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Fremont Argus
February 20, 2006
FREMONT —
During the first Celebrate Fremont Heritage
Tour held last month, visitors not only took
in the city's sights but also shared their
personal stories and knowledge of the city's
past.
For Nydia
Estrada, a longtime Fremont resident who
assists with the bus tours, it was a prime
example of why locals should "get on the bus
and discover Fremont."
"We were
sharing a lot (of memories) back and forth,"
Estrada said. "We wouldn't have learned that
history anywhere else."
The
two-hour tours are being led by volunteers
and are held once in the morning and once in
the afternoon on the third Saturday of each
month (except February, March and August,
when it takes place on the fourth Saturday).
The tours explore and give historical facts
about the city's five original districts:
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Centerville.
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Irvington.
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Mission
San Jose.
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Niles.
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Warm
Springs
The tour
takes visitors into those neighborhoods, on
which a brief history then is given.
"Each one
has its own distinct characteristics,"
Estrada said. "From the beginning, the city
had a lot of different people and cultures."
Volunteer
tour guides inform participants about
Fremont's origins in the mid-20th century,
when it was a sleepy town of 22,000 people
in 1956. But they also give information
about the Fremont of today, which has a
population of more than 210,000. The tour
includes visits to more-modern sights such
as the Thai Temple and its garden, where
people are encouraged to visit and meditate.
Organizers
are creating a history book of the bus
tour's highlights that soon will be
available for purchase, Estrada said.
Until then,
the Celebrate Fremont Heritage team
volunteers will be helping people discover,
or rediscover, the influences and history
that made the city what it is today.
"I've been
in Fremont for 28 years and I'm still
learning about it," Estrada said. "I can't
think of anywhere else I'd rather be."
For more
information, call (510) 790-9352 or visit
http://www.celebratefremont.org/tours.html.
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