In this series of posts, I hope to show Then and Now images of Oakland Schools. Along with a bit of the history of each school, I highlight.
Note: Piecing together the history of some of the older schools is sometimes tricky. I do this all at home and online — a work in progress for some. I have been updating my posts when I find something new. Let me know of any mistakes or additions.
Montera Junior High
Montera and Joaquin Miller Schools are located where Camp Dimond, owned by the Boy Scouts, once was. The camp opened in 1919 and closed in 1949 when the board of education purchased the land.
Groundbreaking
The groundbreaking ceremony was held in December 1957. The school was next to Joaquin Miller Elementary School. Speakers at the event were Peter C. Jurs, board member; Mrs. Robert Hithcock, President of the Joaquin Miller PTA; Zoe Kenton, eighth-grade student; Jim Ida, seventh-grade student; and Supt Selmer Berg. Rev Robert H. Carley led the invocation.
Malcolm D. Reynolds and Loy Chamberlain designed the school. The new school featured: Administration Offices.
Construction
Jan 1958
1958
Parking Lot – November 1958
Gymnasium
June 1958 Russ Reed Photo
Naming the School
Montera Junior High – Nov 1959
The school was temporarily called Joaquin Miller Junior High because it is adjacent to Joaquin Miller Elementary School.
As in all new Oakland Schools, the students, faculty, and community help choose the school’s name.
Recommendations to the school board from the school’s parent-facility club were as follows:
Jack London Junior High
Montera Junior High
Pineview Junior High
They were set to vote on the name at the next board meeting. Before they could vote, they received a second letter from the parent-faculty club at the school withdrawing the recommendation of Jack London Junior High.
Theparents said that.
London was not a fit person for the honor.“
Parent – Faculty
SF Chronicle – Oct 1959
A student representative said, “Montera Junior High” was the top choice for those attending the school. The area was known historically as the Montera District.
Oakland Tribune November 23, 1924
School Dedication
The school was formally dedicated as Montera Junior High on November 10, 1959
In 2011, Montera became a California Distinguished School. The woodshop is another source of school pride, having celebrated over 50 years of teaching children the arts of woodcraft. It is the only remaining woodshop in an Oakland middle school.
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.
Note: Piecing together the history of some of the older schools is sometimes tricky. I do this all at home and online — a work in progress for some. I have been updating my posts when I find something new. Let me know of any mistakes or additions.
Skyline High School
Skyline High School is located on a 45-acre (some say 35 acres) campus at the crest of the Oakland hills. The school is near the Redwood Regional Park and has a panoramic (through the trees)view of the San Francisco Bay Area on one side and Contra Costa on the other.
My School Id
Hill Area High School
Where will Oakland’s proposed new hill-area school be located”
Oakland Tribune Sep 05, 1956
Talks about a new “Hill-Area High School began in the early to mid-1950s. After weeks of field trips and meetings the possible sites for the new school were reduced from eight to three.
They finally they decided on a 31-acres site at Skyline Blvd and Fernhoff Road – No 1 above and below.
The new hill area high school costs were expected to be almost $4,000,000, with nearly $3,000,000 earmarked for site development and construction.
Oakland Tribune May 21, 1958
For 1,500 students, the plans called for fifty-four classrooms, a library, a cafeteria, a gymnasium, an auditorium, and administrative offices. The number of classrooms would be increased to 67 for 2,000 students.
The Oakland architectural firm of Warnecke and Warnecke were hired to design the new school.
Construction
The grading and excavation was complete by July of 1959 at a cost of $182,000
Montclarion 1961
Architects Warnecke and Warnecke estimated the school building would cost $3,650,600 in addition to the money already spent on the site, and development would bring the total to $4,623,301.
Some of the suggestions to cut the cost was.
Omit a $500,000 auditorium
Omit the covered walkways for a savings of $97,000
Substitute 13 portables classrooms for permanent buildings to save $266,800
Oakland Tribune Jan 25, 1959
The contract to build the Hill Area High School was awarded to Branagh and Son, at a cost of $4,140,500 for 50 classrooms.
