Alexander von Humboldt 1814

Description:
Halftone reproduction of a self portrait by German-born naturalist Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859), after whom Humboldt Park at Telegraph and Claremont avenues in the Temescal district, Oakland, Calif., and Humboldt Avenue (the Telegraph Avenue extension to Berkeley), were named.

Date of Document:
1814

Document Author:
Alexander von Humboldt

Geographic Location:
Telegraph Avenue and 51st Street, Oakland, Calif.

Context:
The extensive research and explorations in the Americas and Asia by German-born naturalist and scholar, Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859), helped lay the foundation for several contemporary science disciplines, including anthropology, geography and geology. At the center of European and American scientific and intellectual circles, Humboldt counted Simón Bolívar, Goethe, Chateaubriand and Thomas Jefferson among his friends. Among the many inviting places near this city, Humboldt Park cannot be overlooked.... In the center of the Park is a roundhouse well calculated to dance in... The proprietor, Mr. T. Smith, has spared neither pains nor expense to make this place a spot for the nature hunter. . . . The observatory on the top of the building, so arranged as to seat guests, commands one of the finest views in the State. Looking out upon the broad expanse, the eye beholds the Golden Gate in all its glory... while to the east lies the beautiful hills... (Oakland Transcript, May 15 , 1872)