These two settlements would eventually merge to become the town of Alvarado.  Four years later, Erza, Aldolphus, and John Decoto found themselves sailing through the Golden Gate, attracted by the gold rush to California.  When they heard the railroad might be coming through Niles Canyon, the Decoto Brothers bought 334 acres of the surrounding land.  When the railroad did come through, the Central Pacific Railroad bought back 234 acres of land from the brothers and laid out the town of Decoto.  A land with some of the most fertile soil in California, Decoto attracted many farmers such as the likes of John Whipple.  The farmers could market their goods at Captain Frederich William Meyer’s general store or being in a port town, could ship their produce all over the world.  In 1858, the Dyer Brothers, Ehpraim and Ebenezer, imported sugar beet seed from Germany and planted 150 acres as a test plot.  Ebenezer would go on to become the “father of the American beet sugar industry” when he established the first successful sugar beet mill in the United States, its location?  Alvarado, California. Together these farmers, entrepreneurs, and settlers laid the foundation for a city that would one day grow to become the home of 74,000 people.

Within a two years of its founding, John Horner’s Union City, named for his Steamship “The Union,” had merged with Henry Smith’s New Haven to form the town of Alvarado.  Alvarado and Decoto had remained neighboring towns for 1870 until 1959, when a Citizens’ Committee, led by Tom Kitayama, formed to petition for incorporation in order to keep Hayward from annexing both towns.  On January 13, 1959, the issue was to put to a vote and Union City was incorporated, uniting the towns of Alvarado and Decoto.  Tom Kitayama unanimously became the city’s first mayor and California’s first Japanese-American elected to public office.  Mayor Kitayama championed development and after 32 years under his stewardship, Union City saw its population increase from roughly 5,000 to 50,000 residents.  Also in 1959, James Logan High School was founded and in 1965 the New Haven Unified School District was formed.  Today, the high school captures worldwide attention with its band and color guard and the school district has established itself as a leader in education innovation and reform.  The 1960s and 70s saw steady growth as many young families moved to the area’s new housing developments.  Union City experienced an economic boom in the 80s and 90s with continued growth and the opening of Union Landing.  In 1999, the National Civic League honored Union City as an All-America City, an award that “recognizes communities whose citizens work together to identify and tackle community-wide challenges and achieve uncommon results”.  Today, Union City boasts a population of nearly 74,000 residents and counting.  This year, Union City is celebrating its 50th Anniversary of incorporation with many festivities and events.