Comments for Oakland Sidewalk Stamps

Comment on 1929 – Frank Salamid by Peter Menez

Peter Menez — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 18:07:48 +0000

I have a stamp from june of 1937 on my driveway.

Comment on 1936 – M. Cvetich by Naomi Schiff

Naomi Schiff — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 23:08:02 +0000

In the 1960s I attended a lecture at UCSD by Harold Urey, a Nobel-prize-winning chemist who was a key supporter of moon exploration. He showed a slide of the moon’s lit face. (This was before astronauts had reached the moon.) He talked about craters, and about his ideas about the moon’s geology. Then he turned the slide upside down, projected it again, and said, “Of course if you look at it this way, then they look like hills instead of craters!”

Comment on 1965 – L. J. Lorenzetti by Brian Yaeger

Brian Yaeger — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 04:04:11 +0000

Thanks for the comment, Andrew. And, while it’s not in Oakland nor a sidewalk, you’re welcome to check the mark I left in my parents’ fresh cement in their backyard when I was about 16.

Comment on 1936 – M. Cvetich by Gene

Gene — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 17:41:57 +0000

Does it have raised lettering? It looks like it. In any event, I still like it, in part because of the rounded frame.

Comment on 1936 – M. Cvetich by Andrew

Andrew — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 17:37:50 +0000

Not sure what you mean; this is lit from the south so it may be fooling your eyes.

Comment on 1936 – M. Cvetich by Gene

Gene — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 02:20:25 +0000

I love this one. I haven’t seen many outdented ones like this (probably because they don’t wear as well over time).

Comment on 1916 – J. Catucci by Andrew

Andrew — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 18:43:41 +0000

Monica, thanks for that information. What did the “J” stand for? Is the family still in the East Bay?

Comment on 1916 – J. Catucci by monica

monica — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 02:03:23 +0000

J. Catucci was my great uncle. My grandfather’s brother. He had a big firm but was killed on the railroad tracks in Oakland in the 1920’s. The firm closed.

Comment on 1914 – P. Ryan by Andrew

Andrew — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 18:08:47 +0000

Yesterday I found another example from 1914, on the 4800 block of Webster Street, that is precisely the same as this. I also found a 1910 example, which although quite degraded looks just like this. So clearly I am wrong to conclude that Ryan made these marks one letter at a time. I’m not sure that anyone did.

Comment on About Oakland Sidewalk Stamps by Andrew

Andrew — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:55:02 +0000

It has been one year since I started this collection, which now includes more than 400 items. I’m still missing seven years from the 1900s, one year from the 1950s, three years from the 1960s, five years from the 1970s, eight years from the 1980s, six years from the 1990s and one year from the 2000s.

Totals so far (this also includes marks set to drip through August 15):

1900s: 8 items
1910s: 72 items
1920s: 91 items
1930s: 129 items
1940s: 76 items
1950s: 28 items
1960s: 9 items
1970s: 5 items
1980s: 2 items
1990s: 7 items
2000s: 13 items

There are also approximately 60 makers who did not date their work, or for whom I have not yet found dated marks.