Oakland, California, resident Harold French was an avid hiker and conservationist. He founded the Contra Costa Hills Club in 1920 and campaigned extensively for the creation of a regional park system, a dream that was realized with the founding of the East Bay Regional Park District in 1934.
Primarily the letters and writings of Harold French. Most letters describe the workings of the Contra Costa Hills Club and Mr. French's tireless efforts to create and expand the East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD). Personal letters are primarily to his mother and discuss his love of nature and hiking. One letter, to Isabel Borthwick (later his wife), describes a hiking excursion in Marin County. Prominent correspondents include William Penn Mott, Jr., Robert Sibley, and Richard E. Walpole. His two hiking journals detail many hikes in Marin and Alameda Counties, including hikes on Mount Tamalpais, Mount Diablo, and in Wildcat Canyon. The two diaries discuss his everyday life at work and home, including outings with his wife, children's birthdays, his writing, and his gardening efforts.
(OHC MSS FRENCH)
8 folders, .1 linear feet.
Go here for a more detailed description of this collection's contents.
Available at Oakland History Center, Main Library.
