Born in 1876 as a railroad drawbridge tender's station on Station Island, Drawbridge grew into a duck-hunting village of 90 cabins before pollution and subsidence emptied it; the last resident left in 1979. Its dozen or so surviving shacks are visibly sinking into the marsh inside Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge and are strictly closed to the public. The only land route is the active Union Pacific causeway — trespassing on a live main line with regular Amtrak traffic — flanked by bottomless tidal mud, so the sanctioned view is from a passing train or the refuge's Mallard Slough viewpoint.
Vestige documents abandoned & historic places for education and preservation. Always obtain permission before visiting and follow local law.