Public Services in San Lorenzo

Village Hall

For residents of early San Lorenzo the place to go for fun was the Village Hall on the corner of Lewelling Boulevard and Usher Street. The auditorium in the hall hosted travelling vaudeville shows. Dances were held in the hall. It was also used by local clubs, such as Woodmen of the World and Ladies Aid, for meetings and socials. The building was originally constructed for use as a fruit dryer, but that business failed. It was then adapted to use as a community center. The building remained standing until 1953, but its heyday as a community center was 1894-1924.

The Pavilion at San Lorenzo Grove

When San Lorenzo Grove opened in 1893, the Hayward Journal called it the "Picnic Paradise of California." The Grove featured picnic grounds, ball fields, an outdoor bandstand, and the oak grove for which it was named. The Grove was located at Tracy and Lewelling, a few blocks from the Oakland-San Leandro-Hayward Electric Trolley Line which ran along East 14th Street. Oakland residents would take the trolley down to San Lorenzo to spend a relaxing day in the country. Or they would stay in one of the hotels in San Lorenzo for an extended vacation. In 1895, the Grove was purchased by the trolley company, which then extended the trolley line all the way to the front gates of the Grove. They also built the dance pavilion. Business slowed down in the 1920s. The trolley company sold the Grove to M.S. Rodgers, but he had to close it in 1926. Rodgers used lumber from the dance pavilion to build a house for his daughter, Mary Videll. The home is still standing on the corner of Tracy Street and Lewelling Boulevard.

St. John's Church

The cornerstone was laid for St. John's Catholic Church in 1897, and construction was completed in 1901. It was originally a mission church, which meant that it did not have a regular priest of its own. Visiting priests came on Sundays to hold mass. St. John's became a parish church in 1925. This photo was taken around 1902. The people are (left to right) Mary Ellen (Faria) Silva with her bicycle, Mr. and Mrs. Enos Stanton at the gate, and Mr. Sampson, a carpenter who is believed to have built the church.

San Lorenzo Creek

The creek was important to the early development of San Lorenzo. It provided fresh water for horses and people at the stage stop. Captain Roberts was able to sail boats across the bay from the mouth of the creek. Before storm drains were built, San Lorenzo Creek used to flood regularly. There are newspaper accounts of a flood which peaked on January 23, 1862, when - following an inch of rainfall in 40 minutes - the water in the creek rose 7 feet, 2 inches in 58 minutes, washed two slaughterhouses downstream and then overflowed its banks and inundated the surrounding farmland.

Lorenzo Theater

No town in the 1940s was complete without its own movie palace. The Lorenzo served the community of San Lorenzo starting in 1947. The interior was painted with beautiful murals, which are still there. This theater is on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. Although it is still standing on Hesperian Boulevard, its future is in question.

Oakland Speedway

Even though it was named "Oakland Speedway" the auto race track was located in San Lorenzo at the corner of Hesperian Boulevard and E. 14th Street.

Village Recreation

When San Lorenzo Village was planned, Bohannon left spaces among the houses for parks. Tennis courts, playgrounds, and a library were built in 1951 on land donated by the developer. The playground equipment pictured above was purchased in 1952. The San Lorenzo Village Community Center was used for parties sponsored by the Village Association.

Little League Ball Park

The San Lorenzo Village Homes Association Board of Directors bought land on Grant Ave for a park. In 1958 the land was leased to the San Lorenzo Little League "whose volunteers built the diamonds, fences, restrooms, and nursed the grass fields before opening day 1959. The rent: $1.00 a year, an arrangement that lasted some twenty years."

Clubs in San Lorenzo

Americans joined clubs after World War II, and San Lorenzans were no exception. A Boy's Club started in 1953, and soon had 350 members. The Earl Bowers Memorial Scout Cabin was dedicated 1952. At first it was used by Boy and Girl Scouts, then the Girl Scouts got their own building, the Ophelia Bohannon building in 1954.