Sometimes the library writes Its own books; In this case, about one of Sacramento's great neighborhoods: Meet Alkali Flat

The Images of America series from Arcadia Publishing has availed Americans, coast-to-coast, to the imagery and lore that makes our neighborhoods so great and so rich in history. Recently, the Sacramento Room of the Sacramento Public Library put pen to paper, publishing an ode to the oldest residential neighborhood in the city: Sacramento's Alkali Flat.

The Alkali rests near a busy downtown Sacramento and is bordered by the rail yard, river, and thoroughfares that helped form its identity over a century ago. Named for the crusted alkali deposits that were left by seasonal flooding, the neighborhood has, over time, attracted governors, legislators, artists, and pioneering physicians to take up residence in some of the most exquisitely crafted homes in the American West. Neighborhood lore includes the gradual conquest of the odiferous China Slough and Federal troops billeting there during 1894's Pullman Strike, while the haunting story of little May Woolsey and a tragic tale of crime are the stories spoken of today. Boasting mills, dairies, railroads, and media as well as schools, hospitals, multiethnic churches, and local businesses in its heyday, Alkali Flat's history is characterized by contrasts-old landmarks have fallen or adapted to other uses, but the future holds promise for one of Sacramento's most unique neighborhoods.

The Sacramento Room is happy to have produced its second book in three years (see also Historic Photos of Sacramento). The best part is that partial proceeds from the book will go back to the library. Copies will appear in bookstores and other businesses around the Alkali and the greater Sacramento area starting on January 11 of 2010, with a price of $21.99. Isn't it good to know that picking up a copy will not only expand your knowledge of this great city's history, but also put much needed funding into the hands of your public library.

Sacramento history photo of the week number 33!

The two mosaic-clad obelisks on Twelfth Street, one upon entering Alkali Flat and one when exiting, were designed in 1990 by landscape architect John Nicolaus as part of the 12th Street Beautification Plan. The structure at the corner of Twelfth and "H" Streets is pictured above. Longtime Alkali Flat resident and Royal Chicano Air Force member, Juanishi Orosco, was responsible for the artistic concept on the ornamented tiles. The project was funded by the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency.

The above photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Make sure to also checkout, "Sacrachicano," showcasing historical and current works by some of the RCAF's major artists as well as emerging artists who are carrying on the cooperative's tradition. The exhibit is in partnership with Galeria Posada and is curated by Gloria Burt and the same Juanishi Orosco who created the obelisk above. View the exhibit during library open hours through January 3, 2010.

On This Memorial Day Weekend...Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 17!

As a young resident of Alkali Flat at 1315 “H” Street, Hugo Frank Wallner was a 1913 graduate of Sacramento High School and a bank teller at the California National Bank. In February 1916, the 25-year-old won an adding contest at the Travelers Hotel on Fifth and “J” Streets. He was able to list an amazing total of one hundred checks in one-minute, thirty-one seconds. A few years later in the spring of 1918, Wallner was married to Miss Freda Caldarella. Just weeks after marrying, Wallner was dispatched to France, serving as a clerk in the 91st Infantry Division. Although holding a task that would seemingly keep him out of harm’s way, Wallner was sent into combat in September of 1918. According to his Lieutenant, he died of wounds suffered during an attack in the Epinonville sector of the Argonne. This made him one of the over one-hundred Sacramentans – and the only Alkali Flat resident – to die in the Great War. His heartbroken Freda never remarried and died in San Francisco in 1983.

This photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 13!

Shrouded in semi-tropical greenery, so typical of many late-nineteenth century lots in the Alkali was the home of William F. Knox, at 916 “G” Street. The Virginia-born Knox came to California as a 49er, but settled into the construction industry where he amassed a modest fortune. In addition to serving on the City’s School Board and Common Council, Knox and his business contributed mightily to the building of the Central Pacific Railroad, Sacramento County’s first courthouse, and was a primary player in the epic undertaking of raising Sacramento’s business district by eighteen feet in 1863.

This photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 10

Burnett Miller of Burnett and Sons, circa 1977. Following the surge of industry to the northerly sections of the Flats, Burnett and Sons, one of the longest-standing lumber and milling firms in the city (founded in 1869), moved to its current 11th and “C” location in 1932. The company was founded by Philetus Burnett in 1869, but its highest profile operator has been the great-great grandson of the founder, R. Burnett Miller, whose career has also seen stints as a member of the U.S. 11th Armored Division during the Battle of the Bulge, a Sacramento City Councilman (1972-77) and Mayor of Sacramento (1982-83).

This photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 8

Residence of William R. Strong, circa 1880. Strong shared his "G" Street residence with wife Jane, son Charles, and daughter Ella. A New Yorker by birth, he came to Sacramento during the Gold Rush. Having found no luck in mining, Strong became a merchant, only to see three business ventures foiled - two by fire, one by flood. In time, however, he found stability in a produce business that would draw from its own nursery and orchard. A life that symbolized the dauntlessness of a city that he would come to call home came to an end in 1905 at 88 years.

This photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 7

Southern Pacific Railroad Hospital, circa 1900-1911. The would-be hospital was built in 1870 for railroad emperor Charles Crocker and family, very likely by San Francisco-based architect Seth Babson whose specialty was “Victorian Stick” homes. It was converted into a hospital for SP in 1900 and, by 1906, the three-story-and-basement structure could accommodate up to 55 patients. It was also touted as a refreshing alternative to other hospitals with “its home-like character,” said the January 27, 1906, Sacramento Union.

Seen here, looking northwesterly from Seventh Street, the hospital – having outgrown its walls - took up new residence in 1911 at Second and “H” streets, in a facility built by the contracting firm of Murcell and Haley for a cost of between $30,000 and $35,000.

The house was leveled in the fall of 1915. Having fallen into disrepair, it became the home of several rat nests and stood “covered by masses of vines,” said the October 19, 1915, Sacramento Bee. Did walkers-by even know that, decades earlier, the home was lived in by one of the most powerful men west of the Mississippi?

This photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 6

City Brewery, circa 1900. Resting at the northeast corner of Twelfth and “H” Streets, the brewery was established in 1856/57 by German expatriates Wilhelm Borchers and Benedict Hilpert. The two-story structure was made of brick, rested on a lot measuring some eighty by 160 feet, and possessed a forty foot by eighty foot cellar for cooling what almost exclusively lager-style beer. Much like the Ohio, the City rode the city’s lust for lager - a much cooler and refreshing drink than the traditional English ale - and, by 1858, the brewery was producing nearly 800 gallons of beer per week.

This photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 5

Washington Primary School, circa 1895. Located at Thirteenth and “G” streets, Washington School was built in 1869 at a cost $13,720 to replace two wooden structures felled by arson – less than two weeks after they were completed – and to meet the needs of the city’s burgeoning northern wards. Upon opening, it housed Intermediate No.3 and Primaries 5 and 8. Its architect, Seth Babson, pursued a style and brick shelling that matched the Union School on Seventh and "G" Streets. As the nineteenth century came to a close, the Washington School possessed a teacher-student ratio of 1 to 30. In 1922/23, the school’s name and occupants relocated to a newer and bigger building at Seventeenth and “E,” but its use – as a continuation school, training center for the Army Signal Corps and headquarters for the American Red Cross – continued well into the 20th-century.



This photo and many more like it can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo(s) of the Week: Issue No. 3

Sunburst

With the 1976 opening of the 143-unit housing development at 8th and 10th and “E” Streets came the unveiling of two mosaic murals by Sacramento artist and activist Armando Cid. The works were commissioned under the sponsorship of the Centro de Artistas Chicanos. “Sunburst” and an accompanying mural, “Olin,” were created at a cost of $11,000. “Sunburst’s” pre-Columbian eagle is significant in that it symbolizes the Aztec sun god Huitzilopochtli who, according to legend, bowed to arriving Aztecs at what would become the civilization’s capital, Tenochtitlan. It is also true that the Aztec referred to themselves as the "People of the Sun." These two gems are nearly as eye-catching as they were 32 years ago (see damage at left of 'Sunburst'), and still resting in 'our own backyard,' so to speak. They're truly worth a look...

These photos and many more like them can be found in the Sacramento Public Library’s Sacramento Room which is open to the public Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday 1 to 5, and Thursday 1 to 8.

Sacramento History Photo of the Week: Issue No. 1

Starting this week, we will be bringing to you historic photos from Sacramento's historic past that either come from the Sacramento Public Library's Sacramento Room collection or can be accessed through any of our many city/county branches. Along with the photo itself, we hope to provide thoughtful description and discussion on the photo's content and context. Here's today's photo, coming to us from the Library of Congress:


This is a rare, rare photo of China Slough, aka Sutter Slough or most elegantly Sutter Lake, circa 1866. Depending on the extent of seasonal flooding (and it's very high in this photo), the slough lapped upon the western-most boundary of Alkali Flat at 6th or 7th Streets. The oils and solvents of Southern Pacific/Central Pacific Railroad, not to mention the sewage and garbage of the residential community along lower “I,” made the slough both unpleasant to look at and notoriously odorous, prompting the City to plant some 3,000 eucalyptus trees along its banks in 1876/77.

The slough was finally filled in 1910 as part a deal between Southern Pacific and the City: the railroad fills the slough, it gets the land. This view from the Pioneer Flour Mills (located on the eastern bank of the Sacrament River) looks east toward Alkali Flat; the white structure near the upper, left-hand section of the photo is the Ohio Brewery, the spire in the middle, upper section of the photo is the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and the far-right structure is the Grace Church.

What had sat as a pristine inlet of the Sacramento River as late as 1849 had, in a short 15 years, become something that most Sacramentans just wanted to forget about. Amazingly enough, as I look out the 5th floor window at Central Library, I'm not sure I feel too differently as I look at the big SP sandbox to the northwest.

The persistent url for the photo is as follows: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3a08746