Murray Township (in pink on the right) within Alameda County as of 1878
It was named after Michael Murray and created in June 1853, a few months after Alameda County itself was created, encompassing the eastern portion of the county.[1] It was at the time the largest of the six townships in the county.[2]
The California gold rush beginning in 1848 drew prospectors from around the world. Many travelled by sea to Alameda County and took the road through Sunol and Livermore valleys towards the mountains.[3]
In 1853, Murray Township was established as one of 6 Alameda County townships and given a seat on the board of supervisors. In 1902, Pleasanton Township was created from part of Murray township. By 1910, Pleasanton, with a population of 2883, followed by Murray, with a population of 4137, were the least populous of the seven townships.
In its early settlement, the area was mostly used for cattle ranching. The climate proved ideal for wine cultivation, so many land owners planted vineyards from the 1880s onwards.[4]
All the towns in Murray Township remained small and dominated by agriculture until the 1950s, when the population boomed and land was subdivided for developments.[5]
Notable locations
The geographical landforms of the area include Amador Valley (named after José Maria Amador), Livermore Valley (named after Robert Livermore), Sunol Valley (named after Don Antonio Suñol), Alamo Valley, and Tassajara Valley. Arroyo de la Laguna is the major waterway which flows south from Amador Valley into Alameda Creek. Arroyo Valle and Arroyo Mocho feed the Laguna from the mountains to the east.
José Maria Amador was one of the first Spanish settlers to Murray township in 1835, and the town of Amador, which became Dublin, developed from his property. The town of Livermore arose from a station on the Central Pacific railroad in 1869. Corral Hollow, on the eastern border of the county, was a pass in which coal was discovered in 1860. Pleasanton was located in the former Rancho Valle de San Jose, where the population grew rapidly from 1861. Rancho Santa Rita, or Alviso, was located to the east. Altamont was another town with a post office in the region.[6]
Corbett, Michael R. (2005-06-17). "Historical and Cultural Resource Survey: East Alameda County" (PDF).
Merritt, Frank Clinton (1928). History of Alameda County, California. Vol. 1. Chicago, IL: S. J. Clarke Publishing Company. (History of Alameda County, California at the Internet Archive)
Baker, Joseph Eugene (2012). Past and present of alameda county, california volume 1. [Place of publication not identified]: Rarebooksclub Com. ISBN978-1151774378. OCLC 935406851.
Halley, William (1876). The centennial year book of Alameda County, California. Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center. Oakland, Cal[if.] : W. Halley.
Further reading
Halley, William (1876). "Murray Township". The Centennial Year Book of Alameda County, California. Oakland, CA: William Halley. (The centennial year book of Alameda County, California at the Internet Archive)
Wood, M. W. (1883). "Murray Township". History of Alameda County, California. Vol. 2. (History of Alameda County, California at the Internet Archive)
murray, township, alameda, county, california, murray, township, township, located, what, livermore, valley, portion, alameda, county, california, including, present, cities, livermore, dublin, pleasanton, census, designated, place, sunol, murray, township, pi. Murray Township was a township located in what is now the Livermore Valley portion of Alameda County California including the present day cities of Livermore Dublin and Pleasanton and the census designated place of Sunol Murray Township in pink on the right within Alameda County as of 1878 It was named after Michael Murray and created in June 1853 a few months after Alameda County itself was created encompassing the eastern portion of the county 1 It was at the time the largest of the six townships in the county 2 Contents 1 History 2 Notable locations 3 References 3 1 Cross reference 3 2 Reference bibliography 4 Further readingHistory EditThe California gold rush beginning in 1848 drew prospectors from around the world Many travelled by sea to Alameda County and took the road through Sunol and Livermore valleys towards the mountains 3 In 1853 Murray Township was established as one of 6 Alameda County townships and given a seat on the board of supervisors In 1902 Pleasanton Township was created from part of Murray township By 1910 Pleasanton with a population of 2883 followed by Murray with a population of 4137 were the least populous of the seven townships In its early settlement the area was mostly used for cattle ranching The climate proved ideal for wine cultivation so many land owners planted vineyards from the 1880s onwards 4 All the towns in Murray Township remained small and dominated by agriculture until the 1950s when the population boomed and land was subdivided for developments 5 Notable locations EditThe geographical landforms of the area include Amador Valley named after Jose Maria Amador Livermore Valley named after Robert Livermore Sunol Valley named after Don Antonio Sunol Alamo Valley and Tassajara Valley Arroyo de la Laguna is the major waterway which flows south from Amador Valley into Alameda Creek Arroyo Valle and Arroyo Mocho feed the Laguna from the mountains to the east Jose Maria Amador was one of the first Spanish settlers to Murray township in 1835 and the town of Amador which became Dublin developed from his property The town of Livermore arose from a station on the Central Pacific railroad in 1869 Corral Hollow on the eastern border of the county was a pass in which coal was discovered in 1860 Pleasanton was located in the former Rancho Valle de San Jose where the population grew rapidly from 1861 Rancho Santa Rita or Alviso was located to the east Altamont was another town with a post office in the region 6 References EditCross reference Edit Corbett 2005 p 4 Merritt 1928 p 82 Halley 1876 p 57 Baker 2012 p 115 119 180 Merritt 1928 p 1 Halley 1876 p 493 505 Reference bibliography Edit Corbett Michael R 2005 06 17 Historical and Cultural Resource Survey East Alameda County PDF Merritt Frank Clinton 1928 History of Alameda County California Vol 1 Chicago IL S J Clarke Publishing Company History of Alameda County California at the Internet Archive Baker Joseph Eugene 2012 Past and present of alameda county california volume 1 Place of publication not identified Rarebooksclub Com ISBN 978 1151774378 OCLC 935406851 Halley William 1876 The centennial year book of Alameda County California Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center Oakland Cal if W Halley Further reading EditHalley William 1876 Murray Township The Centennial Year Book of Alameda County California Oakland CA William Halley The centennial year book of Alameda County California at the Internet Archive Wood M W 1883 Murray Township History of Alameda County California Vol 2 History of Alameda County California at the Internet Archive 37 38 12 N 121 45 48 W 37 63667 N 121 76333 W 37 63667 121 76333 This Alameda County California related article is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Murray Township Alameda County California amp oldid 1062778882, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
