A Zoo, a Monkey, and a Mansion Here Too!

Since the operation of Chabot reservoir began in 1876, four different water companies have managed the lake, and their staff led colorful lives on this hill while watching over the valuable resource. In 1904, William Dingee, then head of CCWC, tore down the superintendent’s cottage and replaced it with the Slate House, designed by Oakland architect Walter J. Matthew. Black slate shingles from Dingee’s Eureka quarry covered its roof and sides, and George Logan of the People’s Water Company became the first superintendent to live in the mansion. His stepson, Walter Hood, watched from the hill as the lake water stood up during the earthquake of 1906. When Anthony Chabot died in 1888, the funeral procession from 12th and Webster in downtown Oakland to Mountain View Cemetery was the longest in Oakland’s history up to that time, and possibly to the present.

Oakland, California · United States