African American Women’s Clubs

Posted on February 29, 2020 by Dorothy Londagin

During the later part of the 19th Century and the beginning of the 20th Black women in Oakland established clubs and institutions to address the growing demands of the Black community.

**California State Association of Colored Women’s Clubs, Inc. brochure** – see here.

I will highlight some of them here.

Fanny Jackson Coppin Club

The Fanny Jackson Coppin Club was founded in 1899 by the Beth Eden Baptist Church members.

The Fannie Jackson Coppin Club is known as the “mother club” of California’s African American women’s club movement.

“Not failure, but low aim is the crime.“
Motto

The club was named in honor of Fannie Jackson Coppin (1837-1913), who was born a slave in Washington, D.C., and became a renowned educator.

At first, the club’s priority was to provide African American travelers who could not stay at segregated hotels with welcoming places to spend a night.

The club was involved with the creation of the Home for the Aged and Infirm Colored People in Oakland to provide care for elderly African Americans in the state of California.

Art and Industrial Club

In 1906, a branch of the Art and Industrial Club was formed and devoted itself to the arts and the “uplift of the race.”

“Deeds Not Words”
Motto

Mother’s Charity Club

Founded in 1907

“Lift as We Climb“
Motto

The Mother’s Charity Club was founded in 1907. They were dedicated to philanthropic endeavors. During its earliest years of activity, the Mother’s Charity Club fed and cared for many children and sick and needy persons.

Elmhurst Progressive Club

The Elmhurst Progressive Club was founded in 1912 to uplift humanity.

“Progressive“
Motto

Imperial Art and Literary Club

The Imperial Art and Literary of Oakland were founded in 1912. They provided charity and promoted the arts and literary work.

“Love and Truth“
Motto

Self Improvement Club

Self Improvement Club of Oakland was founded in 1916. Their goal was to improve humanity and the surrounding communities.

“He who is true to God, is true to Man”
Motto

Rhododendron Self Cultured Club of Oakland

The Rhododendron Club was formed in the early 1950s to uplift and work for the development culture of their race. They wished for their every deed to be large and strong.

“Like Ivy we Climb–Lifting as we Climb“
Motto

**Four women holding presents at the Rhododendron Club fashion show at Slim Jenkins**

Rhododendron Club fashion show contestants posing at Slim Jenkins

Fidelis Art and Culture Business Women’s Club of Oakland

The Art Social Club of Oakland

Royal 10 Society Club of Oakland

I only found this photo. I will update you if I find more.

Members of the Royal 10 Social Club attending a Hawaiian-themed luau party
Updated
African American Museum

Linden Street YWCA

Group portrait of Les Elites Industrial Club Linden Branch Y.W.C.A

In 1920, a group of African American clubwomen formed The Linden Street branch of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA).

They provided religious training, counseling services, vocational training, art classes, adult education classes, and all types of cultural events.

Located at 828 Linden Street, the branch was housed in a two-story building with four club rooms.

By 1938, the Linden Street “Y” had a membership of over 750.

In 1944 following a new national policy, the board of directors of the central Oakland YWCA integrated the Linden Street YWCA.

“to make its program available to all women and girls irrespective of race, creed, or color.“

It was renamed the West Oakland Center of the YWCA. The two-story building was razed in the early 1960s

More Info:

We Did What We Had to Do: Black Women and The Struggle for Civil Rights in Oakland, California 1900-1920
Remembering the Linden Street YWCA – OHA -Vol.33, No.3 Winter 2013
YWCA – Linden Street Y Collection – African American Museum & Library Oakland
Mother’s Charity Club 1959-60 – Program
Fannie Jackson Coppin Club – BlackPast
Fannie Jackson Coppin – Blackamericaweb
Fannie Jackson Coppin Club – Yearbook 1954-55
Woman’s Art & Industrial Club 1922 – African American Museum
Women’s Art and Industrial Club Fashion Show – 1979 – African American Museum
Origin of the Rhododendron Club – African American Museum

