The Rose Walk, formerly known as Rose Street, is a historic pathway with landscaping designed by architect Bernard Maybeck in the La Loma Park neighborhood of Berkeley, California, U.S..[1] It is located in the 2500 block of Rose Walk, between Euclid Avenue and Le Roy Avenue. It is listed by the city as a Berkeley Landmark, since December 15, 1975. The Rose Walk has a historical marker erected in 1998 by Berkeley Historical Plaque Project.[2]
History
In 1908, the Hillside Club and the City of Berkeley leased the land from the People’s Water Company (owners of the nearby Berryman Reserve).[3] Around 1910, the first plans for a path were designed by city engineer J.J. Jessup, but these were rejected by the Hillside Club.[3] The Hillside Club formed a committee and fundraised local residents for the path project, and they convinced Bernard Maybeck donated his design services.[3] The Rose Walk was completed in July 1913, and is set on a steep hillside.[4][3] The path was designed to connect its residents to the Key System of streetcars and trains,[3][5] specifically the Euclid Avenue streetcar line.[6]
The 1923 Berkeley fire wiped away the entire built environment in the neighboring Wheeler Tract, which influenced the design of the later built houses.[3] The houses surrounding the path are designed by many notable early 19th-century architects including Maybeck, John Galen Howard, Julia Morgan, and after 1924 by Henry Higby Gutterson.[3][6] It is a popular tourist location and has been pictured on many post cards.[4]
The Rose Walk is near the Berkeley Rose Garden, a city-owned park and terraced amphitheater featuring hundreds of rose bush plants.[1]
