The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters' first West Coast headquarters was located at 517 Wood Street. From c.1934 to 1978, the union was at 1716 - 7th Street.
The union was the first black union in the country recognized by the AFL, and was officially formed August 25, 1925, as a union for Pullman porters and maids. It was founded by A. Phillip Randolph (president). C. L. Dellums (vice president), who was also the West Coast supervisor, followed in the footsteps of "Dad" Moore.
Pages tagged “Pullman Porter”
From the West Oakland Specific Plan:
Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters Headquarters (nominated and determined eligible for City Landmark status)
The building at 1716-18 7th Street, constructed in 1889-90, is a two-story Stick/Queen Anne commercial building, significant as a remnant of Victorian commercial development along 7th Street, and as the Pacific Coast headquarters for over 40 years of the International Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. The International Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters was the first all black labor union chartered by the AF of L and organized in Oakland by Dad Moore and C.L. Dellums. From 1934 to about 1978, the Brotherhood’s Oakland division headquarters, from which emanated historical union and civil rights activities, was located in the upstairs portion of the 1716 - 7th Street building, upstairs from the Dellums’ pool hall at 1718 7th Street. The present condition of the building, with the false-front mansard resting on tall brackets as the only original ornament remaining, makes this building’s National Register eligibility doubtful. 1
Links and References
- Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters Headquarters Site National Park Service
- Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters on Wikipedia
- Cultural and Historic Resources West Oakland Specific Plan, City of Oakland