The End

Oakland’s First African American Cab Driver

Posted on February 23, 2020 by Dorothy Londagin

**Exhibit at the African American History Library Oakland**

Phillip Richard Springer (1874-1952) was the first black man in Oakland to own a taxicab. He was born in Barbados, in the British West Indies, and left home at age 16. At first, he operated under a jitney permit in Oakland, but he later had the license changed to a taxicab permit. By 1915, Springer’s Cab Company was well established. The Pullman Porters and West Oakland

Phillip Springer — **Phillip R. Springer – date unknown**

Phillip lived at various addresses in West Oakland.

In the 1917 directory, he is listed at 835 Union Street with chauffeur as his occupation.

In the 1925 directory, he is listed along with his wife Edna at 879 Campbell Street with a taxi cab driver as his occupation.

From 1927 until he died in 1952, he lived at 957-35th Street with his family. The 1930 census reports that he owned his home and was a taxi cab driver at his own stand.

A Family Business

Helaine Springer Head knows the taxicab business inside out. That’s because she grew up in it. Her late father, Phillip Springer, was the

“the first black man to own and operate his own taxi business – Springer Cab – in Oakland in the early 1900s”

Helene Springer Head 1975

Before Springer died in 1952, he gave his wife and daughter a crash course in running the business, as it was up to them to carry on. They ran the company out of the family home on 35th Street.

Eventually, Helaine decided to strike out independently and acquired City Cab in 1964. She started with two cabs, and by 1975 she had three.

More Info:

Cab Robbed – Oakland Tribune September 21, 1942
Fire Hydrant Broken – Oakland Tribune March 31, 1947
She’s a Big Wheel in her Cab Company- Oakland Tribune May 1975
She Wheels Around in the Cab Business – Oakland Tribune May 1975

The End

Lydia Flood Jackson (1862-1963)

Posted on February 18, 2020 by Dorothy Londagin

When Lydia Flood Jackson died at 101 in 1963, she was the oldest native of Oakland.

She was the daughter of a formerly enslaved person, the first Negro to attend an integrated Oakland public school in 1872, and became a leader of the women’s suffrage movement in 1918.

Lydia was born on June 9, 1862, at her family home in Brooklyn Township, now a part of Oakland.

She died on June 9, 1963. Services were held at the First A.M.E. Church in Oakland, California, formerly known as the Shiloh African Methodist Episcopal Church, which her parents helped found in 1858.

Negro Trail Blazers

Her father was Isaac Flood, and her mother was Elizabeth Thorn (Thorne) Scott Flood. They were among the outstanding Negro pioneers of California, according to the historical publication “Negro Trail Blazers of California.”

Her father was born into slavery in South Carolina and was freed in 1838; he traveled to California during the Gold Rush, settling in Oakland.

In 1854 her mother founded California’s first Negro School in Sacramento and was the first teacher. She founded a private school for minority groups in Alameda County in 1858 when Indians, Negroes, and Chinese were not allowed in White public schools. The school was at their home at 1334 East 15th Street in Oakland.

The Floods had a son, George, who is believed to be the first African-American child born in Alameda County. Elizabeth and Isaac Flood were among the earliest African-American families in the Oakland area and one of the most prominent and progressive.

Education

In 1871 her father, a leader of the Colored Convention, successfully fought to have Negro children admitted to public schools.

The Oakland School Board passed the following resolution:

In 1872, his daughter Lydia became the first student to attend the Swett School (later the Old Bella Vista School). Then, she attended night school at Oakland High and married John William Jackson in 1889.

Activist and Clubwoman

**Lydia Flood Jackson – undated Flood Family Papers**

Jackson was a member of the Native Daughter’s Club and the Fannie Jackson Coppin Club for forty-two years. Jackson was a leader in the California Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs. While a member of the Federation, she was on them to demand women’s suffrage. While addressing the organization’s 1918 state convention, she told her audience.

