I would like to tell the story of one of the most famous spite fences in the world. It is, by the way, one of the reasons why privacy fences are often limited to 6 feet.
The story begins with two people. Nicholas Yung, an undertaker, who built a cottage in San Francisco in 1855 with his wife and children, and Charles Crocker, one of the four Railroad Barons.
When Crocker decided to purchase property on California Hill and create a cable car to transport people up and down the hill, he and his friends began to purchase property and build mansions on the hill, which later became known as Nob Hill. There are many stories about why, but Nicholas Yung refused to sell.
In the building of the cable car, Crocker instructed his men to direct the blast towards Yung’s property. That made him dig in deeper. Finally, Crocker, owning property around Yungs, built a 40 foot fence to surround his house on three sides. Yung responded by placing a coffin on his roof and flying a Jolly Roger flag on a flagpole higher than the fence to destroy the views for Crocker.
With no light, the Yung family was forced to leave. But they kept the property, still refusing to sell. Even after Nicholas died, his widow refused to sell. After Charles died, his family continued the feud. Finally, in 1904, the children of Nicholas Yung sold the property to the children of Charles Crocker. In 1905, the fence was removed.
If you know your history, in 1906 a huge earthquake and massive fire destroyed much of San Francisco, including the mansions on Nob Hill. Rather than rebuild, the family donated the property to charity. Grace Cathedral was built where the spite fence had been built.
Now, in the place of hate and anger, there is hope.