Oakland

The Ohlone or Costanoan peoples were living around the shores of San Francisco Bay when the first Europeans arrived in the 1770s to explore the area, then claimed as part of the Spanish Empire. In 1820 the Spanish government granted much of the east bay to rancher Luis Maria Peralta. At about the time the United States assumed control of California following the Mexican War (1846-1848), Oakland became a port of entry and supply base for miners rushing to newly discovered gold fields. Oakland was chartered in 1852 and incorporated as a city in 1854. Its importance increased after 1869 when Oakland became the western terminus of the transcontinental railroad.

Oakland grew rapidly in the 20th century. Following the disastrous San Francisco earthquake and fire of 1906, many families and businesses relocated from San Francisco to Oakland. Within a decade Oakland’s population more than doubled. World War II (1939-1945) also brought tremendous growth and change to Oakland. Thousands of war workers and their families moved to the area to work in wartime shipyards. Many members of the armed forces who were stationed at nearby military bases chose to remain in the area after the war. The war also increased the region’s ethnic diversity.

Oakland was revitalized in the 1970s with the construction of new downtown office buildings, but the city also lost population to surrounding suburban communities. The city was badly damaged by the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. Dozens of people were crushed in their cars when an elevated section of the Nimitz Freeway (Interstate 880) collapsed. In 1991 a wildfire flashed through residential neighborhoods in the hills surrounding the city, killing 25 people and destroying more than 3,400 home and apartments.