From Sunday's Oakland Tribue (April 10, 2005) Article Last Updated: 4/10/2005 06:31 AM Gravesite mystery unveils Oakland religious history Inside Bay Area LOCAL historian Barbara Smith estimates that she has been leading guided tours of Mountain View Cemetery since the early 1970s, and something in particular has long been bothering her. "We know where (the) Rev. Laurentine Hamilton (of Mount Hamilton fame) is buried, but his name does not appear on the grave marker," she said. "So unless someone comes on a tour with us, there isn't any way to find the place were he is interred." While Smith greatly enjoys leading tours throughout the cemetery, "easily one of the most historical in all of California," she maintains � pointing out where famous people are buried � she decided to see if she could set things in motion to have Hamilton's name added to the marker "so that anyone can find it for themselves." According to the history files, Hamilton, who died in 1882, was associated with two early Oakland church congregations that are still active today. Why not approach them both and see how this oversight could be rectified, Smith thought. The two churches in question were the First Presbyterian Church (founded in 1853 and, since 1912, located on Broadway and 20th Street), and the Unitarian Church, built in 1890, in Romanesque Revival style, on 14th and Castro streets. Initially, starting in 1864, Rev. Hamilton served the parishioners of First Presbyterian (at their former location on 14th and Franklin streets) but subsequently left the church over a theological disagreement five years later. "Several of the parishioners, who sided with Hamilton, evidently left with him," Smith said. The breakaway group decided to form a new church, calling themselves first "the Independent Presbyterians," and later "Unitarians." Hamilton continued to lead the new congregation until his death (in the midst of preaching an Easter Sunday sermon). Undaunted by the unexpected loss, the Unitarians turned to new leader the Rev. Charles A. Wendte, and purchased land from Jane Sather, of UC Berkeley's Sather Gate fame, whose palatial home and garden was located nearby. Prominent early architect Walter Mathews was selected to build a rusticated masonry structure (thought to be the first in Oakland) with fine stained glass windows, crafted by the Goodhue firm of Boston. Then $80,000, then a goodly sum, was listed as the construction cost. Dedicated in 1891, the new building became a cultural center with "an active program of lectures, readings and recitals by national figures like William Howard Taft, Julia Ward Howe, Alexander Graham Bell, and Jack London." In the meantime, the original group of Presbyterians continued to meet in their twin-spired, wood-framed church, five blocks east on 14th Street. Before relocating to the soon-to-be-named neighboring town of Berkeley, the early version of the College of California occupied the block across the street. Church leaders Samuel Bell and Henry Durant, among others, appealed to the State Legislature to establish what would later become the nondenominational state university. The 14th and Franklin Street Church, with its distinctive towers, appears frequently in early photographs of downtown Oakland, and served the congregation for some 37 years. Their new English Gothic-inspired church on Broadway was built in 1912, and reflected the expansion of neighborhoods north of 20th Street during that decade. Church architect William C. Hays, trained at the Ecole des Beaux Arts and affiliated with John Galen Howard, was tapped to create the stately complex, also graced with handsomely crafted stained glass windows. "Both of these churches have such a long standing tradition here in Oakland, and while there may have been some philosophical divergence early on, both groups today were pleased to cooperate together on this renaming project, I am happy to say," said Smith. "Although there is a handsome monument atop the plot where Hamilton and his wife are buried, another family name appears there. The two church groups have come up with the funds to add the Hamilton name to the granite tombstone and we will be unveiling the revised marker next Sunday, the 17th, at 3 p.m." Kathy Huff and Cinnamon Daniel, co-ministers of the Unitarian Church will be joined by the Rev. Chandler Stokes of First Presbyterian, making brief remarks at the gravesite, to be followed by fellowship and refreshments at the Mountain View Chapel, said Tom Haw, event committee volunteer. The public is invited. For more information, call the Unitarian Church at 893-6129, or Haw at 220-2181. Mountain View Cemetery guided tours are offered on the second Saturday of every month, except in December. For more information, go to http://www.mountainviewcemetery.org Learn more about the historic churches of Oakland on a walking tour with the Oakland Tours Program, 238-3234, www.oaklandnet.com/walkingtours. George --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Small Business - Try our new resources site!