History Museums in East Bay

The permanent exhibit is The African American Community in Oakland years 1890 to 1900.

The land was purchased by George Patterson in the late 1800s who moved to California to search for gold and ended up turning to farming.  The visitor center has historical exhibits and is also the location of the station for the horse-drawn train for a tour of the area.  The site hosts many  sites to see including an Ohlone Indian Village, mid 19th century pool house, Patterson house built in 1857, vegetable garden, an aviary once home to exotic birds, walnut orchard, 1850 blacksmith shop and shed and other historic buildings.  Check the schedule for naturalist lectures and demonstrations.  Bring your own food and drink and eat at the Deer Park or Farmyard picnic areas.  Monarch butterflies spend the winter in the Eucalyptus trees from December to mid-February.  There are restrooms and drinking fountains throughout the park.

The Bade Museum permanent collection is both ancient and modern and spans a period of 3,000 years. The museum holds a phenomenal array of everyday artifacts such as cooking pots, grinding stones, and agricultural implements from ancient Palestine along with colorful Greek and Cypriot ceramics, scarabs from Egypt, cuneiform tablets from ancient Mesopotamia, and over 300 historic Bibles from around the world. There are also ongoing educational lectures by visiting experts. There are docent led tours of the museum.

The California Nursery Co. was founded in 1884 by John Rock.  It grew to become the largest retail nursery west of the Rockies. The park hosts a variety of trees, a Japanese and Rose garden, fruit orchard, an 1835 Vallejo Adobe as well as other historical exhibits.  It is a great place for history buffs, garden lovers and horticulturists.

Dunsmuir House was built by Alexander Dunsmuir, who came to the Bay Area in 1878. The 37 room mansion is an example of Neoclassical Revival architecture popular in the late 1800s. It features a Tiffany style dome, woodpaneled public rooms, 10 fireplaces and inlaid parquet floors within its 16,224 square feet. In addition, the Hellman estate contains a golf course, formal croquet court, tennis court, swimming pool with Mission style bathhouse, glass conservatory with grotto, an elaborate aviary, formal garden maze, and Japanese garden.

Explore and learn about local history in the permanent exhibit or rotating temporary exhibits. The collection includes dolls from the late 1800s to the 1960s, ladies hats that date from the 1930s to the 1950s, photos of old Hayward, collections donated by diffferent families and a toy collection. They have a library and archival collections are available for researchers in the Research Center.

The musum was established in 2004.  It hosts an extensive collection of laces and textiles donated by Kaethe and Jules Kliot.  The collection has thousands of specimens from pre-Columbian Peru, the finest from the 17th century European courts and examples of the machine laces exemplifying the 19th centrury industrial revolution.  The museum also has a library that is home to over 10,000 books, patterns and articles. There are many tools of the textile arts including those used for lace-making and sewing machines. They also have free classes: http://lacismuseum.org/classes/

The museum is a resource for all different aspects of silent film making and it houses photos, posters, books and other artifacts.  They also shows silent films in the theater that used to show Charlie Chaplin films.

The Oakland Museum of California is devoted to the art, history and natural sciences of California. There is a cafe on site.

The Pardee Home includes a carriage house, water tower and gardens. The house was built in 1868 by Enoch Pardee, a Gold Rush immigrant to California from the Midwest, who became an eye doctor in San Francisco after mining gold who also pursued a political career. The house is now a California state landmark.

In the late 19th century Oakland was a thriving waterfront city, the second largest in the state. Preservation Park is home to 16 turn of the century buildings that are renovated with their facades restored, which are set among manicured lawns and lush plantings, complete with Victorian park benches and street lamps. A self guided history tour and walking tours are available.

This museum has interpretive exhibits, photographs and hands on materials about the San Leandro community. 

The redwood framed house was built by pioneer Hiram Penniman in 1903. It contains many historical artifacts as well as an archive of Contra Costa and Walnut Creek history including collections of old newspapers, photographs and government records.

There are about four acres of gardens surrounding the 1856 home of pioneer agriculturalists and nursery owners, James and Lucy Shinn. The four acres include trees, rare plants and shrubs from around the world.

The Garin Barn Visitor Center is located in Garin/Dry Creek Pioneer Regional Parks.  It has interpretive programs and displays artifacts from the ranching and farming history of the Hayward area. There is a blacksmith shop, a tool shop and several ranching-related displays. Outside the barn is a collection of antique farm machinery.  There are restrooms near the Garin Barn and drinking fountains in the picnic area.

The museum is focused on the art and history of the Jewish experience. It has a wide ranging collection, provacative programs, research facilities and the largest history center relatiing to the Jews in the American West.

The McConaghy House is a Stick-Eastlake style farmhouse designed and constructed by Mayor John Haar, Sr. in 1886 during the Victorian period.  The Hayward Area Historical Society restored the home in 1976 to establish the museum. They offer docent tours by appointment.

The Meyers House is an historical monument of the city of Alameda. It was erected in 1897, is an example of Colonial Revival, an architectural style popular around the turn of the century. Designed by Henry H. Meyers,the house was built by his father, Jacob Meyers, at a cost of $4000.00.

The Aircraft Carrier USS HORNET Museum is a national treasure, having participated in two of the greatest events of the 20th century, World War II and the Apollo 11 manned space mission. It is now moored at historic Alameda Point on San Francisco Bay. There are exhibits all over the ships flight and other decks including Apollo artifacts and photos from WWII, Hornet Strike Fighter plane flight simulator and over 10 differnt types of aircraft including jets and helicopters. Check for times that the flight simulator is available. They have free parking as well as stroller accesibility.

The USS Potomac is a National Historic Landmark that served as Franklin D. Roosevelts Presidential Yacht until his death in 1945. This is a 165 foot vessel, displacing 416 tons with cruising speeds of 10 to 13 knots. The former President nicknamed the yacht his Floating White House. There are docent led educational tours of the ship and educational cruises on the Bay. Educational cruises highlight the impact of the FDR era on the Bay Areas local and national history. Parking is at Washington Street Garage between 2nd and Embarcadero Streets, one block from the Potomac. They do not validate.