When Walter was attending school, he lived with his mother and stepfather, George W. Logan. They lived on a farm alongside Lake Temescal, where Logan was the caretaker for the filtering plant that supplied Oakland's drinking water.
Hays School District
In March of 1886, the Board of Supervisors created a new school district. That took from portions of the Piedmont, Peralta, and Fruitvale districts and representing about 44 children.