Brief Pictorial Images of Southside Oroville, California

Brief Pictorial Images of Southside Oroville, California {1940-2010}

41 Blacks lived and worked in Oroville in 1860. This was the period after the gold "bonanzas" had slowed and the local population was mobile rather than stabile. Many who had eagerly come to Oroville to make their fortune, remained as well as the 41 Blacks.

The migration pattern for Blacks to Oroville was similar to the pull that brought others to Oroville during three major stages of economic development. People sought work and better opportunities for their families and a better life. 1850-1860 is recognized as Stage One Development which was fostered by the quest for gold. Blacks were either free or remained slaves. Some worked as labors, cooks, or miners.

Stage Two (1860-1920) was the next major period of economic development which was based on growth in mining, agriculture, food processing, lumbering and transportation (railroads). After the federal government abolished slavery and related California laws were enforced, local Blacks who had the means were permitted to purchase property to build their homes. This makes it possible for them to move out of their tents and into a more suitable living environment.

While some property owners would not sell property to Blacks between 1909-1922, the owners of the Lee-Bromley, Howe's Addition, Bower's Addition, and El Medio Tract No.2 began to sell property to Blacks in Oroville.

In addition to the fact that Blacks were allowed to purchase property, there were two other reasons why they chose to form a community within the Southside area of Oroville. The lots were relatively inexpensive and available on convenient terms, and the location was close to their place of employment, Swain Lumber Company.

Blacks worked at low level jobs that did not require average or above average skills during Stage Two. Most of them worked in lumber which was the same type of jobs they held in their place of origin, namely, Alabama, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Louisiana, Georgia, Texas, and Arkansas. There were 11 Black families living in Oroville in 1920. The families began to write home about the opportunities for a better life outside of the South where segregation was in full force. A slow and steady migration of Blacks from the South and Middle West began to take place and their numbers in Southside grew.

Stage Three (1920-1960) was a period of economic stability even after the "Great Depression", and after 1100 men lost their jobs, of which 111 of them were Black in 1927 when the Swain Lumber Mill burned down. Despite the severe economic setbacks during the first part of Stage Three, Oroville endured because of a broader economic base, the labor demands caused by WWII, and water projects. Pacific Gas and Electric Company did much to attract workers to the area, which included Blacks.

While physically separated from the other social and cultural resources in Oroville, life in the newly developed Black Community was functional and healthy, and fostered by the establishment of strong social institutions; Families, Churches, Small Businesses, Fraternal Organizations, and Athletic Activities.

Several Children raised in the Black Southside Community went on to achieve a number of Firsts in later years; The First Black Major of Berkley California; The First Black Director of Recreation for the City of Oakland California; The Forty-Third Black OFFICER of U.S. Marine Corp.; The Third Black Admiral in the History of the U.S. Navy; and The Second Black Captain in the U.S. Merchant Marines. The Black Southside Community also produced Lawyers, Corporate Executives and many more who earned various achievements.

Source: South Oroville African American Historical Society, 936 18th Street, Oroville California, 2011