Tenderloin Museum

09/02/2026

Only 12 tickets remain for this Saturday’s Tenderloin architecture walking tour with historian Linda Day.

Who was James Francis Dunn? A self-taught architect from a working-class Irish-American family who became known for buildings inspired by the architecture of France. His work can still be seen throughout the Tenderloin, including the Hotel Essex and the Alhambra Apartments.

Join Linda for a closer look at Dunn’s life, work, and six of his Tenderloin buildings.

📅 Saturday, Sept. 5 | 1–2:30 PM
📍 Meet at Le Marais Bakery, 1138 Sutter St.
🎟️ $15: events.humanitix.com/james-francis-dunn-in-the-tl-architecture-walking-tour-with-linda-day

08/28/2026

SEPTEMBER IS SELLING FAST. OCTOBER IS NOW ON SALE. 🏳️‍⚧️

Two September performances of The Compton's Cafeteria Riot are already SOLD OUT, and the remaining September dates have limited tickets.

But there’s good news: we just added eight October performances!

📅 SEPTEMBER
• Friday, September 4 — SOLD OUT
• Friday, September 11 — SOLD OUT
• Friday, September 18 — Limited tickets
• Friday, September 19 — Limited tickets
• Friday, September 25 — Limited tickets
• Saturday, September 26, 3:00 PM matinee — Limited tickets

📅 OCTOBER
• Friday, October 2
• Saturday, October 3
• Friday, October 9
• Saturday, October 10
• Friday, October 16
• Saturday, October 17
• Friday, October 23
• Saturday, October 24

More dates mean more chances to experience The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot. 🎟️ Get your tickets at: tickettailor.com/events/comptonscafeteriariotplay/1511421?ref=fb

The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot, presented by Tenderloin Museum at 835 Larkin St, San Francisco. Shows at 7:00 PM unless otherwise noted.

08/28/2026

Dodge Alley is back with another 2nd Thursday on September 10! 🎶

returns to the Tenderloin for an outdoor evening of high-energy, genre-defying music. Led by Bay Area artist David Saenz, ELENAH blends reggae, cumbia, bolero, hip-hop, and Afro-diasporic sounds into danceable songs about resilience, migration, love, and joy.

📅 Thursday, Sept. 10 | 5–8 PM
📍 Dodge Alley, between Turk & Larkin
🎟️ Free, no registration required
ℹ tenderloinmuseum.org/public-programs-2026-2/2026/9/24/elenah-dodge

08/27/2026

JUST ANNOUNCED! 🏛️

Join historian and architecture expert Linda Day for a new walking tour exploring the work of James Francis Dunn, the self-taught architect behind some of the Tenderloin’s most distinctive buildings.

Discover Dunn’s Art Nouveau flourishes, French-inspired designs, and Moorish architecture as you visit six of his Tenderloin buildings.

📅 Saturday, Sept. 5 | 1–2:30 PM
📍 Meet at Le Marais Bakery, 1138 Sutter St.
🎟️ TICKETS, $15: https://events.humanitix.com/james-francis-dunn-in-the-tl-architecture-walking-tour-with-linda-day

08/26/2026

SEPTEMBER IS SELLING FAST. 🏳️‍⚧️

Two September performances of The Compton's Cafeteria Riot are already SOLD OUT, and tickets are getting low for the remaining dates.

September dates:
• Friday, September 4: SOLD OUT
• Friday, September 11: SOLD OUT
• Friday, September 18: Limited tickets
• Saturday, September 19: Limited tickets
• Friday, September 25: Limited tickets
• Saturday, September 26 (Matinee, 3 PM): Limited tickets

If you’ve been meaning to see The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot, now’s the time. 🎟️ Grab your tickets before September sells out at tickettailor.com/events/comptonscafeteriariotplay?ref=fb

The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot, presented by Tenderloin Museum at 835 Larkin St, San Francisco. Shows at 7:00 PM unless otherwise noted.

08/26/2026

Join us this Saturday for “Valley of the Queens,” our monthly LGBTQIA+ history walking tour with Unspeakable Vice!

Explore the Tenderloin and Polk Street through stories of q***r resistance, community, and nightlife, including Compton’s Cafeteria, San Francisco’s first Pride parade, and more.

📅 Saturday, Aug. 29 | 2–3:30 PM
📍 Meet at the SW corner of Geary and Powell Street, Union Square
🎟️ TICKETS: https://events.humanitix.com/unspeakable-vice-valley-of-the-queens-lgbtqia-walking-tour/tickets

08/25/2026

Join us TONIGHT for The Black Rose Remembered.

Tenderloin Museum brings together historian Susan Stryker and former regulars of The Black Rose to remember one of the Tenderloin’s most storied dives and the transgender community that made it a gathering place throughout the 1980s and beyond.

📍 The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot venue, 835 Larkin St.
⏰ 6:30–7:30 PM
🎟️ FREE to attend. Donations welcome.
ℹ tenderloinmuseum.org/public-programs-2026-2/2026/8/25/black-rose-remembered

Come hear stories of The Black Rose, its legendary owner Francine Logandice, and the people who made this unforgettable Tenderloin institution what it was.

08/20/2026

Don’t forget to join us this Saturday at 4 PM for “Playing the Riot: Activism, Performance, and Compton’s at 60,” commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Compton’s Cafeteria riot, featuring cast and crew from The Compton's Cafeteria Riot and historian Susan Stryker. (Thanks, SFist!)

👉

Performances and a roundtable discussion will take place at Turk and Taylor Saturday to mark the 60th anniversary of the 1966 Compton’s Cafeteria Riot, with a screening and panel of the Emmy-winning documentary 'Screaming Queens' to follow August 27.

08/20/2026

🥰

Severe water damage has forced us to close. Help us cover uninsured recovery costs, operational losses, and long-term water-mitigation improvements so we can reopen and keep sharing this community’s history.

08/19/2026

We miss you! 💛 While the Tenderloin Museum is closed, come see us somewhere fancy. ✨

Join us Wednesday, September 23 for our 11th Annual Gala, “A Decade Plus One,” at The Green Room at San Francisco War Memorial.

Come hang out with us, enjoy food, drinks, live entertainment, and community...and finally have an excuse to wear the good stuff.

Cocktail attire suggested. We may be scrappy by nature, but we clean up beautifully.

🗓 Wednesday, September 23 | 5–8:30 PM
📍 The Green Room at San Francisco War Memorial | 401 Van Ness Ave., SF, CA 94102
🎟️ INFO & TICKETS: events.humanitix.com/tenderloin-museum-11th-annual-gala