Construction was set to begin in November of 1959
The school was set to open in the fall of 1961.
Oakland Tribune Jan 25, 1961
Loud protests that the “tentative” boundaries for the new Hill Area High School would keep low income and minority groups prompted the Board of Education to request further study on the matter in January of 1961.`
Representatives of the NAACP told the board members that keeping attendance boundaries in hill area would make the new facility a
“private prep school supported by public funds.”
The existing boundaries of the four high schools in Oakland then had lines extending to the eastern limits of the city allowed for a wide divergence of racial and economic backgrounds.
The proposed boundary for the new school stretched along the top lines of the hills would only allow for “horizontal mobility.”
David P. McCullum, president of the Oakland NAACP, stressed that “Negros would not be the only ones deprived of a chance to attend the new school but that all races in the lower economic group would be cut out.
” It is not just a color problem-it is a total problem.”
Henry J. Kaiser Jr was the chairman of PACE (Oakland’s Public Advisory Committee on Education), and he wrote in a letter to the board of education that.
“This is the time when all of us-the Negro people and the white people-should face common problems together and work them out to our mutual satisfaction, to the end that the community is strengthened and our school children are given the maximum opportunities for development.”
McCullum said:
Skyline boundaries don’t just shut out Negroes, but create general “economic” segregation which also affects many white people.
The new attendance boundaries brought charges of gerrymandering.
The Segregation unintentional School Official Decries”
April 03, 1962
But today there are many Negro children in junior highs which feed into Skyline High School”
Selmer Berg Apr 1962
The discussion on Skyline’s borders went on for a few more years. In 1964 an ‘Open” enrollment plan was proposed, and eventually, it was accepted.
Oakland Tribune Feb 26, 1961
The new boundary did the best job of following present junior high attendance lines, and in giving relief to Castlemont, Fremont, Oakland High and Technical High.
The Name Skyline Wins!
In January of 1961, Dr. George C. Bliss was appointed the first principal of Skyline. Dr. Bliss had with the Oakland schools for 36 years most recently as the principal of Technical High School.
School board members received suggestions that the new Hill Area High school be named Sequoia or Skyline High.
Montclarion 1961
In February of 1961, Oakland’s newest high school had an official name.
The board voted at the regular meeting to call the $4.5 million school “Skyline High School”.
Athletic Shakeup
To fill Skyline, they planned on taking the following students from:
700 from Oakland
400 from Fremont
200 from Castlemont
125 from Technical
Seniors could stay at their present school and graduate with their class, and junior within the new boundaries also had that choice. Sophomores had no choice. They must go to Skyline.
This meant that some of the star athletes would be leaving their school for Skyline.
Oakland’s starting basketball guard and the best high jumper in track and field were bound for Skyline.
Oakland High was set to lose Paul Berger, their coach of nine years.
Ben Francis was the sophomore starting basketball guard at Oakland High, who must switch to Skyline. Others were Craig Breschi,Glen Fuller, Jim Ida, and Ed Huddleson.
Oakland Tribune Nov 03, 1962
Ben Haywood Oakland’s best high jumper was bound for Skyline.
JUNIOR BEN HAYWOOD WIND FOUR EVENTS
Oakland Tribune Mar 03, 1962
It was announced in April of 1961 that no varsity football would be played the first year at Skyline, by principal Dr. George Bliss.
“Football depends a great deal on size and weight.” the principal said, ” and we’ll be outnumbered two and three to one in seniors by the other schools.”
Skyline High circa 1963
Dedication
Sky’s the limit
All we have to do is develop the finest school that’s possible-one that everybody can look up to”
Dr. George Bliss – Aug 1961
The formal dedication for the school was held in December of 1961. The ceremony was held in the auditorium, with music provided by the Skyline Concert Band and Choir.
Oakland Tribune Dec 04, 1961
The formal presentation was made by Selmer Berg the Sup. of the Schools with Arch W. Host and Leroy D. Smith accepting on behalf of the students and faculty.
