Forest Knolls was built in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Some of the residents are the first owners of the homes that were built then.
The area where Forest Knolls was built was part of an 1100-acre forest planted by former mayor Adolph Sutro, one of San Francisco’s most colorful characters. Sutro Forest and the forest on Mt Davidson are among the last remnants of these woods. Trees were cleared to build first Midtown Terrace, then Forest Knolls.
Before that, it was all part of Rancho San Miguel, a ranch with 2,000 cattle and 200 horses. Before Sutro bought the land, it was owned by Jose Jesus Noe (whose name is memorialized in Noe Valley).
For some posts about the past:
When Clarendon Avenue was Almshouse Road
FOREST KNOLLS NEIGHBORHOOD 