“Today we are standing on the threshold of a great era looking into futurity to the mid-day sun of Democracy”
Lydia Flood Jackson 1918

Entrepreneur and Inventor

She founded Flood Toilet Creams, a successful West Coast cosmetic business that manufactured toiletries, creams, and perfumes. (I wish I could find more information on this)

**Carolyn Carrington pins corsage onto Lydi Flood-circa 1960s- African American Museum Oakland**

Lydia Flood Jackson was honored on her 100th birthday by the City of Oakland as their “oldest living native and daughter of the first Negro school teacher in California.”

More Info:

Obituary – Oakland Tribune Jul 10, 1963
Isaac Flood Dies – Oakland Tribune Nov 1, 1892
Lydia Flood Jackson – Black Past
Elizabeth Thorn Scott Flood – Black Past
Lydia Flood Jackson – Wikipedia
Colored Conventions – California

The End

Then & Now – Oakland School Part 16

Posted on January 29, 2020 by Dorothy Londagin

In this series of posts, I hope to show Then and Now images Oakland Schools. Along with a bit of history of each school, I highlight. Some of the photos are in the form of drawings or postcards, or from the pages of history books.

Note: Piecing together the history of some of the older schools is sometimes tricky. I do this all from home and online — a work in progress for some. I have been updating my posts with new information or corrections.

Let me know of any mistakes or additions.

King Estates Junior High School

In 1956 the city of Oakland and the Board of Education (OUSD) agreed to purchase a 46-acre tract on Mountain Blvd. near the Oak Knoll for future development as a combined school and recreation area.

**Central National Savings Bank Map 1923**

They purchased the land from the heirs of Arthur Dale King a Hillsborough millionaire, who died in 1952.

Under the agreement, 19 acres of the total 46 were for the two new schools.

In June of 1958, the Board of Education approved the plans for the new King Junior High School on Fontaine Street.

**Groundbreaking Oakland Tribune Feb 1959**

The estimated cost of the school was $1,638,445. The school was designed by the firm of Confer and Wills.

Twenty-six classrooms
Gymnasium
Library
Multipurpose room
Administrative Offices
800 Students

In October of 1960, the board ok’d the name “King Junior High” for the new school in King Estates.

School Shooting

Oakland Tribune March 18, 19

In March of 1973, 15-year-old Leonard Key watched his mother die by a sniper’s bullet outside the school gym. Leonard’s mother, Mrs. Kay Key, and two sisters had just seen him play in an all-star basketball game.

Police arrested two 15-year-old boys who confessed to firing random shots onto the campus with a sawed-off shotgun and a .22-caliber pistol.

King Junior High Today

In 2005 two small highs schools opened at the campus; they are the Youth Empowerment School and East Oakland Community High School.

Now Rudsdale Continuation School and Sojourner Truth School are there.

Oakland Hills Residents want Schools Gone – East Bay Times Nov 2006

More Info:

Joint Purchase of 46-acre Tract – Oakland Tribune Apr 04, 1956
Purchasing the Land – Oakland Tribune Sept 05, 1956
Plans Ok’d for King Jr. High – Oakland Tribune June 19, 1958
Bids for King Estates Junior High – Oakland Tribune Jan 21, 1959
Named King Junior High – Oakland Tribune Oct 26, 1960
Mother of 3 Slain By Sniper – Oakland Tribune Mar 18, 1973
Mother of 3 Slain Pt 2 – Oakland Tribune Mar 18, 1972
2 Arrested in School Shooting – Oakland Tribune Mar 20, 1973
2 Arrested – Pg 2 – Oakland Tribune Mar 20, 1973

Ralph J. Bunche Elementary

No early pictures of Bunche Elementary

Named in Honor of

The school named for Ralph Johnson Bunche (1903-1971). He taught Political Science at Howard University and was the first African American to get a Ph.D. in political science from an American university. He worked with helped Martin Luther King Jr. He was the first African American to be honored with the Nobel Peace Prize. He helped form the United Nations and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President John F. Kennedy.

