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Overview

For about 40 years, the eclectic Native Sons of the Golden West Hall on the southeast corner of C and Main Streets in Hayward, CA, served as the town's de facto community center, accommodating political, educational and recreational events. It served as Hayward's assembly center until 1932, when the Hayward Veterans' Memorial Building was erected across the street to the west. In the 1890s, newspapers referred to the city as "Haywards."

Building History

The Native Sons of the Golden West (NSGW) was a CA historical heritage group founded in San Francisco, CA, on 07/11/1875. Its formation just preceded the country's centennial, a period when many groups sought to reinterpret history and, in so doing, to memorialize (and aggrandize) their social positions in various parts of the US. Initially, the NSGW, like the Sons (and Daughters) of the American Revolution, sought to highlight the courage and resourcefulness of their Euro-American forebearers. In the NSGW's case, the initial purpose was to glorify the pluck and grit of the (mostly) Northern European and Yankee gold miners of 1849. Seen from one perspecitive, during its first fifty years, it became something of an early historic preservation group, seeking to stabilize and rebuild historic sites of early California. This aspect of the group, while tilted to serve the interests of dominant ethnic groups, still performed some valuable public service by calling attention to endangered landmarks.

The NSGW also had an interest in the ceremonial dedications of schools and other public buildings. In 1922, various parlors of the NSGW participated in the cornerstone laying of the Concord Grammar School in Concord, CA. A report in the Concord Transcript newspaper of 10/26/1922 delineated the group’s role in the ceremony: “The stage is set for the ceremony of laying the cornerstone of the Concord Grammar School on next Sunday. Sand from every county of California, cement from every mill in the state and water taken from the site of each of the Missions of California all repose in the Grand Parlor office of the Native Sons of the Golden West and will be used in the work of laying the cornerstone. The copper casket has been prepared and the memorials to be contained within it have been gathered together. The ceremony will take place at 2 P.M. and will be preceded by a parade led by Piedmont Parlor Band of the Native Sons. Piedmont Parlors, Native Daughters’ prize Drill Corps will escort the Grand Officers of the N.S.G.W. Grand President Harry G. Williams of Oakland will officiate, assisted by Past Grand President Jas. F. Hey of Martinez; Grand First Vice-President William J. Hayes of Berkeley; Grand Second Vice-President E.J. Lynch of San Francisco; Grand Third Vice-President Fletcher A. Cutter of Eureka; Grand Secretary John T. Regan and Grand Marshal J.S. Ramsay of San Francisco. Hon. Lewis F. Byington, Past Grand President and Grand Director C.L. McEnerney will speak.” (See "Grammar School Corner Stone," Concord Transcropt, vol. XXVI, no. 49, 10/26/1922, p. 1.) This era's preference for ceremony and pageantry seems quite alien in 2024.

During the first decades of the 20th century, The NSGW, became a more overtly political group, seemingly pursuing divergent goals. On the one hand, it lobbied other fraternal groups and the government to exclude undesirable Asian and Hispanic minorities from immigrating to the US. At the same time, it highlighted the accomplishments of the dwindling American Indian population of CA. The common thread was jobs. "Undesirable" Mexicans, and particularly Chinese and Japanese, threatened employment of Caucasian residents of CA, even though many of the menial jobs taken were not attractive to whites. American Indians posed no economic threat, so their heritage of self-sufficiency became easy to aggrandize. To its credit, the NSGW had, by 2023, sought to de-politicize its organization, by welcoming CA residents, male and female, of any ethnicity. LIke many other fraternal organizations in the 21st century, however, the NSGW faced a plummeting membership, forcing it to relax exclusionary entrance requirements in order to attract new people. Its populist, anti-immigrant, political stance of the early 1900s caused it great harm in the long run.

Officers of the NSGW dedicated this multi-purpose building on the country's Independence Day celebration, 07/04/1890.

Building Notes

The NSGW Hall in Hayward had architectural features adapted from the Richardsonian Romanesque, Italianate and Queen Anne styles. While the preferred building material of the Richarsonian Romanesque was stone, the NSGW Hall's tower, with its four corner minarets, hearkened to Richardson's Allegheny Courty House of 1883-1888. Its tall, narrow windows recalled those of mid-19th century Italianate buildings. Its picturesque oriels and bay windows, as well as its corner tourelle, can be found in contemporary Queen Anne houses and commercial blocks.

Demolition

The Native Sons of the Golden West Hall in Hayward, CA, was torn down before World War II. (See Hayward Area Historical Society.org, "One Corner: Main and C Streets," accessed 07/08/2024.)

PCAD id: 25334