Winehaven, human settlement in California, United States of America
Winehaven is an abandoned harbor settlement on the east shore of San Pablo Bay in Northern California, made up of around 35 early 20th-century buildings. These include a large main building with crenellated walls and corner towers, worker cottages, and old docks reaching into the water.
The California Wine Association built the settlement in 1907 after the 1906 earthquake badly damaged San Francisco, and ships carried wine from the docks to Europe and New York. The Prohibition era ended wine production in 1919, and the Navy took over the site in 1941 to use it as a fuel depot.
Winehaven was once a self-contained workers' settlement where families lived, ate, and worked without leaving the grounds. The main building, with its tower and castle-like walls, still gives the place a theatrical look that stands out along the flat shoreline.
Access to the site is restricted because most buildings are in poor condition and can only be viewed from outside. Visiting during low tide gives a clearer view of the old docks and the waterline.
During World War II, the Navy converted the wine cellars into bomb shelters and control rooms for nuclear materials, turning a place built for wine into a military installation. The main building's castle-like walls were not designed for defense but simply to support the weight of the wine barrels stored inside.
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