Over a span of 100 years and five chairmanships, the Department of Neurological Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco has held a position of renown among academic institutions serving neurological surgery. This history attributes this reputation to the qualities of the leadership - including pioneers in the field Howard Naffziger, Edwin Boldrey, John Adams, Charles Wilson, and Mitchel Berger - and the dedication of all involved to scientific innovation as the bedrock for building the discipline.