In a surprise feature to the program the auditorium was named the Selmer H. Berg Hall in his hoor.
The school newspaper is the Skyline Oracle and the yearbook is the Olympian. These publications have existed since the early decades of Skyline High history. The participants of each publication are involved by taking the offered courses. The Skyline Oracle has won numerous honors over the years for the quality of its publication.
Skyline Mascot
Arson Fire
From Chris Treadway
In January of 1973, an ex-student of Skyline who at the time was AWOL from Fort Ord broke into the 20 Building in search of food or money. He said he threw a lighted match into a can of cleaning fluid. He said he tried to put the fire out but fled and pulled the fire alarm. When the fire department responded, they were unable to find it. Neighbors later saw the flames and called the fire department by this time the 20 Building was gone.
From the Skyline Yearbook
After leaving Skyline, he broke into a church down the hill and was arrested by the police; he had set off the silent alarm. While in police custody, he confessed to starting a fire at Skyline.
I hope to show Then and Now images of Oakland Schools in this series of posts on Oakland Schools. Along with a bit of the history of each school. Some photos are in the form of drawings, 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 at home and online — a work in progress for some. I have been updating my posts when I find something new. Let me know of any mistakes or additions.
Dag Hammarskjöld School
Sorry I wasn’t able to find any pictures of the school. Let me know if you have any.
The new Columbia Gardens school on Empire Road was a temporary school established in 1961 as a “bonus” project from the 1956 bond issue.
The school was officially named Dag hammarskjöld School after the late secretary-general of the United Nations in October of 1961.
Dedication
The school was dedicated in March of 1962.
Oakland Tribune Mar 21, 1962
The school is now a middle school called Hammarskjold (Dag) Opportunity and is located at 9655 Empire Road
$40 Million School Program Ends – Oakland Tribune Feb 02, 1964
Lincoln Elementary School
Lincoln Elementary School is one of the oldest schools in the Oakland Unified School District. The school had several incarnations before becoming Lincoln Elementary School.
Lincoln School’s history goes back to 1865 when the Board of Education established Primary School No. 2, “the Alice Street School,” at Alice and 6th Streets.
The school was moved to Harrison Street and renamed Harrison Primary.
The lot for the first school cost $875, and the two-room school cost $1,324. There were 60 students registered that first year.
Lincoln School in 1887
In 1872 (1878), Lincoln Grammar School was built on its site at Alice and 10th Streets. They paid $7,791 for the land, and the building, complete with “modern speaking tubes for communication,” cost $20,000.
Lincoln School in 1898
1906 Earthquake
Drawing of the New Lincoln School
The 1906 Earthquake interrupted the construction of a new school building with 22 classrooms that replaced the school from 1872. New plans were drawn to make an earthquake-proof structure. There were many delays, but the school was finally open in the fall of 1909.
Oakland Tribune Aug 31, 1907
New Lincoln School ended up costing between $150,000-$175,000.
Lincoln School offered the first manual training and homemaking classes in the city. During the flu epidemic of 1918, meals for prepared for and served to 200 daily.
New School
Preliminary plans for a new two-story concrete building were authorized in October 1957. The cost was estimated at $535 000.
The 1906 building was demolished in 1961 due to seismic safety concerns.
Oakland Tribune October 06, 1959
A new building was erected in 1962. The cost of the building was $617,000 and had 16 classrooms, offices, an auditorium, a library, and a kindergarten.
A bronze plaque of the Gettysburg Address was presented to the school.
Oakland Tribune Apr 18, 1961
The school grew and used portable classrooms to accommodate the new students.
Lincoln Today
The school is at 225 11th St. in Oakland.
The school has a long history of serving families in the Oakland Chinatown neighborhood and children from other parts of Oakland. Today, the majority of the children at Lincoln come from immigrant families across the globe. To learn more about the history of Lincoln Elementary, please visit the Oakland Chinatown Oral History Project.
Lincoln Today
In 2004 the new annex building was built to replace eleven portable buildings.
