Oakland Urban Paths: Legendary Locals of Oakland

Saturday we had perfect weather for an Oakland Urban Paths walk focused on some of the people in my new book, Legendary Locals of Oakland. The book has profiles and images of 180 of the people who have shaped Oakland over the years, both historic and contemporary. About 70 people and 6 dogs joined us to explore Lakeside Park and Adams Point, and learn about a few of the people in the book.

We started near the Rotary Nature Center where I talked about Lake Merritt being the oldest wildlife refuge in the country, dating back to 1870, even before the National Park System. To protect birds, neighbors, and property values, Dr. Samuel Merritt lobbied California governor Henry H. Haight to make the area surrounding the lake into a wildlife refuge. Nearly 80 years later, Paul Covel was hired to be the first municipal naturalist in the country, who taught countless children I also talked a bit about current naturalist, Stephanie Benavidez, who's not in the book but is a legendary local, too.

I also talked about mayor Melvin Chapman and Oakland founding scoundrel Edson Adams (along with Horace Carpentier and Andrew Moon). In the Gardens at Lake Merritt, we talked about WWII internee Frank Ogawa, namesake of the garden center Marsha Jean Corprew, world-renowned music producer Harold Lawrence, and Calvin Simmons, the first black conductor of the Oakland Symphony Orchestra. We could see the bandstand across the way, and I talked about Fred Morcom, mayor of Oakland and namesake of the Morcom Rose Garden,

At nearby Children's Fairyland, there were a lot of people to talk about: Oakland Parks superintendent William Penn Mott, Jr., puppeteer Frank Oz and master puppeteer Lewis Mahlmann (both pictured above with Oz's character, Bert of "Sesame Street"), restaurateur and inventor of the mai tai "Trader Vic" Bergeron, and businessman Joe Shoong.

Near Lake Merritt I talked about then-mayor Jerry Brown and the story of Measure DD that brought about the improvements to the lake, and about industrialist and healthcare creator Henry J. Kaiser. Over on Webster, I told people Sid Hoff and the Ali Baba Ballroom, and 3-time restaurateur James Syhabout of Hawker Fare, The Dock at Linden Street, and the Michelin-starred Commis.

Over on Broadway, we stopped in front of The Hive. There I talked about legendary newspaperman Robert Maynard and his wife Nancy, one-time owners of the Oakland Tribune. One of the buildings that makes up The Hive is a former automotive business designed by Oakland architect Julia Morgan, better known for designing Hearst Castle. Someone asked about the church that had been where the YMCA building across the street now stands; that was the First Methodist Church, which was destroyed by a spectacular fire in 1981.

At 27th Street we stopped between the First Presbyterian Church and Temple Sinai. Connected with the former are Henry Durant, one of the founders of the University of California, and Laurentine Hamilton, who was charged with heresy and left (along with much of the congregation) to form what became the First Unitarian Church. Members of Temple Sinai include writer and art patron Gertrude Stein, of the i1nfamous but misunderstood "there is no there there", and Rachel "Ray" Frank, the "girl rabbi of the Golden West", whose students included a young Gertrude Stein.

Walking up 28th Street we climbed our first set of stairs to Hamilton Place. Down Harrison took us to the First Congregation Church. Notable members included "Borax" Smith, borax miner and creator of the Key System, and his first wife, Mary R. Smith, who started an orphanage for girls. (The walk in February will focus on Cleveland Heights and "Borax" Smith.)

Across Harrison we climbed another set of steps to Vernon Terrace and Vernon Street. There we saw the home of judge and Chief Justice Earl Warren. He was head of the U.S. Supreme Court that ruled on the historic Brown v. Board of Education which banned segregation in public schools. As California District Attorney, Warren had been"the moving force" behind the WWII internment of Japanese Americans, but he later said he deeply regretted that.

The next streets we went past included Adams Street, named for Edson Adams, and Jayne Avenue, named for his wife, Hannah Jayne. She was Oakland's first, and for a time, only teacher. I talked briefly about Alice Street downtown, named for the sister of Horace Carpentier, Alice Carpentier.

