Dresser, California

Coordinates: 37°35′33″N 121°57′21″W / 37.5925°N 121.95583°W / 37.5925; -121.95583

Dresser
—  Unincorporated community  —
Dresser Location in California
Coordinates: 37°35′33″N 121°57′21″W / 37.5925°N 121.95583°W / 37.5925; -121.95583
Country	United States
State	California
County	Alameda County
Elevation[1]	102 ft (31 m)

Dresser (formerly, Alston, Dresser Siding,^[2] and Merienda^[3]) is an unincorporated community in Alameda County, California. Its ZIP code is 94536 and its area code is 510.

Geography and background

It is located on the Southern Pacific Railroad 3 miles (4.8 km) north-northeast of downtown Fremont,^[3] at an elevation of 102 feet (31 m). The city's name was Merienda until 1915, and then was Alston until 1957.^[3] It was established as a station on the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1923 to serve the California Pressed Brick Company in Niles Canyon.

Current status

The area as indicated on Google Maps as the center of Dresser is currently not accessible from Niles Canyon Road, with a locked gate and numerous "Keep Out" signs posted. There are no signs indicating that the town even used to exist behind the gate. By looking at recent satellite imagery of Dresser (e.g., Google Maps), one can see ruins of buildings and three standing smokestacks that used to comprise the California Pressed Brick Company.^[4] Reportedly, the location has been used for partying since it was closed in the 1990s.^[5] The adjacent "Secret Sidewalk" (Niles Canyon Aqueduct)^[6] is also used for such purposes.^[7]

See also

• Merienda, California
• Niles Canyon
• Niles Canyon Railway
• Sunol Water Temple

References

1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dresser, California
2. ^ Both U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dresser, California
3. ^ ^{a b c} Durham, David L. (1998). California's Geographic Names: A Gazetteer of Historic and Modern Names of the State. Quill Driver Books. p. 625. ISBN 9781884995149. 
4. ^ "California Pressed Brick Company". Wikimapia. http://wikimapia.org/1786959/California-Pressed-Brick-Company. 
5. ^ Levin, Sam. "The Secret Sidewalk May Not Be Secret Much Longer". East Bay Express. http://www.eastbayexpress.com/ebx/the-secret-sidewalk-may-not-be-secret-much-longer/Content?oid=1370799. Retrieved 14 November 2011. 
6. ^ "Sunol Aqueduct". Wikimapia. http://wikimapia.org/1882658/Sunol-Aqueduct. Retrieved 14 November 2011. 
7. ^ Levin, Sam. "The Secret Sidewalk May Not Be Secret Much Longer". East Bay Express. http://www.eastbayexpress.com/ebx/the-secret-sidewalk-may-not-be-secret-much-longer/Content?oid=1370799. Retrieved 14 November 2011. 

External Links

• U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Dresser, California
• Sunol Aqueduct
• Photos of the brick factory: view 1, view 2, view 3
• Anecdotes of the Secret Sidewalk