We will focus on 21 tile and terra cotta-clad buildings dating from Beaux Arts to Art Deco spanning a period from 1908 to 1931. The ensuing years were not always kind to Oakland’s ceramic installations. As architectural tastes changed several of them were demolished, damaged, or hidden behind false fronts. This tour will highlight the character of the surviving original work. It will also celebrate and explain the restoration efforts of recent years. Despite many complexities and contradictions, the condition of Oakland’s terra cotta buildings is healthier today than it has been for decades. A level walk. Wheelchair accessible.
For background information please refer to the articles about terra cotta in the Spring 2022 and Summer 2022 editions of the OHA News – readable online at https://www.oaklandheritage.org/newsletter
Tour Leader: Riley Doty
Meet: Southeast corner 17th and Webster Streets, (at the Howden Building, 337 17th Street)
Bio: Former OHA Board member Riley Doty is a tile setter who has been working in the Bay Area since1978. He is a member of Artistic License, a guild of period revival artisans. http://www.artisticlicense.org/index.html He has done considerable research about the history of tiles and serves on the board of directors of Tile Heritage Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to education and preservation of ceramic surfaces. http://www.tileheritage.org/
NOTES:
• PLEASE MEET 15 MINUTES BEFORE listed time to allow for registration.
• Comfortable walking shoes, sun hats and sunscreen are recommended. Bring water.
• Vouchers, limited-income accommodation, and any other special circumstances will be handled onsite at the starting point on the day of the walking tour. Check your email the morning of the walking tour for any last-minute changes, clarifications, or cancellation.
• Due to the ongoing presence of Covid, we will continue to make masks available. If you feel ill the day of a tour, please stay home. If after a tour, you become ill and test positive, please let us know as soon as possible. Thank you.
• Please visit our website www.oaklandheritage.org for profiles of tour leaders. We are grateful for their skill and generosity.
• These tours support Oakland Heritage Alliance, a non-profit that tells Oakland’s story through walking tours, lectures, newsletters and advocacy. We welcome volunteers and new members!
• THESE TOURS ARE BASED IN PART on the research of the Oakland Cultural Heritage Survey, a project of the City of Oakland Strategic Planning Division, and the resources of the Oakland History Center, 2nd floor, Oakland Main Library.