The Laurel District is the commercial corridor aligning MacArthur Blvd. between 35th Avenue and High Street in Oakland. But the area also encompasses many surrounding neighborhoods such as Redwood Heights, Allendale, Leona Heights and Maxwell Park. Prior to the 1800s, the hills above the Laurel were covered with redwood trees and the area was home to the Ohlone.
A few local historians have written about the Laurel District and its origins. One is Dennis Evanosky, see http://evanosky.info/, who writes about Oakland and Alameda. His boook, “Oakland’s Laurel District,” was published in 2007. It has since sold out but here’s a sample chapter on how the neighborhood got its name, “What’s in a name? Laurel Grove Park.”
Erika Mailman has written about the Oakland Hills, including Redwood Heights and the Laurel for the Montclarion. An excerpt of one of her columns can be found on the Davenport Neighborhood Watch Redwood Heights History page. It relates how the quarry behind what is now the Lincoln Center Shopping Center was once thought to contain gold and how the hills were covered in redwood trees.