Solomon Schocken Stroll May 24, 2026

On Sunday May 24, 2026 starting at 10:30 am Sonomans will gather in Sonoma Plaza to commemorate one of the city’s most historically significant citizens: Solomon Schocken. Schocken’s ingenuity, initiative, and industriousness elevated the city’s overall economic and civic well-being in numerous ways in the late 1800’s and beginning of the 1900’s.

He established a series of businesses including a popular general store in the Sonoma Barracks building; · He developed a water distribution system and electricity network for the city; He funded beautification projects around Sonoma Plaza, and · He established a very successful rock quarry on Battery Hill (now called Schocken Hill), which supplied paving stones for the streets of San Francisco, San Jose, and Stockton. The quarry provided employment for hundreds of recent Italian immigrants including Samuele Sebastiani and Agostino Pinelli. · Schocken is also significant as Sonoma’s earliest known Jewish resident. The event led by George Webber and Peter Meyerhof will start at 10:30 am with a gathering at the Bear Flag Statue in the NE area of the Plaza followed by a half-mile guided walking tour of sites, photos, and original documents associated with Solomon Schocken.

Gather to the north of the Bear Flag monument

Info: Safety precautions for a more enjoyable event please bring water bottles, wear comfortable walking shoes and a hat/visor. You will sign in and sign a waiver of liability before the tour.

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Host or Publisher Sonoma Valley Historical Society