Welcome to Martinez
This is my home town, Martinez, Ca. With a population of just over 34,000, it is located 32 miles northeast of San Francisco, 23 miles east of Oakland and 369 miles north of Los Angeles.
Picture courtesy of Leon Atkinson
Martinez began, as did many California towns,
with large Mexican Land Grants in the 1830's. In this case, to
one Don Ignacio Martinez, who received some 17,000 acres in the
Alhambra Valley. A trading post was established by one of
Martinez's son-in-laws, William Smith, in 1849, and shortly
thereafter, the area saw its first great boom during the
California Gold Rush. Martinez 
was incorporated in 1876 and designated as the County
Seat of Contra CostaCounty. Martinez became a major shipping
port, sporting the longest running ferry service in the West, as
well as the home of John Muir,
architect of the National Parks System. The coming in 1915 of
Shell Oil Company, where my grandfather, Tom Billecci worked his
entire life, brought another boom to Martinez. Another spurt of
building began, and downtown today can be found a wonderful
assortment of Victorian and turn of the century homes,
interspersed with 
more modern
buildings. From the Marina, one may gaze west at the scenic
bluffs of the Carquinez Shorline where Snake Road once wound its
way to Crockett, Port Costa and beyond. A favorite drinking spot
for teenagers through the decades, the road finally washed out,
leaving the area to its natural denizens and a score of
determined hikers and mountainbikers. But for hiking,
birdwatching, mountainbiking, or midnight stargazing (though
don't tell the Rangers that as the park's closed after dark)
Briones Regional Park is supreme. Less than a mile
from my parents
home, I've been walking these beautiful brown hills since I was
little kid. The park overlooks Martinez from the south, and on a
clear day one even see the Golden Gate bridge from the higher
peaks. Wildlife is abundant, including deer, raccoons, skunks,
coyotes, and hawks. Nothing takes the edge off a difficult day
like a leisurely walk through this magnificent region.
Well, that's my hometown in a nutshell. I hope you've enjoyed the tour. If you're ever in the neighborhood, drop on by. You won't regret it.