Bunche Visits the School

In 1966 Ralph Bunche paid a visit to the school that bears his name.

“I have been waiting to come and see you since the school was established. I’ll try not to do anything that would anything that will embarrass you.”
Ralph K. Bunche 1966
Ralph K. Bunche 1966
Ralph K. Bunche 1966

He spoke to the 450 students in the play yard of the school. He then spent about an hour shaking hands with all the children and signing autographs.

After the event, some of the children said:

“He’s real nice, I liked the way he talked,” said Claudia Mason age 10

“He’s an intelligent man,” “He’s a real fine gentleman “
said Wayne Jackson age 10

Tribute to Bunche

Ralph Bunche Day was held on November 19, 1971. The children of the school paid tribute to the man the school is named after.

Ralph Bunche died on December 9, 1971.

As good as anyone”
Shirley Coleman, 5th grader
Shirley Coleman, 5th grader
Shirley Coleman, 5th grader

Bunche School Today

Ralph J. Bunche Continuation School – 9-12

The school is located at 1240 18th Street

Ralph J. Bunche website – OUSD
Who is Ralph J. Bunche – OUSD

More Info:

School Named for Bunche – Oakland Tribune May 30, 1962
School Dedicated – Oakland Tribune Dec 13, 1963
Bunche at School that Bears his Name – Oakland Tribune Feb 12, 1966
Bunche’s Death – Oakland Tribune Dec 11, 1971
Preschoolers Learn About Black History – Oakland Tribune Dec 04, 1972

McFeely School

No early pictures of McFeely School

McFeely elementary school opened in Sept pf 1947. The school was located at the corner of Fifth and Peralta Streets.

The school was closed in the early 1960s because it was in the way of the New Post Office in West Oakland

More Info:

School is Open – Oakland Tribune Sep 14,1 947
School Named For – Oakland Tribune Jun 13,1971
Home Relocation Problem Faces City – Oakland Tribune Aug 27, 1959

Redwood Heights Elementary School

No early photos of Redwood Heights

The school was called the Laurel Annex School and was organized in May of 1935.

The name officially changed to Redwood Heights School in June of 1935.

The first school was located at 4359 Bennett Place. Avenue Terrace Park is there now.

New School and location

The Oakland Board of Education officially broke ground on the site of the new school at Mountain Blvd and 39th Avenue. The new school was the tenth building as part of the 1948 tax election.

The two-story building had 11 classrooms, a kindergarten, an auditorium, and a library. Donovan and Kerr were the architects.
4401 39th Ave, Oakland, CA 94619

**Redwood Heights Construction 1959**
**Oakland History Room Photo**

Redwood Heights Today

4401 39th Ave, Oakland, CA 94619

School is Organized – Oakland Tribune May 16, 1935
Name Change – Oakland Tribune Jun 12, 1935
Teacher in Charge – Oakland Tribune Jun 21, 1935
Ground Broken for New School –Oakland Tribune Feb 02, 1949
Formal Dedication – Oakland Tribune – Jan 19, 1950

Westlake Junior High School

No early photos

The Board of Education approved plans for the new school in February of 1927.

The plans called for a two-story steel and concrete structure at an estimated cost of $260, 000. The “Spanish type” building constructed in the form of an L and had 35 classrooms, a gymnasium, shops, and an auditorium.

Westlake Junior High was known as Lakeview Junior High.

Dedication Ceremony

The formal dedication of the school was held on March 14, 1928.

Name Change

Renaming the school became necessary to avoid conflict with Lakeview elementary school.

The students wanted the school named after Col. Charles Lindbergh. The board decided against that. Lakeview Junior High became West Lake Junior High in May of 1929

One hundred sixty-two students graduated from West Lake Junior High on June 06, 1929. “The Biggest Class Ever.”

