The Voice of East Bay Living

This past weekend, I went on a fabulous walking tour of the Elmwood district of Berkeley sponsored by my friends in the  Berkeley Rotary .  The neighborhood is full of beautiful craftsman homes that have been designed by many famous  architects including Walter Radcliffe, Julia Morgan, John Hudson Thomas, Albert Dodge Coplin, and James Plachek. One can view dormer Windows, Tudor roof lines, colonial revivals, Queen Anne and other residential styles from the period. In 1903, a streetcar ran along College Avenue.  In 1905, Alice Alta Bates started a hospital with eight beds on College Avenue and later the current campus of Alta Bates Hospital was founded. In 1906, the Elmwood district became popular after the San Francisco fire when a lot of people moved into the East Bay. In fact it became one of the fastest-growing areas in all of the US.  In 1907, the oldest commercial building of Elmwood was built at the corner of college and Ashby....

Oakland Heritage Alliance led another wonderful walking tour thru one of Oakland's historical neighborhoods - the Montclair District. One of the most notable spots was Colonel Jack Haye's artistic mansion, which was constructed in 1850. His home on Fernwood Drive is located well out of town, along Temescal Creek and close to a remote canyon which was later to become Moraga Ave. Today, all that remains of his grand estate is a brick wall near Thornhill Drive and the former railroad tracks.