Fred’s father came to San Francisco from Liguria, Italy, “around the time of the Great Earthquake.” He eventually settled in Lafayette where he and his wife raised two sons. Lafayette had the perfect soil and climate for the same kind of dry farming the family had been doing for 250 years in Italy–dry farming, which […]
Lafayette Ridge Hike
A few years ago, one of our volunteers filmed a hike of the Lafayette Ridge from start to finish. We thought we’d share it with you.
Oral History: Mabel Bowbeer — November 14th, 1977
Summary: Mabel Bowbeer and her husband Earl moved to the Daley Ranch in Lafayette in 1928. The entrance to this ranch was located near the El Charro restaurant. The depression hit soon after they settled here, and Mabel recalls that there were usually “extra children” — those whose families were without seated around their table. […]
Speaker Series: “The Bay Miwok Saklan in Lafayette”
James M. “Doc” Hales will tell use how the Bay Miwok Saklan Native Americans made use of edible, medicinal, ceremonial, and plentiful plants and wildlife in their Lafayette and Walnut Creek villages. James will bring his mini museum of artifacts to his presentation Doc Hale is a renowned wildlife biologist in the East Bay and […]
Oral History: Catherine Sinnott — September 30th, 2011
Catherine Sinnott, who was born in 1924, was on the move most of her life–growing up on a sheep ranch in Sonoma country, studying nutrition at UC Davis, working as a food researcher in Albany, and being on active duty with the Marine Corps women’s Reserve during the latter stages of World War II. Then […]
Oral History: Robert and Sophie Wing — September 28th, 2011
Sophie and Robert Wing, who brought together two old Lafayette families when they married in 1961, were both born in 1930. Sophie was the youngest of 8 children in the Machado family that ran the Alta Crest Dairy in Lafayette. She describes the dairy operations and in particular the roles assigned to her, from a […]
Speaker Series: “Tales About Trails”
Stu Swiedler will share “Fact versus Fiction” on the creation of the Lafayette-Moraga & Iron Horse Trails. We’ve enjoyed these trails for many years. Find out how they’ve come to be. Sunday, August 12, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. in the Lafayette Library & Learning Center Arts & Science Discovery Center located on the mezzanine floor. […]
Oral History: Sheila Seagrave — April 27th, 2018
Summary: Sheila was one of the many extraordinary talents who made up the Straw Hat Review. The Straw Hat was started by a group from Cal in the language arts department, circa 1947. They performed three different shows during the summer months at the Town Hall in Lafayette. Oral History: Helene Kremer: Okay, we are […]
Oral History: Louis M. Cosso — February 23rd, 2015
Lou Cosso moved to Lafayette from Oakland in 1951 at age 9. His uncle owned and operated a fruit farm on 55 acres in Happy Valley. Back in Oakland people considered Lafayette, with its small size and lack of commercial offerings, to be a remote outpost. As Lou described it, however, it was a perfect […]
Oral History: Jim Martino — August 2010
Jim Martino was the fourth child of Natale, who bought a house with 100 acres and began farming in the Springhill Valley in 1919. Jim, who helped operate the farm after finishing high school, says that his father won many prizes for his pears and other fruit. Jim also remembers that his father would leave […]
