Alameda County courthouse is a striking example of Moderne Architecture. It consists of a large base filling a city block, a setback tower, two further stories of jail set farther back and a hipped roof with observation cupola at the… read more
The former main entrance on the east side of the Alameda County Courthouse leads to an elegant lobby flanked by stairways and two large murals made of marble, backed with gold and silver leaf. The murals, which measure 10… read more
Arroyo Viejo Recreation Center/Park was developed between 1936 and 1939 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA), working with the Oakland Recreation Department. The WPA funded the project for around $60,000 in 1935 (Chronicle 1935). The 16 acre site on Arroyo… read more
In 1937, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built an extension of the sanitary sewer up Broadway Terrace from Harbord Drive to Sheridan Road (just below the brow of the hills near Lake Temescal). (Oakland Tribune 1937) The current state of… read more
The original Caldecott Tunnel was built with the aid of the Public Works Administration (PWA). Out of a total cost of $4 million, the PWA provided $1.1 million, the state $700,000 and the highway district sold $2.3 million in bonds,… read more
The original two-bore Caldecott Tunnel was built with the aid of the Public Works Administration (PWA). Out of a total cost of $4 million, the PWA provided $1.1 million, the state $700,000 and the highway district $2.3 million in bonds,… read more
Anthony Chabot Elementary School was originally built as the Claremont Annex School in 1927, but it was renamed in 1930 for Anthony Chabot, an early settler in Oakland who built the first city water works by damming nearby Temescal Creek…. read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) developed the Davie Tennis Stadium in 1936-37 with an allocation of $65,000. WPA relief workers built five tennis courts, with lights for night play and bleachers for viewing, plus a community center in rustic style… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the impressive Recreation Area in Dimond Park at the foot of the Sausal Creek canyon in East Oakland in 1936. In late 1935, the WPA approved $38,000 in grants for this project out of… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) prepared the way for Dimond Park in 1936, in coordination with the Oakland Parks Department. The relief workers cleared trees and brush from the steep Sausal Creek Canyon before constructing the Recreation Area, reworking the… read more
In 1939-1940, the Work Projects Administration (WPA) channelized Sausal Creek as part of creating Dimond Park. The work consisted of building concrete walls to stop erosion, installing grade control step-downs, and putting culverts to let roads pass over the creek…. read more
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) set up five camps in the East Bay hills, starting in 1933-34 and carrying on until 1942. From those camps, the “CCC boys” set out into the newly-created East Bay regional parks to do a… read more
New Deal work relief and conservation crews cleared hundreds of acres of trees and brush and planted hundreds of thousands of trees and shrubs in three of the original units of the East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD): Tilden, Temescal,… read more
The East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) was formed in 1934 and acquired land for parks from the East Bay Municipal Water District in 1936. The first parks were Tilden, Sibley, Temescal and Redwood in the East Bay Hills behind… read more
The East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) was formed in 1934 and acquired land for parks from the East Bay Municipal Water District in 1936. The first parks were Tilden, Sibley, Temescal and Redwood in the East Bay Hills behind… read more
The East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) was formed in 1934 and acquired land for parks from the East Bay Municipal Water District. The first parks were Tilden, Sibley, Temescal and Redwood in the East Bay Hills behind Berkeley and… read more
In 1942, the Oakland Recreation Department dedicated the newly renovated Recreation House at Park Boulevard and Newton Street – now the Recreation Center at Francis Marion Smith Park – which was completely remodeled with the help of the Works Progress… read more
Oakland’s Fremont High School was destroyed by arson in 1930 and rebuilt in 1931. A new gymnasium for the school was financed with a 45% Public Works Administration (PWA) grant in 1938 and completed in 1939. The total cost was $192,000…. read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) did painting and reconditioning work on the former Oakland Civic Auditorium c. 1936. (Further confirmation is needed) Kaiser Convention Center is a city-owned, multi-purpose arena that included a 5,550-seat arena, a large theater, and a… read more
