Berkeley’s paths and stairways take walkers along some of the city’s prettiest neighborhoods and streets. But there’s one that might well surpass all the others in terms of history and architectural interest: If you’re looking for a path to share with visitors to demonstrate the richness of Berkeley’s culture, look no further than Rose Walk.
Running east-west from Rose Street to Euclid Avenue, Rose Walk is a single hillside block of rustic houses, duplexes, and cottages framed by well-tended flowerbeds and fronted by a gracefully curved double stairway in pink stucco. Its walkway, gardens, and current structures were originally designed by such renowned local architects as Bernard Maybeck, John Galen Howard, and Julia Morgan. It was also a passion project for the Hillside Club, founded by local residents in 1898 to protect the hills from unsuitable buildings and hillside grading. The walk has been called “Berkeley’s perfectly planned environment compressed into one block.”
Like many of the paths and stairways that traverse the Berkeley hills, this walk was conceived to accommodate local commuters using the Key System’s trains and streetcars. The walkway linked the Euclid Avenue streetcar line with residences higher up the hill.
In 1909, the Hillside Club formed a committee and raised funds by subscription from neighbors. It had rejected more than a dozen previous plans by Berkeley’s city engineer for a new neighborhood in that spot. Instead, the club persuaded Bernard Maybeck to donate his design services, and he directed that the path “be constructed of concrete, bordered with hedges of roses and decorative trees.” The Rose Walk was completed in 1913.
After the 1923 Berkeley Fire demolished the surrounding neighborhood, the property bordering the walk was redeveloped by a couple named Frank and Florence Dickens Gray. Architect Henry Higby Gutterson designed the updated complex, which was built from 1924 to 1936.
Dr. Gray died soon after the construction was completed, but Mrs. Gray became a careful steward of the property for many years, often renting to university faculty. She later sold it to Professor Dale Tillery of the School of Education, who in turn later gifted the property to the University of California to provide temporary housing for visiting faculty.
In 1959 Rose Walk was declared a “Work of Civic Art” by the City of Berkeley; in 1975, it was listed by the city as a Berkeley Landmark; and, in 1998, it received a historical marker from the Berkeley Historical Plaque Project.
After strolling along the pathway and enjoying the charming dwellings, be sure to cross Euclid Avenue to visit the hundreds of rose bushes and the spectacular views at the Berkeley Rose Garden.
You can read a more detailed description of the structures in Berkeley Walks, written by BPWA’s own Robert E. Johnson and Janet L. Byron, updated in 2023. You might also enjoy the Quick Guide to Berkeley Names published by the Berkeley Historical Society.