MacArthur Metro
"Check out the mural on the side of Ann's Cafe! Local artist Daniel Camacho has been hard at work, assisted by several teens who are part of the Team Oakland program.
"The gem shapes in the mural are an obvious but irresistible visual pun. But what, you may wonder, are the cherry and the horse-drawn cart doing there? The cherry symbolizes the Dimond's agricultural history; the Dimond, along with neighboring Fruitvale, was covered with acres of orchard planted in the mid to late nineteenth century. The first fruits ever shipped back east from California were Royal Ann cherries from Dimond.
"The horse-drawn wagon pictured in the mural? In the early part of this century, it delivered goods for Mr. Giambroni's Dimond Grocery at the corner of Fruitvale and Hopkins (MacArthur). Mr. Camacho drew the wagon after seeing a photograph in the collection of Giambroni's daughter, Eleanor Smith, who was kind enough to bring fascinating photos of Dimond's past to our June History Night. Mr. Camacho was at that meeting, and the rest is history!"