J. F. Stoer’s Block
This block of San Pablo Avenue, bordered by West MacArthur Boulevard and Peralta Street, was settled by the prominent Stoer family beginning in 1878.
Johann Friedrich Stoer, a German immigrant, moved with his wife, Carolina Heimerdinger, and their growing family from Minnesota to California in 1864. After finding success mining for gold, the family relocated to San Francisco in 1877.
In 1878, Johann and his wife—by then parents to ten children—acquired property at the corner of 38th Street (now West MacArthur Boulevard) and San Pablo Avenue, in what would later become the City of Emeryville.
There, they constructed a two-story building on the southeast corner of the intersection. A general merchandise business occupied the ground floor, while the Stoer family lived in the residential quarters above.
By 1898, the Stoers had relocated their fuel and feed operations across Peralta Street, roughly where the rear of today’s Pak ’N Save grocery store is located. In 1918, the family sold the business to George G. Prytz, whose operation later moved to the corner of 40th Street and San Pablo Avenue. In 1938, it became the still-standing Black & White Liquor Store.
By 1907, the Stoers renamed their original general merchandise business the Emeryville Hardware and Tool Company. The 1903 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map also lists other businesses on the block at that time, including a blacksmith shop and a butcher.
Johann’s only son, Friedrich J. “Fred” Stoer, eventually assumed leadership of the family enterprises and continued his father’s legacy. Fred became a town trustee upon Emeryville’s incorporation in 1896—a position later known as city councilman following changes to the city charter—and served in that role until 1936.
Johann Stoer died in 1914 at the age of 82.
In 1915, the Stoer family constructed the still-standing three-story “store-and-flat” building at 3811 San Pablo Avenue. The flatiron-shaped structure featured textured brickwork and a hipped Mission tile roof. The second and third floors contained 22 residential units.
One of the building’s earliest tenants was a Piggly Wiggly grocery store, part of the chain’s rapid expansion into the Bay Area through a franchise model. Within a few years, Bay Area Piggly Wiggly locations—including this one—were absorbed by Safeway Economy Markets. Newspaper references to this location disappear after 1937.
Other storefront tenants over time included Western Auto Supply Company at 3807 San Pablo Avenue, along with a variety of smaller markets, liquor stores, and a laundromat.
The original wood-framed Stoer block building at 3801 San Pablo Avenue was demolished around 1957. It was replaced by a Doggie Diner, a popular stop for Emeryville factory workers and truckers.
In 1970, the site became the scene of a notable domestic terrorism incident when two pipe bombs were detonated, injuring one person. The bombs were reportedly intended for Emeryville police officers, though no arrests were ever made.
As competition intensified in an increasingly saturated fast-food market, the Doggie Diner chain declined rapidly in the early 1980s. The final locations, including this Emeryville restaurant, closed by 1986.
Aaron’s Furniture and Mattress Company occupied the address in 1986, followed by a check-cashing business beginning in 1999. The property stood vacant by 2005, when it received approval for redevelopment.
The four-story, 36-unit Adeline Place mixed-use building was completed in 2009.
