BANCROFT LIBRARY -O- THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA >■ lISliM ÄSll .•■Ai ih *<'<;• . HUMl RIEmME T H MEI tÀ RGfi St Ü ctrx'À ¡BSHHUMitti JPBSg a I OAKLAND CALIFORNIA’S THIRD LARGEST CITY_| n Compliments of OAKLAND CHAMBER OF COMnBrCE Thirteenth and Bee Strfls 1923Looking across beautiful Lake Merritt toward downtown Oakland 1 Oakland skyline as it appears from a vantage point in Lake OAKLAND A YOUNG MAN’S TOWN AKLAND is a young man’s town; it is still in its Hfancy; the creation of great values is only Halting. LessHhan one hundred years ago, Oakland was a part of a great Spanish ranch; sixty years ago it was but a sleepy village; as recently as fifteen years ago the advance had little more than start^B Today there are 265,060 people in Oakland proper and 410,000 in Alameda County, and the city is growing at the Kite of each three yeai€,~ The building permit for ^922 for Oakland proper were $24,468,223, approximately^equBto the two previous years put together. The bank clearings were 2<^^fcreater than in 1921, and 75c® greater than in 1908. Unlike many other western cities, Oakland has never been exploited; it has never been advertised; but despite these fact's it is making an advance that is startling in its rapidity. Natural advantagesBuch as are possessed by no other cityj in western Americfey are responsible for this growth. These same advantages—the city’s location on the mainland side Page threeNew Year’s of our wild ducks of the world’s greatest land-locked harbor, its nearly perfect climate and its central position on the Pacific Coast, will make this advance even more rapid in the fhWre. The ranks of the leaders are not closed in this pL&w western city. The destinies of Oakland are not controlled by any largS corporation or by any group of inHviduals. There exisdj here an unusual opportunity for a man to make more money with that which hmlready haS**' History Luis Maria Peralta, who marched into California with troops of the King of Spain in 1776, was the original owner of the present site of the citWof Oakland. He received it as a grant from the Spanish Crown on August 16, 1820. “To Luis Maria Peralta—land, fi\Mfeagues in extent, run- ning from the deep creek of San Leandro on the east to a hilll adjoining the sea beach,” reads the original document, by which this adventurous Spaniard received his princely gift. Page ArBroadway at San^^^^Qth the city hall on the left In 1842 Peralta divided his rancho San Antonio, as it was called, into four parts, giving to each of his sons a quarter of the estate. Immediately after receiving their heritage, Vin- cente and Antonio Maria, the two brothers who owned the part of the area now occupied by Oakland, established them- selves on their new ranchos, and soon after, other grants, this time from the Mexican Government, brought the two brothers other Spanish neighbors. Then signs of Oakland streets began to appear in the form of roads from one rancho to another. Moses Chase, who leased holdings from one of the Peralta brothers in 1850, was the first American citizen of the future city of Oakland. Close on his heels came a horde of squatters drawn to California by the gold rush of 1849. Two years later a nameless village had come into existence on the site now occupied by Oakland. At the session of the legislature of 1852 this was incorporated under its present name. Between 1852 and i860 the growth was reasonably rapid and by this later date Oaldgnd had a population oB,553 ; by Page fiveOAKLAND, CALIFORNIA 1870 it had grown to 10,500 and by 1880 to 34,555. It was not, however, until after the San Francisco fire in 1906 that the present day growth of Oakland and the Eastbay cities really began. Oakland Today Oakland today is a modern, progressive city; it has 455 miles of paved streets; 385 acres of parks and playgrounds ancl 53 ultra-modern public school buildings. Oakland is situated overlooking San Francisco bay and directly facing the Golden Gate. Gently sloping hills form the background for the city and furnish it a magnificent resi- dential section in which nearly every lot is a view lot over- looking the bay or the ocean. The business section of Oakland has been built on a belt of level land, averaging two and a half miles in width, which lies between the hills and the bay. To the north of Oakland is Berkeley, a community of 65,000 and to the south is Alameda, s-ite of the proposed $100,000,000 Page sixLooking north on Broadway from EleventhManufacturing^^^^Hi Oakland are for most pa^Bis clean and tidy as well kept homes Page eight^OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA naval base, with 30,000 population. In addition to these two cities there are four other smaller municipalities, Emeryville, Piedmont, San Leandro and Albany which together make up the Eastbay community. These seven Bies have grown together so compactly that a stranger would not know when he passed from one to the other. All seven cities are served by the same street railway system and by the same gas and gvater companies. Industries In addition to its scenic and residential advantages Oakland R a natural manufacturing center. According to the United ¡States government census itH