When Yerba Buena Cove was settled early in the 19th century, this area was a rarely visited wilderness.  It was made up of sand, grass, more sand, some shrubs and a scattering of tiny trees.  In the many low spots in the sand, there was enough water to make shallow, small marshes.  Across the street from City Hall, a local art association recreated a miniscule part of this area's natural history, even going to the effort of elevating with plywood and bracing the display up from the remains of an old basement to the prior level.  The recreation remained on display for a couple of months.