Dead Cat Alley runs parallel to and north of Main Street, from Cleveland Street to Freeman Park. Memorably named and centrally located, Dead Cat Alley is an important part of Woodland's character. It's also a bit of a tourist attraction. Dead Cat Alley is home to several images of cats - paintings, statues, etc., often pretty high atop the buildings. Look high, look low, and see if you can find them all. It usually takes more than one trip.
History
How the Alley Got Its Name
In 1853, at the intersection of what is now 1st Street and Dead Cat Alley, Henry Wyckoff built the first store in the town that was then known as Yolo City but would go on to become Woodland. It is not known exactly when or how Dead Cat Alley got its name, but it happened early; a newspaper article in the Yolo Democrat from February 8, 1873, referred to Dead Cat Alley by its current name. The alley does not seem to have had any official name, however, until the Woodland City Council made its name official on May 7, 1962.
Its Other Name: China Alley
Dead Cat Alley acquired a Chinatown not long after it informally acquired its name. As a result, it also became known by another informal name: China Alley.
An 1886 Sanborn map indicated a Chinatown in the single block between Elm Street and College Street. Woodland's Chinatown later expanded to cover the area between Walnut Street and 4th Street - virtually all of Dead Cat Alley. Residents of China Alley included Ah Fat, Ah Min, Boy Ying, Gee Lee, Man Hop, and Quong Sing.
From 1925 until 1947, Chinese immigrants Hew Din and Lock Shee Din operated Tai Lee Laundry on Dead Cat Alley and raised their family of eight children, four of whom were born on Dead Cat Alley. A historical report about the Din family was published in 1984 by the California Department of Parks and Recreation under the title The Chinese Laundry on Second Street Papers: Archaeology at the Woodland Opera House site – California Archaeological Report Number 24, a Study About Human Activities on Dead Cat Alley.
In February 2002, the Woodland Art Center created the Dead Cat Alley Nine Lives Project to promote its historical and educational value and its potential as a tourist attraction. This is the project that led to the proliferation of cat images along the alley.
Street Trees
The various public parking lots on Dead Cat Alley have been planted with trees by the city. City Hall is located alongside Dead Cat Alley, and the street trees on the City Hall lot are listed on the City Hall page. The trees planted by the city in the other public parking lots along Dead Cat Alley include the invasive weed species Flowering Pear/Callery Pear (Pyrus calleryana) and also one species native to Woodland: Valley Oak (Quercus lobata). Additionally, the California Fan Palm (Washingtonia filifera) trees in one parking area are native to other parts of California. Other non-native trees planted by the city in the public parking lots on Dead Cat Alley include Trident Maple (Acer buergerianum), Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum), European Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus 'Fastigiata'), American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), Western Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa), European Hackberry (Celtis australis), Chinese Hackberry (Celtis sinensis), Chitalpa (Chitalpa tashkentensis), Goldenrain Tree (Koelreuteria paniculata), Crape Myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica), Fruitless Mulberry (Morus alba), Chinese Pistache (Pistacia chinensis), Pin Oak (Quercus palustris), Cork Oak (Quercus suber), and Saw-leaf Zelkova (Zelkova serrata).
Links
City of Woodland Proclamation: Dead Cat Alley, November 27, 2007