Lincoln’s alums include famous Oaklanders: Raymond Eng (first Chinese-American elected to Oakland’s city council), James Yim Lee (author and student of Bruce Lee), and Benjamin Fong-Torres (famous rock journalist and author).
Distinguished School
2006: Lincoln Elementary wins a Title 1 Academic Achievement Award
2007: Lincoln Elementary wins a Title 1 Academic Achievement Award
2008: Lincoln Elementary is named a California Distinguished School and wins a Title 1 Academic Achievement Award
2009: Lincoln Elementary wins a Title 1 Academic Achievement Award
2010: Lincoln Elementary wins a Title 1 Academic Achievement Award and is named a National Blue Ribbon School
2011: Lincoln Elementary wins a Title 1 Academic Achievement Award
2012: Lincoln Elementary wins a Title 1 Academic Achievement Award
2019: Today, Lincoln Elementary serves over 700 TK-5 students.
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.
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.
Colored Directory 1917
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.
Oakland Tribune June 26, 1959
California Club Journal 1973
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
Colored Directory 1917
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.
Colored Directory 1917
1959-60
Elmhurst Progressive Club
The Elmhurst Progressive Club was founded in 1912 to uplift humanity.
“Progressive“
Motto
Colored Directory 1917
Oakland Tribune 1914
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
Colored Directory 1917
Oakland Tribune 1931
California Club Journal 1973
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
Colored Directory 1917
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
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 R. Springer – date unknown
Phillip lived at various addresses in West Oakland.
1916
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.
The Springer Home from 1927-at least 1952 957- 35th Street – Google Maps
Oakland Tribune 1952
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.
Oakland Tribune
Eventually, Helaine decided to strike out independently and acquired City Cab in 1964. She started with two cabs, and by 1975 she had three.
When Lydia Flood Jackson died at 101 in 1963, she was the oldest native of Oakland.
Sacramento Bee June 11, 1963
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.
Oakland Tribune July 10, 1963
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.
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:
Oakland Tribune July 10, 1963
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”
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
Oakland Tribune June 1962
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.”
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 at home and online — some are a work in progress. I have been updating my posts when I find something new. Let me know of any mistakes or additions.
Bella Vista Elementary School
The original Bella Vista Annex 2410 -10th Avenue
“Bella Vista was a name once given to a two-teacher school of the primary standing.’ This school will become an annex of the new “Bella Vista School.”
In 1924 the Bella Vista School moved to the “Old” Intermediate School No. 1 at 1930 12th Avenue.
From the Views Oakland
The Old Bella Vista school was located at 13th Avenue and East 19th Street. The building that was being torn down in 1951 traced its lineage back to 1863 when the first school on the site was built by the Brooklyn school district. When the Brooklyn school was annexed by the Oakland system, the school became the Franklin school formally but was known by the residents as the East Oakland school. Later it was renamed the A.W. Swett School (see Then & Now Oakland Schools Part 2)
Showing 1906 Earthquake Damage
The building in the above clipping was built in 1892. It was described as a “well-planned building of nine-rooms.” The building cost $52,952 and was designed by Howard Burns. In the 1912 Swett School was renamed the Intermediate School Number One, and 12 years later, in 1924, it became the Bella Vista School, and the name is held at the time it was condemned in 1934.
After the condemnation, only part of the building was in use until the new school was built in 1951.
New School and Location
Oakland Tribune
The new school building is located on East 28th Street between 10th and 11th Avenues a few blocks from the old site.
Oakland Tribune 1949
In October of 1949, construction began on the new $538,213 Bella Vista School.
Reynolds and Chamberlain designed the building.
The new building has:
17 Classrooms
A kindergarten
Cafeteria
Auditorium
Built for a capacity of 630 and is a two-story structure of concrete and steel.
Glenview started as McChesney Annex School and was located at 13th Avenue and East 38th Avenue.
In 1924 the board approved a new school on a new site in the upper part of the district.
Oakland Tribune July 1927
The laying of the cornerstone was in January of 1927. The two-story mission-style building was ready in April of 1927.
