Alvarado (formerly, New Haven) is a former settlement in and former county seat of

Alameda County Alameda County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,682,353, making it the 7th-most populous county in the state and 21st most populous nationally. The county seat is Oakland. A ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, now part of Union City. It was located north-northwest of downtown Newark. In 1851, Henry C. Smith founded the town of New Haven, named after his father's home town of

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

. In 1853, the town amalgamated with a nearby town called Alvarado, and became the county seat of the newly formed

. Alvarado was named for Juan Alvarado, Mexican Governor of California from 1836 to 1842. The first post office opened in 1853. On January 13, 1959, Alvarado and Decoto voted to incorporate as

Union City, California Union City is a city in Alameda County, California, United States in the San Francisco Bay Area. The population in the 2020 census was 70,143, up from 69,628 in the 2010 census. It is located approximately south of Oakland, from San Franci ...

. Though New Haven and Alvarado are both now part of Union City, the name of New Haven lives on in the New Haven Unified School District.

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Further reading