SAN FRANCISCO — N.F.L. Hall of Famers called it home. It was where the alley-oop was invented. The 49ers’ founding owner died in his seat at the 50-yard line while watching a game. And it was there, atop a midfield hash mark, where Dirty Harry shot a serial killer called Scorpio.

As the 49ers prepare to host the Giants in the N.F.C. championship game Sunday, the vagaries of Candlestick Park have been a popular topic. Yet Kezar Stadium, the 49ers’ home until 1970, has a history at once colorful and star-crossed, and remains dear to this city’s heart.

Kezar was the 49ers’ home for the first 24 years of the franchise’s existence. (The Oakland Raiders also played there in their first season.) It held a single-tier bowl, and was unbearably cramped for players and patrons alike. Only 18,000 of its nearly 60,000 seats were between the goal lines, and the minuscule locker rooms were designed for high school teams, not professionals. During games, flocks of seagulls would descend upon the crowd, looking for scraps of food.