Columbarium

This round, domed neo-classical rotunda is honeycombed with hundreds of niches, all filled with lavishly and individualistically decorated cremation urns. Among them are the remains of many of the city's first families, such as the Folgers (of coffee fame), the Magnins and the Kaisers. With the exception of the Presidio's military cemetery, it's the only active burial site in the city: a 1901 law made burial illegal within San Francisco, and all graves were moved south to the town of Colma. Indeed, most Richmond residents are unaware that their homes were built on a massive 167-acre cemetery now known as the Richmond district, which centred around the Columbarium.