Sign reads: William Richardson - Founder of Sausalito 1799-1856
In 1822 English-born Richardson arrived in San Francisco Bay on the whaler
"Orion". After his baptism at Mission Dolores, he married Maria Antonia Martinez,
daughter of the Commandante of the Presidio. In 1835, he founded Pueblo Yerba Buena,
later named San Francisco. Appointed Captain of the Port, he dutifully served
there for over a decade. Richardson was granted a 19,000 acre peninsula known as
Rancho Sausalito, extending from the bay to the ocean and from the Golden Gate
to Mt. Tamalpais. In 1856, he died landless. Richardson Bay exists as a
tribute to the founder of Sausalito.