The area got its name from the earlier " Fruit Vale " , the fruit tree nursery ( mostly apricots and cherries ) established there by Henderson Luelling in the mid-19th century . After the 1906 earthquake , the onslaught of refugees from San Francisco caused a population boom , and the unincorporated neighborhood was annexed into the City of Oakland by 1909
1906 earthquake
1906 San Francisco earthquake
Fruitvale, Oakland, California