The High Street bridge crosses the Oakland Estuary to link up the cities of Oakland and Alameda near the south end of the later. Alameda was originally a peninsula connected to Oakland, but a cut was made to extend the… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) constructed a central clinic building in the Highland Hospital in Oakland in 1935 or 1936. The exact location and design of that building are unknown. There is no evidence that the WPA clinic building is… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) built the club house at the Lake Chabot Municipal Golf Course in 1939-40, in conjunction with the City of Oakland Parks Department. The Mission Revival style building is still intact, including most of the interior…. read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) improved and enlarged every hole at the Lake Chabot Municipal Golf Course, in conjunction with the City of Oakland Parks Department. The WPA workers also construction a two level parking area with stone walls. It is… read more
A photograph in the National Archives indicates that the Works Progress Administration (WPA) built a boat dock on Lake Merritt, which appears to be at what is now the Lake Merritt Chalet, a bar and restaurant. Evidently, the dock has… read more
Melrose Leadership Academy, a public school in the Oakland Unified School District, occupies the former Sherman Elementary School building – named for Margaret Sherman, a teacher and principal in the Oakland school system. Melrose Academy is a K-8 dual language immersion… read more
The seven-acre Montclair Park in Oakland was built with the aid of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in 1938-39. This gem of a park lies just north of Montclair Village in the Oakland hills and below Montclair Elementary School. The… read more
The Morcom Amphitheater of Roses – originally known as the Municipal Rose Garden – is one of the grandest city rose gardens in the country. It began as a project of the Oakland Businessmen’s Garden Club in 1930 and the… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) modernized and expanded the administration building at the original Oakland Municipal Airport (now the North Field of Oakland International Airport). The project was sponsored by the Port of Oakland and cost $70,000. The work added… read more
New Deal agencies did a variety of work on the five hangars at the Oakland Municipal Airport (now the North Field of the Oakland International Airport) and later built a new hangar for the Naval Reserve Air Base at the… read more
The Works Projects Administration (WPA) built the first hanger, runway and road for the Navy Reserve Air Base at the Oakland Municipal Airport (now the North Field of the Oakland International Airport). Then, in 1940 the WPA authorized $237,000 for… read more
New Deal agencies were called upon several times to expand the runways at the growing Oakland Municipal Airport (now the North Field of the Oakland International Airport). In the early 1930s, this involved bringing in quarried stone for fill to… read more
In 1936, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) installed a fire-fighting water supply system and laid drainage tile under the Oakland Municipal Airport (now the North Field of the Oakland International Airport). The drainage system covered 3.6 million square feet and… read more
A WPA project involved “Improving the Exposition Building”, WPA Project No. 65-3-1779, Approval date 10-23-35, $5,673 The Oakland Exposition Building was a hall [across from] the Kaiser Convention Center. The California Garden Show was held there, as well as horse… read more
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) made improvements to the Oakland city zoo in 1935-36 when it was located in Sequoia Park (now Joaquin Miller Park). In 1939, the zoo relocated to its present site in Durant Park in the East… read more
The Park Street Bridge across the Oakland Estuary was built to connect the cities of Alameda and Oakland. The Park Street approach is on the Alameda side; from Oakland the approach is from 29th Street. The bridge was funded by… read more
The old Piedmont Elementary School burned on July 24, 1938. Federal aid was sought for building a new school, which was dedicated April 12, 1941. This Art Deco school building is complete with auditorium, library, kindergarten classroom, kitchen, offices, and… read more
Funds for road improvements at the foot of Seventh Street in the Port of Oakland were secured through the State Emergency Relief Administration (SERA) in 1935 (Minutes of the Port Commissioners). SERA was funded by the Federal Emergency Relief Administration… read more
The Public Works Administration (PWA) provided funding to the Port Authority of Oakland to enlarge the Outer Harbor area, just south of the Bay Bridge. The work was done as the bridge was under construction, c 1935-36. From PWA photographs… read more
In 1937, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) improved and paved the old dirt Redwood Canyon Road as part of the New Deal’s contribution to the newly-created East Bay Regional Parks (EBRPD). The road descends from Skyline Boulevard, also built… read more
The East Bay Regional Parks District (EBRPD) was formed in 1934 and acquired land for parks from the East Bay Municipal Water District in 1936. The first parks were Tilden, Sibley, Temescal and Redwood in the East Bay Hills behind… read more
Check out our latest map and guide to the work of the New Deal in Washington, D.C. It includes 500 New Deal sites in the District alone, highlighting 34 notable sites, and includes an inset map of the area around the National Mall which can be used for self-guided walking tours.
Take a look at our previous guides, equally comprehensive, covering key New Deal sites in San Francisco and New York City.
