Red Rock Island (variously known as ''Moleta'', Molate Rock, and Golden Rock ) is an uninhabited, island in the

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay is a large tidal estuary in the U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the big cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland. San Francisco Bay drains water from a ...

located just south of the

Richmond–San Rafael Bridge The Richmond–San Rafael Bridge (also officially named the John F. McCarthy Memorial Bridge) is the northernmost of the east–west crossings of the San Francisco Bay in California, USA. Officially named after California State Senator John ...

. The property is the only privately owned island in San Francisco Bay. The boundaries of three counties –

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

Marin Marin (French) or Marín (Spanish "sailor") may refer to: People * Marin (name), including a list of persons with the given name or surname * MaRin, in-game name of professional South Korean ''League of Legends'' player Jang Gyeong-hwan (born 19 ...

, and Contra Costa – converge on the island. The San Francisco County portion is an incorporated part of the city of San Francisco since it is a

consolidated city-county In United States local government, a consolidated city-county is formed when one or more cities and their surrounding county ( parish in Louisiana, borough in Alaska) merge into one unified jurisdiction. As such it has the governmental powers o ...

; the Contra Costa portion (most of the island) is incorporated inside the city limits of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

. The mountain of bright red earth and rock is across from east to west, from north to south, and rises out of the bay to a height of . It is surrounded by some of the deepest water in the North Bay, nearly deep.

History

Selim E. Woodworth Selim E. Woodworth (November 27, 1815 – January 29, 1871) was a commander in the United States Navy, prominent San Francisco businessman, and member of the Woodworth political family. Early years Woodworth was born in New York City, the secon ...

was the first owner and resident of Red Rock Island, where in the 19th century he built a cabin and maintained a hunting preserve. The island appears, labeled "Molate Island", on an 1850 survey map of the

San Francisco Bay area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...

made by

Cadwalader Ringgold Cadwalader Ringgold (August 20, 1802 – April 29, 1867) was an officer in the United States Navy who served in the United States Exploring Expedition, later headed an expedition to the Northwest and, after initially retiring, returned to service ...

and an 1854 map of the area by

Henry Lange Karl Julius Heinrich Lange (13 April 1821 – 30 April 1893) was a German cartographer. Biography He was born at Stettin. He worked with Heinrich Berghaus, Berghaus, and then labored three years in Edinburgh on Alexander Keith Johnston (1804–1 ...

. The island was once mined for

manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...

. It was privately purchased in the 1920s. After a series of owners, David Glickman, at the time a San Francisco attorney and part-time real estate buyer, purchased the island in 1964 for US$49,500. In the 1980s, a plan was proposed (but never implemented) to remove the top half of the island (which would be sold for highway roadbed construction). The island would then be developed with a 10-story hotel and casino, and a yacht harbor on the

lee Lee may refer to: Name Given name * Lee (given name), a given name in English Surname * Chinese surnames romanized as Li or Lee: ** Li (surname 李) or Lee (Hanzi ), a common Chinese surname ** Li (surname 利) or Lee (Hanzi ), a Chinese ...

(north) side. Water and power would be provided from lines connected to the San Rafael Bridge. In June 2007, Glickman, now a gem dealer in Thailand, announced that Red Rock Island was for sale for US$10 million. He had previously attempted to sell the island in 2001, including to the

California Department of Fish and Game The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), formerly known as the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG), is a state agency under the California Natural Resources Agency. The Department of Fish and Wildlife manages and protect ...

. No conservation groups or agencies have so far expressed interest in buying the island, though some have considered it. In early 2012, the island was listed with a realtor at a price of US$5 million. , the island was owned by Brock Durning, who refused to say whether it was for sale. The island is mentioned and described as "Blue Island" in the novel ''The Circle'' by Dave Eggers.

References

External links

Flickr.com: Aerial image of Red Rock Island and Richmond Bridge
{{authority control Islands of San Francisco Bay Islands of Northern California Geography of Richmond, California Islands of Contra Costa County, California Islands of Marin County, California Islands of San Francisco Uninhabited islands of California Private islands of the United States

History

See also

References

External links