Looking for any information on the Chabot Terrace public housing complex that was built circa 1943 in Solano County. At the time it was the fourth largest public housing complex in the United States with 3,000 units. It was built to provide housing for WWII war workers.

I lived there between 1949 and 1953 and went to Olympic Elementary School, near three-tank hill (at least that's what we kids called it). By then, the place was turning into a low-rent slum.

Any info will be appreciated.

This public housing complex (Chabot Terrace) was located in the area immediately northwest of Lake Chabot, and stretched to the Solano - Napa County line. I'm guessing that it was demolished sometime before 1960. Surely, the nearby residents of Vallejo can recall its (probably welcomed) demise.

Again, any information will be appreciated

I just bought two post cards showing exactly what you described in your message. They show Chabot Terrace and main entrance. John

John,

Thanks for replying to my message and for sharing your info about your Chabot Terrace post cards.

Could you scan those post cards into .JPG images and send them to me as e-mail attachments? Or would you be willing to sell them? Please contact me at my e-mail address. And put <Chabot Terrace> in the subject line. Thanks again.

Barry Ashby
bashby@impulse.net

I just came across your posting from 2003. I also attended Olympic Elementary (kdg. in 1955 in Mrs. Kelly's class). We lived in Chabot Terrace while my Dad served in the Air Force at Travis.
I'm very interested in any more information you might have about this area. Do you have any photos of the housing? Do you know the school address?
I have relatives in Fairfield and visit the area frequently. We just drove through the Chabot Terrace area last week and I thought a school we drove by (off of Corcoran Ave) looked like it could be the one I remember.
The old housing was torn down (probably in early 1960's) and my mom remembers that they were replaced by a housing development called "College Houses" or something like that. There is an area around Mini Dr where all the streets have college names so that must be the development.

Thank you very much for writing.

Unfortunately, I have no photos of this awful WWII housing project. And my father also worked at Travis AFB. I have many childhood memories about this place, some bad, some good, mostly good.

I did attend Olympic Elementary School for a few years before my father was reassigned to a posh assignment at Fort Presidio in San Francisco. I do believe Olympic Elementary became Sierra Vista Elementary. SV was closed in 1971 when a new school, Loma Vista Elementary, was built directly across the street. Loma Vista is located at 146 Ranier Street, Vallejo, CA 94589.

I know this area has completely changed since I was there in the 50’s. Back then there was no development to the west and north. I used to sneak onto the farm lands to the north. Do you remember three tank hill which stood directly above Olympic Elementary? The school held annual Easter egg hunts on this hill.

Barry Ashby

Hi Barry,
I'm going to pick my older brother's brain to see what he remembers about Chabot Terrace & Olympic School. Please reply to my email (annp42 at comcast.net)

My mom lived in Federal Terrace which was (as I remember her telling me) closer to Mare Island. She was there until 1957 so I wonder if she went to the same school you went to? Ann Radcliffe is my mom and her brother was Bob.

Annp42,
As far as I know WWII forced the construction of about a dozen temporary defense housing projects in/around Vallejo to house workers at the nearby Mare Island Navy Yard. The largest of these housing projects was Chabot Terrace which peaked out in population around 1944 – the year of my birth. My family arrived there circa 1949 well after the war’s end. These temporary houses were in one word – awful! But they did serve their intended purposes.
Barry Ashby

Probably not. I’m pretty sure Olympic Elementary School was constructed strictly for the Chabot Terrace housing project. The school mimicked the surrounding houses. (Think army barracks.) I’m guessing around 2,500 elementary school kids lived at Chabot Terrace by 1950. Children at other WWII housing projects attended other schools. Federal Terrace was indeed one of those other WWII housing projects at Vallejo.