The René C. Davidson Courthouse (originally, Alameda County Court House) is the main courthouse, part of the
Alameda County Superior Court system. The
art deco
Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
style courthouse was completed in 1934 and is located in the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...
of
Oakland
Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...
, California, USA. It is adjacent to
Lake Merritt.
History
The building was built in 1934 on the edge of
Lake Merritt, originally housing the entirety of the Alameda County Superior Court system. The old courthouse that it replaced was demolished in 1949.
The inscription on the building reads "Alameda County Court House."
In the early 1930s Alameda County District Attorney
Earl Warren
Earl Warren (March 19, 1891 – July 9, 1974) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 30th governor of California from 1943 to 1953 and as the 14th Chief Justice of the United States from 1953 to 1969. The Warren Court presid ...
sought a modern structure to the replace the antiquated 1893 Alameda County Court House at 4th Street and Broadway. The building served as the office of the Clerk-County Recorder from 1934 to the 2000 when replaced by a new building at 1106 Madison Street in Oakland. The name of Rene C. Davidson was placed on the Alameda County Court House after the death of the longtime Recorder.
Trials
The
Chauncey Bailey murder trial was held at the courthouse. Thomas Reardon was the presiding judge in the trial, with
Yusuf Bey IV the defendant.
References
External links
René C. Davidson Courthouse at the Alameda County Superior Court website
Alameda
Government of Alameda County, California
Government buildings completed in 1934
Skyscraper office buildings in Oakland, California
1934 establishments in California
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