El Cerrito Centennial Schedule
SPEAKERS BUREAU:
The El Cerrito Historical Society will provide speakers to schools and community groups, upon advance request, on the following topics:
Railroads in El Cerrito. A talk by Tom Panas. The right of way where BART runs through El Cerrito was at one time a busy Santa Fe route with many passenger and freight trains scheduled each day. Earlier this right of way had been the California and Nevada Railroad, whose trains first passed through El Cerrito in 1885. It all ended in 1980. Tom Panas will review almost 100 years of freight and passenger railroading in El Cerrito.
Taming the Wild West in the Late 1940s: The Making of Modern Day El Cerrito. Author and San Francisco State lecturer Chris Sterba will describe how a group of reformers transformed El Cerrito from a "wide-open town" known as "Little Reno" into the bustling, middle-class Bay Area community we know today.
El Cerrito: City of Sin to City of Homes. Dave Weinstein tells a tale of El Cerrito’s growth from the earliest days of the 20th century through today, focusing on gamblers and entertainers, the real estate boom from the 1920s through the 1950s, and the challenges facing the city today.
To schedule a speaker, please contact Rich Bartke, Historical Society president, richbartke@aol.com. Please request a speaker at least one month in advance.
|