As the city grew, one of its mayors gave it a treasure. In 1869 Samuel Merritt dammed a tidal slough at the heart of downtown, turning brackish marsh into a clean saltwater lagoon. The next year, in 1870, the state declared it a refuge for the migrating birds that crowded its shores — the first official wildlife refuge in the United States. Lake Merritt has been the jewel of Oakland ever since, ringed in 1925 by the Necklace of Lights and still alive with herons, pelicans, and the great autumn flights along the Pacific Flyway. A wild lake in the middle of a working city is a very Oakland kind of idea.
The town the railroad found was named for its trees. The flatlands along the East Bay shore were once a forest of coast live oaks — encinal, "oak grove" in Spanish — and the groves gave Oakland both its name and its nickname, "The Town." The land had belonged to the Peralta family, whose vast Rancho San Antonio, granted in 1820, covered most of the East Bay. As Americans poured in after the 1849 Gold Rush, the rancho was carved up and a town laid out along the waterfront. On May 4, 1852, the state incorporated the Town of Oakland — then a place of barely a hundred people, two hotels, and a wharf.
Why People Visit Oakland
Visitors come to Oakland for a Bay Area city with its own strong character: a wild lake at its center, Art Deco theaters and a historic waterfront, redwood hikes in the hills, and one of the most celebrated food scenes in California. The museums and Jack London Square sit minutes from the lake, and San Francisco is a quick trip across the bay. Equal parts oak-grove heritage and creative energy, Oakland rewards anyone drawn to the heart of the East Bay.
