A dark sedan approaches the underpass from the sunlit street, San Francisco, circa 1939.
1939 · San Francisco, California, United States
Still image · $49
This small preview is for browsing. Your licensed download is the full 4K image.
4K archival still image
The sedan's grille and headlights come into view as it nears the camera — San Francisco, California, 1939
$49 USD Full 4K image license
You’re licensing the 4K image3,840 × 2,160 pixels · JPEG
Extracted from the film scan master, not enlarged from the 256px preview.
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- Full 4K · 3840 × 2160 pixels · JPEG
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- 376 × 256 pixels
- Catalog year
- 1939
- Location
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Image
- Still 2 · 1.03s into the source clip
- License
- Commercial and editorial
Royalty-free license. Choose your usage, territory and term at checkout.
One full-resolution still image is included. The source video is licensed separately.
Read the licensing guideAbout this image
Front view of a mid-1930s sedan driving through a San Francisco underpass, circa 1939, a man walking beyond.
The source is catalogued as 8mm home movie. This frame appears 1.03 seconds into the clip. Watch the source footage below to see the surrounding action.
Browsing preview376 × 256pixels · shown above
Licensed 4K image3840 × 2160pixels · JPEG download
About 86× as many pixels as the web preview. The master retains the original film’s grain, texture and condition.
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Other frames from this clip
Close to the lens, the car swings left to pass the camera.
1939 · San Francisco, California, United States
Still image · $49
The sedan blurs out of frame as an older car follows down the road.
1939 · San Francisco, California, United States
Still image · $49
Source footage and archive context
San Francisco California-1939: Sedan Drives Through a Road Underpass and Sweeps Past the Camera
Watch the movement and surrounding scene in the source clip, or license the video separately.
Source format: 8mm home movie.
Browse the collection: 1939 San Francisco California.
Date documentation · estimated
Catalog estimate based on source metadata and visual or technical evidence; no reel-level note is linked.
Location documentation · estimated
Catalog estimate based on source metadata and visual evidence such as signage, landmarks, or terrain; no reel-level note is linked.
Period detail
The rounded mid-1930s sedan with a vertical-bar grille and fender headlights, the older boxy car behind it and the man's dark coat all fit the later 1930s.
Film character
Black-and-white small-gauge film with fine grain, strong contrast between shade and sunlight, a soft vignette and light dust specks from projection.
Historical context
The same reel shows the Bay Bridge, opened in November 1936, and this shot adds the low warehouses and ordinary road traffic of the city in those years.
Research note
Film copyright and use permissions are separate from likeness and property questions; the pedestrian is not identifiable, while the car, its license plate and the buildings may raise property questions.
Image licensing questions
What resolution will I download?
Your license includes the 3840 × 2160-pixel JPEG in full 4K resolution. The 376 × 256-pixel image on this page is a browsing preview. The licensed image is extracted from the scan master, not enlarged from the preview.
What does the $49 still-image license include?
It covers this one still image. Commercial and editorial usage options are available. Choose the usage, territory and term at checkout. The source video is licensed separately.
Can I see the footage this image came from?
Yes. The source clip is “San Francisco California-1939: Sedan Drives Through a Road Underpass and Sweeps Past the Camera”. Its page includes the video preview and the archive’s source and licensing information.