Eleven Classrooms
Assembly Hall
Administration Offices
Locker-RoomsThe McChesney Annex name was changed to Glenview ElementarySchool in October of 1927.
Glenview Elementary school was formally dedicated in a ceremony with the Native Sons of California in November of 1927. The school cost about $110,000 and was designed by architects Williams & Wastell
Glenview School in 193 From the Brenkman Family
In 1938 the students were moved to portables while the main school building was reconstructed.
Oakland Tribune Aug 29, 1938
The school was ready for occupation in March of 1939.
Glenview Class of 1938 From the Brenkman Family
Glenview Baseball Team 1941 From the Brenkman Family
Glenview Today:
The school is located at 4215 La Cresta Avenue
New Campus: August 2020
New Campus
The new classroom building will also feature:
New Multipurpose room with a new stage
Storage under the step for chairs
Folding cafeteria tables
Striping for basketball for indoor physical Education
Modern and efficient plumbing, electric HVAC, and WiFi systems
Students at Glenview Elementary are currently being housed at the Santa Fe school site. At the same time, their new state-of-the-art facility is being built at its permanent location (4215 La Cresta Avenue) in the Glenview neighborhood.
Harbor Homes School was located in the Harbor Homes Housing Project. Harbor Homes Housing Project was a temporary housing project built by the federal government in 1943 during WWII.
When the war ended, the temporary housing remained. The board of Education decided there was a need for a temporary school for the children living there.
Oakland Tribune Nov 18, 1947
A school was constructed for $85,000, and 266 students enrolled for classes on Mar 9, 1948. In the beginning, the ten portables were heated by a pot-bellied coal-burning stove.
Oakland Tribune Mar 8, 1948
In 1951Benjamin Hargrave was the first-ever African American principal of an Oakland Public school.
Oakland Tribune Feb 8, 1954
The school reached its peak enrollment in February of 1961 with 456 students. Over 4000 students passed through its doors in the 15 years it was opened.
Oakland Tribune Dec 29, 1960
Oakland Tribune February 8, 1963
The final day was Friday, February 8th, 1963. Mrs. Lillian Clancy held a class with just five students; Stanley Watts, 11; Earl Watts, 10; Steven Watts, 9; Lee Jones, 10; and Jackie Jones, 6. Charles Cline was the Principal
Oakland Tribune Feb 8, 1963
By June of 1963, all of the Harbor Homes buildings were gone, including the school.
In February of 1905, F.H. Danke’s bid of $3,100 for laying the cement foundation of the new Washington School was accepted by the board of Education.
Awards Contracts for Work
The Board of Education awarded contracts for the building of the Washington School to a variety of bidders. The list is as follows.
Brick and Stone Work
P.J.Walker
$20,799
Structural Steel Work
Judson Manufacturing
$5,551
Fire Proofing
Roebling Const.
$8,845
Galvanized Iron/Roof
Pacific Ref. Roofing Co.
$794
Plaster Work
William Mehady
$3,681
Tile Work
Columbus Marble Co.
$369.94
Plumbing
Ingram Hardware Co.
$1,507
Carpentry
H.E. Brown & Co.
$15,821
Painting
W.H.Blake
$1,913
They started building the school on Aug 31, 1905.
Before 1906
The new school was a ten-room two-story building, fire-proof throughout, constructed of red brick and terra cotta. The building was designed so that later additions can be made at either end, and when it was completed, it was to contain twenty-two class-rooms.
1906 Earthquake
The school still under construction sustained considerable damage in the 1906 earthquake.
In June of 1906, the school board reported they needed $100,000 to repair the damage and make the school earthquake-proof.
Judson Construction Company was re-awarded the contract to rebuild the ironwork and E.J. Walker for the brickwork.
In April of 1908, it was reported that the school would be ready in August.
Oakland Tribune August 1908
In 1927 a new $45,000 assembly hall was built.
Principal C.E. Hudspeth
C.E. Hudspeth was the principal of the school from 1905 until his retirement in 1942.
CE Hudspeth 1909
For recognition of his service, the auditorium was named Hudspeth Hall.
