Bay Area Estonians
Estonians are reported to have been in the San Francisco Bay Area since the early days of the Gold Rush.
The California poppy (Eschscholzia californica), California's state flower, was named for Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz of Tartu.
A medical doctor and professor, von Eschscholtz joined the scientific research expedition of Otto von Kotzebue, a Tallinn-born Baltic German. The expedition reached the shores of Northern California in 1816.
Following several previous organizations in San Francisco, the Estonian Society in its current form was founded in 1950. The first West Coast Estonian Days were held by the Estonian League of the West Coast in San Francisco two years later, in 1953.
San Francisco also hosted the West Coast Estonian Days in 1959, 1967, 1975, 1983, 1993, and 2001. The Estonian Society continues as a member organization of the Estonian League of the West Coast.
Since 2007, Enterprise Estonia (EAS) Silicon Valley has been active in the Bay Area, promoting business links between Silicon Valley and Estonian tech companies and entrepreneurs from its South Bay offices.
In 2013, San Francisco hosted the LEP-ESTO festival, combining the worldwide festival with the West Coast Estonian Days for the first time.
With more than 1200 attendees from at least 14 countries and 30 states, and 27 performing groups with over 400 performers, the LEP-ESTO festival showcased Estonian culture for Estonians and Northern California locals alike.
With an endowment from the Kistler-Ritso Foundation, Stanford University Libraries established a Baltic Studies program in 2013.
The aim of the program is to collect Baltic books and archival materials, support research and teaching, and raise general awareness of the history and culture of the Baltic states.
The program has an active collaboration with the Vabamu museum in Tallinn, and has attracted many high profile visitors from Estonia and the other Baltic states to the Bay Area.
In recent years, choirs from the Bay Area Estonian community have participated in the major song festivals in Estonia for the first time.
The San Francisco Pääsukesed participated in the Youth Song and Dance Festival (Noorte laulu- ja tantsupidu) in 2017 in Tallinn.
The San Francisco Estonian Community Choir sang in the Song Festival (Üldlaulupidu) in 2019 in Tallinn.
With many recent Estonian contributions to the tech industry, the history of Estonians in the Bay Area is still unfinished.
In 2020-2021, the Estonian Society celebrates its 70th year!
If you have stories, pictures, or other history to share, please let us know!