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Our accomplishments
in 2024

The Victorian Preservation Center of Oakland (V.P.C.O.) is a non-profit organization that was created in 1989 to preserve and restore the Cohen Bray House. Ours is a small organization; 100% of your much-needed donations and membership dues help us realize our mission to conserve, maintain and restore this one-of-a-kind house and property. We also share its history with the public, historic preservation organizations and educational institutions. 
 This past year we commemorated the 140th anniversary of the house, and our activities are listed below.  Our mission puts into practice everyday maintenance and outreach projects that have been completed- thanks to you and your support.

Our 2025 projects are listed at the bottom , see how you can become involved.


Projects completed:

  • Our #1 priority was raising $70,000 to fund our foundation project. 
    We have almost done that and hope to proceed with the work  in phases in 2025.

    This work will repair the failing sections of the original brick foundation. This will halt further damage to the plaster, original wall papers, fireplace tiles and window frames situated near the most damaged part in the wall between the parlor/library. Photos of the issue and the plans.

  • Three thousand people a month are watching our social media posts and have learned about who we are and what we do.


  • We have been researching and accumulating information to prioritize & to make repairs correctly, according to the guidelines set by the National Register of Historic Places. 


  • We have rebuilt the 30 most damaged wooden windows so far and adding U.V. protection to protect the collections and buildings from sun and water damage (61 windows to go).

  • In Total-Our volunteers have logged 4,240 hours of work at the house in the past year. Which at $20 an hour comes to $84,800 in donated time. 

  • We contribute much of our success to the time our volunteers have donated working at the house. We have had 18 volunteers working on our Collections and have cataloged 673 new items this year for a grand total of 4723 cataloged and documented items.  You can view some of them at hub.catalogit.app/131 .
  • Several long -term cataloging projects were finished recently. A 92- page Insurance Inventory of everything lost from the Cohen Fernside Estate 1897 Fire has been transcribed and scanned. It will be shared with the public before the end of the year.  It provides a fascinating record of the burned contents of this 72- room mansion in the from 1862-1898s. 
    We have found extensive new (to us) information about Edgar Cohen’s photographs. Edgar was Alfred Henry's brother and was a gifted photographer many of his photos can be seen on our website under Fernside photos and can be found in the Monterrey County Archives.

  • Pieces of the original wedding dress worn by Emma Bray were found in a box and assembled for display for the 140th anniversary celebration.

  • These wedding dress pieces and half of our extensive collection of hand-work examples has been cataloged and properly stored. In January, never before seen personal artifacts and letters of Emma’s were discovered in a hidden drawer.

  • Our archive collection of thousands of documents has new shelves, boxes and labels and is now much easier to access. 

  • A volunteer, Mara Melandry has been compiling a book of Emelita Cohen's memories.  It is about 120 pages long and has many photographs. It is on sale in our gift shop.

  • On display now are furniture and art pieces have been cleaned and preserved.

  • In addition, our garden has flourished this year. On -going maintenance on 1/2 acre of land is a big job. We purchased and restored the pea gravel to recover the paths.

    Physical donations have included:

  • Period China to be used for our fundraising dinner to be held in January, 2025.

  • Beautiful new front hall curtains were donated by Barbara Peterson, these will allow us to keep the heat contained for winter events. 

  • Period lighting was donated by Jana Olson and installed in front hallway and kitchen -a huge improvement.

  • A handicapped accessible lift that will allow disabled visitors the ability to enter the first floor from the back of the house. The worth of these contributions is immeasurable.

    Fundraising Events Completed:

  • We had a successful Mother’s Day tea & tour and sold out! 

  • New-Butler V’s donated their services and promoted a new fundraiser for new younger clientele.

  • Three private tea parties were given by our members for their friends.

  • New-We participated in the “Doors Open” -California Preservation Foundation by touring and providing a wooden window restoration workshop

  • The local Oakland Heritage Alliance-did a Fruitvale neighborhoods walk and we offered a house tour. 

  • We hosted a party for legacy givers from the Town and Gown Club and gained new members.

    Networking groups and resources made: 

  • We made new contacts and shared resources with local organizations by giving private tours to the staff of Oakland History Center, and the Friends of Sausal Creek, who support historic watershed awareness.

  • The first meeting of the Bay Area historic preservation societies took place at the house. We hope to assist and continue to enable collaboration. 

  • Gibbons family reunion #2. Was held in the garden and family memories were shared. (Gibbons was maiden name of Alfred Andrew Cohen's wife, Emelie).

