Ghost Roses

On the west side of Interstate 80 as it crosses through the cities of Richmond and El Cerrito are the remnants of a rose and carnation nursery. Forty abandoned greenhouses remain, some with roses still growing unattended. Family farmhouses (3), boiler rooms, and water tanks serve as reminders that this was once a farm.

The nursery began in 1906 with a single greenhouse  and grew to 40 greenhouses on 12 acres with the Sakai, Oishi, and Maida-Endo families.  No longer in production, roses still flourish in the abandoned greenhouses.  One greenhouse wears a cape of roses.  The carnations fare less well having shallower roots that cannot reach the water table during the dry season.

Soon, this will be only a memory except for a portion that the City of Richmond plans to retain, something like Vision for Restoration, the panorama shown below.

In September 2010, through the efforts of Susan Sharfman, Michele Seville, and Emily Anderson, an exhibit including my work and that of three other photographers will be on display together with an historical context provided by the National Park Service, the Cities of Richmond and El Cerrito, and Donna Graves an historian who has authored the report Historic Architectural Evaluation of the Sakai, Oishi, and Maida-Endo Nurseries of Richmond, CA available at www.ci.richmond.ca.us/DocumentView.aspx?DID=2144.  


More information will be available as plans for this exhibit are still in progress.