With a large group on the walk and so many people to talk about, we didn't have time to go over to MacArthur Blvd., but instead we walked to the back side of Temple Beth Abraham. It's named for Abraham Bercovich. His brother Edward Bercovich and later his nephew Sam Bercovich ran a furniture business, and supported youth athletics in the East Bay. Many of the athletes went on to college and pro careers, including baseball player Curt Flood. His refusal to be traded by the St. Louis Cardinals led to free agency in sports.

Our last stop was at the home of Rose and Joe Shoong, founder of National Dollar Stores. To keep the connections going, the home was designed by none other than Julia Morgan.

A great walk—thanks to everyone who came out for it, and to everyone who bought a book! Special thanks to Alan Forkosh and Paul Rosenbloom for the use of some their photos, thanks to whoever carried the speaker, and thanks to volunteer Charlie Lenk for helping with all sorts of stuff. More pictures from the walk:

photo of the week: Lake Merritt

We were up earlier than usual for an Oakland history event at the Lake Merritt Breakfast Club on Thursday, and walked through the gardens and by the lake afterwards. Today looks like another beautiful day—enjoy it, as rain is due next week!

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Shepherd Canyon Park

Despite the return of winter temperatures, people turned out all over Oakland to serve, celebrate, and further the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

It was cold when I left home in the morning; our birdbath was frozen. So it was a brisk ride over to my first stop, Shepherd Canyon Park. Several groups were doing various tasks, including pulling invasive species and planting milkweed, which is good for monarch butterfly caterpillars. Local regulars were there, including Mike Petouhoff (he led the OHA walking tour of Shepherd Canyon), and council member Libby Schaaf and her two children. The sun was just starting to make it into the canyon by the time I left, which meant it was plenty cold, and slippery with frost on the trails.

Stop the Gunfire rally

My next stop was Re:generation Church for the "Stop the Gunfire" rally. A large, diverse group was in attendance to hear different speakers and musicians, and then people networked, all in an effort to stop the violence in Oakland. I found Brenda Grisham's speech particularly moving and compelling. She's the mother of Christopher LaVell Jones, who was shot on his way to church and died trying to protect his mother and sister. See @tdlove's blog post for a nice write up about the event.

Lake Merritt cleanup

My final stop was Lake Merritt, where hundreds of volunteers descended to help clean up around the lake and in the gardens of Lakeside Park. The gardens at Lake Merritt are much more extensive than many Oaklanders realize, and are largely maintained by volunteers. So it was great to have a lot of fresh energy put into their maintenance. See the post at The Gardens of Lake Merritt for more about the event.

By the way, if you'd like to help with the gardens and are looking for a once-a-month thing to do to help make Oakland better, they work the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of every month, and welcome more volunteers. See The Gardens at Lake Merritt website for more info.

There was a lot more going on in Oakland today for Martin Luther King, Jr., Day, but I only had a chance to sample a little of it. I'll add more links about the events as I find them. What did you do in honor of MLK Day?

More reading on the 2012 MLK events:
POPNA - Oakland's dedication to MLK
ACCFB MLK Day video
Oakland Local - Day of Service draws hundreds to East Oakland

Lots more pictures:

Red Cross 5k Fun Run

On a beautiful Saturday morning, the Red Cross held its first ever Out for Blood 5k Fun Run. It was a fundraiser towards a new blood drive truck for use here in the East Bay. I'm not a runner, but K does some so she gamely signed up for it.

There was a good turnout for a first-time event (and only a little confusion with the Step Out: Diabetes Walk that was happening nearby at the same time.) While some people were clearly there to run it as fast as they could, a lot were there for fun, and were accompanied by children in running strollers or four-legged running/walking companions. K finished faster than her target time so she was pleased but tired.

More pictures:

signs: Children's Fairyland

Children's Fairyland

This special Saturday edition of Our Oakland signs is brought to you by the beautiful weather which inspired K and I to take a walk around Lake Merritt. We took a short detour and had lunch at Farley's East on Grand (which was great; haven't tried the coffee yet, but the food and service were very good), but there were hundreds of people out enjoying the lovely day and walking, running, riding or paddling around the lake. And no small number of dogs with them.