Oakland, CA December 13, 1953 – Heralds from Westlake Junior High School opens the Christmas Pageant at the Oakland Auditorium. (Russ Reed / Oakland Tribune Photographer) (Photo by MediaNews Group/Oakland Tribune via Getty Images)

Westlake Today

2629 Harrison Street, Oakland, California 94612

Westlake Middle School website – OUSD

More Info:

Plans Approved for Lakeview. – Oakland Tribune February 02, 1927
Dedication – Oakland Tribune March 15, 1928
Lakeview School is Ready – Oakland Tribune March 25, 1928
Board Refuses School Name – Oakland Tribune May 02, 1929

The End

Wrecker Uses Sherman Tank To…

Posted on October 10, 2019 by Dorothy Londagin

Project Gateway – West Oakland

The world’s largest and fully mechanized mail handling facility designed to serve central California and the Pacific ocean area

Postmaster General – Aug 1959

It was announced that the facility would be built on a 12-block site in West Oakland bounded by Peralta, 7th, Wood Streets, and the Southern Pacific railroad yards.

The postmaster general officially named the Oakland project “Project Gateway”

Major Problems

City officials were excited that construction would begin in about one year. They expected an Oakland payroll of 750 workers and the clearing of some 20 acres of sub-standard homes for a significant redevelopment project.

Oakland Mayor Clifford E. Rishell noted that the post office project presents some significant problems, chiefly relocating 300 families (about 1000 people) in the project area.

The Oakland Redevelopment Agency was in charge of the relocation. A survey at the time determined that half of the 300 families had moderate incomes, permitting them to rent or purchase a home in other sections of the city. The other half will probably require public housing.

The job we face isn’t easy, but it isn’t impossible
Arthur Hoff – Oakland Redevelopment Agency

One of West Oakland’s most revered landmarks was lost when the New Century Recreation Center and the adjoining school property at Atlantic, Pacific, and Peralta Avenues were razed.

The project would also destroy a junkyard, a few businesses, and McFeely School, which opened in 1949.

Evictions

In a March 1960 special meeting of city and postal officials, 34 families were told they had already received eviction notices. The families lived in homes already sold to the government by Southern Pacific. Twenty-one families had already found new homes.

August 01, 1960, was when they were to begin clearing the site.

A squadron of bulldozers was set to plow into the 12-block block of buildings. Twelve parcels of the 187 total had been acquired in negotiation. Commendation orders were entered for the holdouts.

12 Blocks Cleared For the Postal Center

Sherman Tank

The postal officials were perplexed when building wrecker Aldo S. Allen submitted a low bid of $64,000 to clear the 20-acre site for Project Gateway. He was $10,000 lower than the next lowest bid and $50,000 lower than the highest bid.

“I got an idea” Allen a one time midget car racer explained.

Aldo S. Allen – 81st Ave Oakland CA

He planned to spend $2,000 on a surplus Sherman Tank of World War II vintage, a 73,000-pound dreadnaught powered by a 500 horsepower engine. The tank would be much more powerful, faster, and safer.

He was Right!

Aldo climbed into the tank in front of a row of six houses. He first practiced on a tree.

SNAP! Down went the tree.

Without pausing, he went towards the first house and bore a tunnel through it. The second story remained intact. Again, he aimed for the home. There was a roar, and the second story came down, burying the tank momentarily.

10 Minutes Flat! The time to clear the first house

It took 90 minutes to flatten and remove all six houses

Before and After

**The Daily News Texan August 16, 1960**

The post office Site is Now A Dump

1963, after five years of post office promises, the city demanded action. The site had become a 12-block dumping ground, and the city was losing $22,000 in tax dollars and $50,000 in additional school taxes. They were told that construction was set to begin in 1964. By July 1967, the building was nearly one-third complete. The belated Effects of a Long Wet Winter moved the opening date to March 1969.

