Berkeley in Alameda County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Piedmont Way

Photographed by Joseph Alvarado

1. Piedmont Way Marker

Inscription. Piedmont Way was conceived in 1865 by Frederick Law Olmstead, America’s foremost landscape architect, as the centerpiece of a gracious residential community close beside the College of California, Olmstead envisioned a roadway that would follow the natural contours of the land and be sheltered from sun and wind by “an over-arching bowery of foliage.” This curvilinear, tree-lined parkway was Olmstead’s first residential street design. It has served as the model for similar parkways across the nation.

California Registered Landmark No. 986

Plaque placed by the State Department of Parks and Recreation in cooperation with the Friends of the Frederick Law Olmstead Paper, April 26, 1990.

Erected 1990 by California Department of Parks and Recreation / Friends of the Frederick Law Olmstead Papers. (Marker Number 986.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Roads & Vehicles. In addition, it is included in the California Historical Landmarks series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1865.

Location. 37° 52.183′ N, 122° 15.136′ W. Marker is in Berkeley, California, in Alameda County. It is at the intersection of Piedmont Way and Bancroft Way, in the median on Piedmont Way. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Berkeley CA 94704, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in California’s San Francisco Bay Area

and on the Coast Ranges.

It is also on the American Pacific Coast.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers.

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At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: International House (within shouting distance of this marker); The Greatest Play in College Football History (within shouting distance of this marker); California Memorial Stadium (about 800 feet away, measured in a direct line); John Fitzgerald Kennedy Charter Day Speech (approx. 0.2 miles away); Orchard Lane (approx. 0.2 miles away); Panoramic Hill (approx. 0.2 miles away); Ernest V. Cowell Memorial Hospital (approx. 0.2 miles away); Berkeley Piano Club (approx. ¼ mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Berkeley.

Also see . . . Piedmont Way. Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association

"Although best known for his mid-to-late 19th century landscape design work on the East Coast, Frederick Law Olmsted created his first residential subdivision in Berkeley."

(Submitted on July 26, 2023, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California.)

Piedmont Way and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Joseph Alvarado, July 25, 2023

2. Piedmont Way and Marker

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 24, 2025

3. Piedmont Way Marker

The marker is located in the median and close to the California Historical Landmark #986. View of marker looking south along Piedmont Way.

Channing Way garden circle image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 24, 2025

4. Channing Way garden circle

View of the garden circle looking south at Channing Way and Piedmont Way.

Photographed by Douglass Halvorsen, July 24, 2025

5. Piedmont Way Marker

Restoring Frederick Law Olmsted's Piedmont Way The restoration of Historic Piedmont Way is a partnership project of the City of Berkeley, the University of California and the Friends of Piedmont Way. The restoration effort will be carried out within the guidelines of the Olmsted Center For Landscape Preservation in a four phase process, the first of which entails the installation of temporary bollards to protect the medians as the restoration proceeds. This marker is across the median from the California Historical Landmark #986

Credits. This page was last revised on September 12, 2025. It was originally submitted on July 26, 2023, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California. This page has been viewed 435 times since then and 27 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 26, 2023, by Joseph Alvarado of Livermore, California. 3, 4, 5. submitted on September 5, 2025, by Douglass Halvorsen of Klamath Falls, Oregon.