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> United States > California > CA Counties > Alameda
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| Website | http://www.ci.piedmont.ca.us/ |
| Established | January 26, 1907 |
| Disbanded | Still Active |
| Contributor | Jake |
| Last Modified | Patrick March 14, 2005 03:53pm |
| Description | 1907-1924:
On January 7, 1907, Hugh Craig and James Ballentine filed papers with the State of California to incorporate a new city which was just 1.8 square miles in size. They called it Piedmont. The map they used for the new town was from the Piedmont Sanitary Sewer District and because the sewer lines were already underneath houses there are many homes which are now half in Piedmont and half in the City of Oakland.
An election was held on January 26, 1907 and 118 men who owned land in Piedmont voted to become a city. Some people were unhappy with the decision and another election was held in September of 1907. One-hundred fifty-five men voted then, and Piedmont became a city because of just 10 votes!
Varney Gaskill became the first mayor in the city of Piedmont, but he was only mayor for three months. In May of 1907 Hugh Craig became the second mayor of the city and is considered the father of Piedmont.
Piedmont City Hall was built in 1908. When it was first built it was just one-story high and had a tall bell tower. It was designed by Albert Farr, a famous architect. Mr. Farr designed many of the buildings in the civic center, including the Piedmont Community Church which was built in 1916 and the Exedra arch. The city also built a bridge across Oakland Avenue to make travel easier.
The city's first school was built on Bonita Avenue in 1911 on property donated by Frank C. Havens. The Egbert Beach School was built in 1913 and the city's first high school was built on a section of Piedmont Park in 1921.
Crocker Park was a gift to the city in 1916 from Wallace and Mary Alexander. They owned a large home that covered the entire block between Crocker and Sea View Avenues. Mr. Alexander was the founder of the Boy Scouts in Piedmont and also helped the city buy Piedmont Springs Park from Frank Havens.
1924-Present:
In the Roaring Twenties Piedmont was known as the "City of Millionaires" because there were more millionaires per square mile than in any city in the United States.
Piedmont became a charter city under the laws of the State of California on December 18, 1922. The charter was adopted by the voters on February 27, 1923 and can only be changed by another vote of the people.
In 1950 the Veteran's Building was built next door to City Hall on land that had been used as a small park.
By 1976, the city needed a new middle school. The school district tore down the Leander Redmon estate on Magnolia Avenue and built the current Middle School on that property. The Redmon's tea house, which had been in the back yard, was moved to Piedmont Park and placed in the exact spot where an earlier tea house had been built by Frank Havens in 1890.
In the 1980's and 90's, Piedmont restored its existing parks and created three new ones. Over $350,000 was spent to clean up Piedmont Park and build a new overlook behind the Community Hall. The city received a gift for Crocker Park, a large statue of a bear and her cubs designed by Benny Bufano. There were three new parks built, Linda Park, Dracena Park and Coaches Playfield. The newest park project is the Hampton Field Building which will be used as a pre-school and for recreation programs for Piedmont children.
Piedmont Unified School district also did major building projects at each school in Piedmont during the 1990's and rebuilt Witter Field at Piedmont High School.
As Piedmont starts a new century, there are many names from the past that are still part of everday life. Havens School is named for the man who rebuilt Piedmont Park. Blair Avenue is named for the the farmer and businessman who first settled here and Craig Avenue is named for the man who led the fight to become a city. Highland Avenue and Requa Road remember one of the first seven families to settle in our community. [From the official site] |
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