More Info:

Super Post Office to be built – Oakland Tribune August 26, 1959
Mail Center Brings Problems – Oakland Tribune August 27, 1959
Displaced Families to Get Help – Oakland Tribune March 03, 1960
The US to Buy Mail Center Land – Oakland Tribune April 28, 1960
Demolition to Start – Oakland Tribune July 19, 1960
Wrecker Uses Sherman Tank – Oakland Tribune August 16, 1960
Post Office Site Now A Dump – Oakland Tribune July 15, 1963
Site Action – Oakland Tribune July 15, 1963
New Post Office Delayed by Rain – Oakland Tribune August 27, 1967

The End

Royal E. Towns – Engine Company No. 22

Posted on September 1, 2019 by Dorothy Londagin

Royal Edward Towns (February 10, 1899–July 23, 1990) was one of the first African American firefighters in Oakland. He was born in Oakland in 1899.

He joined the OFD in 1927 and was assigned to Engine Company No. 22, a segregated firehouse in West Oakland. The station is located at 3320 Magnolia Street. He helped train many other black applicants to pass the test and was a scoutmaster for a Boy Scout troop that included Sam Golden, who became the first African American fire chief in Oakland.

Royal Towns was the 11th black Oakland fireman hired in 1927. They didn’t employ the 12th for another 15 years.

Royal E. Towns (center) and his colleagues with Engine Company No. 22
of the racially segregated Oakland Fire Department. (1943)

**Royal E. Towns and his colleagues with Engine Company No. 22 of the racially segregated Oakland Fire Department. (1943)**

In 1971 there were only 35 black firefighters.

Towns became the first to be promoted in the OFD. He became a chief operator in 1941 and retired as a lieutenant in 1962.

**Royal Towns on the left with Oakland firefighters standing in front of fire engine no. 22 – Circa 1943**

Royal Towns was instrumental in helping desegregate the fire department. He helped train many other black applicants to pass the fire department test.

Personal Life

Royal Towns was born in Oakland on February 10, 1899, to William Towns and Elizabeth Towns.

Towns married Lucille Dennis on May 26, 1920. Together they had three children. The family lived in various locations within Oakland.

Royal E. Towns died July 23, 1990, and is buried in Mountain View Cemetery

More Photos

The photos are courtesy of the Royal E. Towns papers, MS 26, African American Museum and Library at Oakland, Oakland Public Library. Oakland, California. Photos at Calisphere

**3320 Magnolia Street Oakland – Then and Now**
**It is no longer a Fire Station**

**Rolling Hoses in front of Engine No 22**

**Two firefighters attaching hoses to a fire hydrant, firefighters practicing with fire hoses in the park in the background – on Peralta Street**

Firefighters holding a fire hose in the street next to
Gleason and Company building **and** **today**

**Firefighters are** holding a fire hose in the street next to Gleason and Company building.
Circa 1950s – 34th and Magnolia

**Firefighters are** holding a fire hose in the street next to Gleason and Company building.
Circa 1950s – 34th and Magnolia **and today**

**Looking down Magnolia towards 34th St**

Backyard Fence War

Posted on August 20, 2019 by Dorothy Londagin

In June 1965, the Oakland Housing Authority (OHA) began a “Beautification Program.”

Under the housing authority’s plan, fenced-in yards were to be removed and replaced with turfed areas in the following projects:

According to the tenants of the Peralta Villa housing projects in West Oakland, they first heard about the program when the group of boys from the Alameda County Central Labor Council (funded by a grant from the War on Poverty) started demolishing the backyard fences and flower gardens.

The fences were removed, Housing Authority officials say, as the first step in a program of “beautification”

The tenants were irate because some had paid the OHA for the fences and planted their gardens. No advance notice was given – the workers just started tearing everything up.

They Organize

The War on Poverty ran into a major obstacle this week – the War on Poverty”

Oakland Tribune June 30, 1965
Oakland Tribune June 30, 1965

As a part of the War on Poverty, a work-study program was funded to provide the salaries of University of California students to work with the tenants.

The students worked with the residents of Lockwood Gardens to help them develop a sense of community identity and to learn how to help themselves.

