Fred Garretson - Oakland

1981 ¹

Frederick Von Hon "Skip" Garretson (c.1934 - July 10, 1981) was an award winning environmental reporter for the Oakland Tribune. During his career, Garretson focused on inspirational articles to save and preserve the San Francisco Bay, the Oakland Estuary and the coastal wetlands.

Beginning as a copy boy in 1954, Garretson worked his entire life for the Oakland Tribune.

Garretson is credited with having started the "Save the Bay" conservation movement.

A previously unknown branch of the Hayward Fault was discovered by Garretson while researching a story on the fault, and subsequently was named the Garretson Creep Zone in his honor.

Throughout his career, Fred Garretson won many journalism awards, including the Nieman Fellowship from Harvard University; the Edward J. Meeman Conservation Award from the Scripps-Howard Foundation (which he won twice); and the American Political Science Associated bestowed a distinguished public affairs reporting award on Garretson.

Following stomach surgery for a tumor, Fred Garretson died at Oakland Kaiser Hospital at the age of 47.

Fred Garretson was the father of former Marin Independent Journal reporter Cornelius "Con" A. Garretson, who died in his sleep at age 35. Con Garretson left the Independent Journal to work at the Piedmonter, a weekly newspaper, in order to spend more time with his daughters.

Garretson Point at the Martin Luther King Jr. Regional Shoreline is named in honor of Fred Garretson. There is a picnic area at Garretson Point with white alder, western sycamore, eucalyptus, and acacia trees.