H89.64.39

Donated by Charles Howard-Gibbon who received the materials in this collection from his grandfather. Alan Howard-Gibbon came to California in 1924 from Victoria, British Columbia. He was 37 years old. He settled in Oakland and was in the real estate business, where he became an associate of Fred Wood Real Estate firm. The photographs with their captions were a part of promotional presentations made by the firm in the 1920's regarding the many Oakland real estate developments accomplished by Fred T. Wood. In the early 1930's Alan became a regional real estate appraiser for the Federal Housing Authority and in 1950 became the Chief Appraiser. He lived in Oakland until his death in 1980, having resided at 521 Mandana from 1924 to 1941, and 2127 Las Aromas from 1941 to 1980. Fred Wood later became a prominent local politician and we have both real estate materials and political materials donated by his family in our collections. Caption below photograph reads:"OAKLAND'S SKYLINE, "THEN AND NOW" Nnot many sky-scrapers here, but where there is such charm and beauty development is sure to come." Betsy Willcuts, June 2002 Bibliography: THE HEART OF OAKLAND, A Walking Guide to Lake Merritt by Leslie Flint, Sponsored by the Camron-Stanford House Preservation Association Lake Merritt was a tidal slough; part of an estuary flowing into San Francisco Bay. At low tide it was a swampy, smelly marsh, and at high tide, it was a lake much as you see it today. At the time Oakland was incorporated in 1852, the outlet from the lake to the bay was considerably larger than what you see today, stretching almost the entire length of the present day viaduct. The only access to the towns on the eastern shore was by boat across San Antonio Slough or around the lake by a long route through the hills. In 1853, Horace Carpentier built a toll bridge at 12th Street. In 1869 Dr. Samuel Merritt, then Oakland's mayor, funded the construction of a dam at the 12th Street Bridge. Lake Peralta became known as Lake Merritt. Under Mayor Mott (1905-1915) Lake Merritt was made into a park with a boulevard around the lake, a municipal boat house, a bandstand, and hiking trails. During that time the City Hall, the Oakland Auditorium (Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center), and the Oakland Public Museum (Camron-Stanford House) were built. Note: In 1969, The Oakland Museum, now the Oakland Museum of California opened.