Blog

Each year at the winter holidays, Mechanics' Institute throws a holiday bash of spectacular proportions, including food, beverages, music, and more! It's a chance for members to gather together and get to know one another while they nibble and imbibe. If you haven't yet registered, you may do so on our website, or by calling the reference desk between 10am and 3pm at 415-393-0102.

As is customa...

BOOKS

FICTION
Melanie Hobson Summer cannibals
Marci Vogel Death & other holidays
Tamsen Wolff Juno's swans
Yu Hua The April 3rd incident: stories

Historical Fiction...

On behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Mechanics’ Institute and with much gratitude for his excellent service, I announce the departure of Ralph Lewin as Executive Director effective January 14, 2019. During his four years at MI, Ralph has enhanced the relevance, visibility, and community engagement of the Institute, described by the San Francisco Chronicle as a “beacon of what a cultural institution can be for all citizens.” With a recent grant from the Nationa...

The past is behind us, the future is ahead. Let us all strive to make the future better and brighter than the past ever was - Gerrit A. Beneker 1918

Sunday marks the 100^th anniversary of the armistice that ended the fighting in World War I between the Allies and Germany. Like most organizations, the Mechanics’ Institute felt duty bound to aid in the war effort. Writing in his annual report of March 17, 1918, MI president Livingston Jenks o...