The Washington School Alumni Association was formed in 1939. They held annual get-togethers to discuss the old days.
Oakland Tribune 1951
Oakland Tribune Oct 16, 1963Oakland Tribune 1913
The school after the new additions in 1913
Circa 1913
New School
Oakland Tribune 1951
A new two-story reinforced concrete structure designed by William E. Schirmer was built in 1952, costing $634,000.
Fourteen Classrooms
Kindergarten
Cafeteria
Auditorium
Library
Oakland Tribune Dec 1953
Washington School Today – OUSD Photo
The school is located at 581 61st Street, Oakland, CA.
The school is called Kaiser-Sankofa.
Kaiser and Sankofa are two Oakland elementary schools that will be merging together into one school on the Sankofa campus starting in August 2020. To learn more about the two existing schools, you can visit the following sites.
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.
Oakland Tribune Jun 1958
Oakland Tribune Jun 1958
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.
Oakland Tribune Sept 06, 1960
School Shooting
Oakland Tribune March 18, 19
Oakland Tribune March 1973
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
Google Maps
Google Maps
OUSD Photo
Google Maps
OUSD Photo
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.
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.
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.
Location of the first School
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
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.
Oakland Tribune 1928
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 Tribune June 1928
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)
I plan to show Then and Now images of Oakland Schools in this series of posts. Along with a bit of the history of each school, I highlight. Some 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 can sometimes take time and effort. I do this all at home and online — a work in progress for some. I have been updating my posts when I find something new. Let me know of any mistakes or additions.
I didn’t have much luck with this group of schools. I figured I better share it now, as I was spending too much time on it.
Laurel Elementary School
Laurel School Photo By Cheney Photo Advertisingcirca 1915
The Laurel School opened in February 1910. The school was a part of the Allendale School district.
Laurel School – 1937
Unique School
Oakland Tribune August 26, 1928
New School Building
Oakland Tribune October 31, 1957
In 1959 the wooden three-story school building was demolished to make room for a new school building.
Oakland Tribune October 30, 1958
The new school was the building on the bottom right side. Google Maps
School Bell
For almost 50 years, the ringing of the bell in the wooden three-story building played an essential part in the neighborhood around the school.
The area residents were determined to save the bell as a local shrine. It was the last public school bell used in the city.
The bell is mounted and on display in the hallway by school offices.
Sobrante Park Junior High, as it was first called, opened on February 01, 1960, and was the 27th project to be completed, paid for money from the 1958 bond issue.
The $1,425,525 school would eventually house 900 students. The school s campus is 14 acres and has the following. The school was designed by Mitchel Van Bourg & Associates.
Eight General classrooms
Two Science Rooms
Two homemaking rooms
Two arts & crafts rooms
Two music rooms
Three shops
Two special ed rooms
a library
a gymnasium
a multipurpose room
offices
In May of 1960, the Board of Education approved James Madison Junior high school as the permanent name of the new Sobrante Park Junior High.
Oakland Tribune Wed June 15, 1960
Oakland Tribune 1960
The plaque on the school
Madison Today
Madison Today – OUSD
400 Capistrano Drive, Oakland, CA 94603
Today it is called Madison Park Academy of Engineering and Graphic Design. It has approximately 800 students in grades 6-12.
Madison Park Business & Art AcademyCampus Expansion
The new 30,464-square-foot classroom building will feature:
Fourteen classrooms equipped with modern classroom furniture
Two science laboratories
Four student restrooms will feature low water flow fixtures
Six administrative offices and increased staff workspace, including a break room, conference room, workroom, and staff restrooms
Exterior assembly area for student activities
Renovation of kitchen shared by MPA and James Madison Middle School
In 1956 a new school was proposed for the site on El Paseo drive that a group of portable buildings occupied.
Oakland Tribune July 05, 1956
The new school was designed by Ralph N. Kerr and Robert E. Riggs.