growing faster in an industrial way than any other city in the west. Here three transcontinentaHrailroads find their western termini. From this community five other railroads and a great system of paved highways radiate. Oakland’s harbor includes 27 miles of deep-water frontage which rapidly is being improved to take carBof the expanding business. Every steamship line, both coastal and inter-coastal, with Bhips that pass through the Golden Gate, as well as many of the trans-Pacific lines, makes Oakland a port of call. Six thousand and twBty-one ships docked here in 1922, an increase m 913 over 1921. On the Oakland harbor are located, in addition to the several LWiiiWg-l wjm-ilil WIMN'' J l . VOakland’s millior^^tfär civic auditorium modern terminals, four of the largest shipMtfeling plants in the west, the^Hore Shipbuilding Co., the Union Construction Co., th&Hanlon Dry Do|H|nd Shipbuilding Co., and the Bethlehem BiipbBding CorBration. In one Bear these fouBardaftufihed 5Bhips of 47F5^Rross tonnage. OSjthe large nationally known manuj^Mdring companies Bat haBselectedHBtern locations, a majority have come to Poland. Among thefl are HBfollow^^H|^^^H|^B General Motors Co., GerHH EleBicBB, Sherwin-Williams Co., Pa^^Hfc Co., ^^Hl Lead Co., Pe® Bros. Mfg. Co., Westingh|i||| Electric and ManiBcturing Co., Proctor & Qamble, Libby, McNeill & L»y, Continental Can Co., Durant Motor Co., Shre^Bl WBat Co., American Can Co., CerBin-teed Products Corporation Btar Motor Co., Fisher Body Co., U. S. MBt and Head CorporatBi and Western Electric Co. To these large corBrations, OaklanBwas able to offer superior rail and wafer trm|5portation, a central location, ample acreagljjBdlendid hJBsing conditions, cheap hydro- electrBpower, cheap fuel oil, and what Char® Schwab has termed “the most perfect working climate in the world.” Page tenMcElroy Fcxm^» in Lakeside Park With the General iVlo^HComp^H the Star Motor Com- pany, the Durant Motor Company, the Fageol Motor Com- pany, as y^i^Hsuch allied lines as thejJ^M||Tire and Rubber Company^^^BesHp^e Company, th|^^Ber Body Company, the Hall-ScottMltor Company and the U. S. Light and Heat Corporation, OMand has become the leading automobile center of the Pacific CoastB This city will producBn excess of 130,0® cars during 1923. Climate Due to jgiclose proximity to San Franciscc^^M and the Pacific Ocean, Oakland climate that is ideal in its equability, mildness and healthfuln^^^H^Hsummer days are delightful and the nighti®l\^B cool. The wintHs are mild and pleasant with only an ocHsional frHt. Flowers bloom throughout the winter in the gardens of the?Eas^B cities. From May to October there is practically no rainfall in any part of Centra^Hifornia. In any oth^^Rte, largely devoted to agriculture,^jmticulture, viticHture and stock raising, this would mean a disastroH drought, but here it means a normal, Page e l e v e nOAKLAND, CALIFORNIA*» prosperous season. Moreover, it means ideal weather for camping, hiking and touring, and every other form of out-door pleasure and recreation. The months of rainfall in the Eastbay district are December, January, February and March. The average number of days on which rain falls each year, according to Government reports, is 70, of which 43 fall in these four months. December has an average of 10, January 14, February 9 and March 10. Bear in mind that on winter days when there is no rain it is usually bright and pleasant. The mean annual temperature in Oakland according to the United States records, is 57.1 °; the mean in July 62.3°; and the mean in January 48.8°. You will note the difference in temperature between winter and summer is but 13.5 °. Schools and Colleges The typical American, seeking a place toHve, demands a community which gives to his children full opportunity to grow up and ${j/e among intelligent, useful American citizens. He thinks of the human values and what they mean to his family. As OHland excels in natural resources fc^r business, it®$S excels in what it offers to the American family and American home. gm imnm mmsBicMroiia-BBsaKafi ,Ll?!ll!12££lgBa888tt888S8®M8888M*^^ lekiiflÎ^&^ÊÊeES^Æt.:- ■■■'•••--- : “£231 Oakland’s 53 school buildings are models of modern school architecture Page thirteenOakland has a number of very excellent hotels. The Hotel Oakland is one of the finest in the west Page fourteen The Oakland schools are the equal of the finest in the United States. The system includes every type of instruction from the kindergarten to the high school and the continuation school. A very large percent of the instructors are college graduates. Oakland has five of the finest high schools in the country; it has 11 junior high schools and 37 elementary schools. At the present time the city is engaged in a $5,000,000 building pro- gram, which when completed will add three new high schools and six new junior high schools. The Oakland schools boast of 18 sbhbol bands and 3 3 school Brchestras, as well as a graduate orchestra which is among the Ihest on the coast. The famous University of California is located in Berkeley, Rust four miles from the Oakland citHhall. A portion of the campus falls within the city lir|^|of Oakland. Jills College, the onl^tandard woman’s