The Garden of the Vallejo Adobe - Designed by Johannes Reimers

What did the garden around the "Old Adobe" look like? There are black and white pictures, but the cover of the 1939 catalog is probably how the Roeding family saw it. (The catalog flipped the original painting to make the front door be on the cover!). [2021 update! Movies from California Revealed]

Johannes Reimers designed the garden surrounding the Old Adobe around the time that the adobe was renovated by his son, the Bay Area architect, Frederick Reimers.

The 1931 catalog says that the owners plan to renovate the old building and that the grounds are being appropriately landscaped.

Why was Johannes Reimers chosen to do the garden?

A Walk Around the Old Vallejo Adobe

The garden around the Vallejo Adobe is often referred to as the "Reimers garden".   So far, I found this out about Johannes Reimers.  The original design for the garden still exists in the archives (supposedly). 

Johannes Reimers could be considered (at least by me) a really early drought-tolerant garden planner. He planned gardens for some of the driest most neglected areas, railroad stations.

Mrs. George Roeding Jr's History of the Old Adobe and its Garden

First an introduction to the dynamic father-son duo: Johannes Reimers and Fred Reimers

The Bay Area architect, Frederick Reimers, transformed the modest adobe building that was formerly used for fumigation and storage. He created a modern building with windows to let light in. Locally manufactured tiles covered the floor and roof. The historic adobe was introduced as the "Old Adobe." 

[Fred Reimers designed many buildings and homes in Oakland, Piedmont, and the Bay Area. His residences are very cute and are still very sought after. He designed a model home for the Niles Rotary in Adobe Acres which was built on former nursery land during the Depression. (see Fremont Main Library)]

Johannes Reimers, his father, designed the garden around the Vallejo Adobe. He created the pleasant sheltered garden surrounded by nursery buildings and created a place for gatherings.

Johannes Reimers had a long association with the Roeding family and designed and built Roeding Park, many other parks, industrial site gardens, and train stations.