Thirteen general classrooms
Special Ed classroom
A kindergarten
A library
A multipurpose room
Offices
Sobrante Park Today
The school is located at 470 El Paseo Drive
Today the school is called Madison Park Academy (MPA Primary). MPA Primary serves students in grades TK-5. Our vision at MPA Primary is to educate, challenge, and nurture our students to succeed in secondary school and beyond.
Wow, this school’s history was hard to put together.
Stonehurst School opened in 1915 as one portable school.
The citizens of the Elmhurst and Stonehurst districts attended a school board meeting in August of 1915. They demanded each area get a portable school, one north and the other south of the Southern Pacific and Western Pacific tracks.
“We have working men down in South Elmhurst, workmen have children!”
JA Halpruner August 1915
The Stonehurst people based their claim on growth, and the Elmhurst people based their claims on more children.
“The rich people in Stonehurst don’t have any.”
August 1915
Small or Not!
“Stonehurst is a small insignificant burg, but we have a big district and many children,” continued Sherwood. At the time, there were 78 students and 89 not yet in school in South Elmhurst and only 41 Stonehurst. The meeting was adjourned!
The South Elmhurst school was located on Edes and Douglass Avenues.
Oakland Tribune April 28, 1916
New School
Oakland Tribune Dec 25,1917
In 1916 it was reported in the “School Building Report” that they intended to purchase another site for a new Stonehurst school building to replace the portable one. The district was leasing the land the school was on.
Demand
After demanding a new school as promised in 1916, the residents were guaranteed by the school board the first money that was received from selling school bonds
“shall be used in the construction of the Stonehurst school.”
Oakland Tribune 1921
Stonehurst School in 1926 – showing the 1922 school building with a proposed addition Oakland Tribune November 07, 1926
Work began on the new school in late May of 1921. The new school consisted of eight classrooms and an assembly hall for about $50,000. An addition was added to the school in 1927, costing $60,000.
Grocery Store.
Oakland Tribune October 05, 1926
“The scene in the Stonehurst School grocery, where second- grade pupils are learning how to make play dollars go far.”
Unsafe School
In 1972 a $1.2 million project to replace the 50-year-old Stonehurst school building because it is an earthquake hazard was approved by the Board of Education.
Built before 1933, when California’s Field Act established new construction standards for earthquake safety, the building was surrounded by a cluster of 29 portables -10 were built before 1933. The school was built to house 380 students and had 973 enrolled in 1972.
Ratcliff, Slama, and Cadwalader architects designed the new $1.2 million school.
No Name Change
At different times, Madison Junior High and Stonehurst requested their school be renamed for Dr. Marcus A. Foster. They were turned down.
Stonehurst Today
10315 E Street, Oakland, CA, 94603
Fred T. Korematsu Discovery Academy is a public community K-5 elementary school in East Oakland with an integrated focus on academics, youth development, family support, health, and social services. KDA website –OUSD
On November 07, 1928, the new $116,000 Whittier School was dedicated. The first principal was R.S. Wheeler.
Oakland Tribune November 07, 1928
The school was named after John Greenleaf Whittier, an American Quaker poet, and advocate of the abolition of slavery in the United States.
In 1953 Whittier was closed after being declared an earthquake hazard.
The school reopened in 1956 after a $376,722 reconstruction project. Eleven thousand square feet of added space in the basement was converted into a cafeteria and a special education classroom.
Oakland Tribune July 06, 1956
Whittier School Today
Whittier school closed in 2012. It reopened as Greenleaf Elementary school in
I hope to show Then and Now images of Oakland Schools in this series of posts. Along with a bit of the history of each school, I highlight. Some 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 at home and online — a work in progress for some. I have been updating my posts when I find something new. Let me know of any mistakes or additions.
I wasn’t able to locate pictures of Sheffield School. I am hoping someone might have some. The same goes for Burbank, although I think the school looks pretty much the same now as it was built in 1950.
Update January 17, 2020
Burbank School
In 1928 plans for the new Burbank School on 64th Avenue in East Oakland were approved. The new six-room brick structure was to cost $60,000 and house 270 students.
