The NAACP Northern California branch was founded in 1915 with the headquarters in Oakland. By 1919 the organization had over 1,000 members throughout the Bay Area, and in 1920 a charter was granted to Oakland Division No. 188 of Marcus Garvey's Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA).
In 1926 the group bought a building at the corner of 8th Street and Chester Street as its Liberty Hall. 1
