"PEOPLE JUST LIKE TO HAVE A CALM, RELATIVELY SAFE PLACE TO COME AND DO WHAT IT IS THEY NEED TO DO."

Sharon Vaughn, Golden Gate librarian since 2000

As a longstanding community anchor, the Golden Gate Branch Library bears witness to the neighborhood’s changes.  This branch has served hundreds of thousands of neighbors since opening its doors on December 15, 1918.  From youth clubs to Diwali festivals, garden shows to film screenings, the Library strives to reflect the diversity of the neighborhood. In 2018, Commons Archive organized a huge block party to honor the library’s  centennial anniversary.

In 1982, the East Bay Negro Historical Society, a group initiated by Eugene and Ruth Lasartemay, was invited into the Golden Gate Branch. For nearly a decade, this unique interactive African American history museum was an integral part of the library. This was the first Oakland city library with a predominantly African American focused collection.

Commons Archive enriches the library by gathering and making accessible neighbor stories for years to come. The Golden Gate Library Local Collection, an 8-title series, is a portal into this neighborhood's histories   As neighbors continue to flow through the community, Commons Archive will stand to preserve these memories.

"WE HAD HISTORY UNDER THE BED. WE HAD THE WHOLE HISTORY OF BETH EDEN BAPTIST CHURCH UNDER THE BED."

Eugene Lastartemay, neighbor since 1920s

In the mid-1940s, Eugene and Ruth Lasartemay, along with several other members from their church, started collecting artifacts and stories to celebrate the achievements of African Americans in the Bay Area and beyond.  They formalized their pioneering Black history efforts by creating the East Bay Negro Historical Society (EBNHS) in 1965.

In the mid-1980s, after being housed in several store fronts in North Oakland, EBNHS was hosted by the Golden Gate Library. The Lasartemays welcomed school groups to their museum, showcasing “our history [that has been] purposely omitted.” This people’s museum for Black history became the basis for Oakland’s African American Museum and Library (AAMLO) in 2002. Commons Archive honors the Lasartmays’ spirit and tremendous legacy.

While renovating the family home, Mark Lasartemay discovered boxes filled with his grandparents’ personal archives. In 2017, Mark worked with Commons Archive to annotate these treasured materials.  Now safely stored at AAMLO, anyone, from neighbors to researchers, can explore this incredible collection.