  • 140th anniversary party celebration on February 28, 2024. Over 40 members, friends and family attended.

  • Memorial service for Douglas Schma, Grandson of Douglas Cohen ( one of the four children born in the house)

     Restoration Work completed by our caretaker:

  • Shelves built for archival material 

  • 30 wooden windows restored or rebuilt out of 86 windows 

  • Antique wavy glass installed to match ones that were broken or cracked

  • Mounted new gutters on the back buildings

  •  Build a new pad for the handicapped access lift.

    Security updated:

  • New security camera system installed by Caretaker Mark and board member Miranda. Caretakers can now instantly see all around the property by using their phones.

  • A new video doorbell has been installed.

    We need more members and donations to continue to complete these critical projects listed below.

  • Please join us as a new member or donate to our efforts.

  • Click on this link- support us and click on the membership link and input your data and preferences into the new system on our website.

     

You are part of this future  
Patty Donald - president of the Victorian Preservation Center of Oakland

                                                                                                                                                                       December  2024

Dear Friends and Members,

 

The Board of Directors of the Victorian Preservation Center of Oakland - Cohen Bray House so appreciates your support this past year. Thank-you for understanding the importance of maintaining this piece of Bay Area history for future generations.

We are ending 2024 with success. With your help we are closer to accomplishing our fundraising goal of $72,200 to repair the failing parts of the original brick foundation. You have helped us raise $60K!  

We can begin Phase 1 of this crucial foundation project. We hope you will help us raise the $13K needed to complete Phase 2.

Phase 1: replace the foundation under the parlor and library west walls.
This will stop the walls from sinking. This in turn will level the windows and doors and seal out the weather. The pocket doors will be able to function again, and the tiles won’t fall out from around the fireplace.

Phase 2- replace the foundation under the 1898 sunroom porch and restroom.

Once both phases are done, we will be ready for our next project. This involves updating the sunroom porch where our gift shop & restroom are located. We will replace the rotten flooring sections under the windows, rebuild two walls, windowsills, windows and the sliding barn door.  We also have the goal of rebuilding our only restroom on the ground floor to accommodate wheelchairs.

Repairing the falling exterior woodwork and repainting the whole house is next on the list and would require almost $80K. The house has not been painted for almost 50 years and decorative pieces are falling off every day.

Perhaps you would like to take on a personal project you can see and touch.
Your contribution will be listed in our Catalogit system, giving you credit for your involvement.

  • repairing the Bray’s grandfather clock in the front hall.

  • repair the clock on the mantle in the library. Gifted by Pedar Sather.

  • reupholstering of (a) chairs in the Craftsman room, or dining room. This will allow us to hold more fundraising events in those rooms.
     

There are other ways you can help

  • Start our 2025 fundraising with a very special event, and join us on January 11th for our New Year fundraising dinner. Enjoy a holiday feast as generations of Cohens and Brays have, with gourmet food and fantastic company in this beautiful dining room. After dinner, we will gather around the Christmas tree in the craftsman room to sing Christmas carols and light the candles on the Christmas tree. A very memorable event. You can buy tickets on our website. ($500)

  • Add the Victorian Preservation Center of Oakland- Cohen Bray House to your will as a beneficiary. Become a big part of this legacy. Or consider us when you need to roll over your 401 Ks as a nontaxable donation. Your estate planner can assist you with the necessary legalities.

  • Give a membership to family and friends.

  • Learn to help lead tours and run events

  • Use your skills to teach classes.

  • Help with our teas by providing sweets and savories or serving and prepping.

  •  Plant, maintain and harvest our garden.

  •  Write grant proposals for funding. 
     

In June 2025, we invite you to a “Celebrate Preservation & Restoration” event in the back yard.

Meet Restoration professionals - Artistic License Guild and historic trades people who will be providing lectures, workshops, and demonstrations. Perfect for D.I.Y. community members interested in learning historic restoration skills to care for their old homes properly. This is the first step toward our long-term goal of creating an apprenticeship program and pairing interested people with retired craftspeople, using our facilities to continue restoration and preservation education.

 

If you have any questions about how to help or use the website, feel free to contact me

 at 1 510 325-0506

 

A heartfelt thank-you for your membership and contributions to the Victorian Preservation Center of Oakland- Cohen Bray House. You are helping history survive into the future.

We truly appreciate your dedication and help.

Warmly, 

​

Patricia Donald 
President
Victorian Preservation Center of Oakland
Cohen Bray house

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