Ernesto Nava and the Forgotten History of Russell City

 Ernesto Nava and the Forgotten History of Russell City

Russell City, California, was once a remarkable multicultural community in the East Bay near Hayward. Although the town disappeared physically in the 1960s, its history survives through photographs, newspaper accounts, oral histories, and the memories of former residents.

One of the most intriguing stories connected to Russell City is that of Ernesto Nava, a Mexican American resident whose family had a remarkable connection to the Mexican Revolution.

A Son of the Mexican Revolution

Ernesto Nava is identified in Russell City historical sources as a son of Mexican revolutionary leader Pancho Villa, whose birth name was José Doroteo Arango Arámbula.

Pancho Villa was one of the most famous military leaders of the Mexican Revolution. His name became legendary in Mexico and internationally.

Nava's connection to Villa gives the Russell City story an unusual link between the history of a small California community and the revolutionary history of Mexico.

The Nava Family Comes to Russell City

According to the Oakland Museum of California's Latino History Project, Ernesto Nava moved to Russell City in 1945.

He established a home there and raised his family in the community. His son, Sam Nava, later provided an oral-history account describing the family's life in Russell City.

The Nava family's experience is important because it illustrates something that is sometimes missing from histories of Russell City: this was not simply a "lost town." It was a place where families built homes, raised children, cultivated gardens, worked, operated businesses, and developed community relationships.

A Multicultural Community

Russell City developed into a diverse community that included African Americans, Mexican Americans and other immigrant and working-class families.

By the middle of the twentieth century, Black and Latino families made up much of the community.

For many families, Russell City provided something that surrounding communities did not: an opportunity to own property and establish a home.

Discriminatory housing practices and racial restrictions in neighboring communities limited where Black and Mexican American families could live. Russell City therefore became an important place for families who faced discrimination elsewhere in the East Bay.

When Russell City Was Destroyed

The community's history changed dramatically during the 1950s and 1960s.

Government officials increasingly characterized Russell City as a "blighted" area. At the same time, residents struggled with inadequate infrastructure, including water and sanitation.

Eventually, redevelopment and industrial expansion resulted in the taking of Russell City properties through eminent domain.

Beginning in the early 1960s, homes and businesses were removed. By 1964, Russell City had effectively disappeared.

For the families who lived there, however, this was not simply "urban renewal." It meant losing homes, property, neighborhoods and a community.

"One of the Last Men Standing"

This is where the story of Ernesto Nava becomes particularly compelling.

Historical accounts indicate that Nava remained in Russell City during the destruction of the community and was among the last residents to leave.

That may be the source of the memory of him as the "last man standing."

There is an important distinction, however. The sources I have found so far support describing Nava as one of the last residents, rather than definitively proving that he was literally the final person to leave.

That is an excellent question for further research.

The Nava Family's Oral History

One of the most valuable sources is not a government document but an oral history.

The Oakland Museum of California's Latino History Project interviewed Ernesto Nava's son, Sam Nava, about his family's experience in Russell City.

Sam remembered his father building their house and the family living in Russell City from 1945 until the destruction of the community in 1964.

Oral histories such as this are extremely important because official redevelopment records tend to describe Russell City in terms of property, infrastructure and "blight."

The Nava family's memories tell us what those properties actually meant to the people who lived in them.

A Connection to Mexican Revolutionary History

The Nava story also gives Russell City a remarkable international dimension.

The history of one California neighborhood connects directly to the history of the Mexican Revolution through the reported relationship between Ernesto Nava and Pancho Villa.

It reminds us that Russell City was part of larger migration patterns connecting Mexico, the American Southwest and California.

The people who lived there brought with them family histories, languages, cultures, political traditions and memories from Mexico and other parts of the United States.

Russell City was therefore not isolated from history.

It was a meeting place for several histories.

Why This Story Matters Today

Russell City's history has gained renewed attention because Alameda County is now addressing the displacement of former residents.

In 2026, Alameda County approved a $1.3 million reparations program for surviving Russell City homeowners whose properties were taken during the redevelopment period.

The first payments can reach $25,000 per household, with additional consideration of descendants planned through a later phase.

This new reparations effort is bringing Russell City's history back into public discussion.

And that creates an opportunity to recover stories that were previously overlooked.

A Wikipedia Research Opportunity

The story of Ernesto Nava demonstrates how historical research can begin with a modern news story.

A person reads about Russell City reparations in the news.

They look at the Wikipedia article.

They discover that the article has not yet incorporated some of the newest historical research.

Then the research begins.

The next questions become:

Who was Ernesto Nava?

What was his exact relationship to Pancho Villa?

When did he come to California?

What did he do for a living?

Was he politically active?

What was his role in Russell City's Mexican American community?

Was he actually the last resident to leave?

Where was his house located?

What happened to his property?

What happened to his children and descendants?

Are there photographs of Ernesto Nava?

Are there additional oral histories from his family?

These questions could lead to new Wikipedia citations, Wikimedia Commons photographs, Wikidata entries and possibly biographies of people who have never received adequate coverage online.

Russell City Is More Than a Lost Place

The story of Ernesto Nava helps us see Russell City differently.

It was not merely a community that disappeared because of redevelopment.

It was a place where Black and Mexican American families built lives.

It was a place of farming, gardens, homes, businesses, churches, music and neighborhood relationships.

And it was home to people whose personal histories reached far beyond California — including a man whose family story was connected to one of the most famous figures of the Mexican Revolution.

Today, the reparations discussion is bringing Russell City back into public consciousness.

For historians, Wikipedians and community researchers, this is an opportunity to make sure that the people who lived there are remembered alongside the policies and government decisions that destroyed their community.

Russell City may have disappeared from the California landscape, but its history is still being written.

Sources for further research

Oakland Museum of California, Latino History Project — Russell City oral history

City of Hayward, Russell City Reparative Justice Project

María Ochoa, Russell City

University of San Francisco, Russell City historical research

Alameda County Russell City reparations records

Historical issues of the Daily Review and Oakland Tribune

Oakland Museum of California — Latino History Project⁠

City of Hayward — Russell City Research & Reports⁠