These students encouraged the tenants to form the Lockwood Improvement League.

The War on Poverty funded the program, the same people supporting the “Beautification Program” and removing their fences.

The tenants of Peralta Villas met at Cole School and formed the Peralta Improvement League. Thirty tenants volunteered to create their own “human fence” They wrote up a list of demands and began their fight to save their gardens.

Stop tearing down the remaining fences.
Rebuild the fences already taken down
Reimburse the tenants whose private property was destroyed
Consult the tenants first before doing any further work

The labor for the “Beautification Program” was provided by the Alameda County Labor Council through a grant from the War of Poverty.

Lockwood Gardens

On June 25, 1965, the OHA decided to “beautify” the projects. They started with Lockwood Gardens.

The people of Lockwood Gardens newfound sense of community identity was outraged.

Each thirty-plus units in Lockwood Gardens had a yard, and most had fences. Some had lawns, and some had shrubs and flowers.

The enclosed yards gave the tenants a sense of individuality, security, and pride.

All backyard fences would come out; the lawns, shrubs, and flowers would be dug out. A common turf area without fences would replace private yards.

They had been using my yard as adverstiment for years.”

Jim Sorenson 1137 65th Ave – Oakland Tribune
Jim Sorenson 1137 65th Ave – Oakland Tribune

They were also upset by the lack of warning. They got 200 signatures in favor of keeping the fences.

The Lockwood Gardens tenants were all for beautification but not at the expense of their backyards. One tenant was upset because he had just rebuilt his fence. Not all the tenants of the tenants took care of yards or kept their fences in repair. But they felt the OHA could work it out with those tenants.

The Protests

Beautiful Backyard – July 1965 San Francisco News-Call Bulletin newspaper photograph archive

The tenants of both Peralta Villa and Lockwood Gardens protested and managed to halt or limit the work that could be done at either of the projects.

The OHA laid out a new backyard fence policy.

“Residents must keep their backyards neat and in repair; no new fences could be installed; no satisfactory fence will be torn down now, but eventual elimination of all fenced areas can be expected.”

In August of 1965, the OHA board voted to poll each family of Campbell Village, Lockwood Gardens, and Peralta Villa if they want a fence. Everyone was to be asked, even those who lived on the 2nd floor. There was a total of 916 total units in the three projects.

The tenants were given two choices in the questions asked :

“It appears to be a lower-the-cost- maintenance program”

The Pro-Fence group leader

In July 1966, one tenant reported that all the fences had been removed, and the place looked like a dump. The lawn was dead in most areas as it wasn’t being watered.

More Info

Program Stumbles on Its Own Results – Oakland Tribune June 30, 1965
Battle of Backyard Fences on New Front – Oakland Tribune July 02, 1965
Battle of Backyard Fences – Pg 2 – Oakland Tribune July 02, 1965
Peralta Villa Folk in Fence Victory – Oakland Tribune July 04, 1965
Back Fence War Halts in Standoff – Oakland Tribune July 12, 1965
Back Fence War Halts in Standoff Pg. 2 – Oakland Tribune July 12, 1965
New Tactics Ease Backyard Fence War – Oakland Tribune July 13, 1965
Anti-Poverty War Needs Tighter Control – Oakland Tribune Aug 01, 1965
Pro-Fence Forces Get Poll on the Issue – Oakland Tribune Aug 10, 1965
Battle of the Backyard Fences Pg 1 – Oakland Tribune Sep 01, 1965
Battle of the Backyard Fences Pg 2 – Oakland Tribune Sep 01, 1965
Beautification Fencing Match – Oakland Tribune July 13, 1966

The End

Calvin Simmons

Posted on February 7, 2019 by Dorothy Londagin

A special edition of my blog in honor of Black History Month and a wonderful man.

I was lucky enough to know Clavin Simmons personally. He was the conductor of the Oakland Symphony when I worked there.

Let me back up a little bit. My mom Sarah Chambers started working at the Oakland Symphony in 1977 when I was still in high school. She began as the receptionist and worked her way up the ladder to the Director of Education.

