Russell City, California

Russell City was an unincorporated community in Alameda County, California, United States, about convert|10|mi|km south of Oakland in present-day Hayward. It existed from 1853 until 1964, when it was burned down.

It was populated by many different cultural groups, over its history, as it was an arrival point for immigrants to the San Francisco Bay Area. During and after World War II it had its largest growth period. During which, Russell City attracted many African Americans from the Deep South. It is now remembered for its influential Blues scene. Some claim that this is where the West Coast Blues had evolved from Delta Blues.

As of 2001, Calpine, a large energy corporation has sited an enormous power plant (5th largest by emissions in the Bay Area), in the former Russell City. This power plant is to be situated on the border of a National Wildlife Refuge and Regional Parks on the Hayward Shoreline.

External links

* [http://www.bayareabluessociety.net/russell_city_page.html Bay Area Blues Society: Russell City: "The Town That Lost The Blues"]
* [http://www.creativeworkfund.org/pages/bios/maria_ochoa.html Creative Work Fund: Russell City: Our Voices, Our Selves]