Lake Chabot Historical Walk

The stone structure before you is a 157 foot vertical control shaft. It joins to Tunnel No. 1 to open and close the flow of water running through the tunnel pipes. Two known accidents took place at this site. Tunnel No. 1 collapsed on two Chinese workers in 1874 causing an uproar in the camp. In 1875, when water was forced down the control shaft to dislodge debris, four Chinese laborers were washed out of the tunnel. Although injured, the four survived.

San Leandro Plaindealer of 1874 described the bustling activities on this hill: "The glare of the forge, the ring of the smith's hammer, the noise of the wheelwright's saw, the hurrying to and fro of busy men, all going to make up a picture, to the visitor, exceedingly interesting, and giving him to understand that a grand site is being achieved there."

The first superintendent, Frank Boardman, lived in a cottage on this knoll. Frank's father, former Alameda County supervisor, William Boardman, was the dam's chief engineer who created its many building diagrams. He drew the plans for the two water supply tunnels that run through this hill.

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Show me all markers in:  Oakland, CA  |  Alameda County  |  94605  |  California  |  United States of America

A Zoo, a Monkey, and a Mansion Here Too!
Yem-Po: Chinese Labor Camp
Taming the Waters' Flow
Of Fins and Flippers
Chabot Dam
To Build a Dam
Transporting the Water
Filtration Basins
Memorial to the Chinese Laborers
Roots From Another Land

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