She would sign me up during the summer to hand out flyers at lunchtime events. One of our board members would do the same with her daughter Libby Schaff was the Mayor of Oakland from 2015-2023.

I was hired in 1980 as the receptionist and worked my way up the ladder to Box Office/Marketing Assistant. We both worked for the Symphony until September 1986, when they filed for bankruptcy.

Before the Oakland Symphony

Calvin was born in San Francisco in 1950 to Henry Calvin and Mattie Pearl Simmons.

Music was a part of his life from the beginning. He learned how to play the piano from his Mother.

By age 11, he was conducting the San Francisco Boys Chorus, started by Madi Bacon, of which he had been a member.

Calvin attended Balboa High School in San Francisco, where he was a member of the orchestra.

“did tons of conducting with school orchestra.”
Madi Bacon

The Maestro Kid

He was the assistant conductor with the San Francisco Opera from 1972 to 1975, winning the Kurt Herbert Adler Award.

He remained active at the San Francisco Opera for all his adult life, supporting General Director Kurt Herbert Adler, first as a repetiteur and then as a member of the conducting staff. He made his formal debut conducting Giacomo Puccini’s La Bohème with Ileana Cotrubas. His later work on a production of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District drew national attention.

In 1979 he conducted the premiere of Menotti’s La Loca in San Diego.

He made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera, conducting Engelbert Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, returning the following year. He was on the musical staff at Glyndebourne from 1974 to 1978.

Oakland Symphony

Simmons became musical director of the Oakland Symphony Orchestra at the age of 28 in 1978. He was one of the early African-American conductors of a major orchestra.

His debut audition was in early 1978.

A Maestro Wordless – September 1978

Calvin joined the Youth Orchestra tour in July 1982

His final concerts were three performances of the Requiem of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the summer of 1982 with the Masterworks Chorale and the Midsummer Mozart Festival Orchestra.

Finale – 1982

**Calvin July 1982 Oakland Symphony Picnic – Photo by Bill Londagin**

On Sunday, August 22, 1982, I was next door helping my husband, who was repairing our neighbor’s roof. All of a sudden, my mom screams out the window that Calvin has died. Such a sad day. It took another week to find his body. It was such a loss to Oakland and the music world. He was on his way to greatness.

The_San_Francisco_Examiner_Mon__Aug_23__1982_ — **SF Examiner August 23, 1982**

Calvin was visiting friends in Upper State New York. Connery Pond was where he went a lot to unwind and regroup. While waiting for dinner, Calvin took a canoe ride out in the pond. He was by himself about 150 feet from the shore; he was a good swimmer. A woman was taking pictures of the sunset from the beach. She pointed her camera towards Calvin, and he must have noticed that, and being the ham he was, he stood up to pose. He then fell into the water.

**Philadelphia Daily News August 24, 1982**

A Final Tribute

There was a memorial service on September 07, 1982, at Grace Cathedral in San Francisco; more than 2200 people attended.

There was a memorial concert on September 20, 1982, at the Paramount Theatre.

More Info:

The End

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A Family Business

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Negro Trail Blazers

Education

Activist and Clubwoman

Entrepreneur and Inventor

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School Shooting

King Junior High Today

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Named in Honor of

Bunche Visits the School

Tribute to Bunche

Bunche School Today

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New School and location

Redwood Heights Today

No early photos

Dedication Ceremony

Name Change

Westlake Today

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Project Gateway – West Oakland

Major Problems

Evictions

12 Blocks Cleared For the Postal Center

Sherman Tank

He was Right!

Before and After

The post office Site is Now A Dump

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Personal Life

More Photos

More on Royal E. Towns

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They Organize

Lockwood Gardens

The Protests

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Before the Oakland Symphony

The Maestro Kid

Oakland Symphony

A Maestro Wordless – September 1978

Finale – 1982

A Final Tribute

More on Calvin

The End

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