ZNE is proud to present the inaugural ConvenZioNE event, in the town of Pleasanton, California.   Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, incorporated in 1894. It is a major suburb in the San Francisco Bay Area located about 25 miles (40 km) east of Oakland.  

The Amador-Livermore Valley was first sighted by a Spanish soldier, Captain Pedro Fages, in 1772 while on an expedition searching for new mission sites. It was a half-century after this discovery that Jose Amador, in 1826, brought the first settlement to the valley, which still bears his name. Spanish families were awarded huge tracts of land as a result of the abandonment of the California Mission System.

Alisal, as Pleasanton was known at the time, was located on one of the main routes to the gold fields and quickly became a mercantile stopover for miners seeking their fortune in the Mother Lode. The first white settler in the immediate area of Pleasanton was Augustine Bernal in 1850. The adobe house he built on Foothill Road is still standing today. He lived there for most of his life and played a part in building aspects of the community familiar to residents today, including the racetrack that eventually brought the Alameda County Fairgrounds to Pleasanton.

John W. Kottinger, who arrived in 1851, was responsible for the naming of Pleasanton after a distinguished Civil War general, Alfred Pleasonton. However, a spelling error by a recording clerk in Washington D.C. resulted in a much more appropriate name.

 In the 1850s, the town was nicknamed "The Most Desperate Town in the West" and it was ruled by bandits and desperados. Main Street shootouts were not uncommon. Bandits such as Joaquin Murrieta would ambush prospectors on their way back from the gold rush fields and then seek refuge in Pleasanton. When the transcontinental railroads rolled into Pleasanton in 1869, the town was assured of a future. The population then was only 500, but it soon began to grow. The town's shady reputation passed and in 1917, Pleasanton became the backdrop for the film Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, which starred Mary Pickford.

Pleasanton's downtown district is a plethora of archilogical history and early American story telling.  Many of the original Victorian style storefronts and surrounding homes and small business buildings date from the 1800s onward.  We invite all ZNE ConvenZioNE members to enjoy a self paced walking tour at their leisure, while visiting Pleasanton for this event.  Click on the image of Pleasanton at right to download a wonderful walking tour guide, via PDF. 

If you would like to learn more about Pleasanton and its rich cultural heritage, CLICK HERE to visit Pleasanton's Museum on Main Street's website.

If you are looking for information about area attractions, side trips, and additional activities available during your stay in the Pleasanton area for the ConvenZioNE event - these can all be found on the ZNE ConvenZioNE group boards, open to all ConvenZioNE attendees!

Looking forward to seeing you in April/May!