when Most people see the Southland Mall, they think of it as just that; a place to shop. What theyn dont see is the rich significant history of the peice of land. The land that Southland is on was actually owned by the Famous Mohr Family of Hayward, who after the father died, sold off most land they held in Hayward. One of the Mohr Daughters, Mariahn, married Jeryl Fry, who was also a descendent of pioneers, as they went to school At Cal Berkeley. They sold off the land, and now they own multiple properties here in California. There is even a Fry Lane across the street From Chabot College, which is in a nicer neighborhood in Hayward. The Following Quote was taken from the website of the Pioneer Mohr-Fry family."The agricultural history of the Mohr's and Fry's extends back to the 1850's, when Bruce Fry's great-great-grandfather on Jerry's mother's side, Cornelius Mohr, left his job on a whaling ship in the port of San Francisco and began a farming operation on a Spanish land grant near what later became Hayward (Alameda County). His son, William Mohr, continued farming row crops and wheat, and breeding iris" (Mohr-Fry Ranches).
The picture you see is the actual house that still exist on the original property! I think of this as interisting because for some reason, things used to be built with quality, and ones own hands. These houses should be wowed upon simply because just building them took just the hands of the pioneer families, and nothing more. Sure, they were rich enough to have it planned out, but who built it? Sandoval Mentions in his book Cradle of the Salt Industry, that the whole Community loved Mr Mohr because he provided everyone in the area a job, and a chance to better prosper. Never in the book did he mention people were living in bad conditions or been mistreated. Only positive aspects of Mt. Eden have been recorded, and teh success of the Pioneers Family members show that they have come a long way.
Hi Juan I randomly clicked on your blog address and it is very interesting! Now that I have browsed your blog, I wish I maybe could have set mine up similar to yours! Similar to your research, my research is on Alameda and Neptune Beach. Something we have in common with our research is that we both lived in the area we are doing our research on. What caught my attention from your blog was about Southland and the Chabot area. Growing up in Alameda, the Hayward area WAS all new to me, and I am still learning about the area. My parents tell me that back when they first came to America, Southland was the shopping place to be. Now, not so much with the higher crime rates and not my taste in stores =(. Anyways, the picture you provided of the house is beautiful. Its amazing to see the quality and time people put into building things, especuially because back then they probably didnt have as much resources and tools of efficiency that we have now. It looks like a victorian style house, which is also common in some parts of Alameda. Although there are these huge victorian styled homes, they become broken into like little apartments, so on the outside it looks like one huge mansion, but inside its like an appartment. A question I have for you (you dont have to answer it though) is who is living in the house now? Do they know the historical significance of the home they are living in? It would be cool if the people who lived in there didnt even know, just because I know I would be surprised to know that someone very important use to live where I am living at the moment. Well, good luck for the remainder of the quarter and you really did a great job on your blogs! =)
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