Berkley City Map Poster

About Berkley

The city is home to the world headquarters of Chrysler, The Palace of Auburn Hills, and Oakland University. Berkley was founded in 1823 by land speculator James Greenleaf; it was named after his former hometown of Berkley, Massachusetts. The town served as a stop on the Underground Railroad for refugee slaves before the Civil War. In 1926 it became a village and in 1950 its population reached 7,500 residents when it incorporated as a city with over 20 square miles (52 km2) area.[3] It had been part of Royal Oak Township until that township's incorporation into Metropolitan Detroit's government following World War II.[4] Since then much has changed: during this time period Berkley has grown from an exclusively white community to one which includes African Americans and Asians among others.[5][6][7] Today there are more than 14000 people living within its borders making up over 100 different ethnic groups[8]. With all these changes Berkleys motto remains "A great place to live!" [9].