Albany Hill, a prominent rise on the east shore of San Francisco Bay, has long been a landmark shaped by both nature and human use. Its north side preserves evidence of Chochenyo Ohlone use before European settlement, and its names changed from El Cerrito and Cerrito de San Antonio to Albany Hill after Albany adopted its current name in 1909. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, explosives works, quarrying, and a 1905 blast altered the surrounding area. Despite later development pressures, much of the hill was preserved as open space, valued for its oak woodland, monarch butterflies, other wildlife, and ongoing restoration.

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El Cerrito, California · USA