Fleming Point

Fleming Point is a rocky promontory in the U.S. state of California. It is situated in Albany, on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay. Albany Bulb is an extension of the point, having been formed in the 1960s from construction debris.[1]

History

Fleming Point is named after John T. Fleming who lived in the area in 1853,[2] having bought the land from Jose Domingo Peralta.[3] In the 19th century, it was the site of the Giant Powder Company and Judson Dynamite and Powder Company. The Giant plant suffered two major accidental explosions, one in 1880 and another in 1892. Explosives plants dominated the Albany waterfront until 1905 when they were replaced with somewhat less dangerous chemical factories. By the first decade of the 20th century, it was used by residents of Berkeley as a garbage dump, one of the reasons the City of Albany decided to incorporate in 1908.[4] It is currently the site of Golden Gate Fields, which held its first meet on February 1, 1941.

Geology

Near Fleming Point, south of Point Richmond, the waters of the bay have cut low cliffs in which even alternations of sandstone and shale are observable. In some instances the black shale shows a decided lenticular character. Some lenses are fifteen to twenty feet long and a foot or so thick in the central part.[5]

References

1. Hailey 2013, p. 288.
2. Gudde 1960, p. 110.
3. Weinstein 2008, p. 26.
4. "Waterfront & Bulb". City of Albany. Archived from the original on 14 September 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
5. University of California, Berkeley. Department of Geology 1919, p. 16.

Bibliography

• Gudde, Erwin Gustav (1960). California Place Names: The Origin and Etymology of Current Geographical Names. University of California Press. GGKEY:403N5Z6QERG.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Hailey, Charlie (1 August 2013). Spoil Island: Reading the Makeshift Archipelago. Lexington Books. ISBN 978-0-7391-7307-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• The Oakland Tribune (1898). Alameda County: The Eden of the Pacific : the Flower Garden of California : a History of Alameda County from Its Formation to the Present : Its Resources and Many Thriving Industries : Souvenir Showing Its Superior Advantages as a Residence Section and a Manufacturing Center : Citizens who Have Aided the March of Progress. Tribune Publishing Company.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• University of California, Berkeley. Department of Geology (1919). University of California Publications. Bulletin of the Department of Geology. University of California Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
• Weinstein, Dave (2008). It Came from Berkeley: How Berkeley Changed the World. Jones & Bartlett Learning. ISBN 978-1-4236-0254-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)