one, what was the town called before 1847, and what became of the hundreds of vessels that crowded the cove? What did a merchant do just before shouting the news of 1848 through the streets, and what does the bird on the city seal remember?

Then the late 19th century: which decree of a self-proclaimed emperor came true, what did the promoter of the first cable line make for a living, which New England poet was born here, and how did a tycoon answer a neighbor who would not give way? Which tower inspired the clock at the foot of Market Street, who gave a fountain to the city, and where did a vast glass hall get its water?

Finally: what destroyed most of the city in 1906, what did officials plan for the ruins of its oldest quarter, what did a glittering fair celebrate in 1915, how was an old fort saved, what color did the military want for a bridge, which island first bore the name of the rock in the bay, and how did the city's Victorians look before they turned bright? The illustrations are old photographs, photochroms, postcards, a daguerreotype, an engraving and a drawing in the public domain.