Portal:San Francisco Bay Area/Years/163

1852
 * After opening a number of businesses in Peru and California, Italian chocolatier Domenico Ghirardelli imports 200 pounds of cocoa beans and establishes D. Ghirardelli & Co in San Francisco (1864 advertisement pictured, left)
 * Henry Wells and William G. Fargo establish Wells, Fargo & Company in San Francisco, a joint-stock association with an initial capitalization of $300,000, to provide express and banking services (iconic stagecoach pictured, right)
 * The city of Santa Clara is incorporated in Santa Clara County (1910 postcard pictured, right)
 * Oakland is incorporated in Alameda County (1867 painting shown, right)
 * Francis K. Shattuck, George Blake, and two partners they met in the gold fields, William Hillegass and James Leonard, lay claim to four adjoining 160 acre strips of land north of Oakland