Hayward

About Hayward

Hayward California sets in the East Bay in Alameda County. Hayward is a suburb of Oakland. Mt. Eden and Schafer Park were integrated into Hayward making it the sixth biggest city in the San Francisco Bay Area. Prior to European inhabitants, the area supported the Ohlone Tribe of Native Americans. There are about 500 members of this tribe today. Originally, Hayward was named Haywards, and then it became Hayward Station. Historically there are two namesakes for the town. First is Alvinza Hayward who was a local millionaire the other was William Hayward the proprietor of a local hotel in 1852. Most historians believe it is named after William. The name was changed to Haywood in 1860 with the opening of the first post office because a post office cannot be named after a living person. It was eventually officially changed back to Hayward. During the 19th century, a Mexican land grant was given to Guillermo Castro known as the Rancho San Lorenzo and Hayward was part of that land grant. Castro lost his land in a card game and the ranch was divided up and sold to numerous locals including William Hayward. He built a grand hotel when finished had one hundred rooms. The property around the hotel was known as Haywards like the hotel. Throughout the 19th century, the city of Hayward flourished agriculturally growing crops such as tomatoes, peaches, and cherries, chickens and pigeons were raised. The South Pacific Coast Railroad was built between Oakland and San Jose but was ruined in the 1868 earthquake. It was rebuilt providing critical connection to the various markets. With the coming of World War II in the 1940's several factories were built to fabricate and assemble war materials in Hayward resulting in a growth explosion for the town. Many of these factory workers remained in Hayward when the war ended. In the late 1950's another growth boom occurred with the influx of Asian Americas from across the Bay area when a developer was willing to sell new homes to minorities who were being heavily discriminated against at that time in California.