Our Piedmont Recreation Department’s Walking on Wednesdays group had a beautiful day for our walk last Wednesday. Some rain was forecast for the evening, but the morning was sunny and mild.
There were a few reminders. Next Wednesday, December 18th, we are going to walk to Zachary’s on Grand Avenue for our annual pizza lunch. And for those walkers who want a walk the following Wednesday, on Christmas morning, the group will meet as we always do at the Exedra at 10:30.
We try to get to every Piedmont street during the year but one street we hadn’t walked in its entirety was the beautiful Sea View Avenue. There were wonderful homes and holiday house decorations to see, and the story of one of Piedmont’s most important founding fathers to be told. A strong turnout of 47 walkers, but only one K-9 best friend, was on hand for it.
The walkers were asked what historical figures they could think of who have Piedmont streets or buildings named after them. Frank C. Havens, Walter Blair, and Hugh Craig came to mind, but Wallace Alexander was not named. Alexander made significant contributions to Piedmont, but there is no public recognition of him, and he is little remembered.
A past article by Piedmont Historical Society wrote about Alexander and his contributions to Piedmont. In 1912 he was instrumental in the construction of Piedmont’s first commercial center, which was just across the street from where the walkers were. In 1916 Alexander arranged for the purchase of land for the Piedmont Interdenominational Church, which became the Piedmont Community Church. Next, he organized the purchase in 1921 of land in Piedmont Park from the widow of Frank C. Havens. This saved it from residential development and provided land for Piedmont High School. He helped establish the Piedmont Boy Scout Council in 1921. Additionally, Alexander led a group of neighbors in the purchase of the land for Crocker/Bear Park.
We decided to walk to some of what Alexander created. We crossed Highland and went past the Piedmont commercial center that replaced the one Alexander developed. We went down Highland Way and passed the Piedmont Boy Scout Council office and the Community Church. We then turned up Mountain Avenue and climbed up to Sea View Avenue where the Alexanders lived.
We went down Sea View to the northern edge of Alexander’s former estate, which ran from what is now 87 Sea View to Hampton Avenue. Alexander’s family was a leader in the Hawaiian sugar industry, and he was born in Maui in 1869. The family moved to the Bay Area so that Wallace could attend school in Oakland. He married his Oakland High School classmate Mary Baker in 1904, and they chose a large site on the corner of Sea View and Hampton, which was then called Union Street, for their home. The Alexanders built a three-story mansion that they named “Brown Gables” for its large, brown painted dormers.
In 1911 Alexander’s mother built her own home across the street from Brown Gables at 92 Sea View, and Mary’s mother built a home further down the street at 236 Sea View. These homes are still there, but Brown Gables no longer exists. After Alexander died from a stroke in 1939 in Honolulu at the age of 70, his wife followed his wish that the mansion be torn down, and the land subdivided into 13 lots that were sold, so that more families could live in Piedmont.
We stopped at 92 Sea View, Alexander’s mother’s beautiful home, and a group picture was taken. An interesting reminder of the Alexanders is inlayed in the sidewalk. It’s the word “Kailani.” Lani means heaven, or heavenly in Hawaiian. So, Kailani means “heavenly sea”, or “heavenly seaside.” We then crossed Hampton and continued up Sea View to see the former home of Mary’s mother.
We continued down Sea View, across La Salle Avenue to the Piedmont/Oakland city line at Clarendon Cresent where the roadway becomes Oakland’s Ashmont Avenue. We went down Ashmont to Mandana Avenue. A few steps up Mandana got us back into Piedmont and its Crocker Avenue.
We passed Alexander’s Crocker Park and made our way back to the city center with a better understanding of Wallace Alexander and his contributions to Piedmont. His public service of a hundred years ago continues to be experienced today.
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