The school is named after Luther Burbank, a botanist and horticulturist who made his home in Northern California.
Oakland Tribune Dec 8, 1928
Oakland Tribune Dec 28, 1928
New School
In 1948 plans for a new school and the reconstruction of the old school, the building was approved. They added an auditorium and a couple more classrooms. Hudspeth and Cerruti were the architects.
Oakland Tribune November 16, 1950
The new $297,777 Luther Burbank Elementary School was dedicated on November 15, 1950. The building is a one-story and had a capacity of 315 students.
Oakland Tribune Nov 16, 1950
School Song
High Upon a hill near home, there’s a school my very, very own Its name is Burbank Elementary, and of all the schools in Oakland, It’s the only one for me Burbank School, where we study hard each day Burbank School, where we have some fun and play Burbank School, you’re the best in every way So we give three cheers for Burbank School Hurray, Hurray, Hurray!
Burbank Today
Burbank Today – OUSD
Burbank Today – OUSD
Burbank was closed by the Oakland Unified School District in 2004.
Burbank is a special place in OUSD that supports infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with special needs through exemplary special education programming as well as related services
In 1923 a new one-room school was built on Sunkist Drive; the school was called Columbia Park (Columbian Park). Susie Thompson was the custodian of the school for three years. She lived next door to the school at 6868 Sunkist.
Oakland Tribune Aug 18, 1925
In the obituary of Susie Thompson, it is reported that a wind storm destroyed the first school, which was replaced by a new building in 1925.
New School
In September of 1948, they broke ground for the new Burckhalter School.
Oakland Tribune Sep 16, 1948
Burckhalter Today
Burckhalter Today – OUSD photo
Burckhalter Today – OUSD photo
Burckhalter Today – OUSD photo
More Info:
The school is located at 3994 Burckhalter Avenue, Oakland, CA, 94605
Plans were approved for the new Redwood Road Elementary School at 5000 Redwood Road. E. Geoffrey Bangswas the architect. The site included a field for the Oakland Recreation Department.
Oakland Tribune Nov 18, 1959
12 Classrooms
Administration Offices
Library
Multipurpose Room
The new school opened in 1960. The name was changed to honor Carl B Munck, who was the president of the school board (five times), was president of the California School Board, and was the president of the National School Boards Association in 1958.
Oakland Tribune Apr 1962
On a rare snow day in 1962, icicles formed on the shrubs after a sprinkler was left on.
Oakland Tribune Jan 22, 1962
In 1962 five local Girl Scout troops they donated a Colorado blue spruce tree to the school in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Girl Scouts.
Oakland Tribune Mar 27, 1962
Bus Service
In 1965 students were able to ride the bus to school. The bus made six to seven trips daily.
Oakland Tribune Sep 14, 1966
In 1966 without warning, the service was ended at the beginning of the school year as part of the Oakland School Board’s effort to make ends meet. Parents were concerned with the safety of children who couldn’t get a ride to school.
The young fourth-grader walks about a mile to school every day, up a steep and winding Redwood Road.
The Krause Avenue School (Webster Annex) was formally dedicated in November 1928.
Oakland Tribune Jul 31, 1928
The “Krause Avenue School” before being demolished to make room for the new school in 1956.
Oakland Tribune February 04, 1956
In March of 1929, the Oakland Board of Education changed the name of the Webster Annex school to Edwin Markham School in honor of the widely known California poet and educator. Edwin Markin was principal of the Tompkins School from 1891-1899
New School
Oakland Tribune Oct 14, 1949
In 1949 a new $450,000 school building with ten classrooms, an auditorium, and a kindergarten was dedicated. The building has a capacity of 385 students and was designed by Edward T. Foulkes.
Note:I have not been able to locate any pictures of the school
Oakland Tribune March 1950
The Sheffield Village School opened in March 1950. The four-classroom building was designed by C.A. Whitten, Dir. of Architecture for the Oakland Public Schools. The school cost $40 300.
The school closed in 1964, and the students were transferred to the San Leandro School District. The site is now used as a park and the Sheffield Recreation Center.