college west of the Mississippi, is in Oakland proper, but five milejpfrom the center of the city. In addition to these two universities, Oakland is the site of St. Mary’s ColleH, a CathHic Hhool for men, HidH number of private schocB oSelementary and college Ending for both boys andyf?irls. The UiByffisity of CaliforBjMdi^Bg« uniBHity in the United States in point of attendance, with a total enrollment in all branches of 24,959. Of this number 9,H6 are registered in the co^^Kt BerkeleJ^HHBSI^^gKI®^^ i&T Mills (Bfege has an enrollment of 522, and SBvlary’s of 402 1JUB KjiSJflfiiiiif WOn the Campus, Mi^H|bllege Libraries The leading library of the Pacific Coast, judged in number] and value^Bs books, is&Mt of the University of California. There are at^B pre^B time 49^Bo volumes on the shelves of this great UnivHsity library. The Oakland Public libf&rM with its 13 branches, has ■ 7,9* volumes, and likeUniversity library is housed in splendid strucfu^B Both of these great libraries are readily accessible to the citizens of this community. Oakland has two museums and an art gallery, and has just purchased a new museum site on thBhores of Lake Merritt, on which it proposes to construct one of the most attractive buildings in the entire city. In this neHbuilding will be housed the famous H. A. Si^Bexhibit of ABcan mammals, said to be the most complete collection in the ^Bed States. Pafl sixteenSather Gate and Campanil^^Hvfersity of California Playgrounds The Hv of Oakland maintains 51 Hilly equipped public playgrounH (municipal and school), of an average size of seven acres. Oakland^ recognized imall parts of the United Sates as Header in recreational endeavor. In addition to the^^ft ^feygrounH the city maintains a recreation center at Lake I^erritt, four picnic grounds, a municipal boat house, with canoes and launches for rent at a reasonable figure, one in-town camp and one mountain camp in the high Sierras. The municipal camp in the mountains is conducted on a cost basis and has accommodations for ^glpeople at one time. Board and lodging for an adult H $H5cBer week and for a child $6.25. Page s H e rite e nMunicipal boathouse on the Lake Merritt Lake Merritt Lake Merritt, located in Lakeside Park, is one of the most beautifiB as wçlf as one of the most unusuB recreational centers in the west, It is a 160 acre body of salt water set down in the very center of a modern, progressive city. Flanking it on all sides are wide boulevards, MMnd which* are parked areas, splendid homBand apartment houses. Each Bll thousands of wiBdiB^^^Bpt a portion of Lake Mei^Has their wintMIfeort. Apparelj^^Balizing that th|3 are in a safe haven, thB walk the banfgiof the lake like barn- yard fowls. Twice eachKgl thcBrBxl at the expense of the city. The residentB)f Oafiand are church B>ing people and support iB churches, including practical™ every denomin- ation. Living Costs Oakland igjcnown throughout California as aBty of homes. Both the residences of the rich in the magnificent hillside P a g e e i ghteen nineteen One hundred and seventy-two churches are scattered through Oakland’s business and residential sections -...------------------------------------- —............a !i......— . .. --i-----■. ....... ---------- -■ —...............-■ ■■ • ~ dPage twenty From Oakland to Sanjose on the st^^^Bou find a succession of attractive country homessections and those of the less well-to-do are alike attractive. Nearly every residence has its lawn, its garden, and its pro- fusion of flowers. Statistics show that 48% of all the people in the Eastbay district own their own homes. With an abundance of attractive sites, land values have never reached an excessive figure. Lots 5o/xioo' in good sections can be had from $600 to $ 1500, and four or five room bungalows can be built at figures ranging from $2500 to $4000. The nearness of Oakland to the great California valleys, and to the vegetable gardens and poultry farms in outlying townships puts food prices at a surprisingly low level and makes the cost of living less than in the majoriH of eastern cities of like size. The domestic gas rate is $.92 per 1000 cubic feet, with a minimum charge of $.80. The minimum charge for electricity is $.90. This figure includes the first 10 K.W.H. The next 40 K.W.H. are charged for at the rate of $.06 per K. W. H. Water bilHare computed on the basis of $.80 for the first 100 cubic feet and approximately $.25 for each additional 100 cubic feet. Country Life California, to many, means life in the country—an attractive bungalow, flowers that bloom twelve months in the year, a garden, an orchard, and perhaps^ few chickens.y OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA" There are many such homes in Alameda County and in the valleys of Contra Costa County over the hills to the east. Rural Alameda county comprises Three-fourths of the total area of the county (359,720 acres out of a total of 468,4808 acres.) It is divided into two agricultural entities by a line of low hills that run from Berkeley in the northwestern corner to Mission San Jose in the southeastern corn.r- riifw^TiM^rr^i^rTi iíüí ä>ax^ K BcKrKiM,mmn «mi».. dtà£L*¥l  U.C. BERKELEY LIBRARIES C117E34EET aatiftliia C117234229