12,000 BCE 3,000 BCE 380 CE 1500s First inhabitants of California arrive First inhabitants of the San Francisco Bay Area arrive Coyote Hills villages settled Bay area population: 10,000 native people

Welcome to the Crossroads Native People timeline section. This timeline covers the period where first California and then the Hayward area had its earliest known inhabitants (12,000 BCE to 1500s CE). It ends with the first Europeans coming to California and begining to explore and settle here. Click on text or images to find out more about events and dates.

12,000 BCE  Archaeological evidence suggests that people first arrived in the region now called California about 12,000 B.C.E. More came over the next several thousand years. ... More

3,000 BCE   People speaking the Penutian languages arrived in the San Francisco area about 3,000 BCE ... More

380 CE  Coyote Hills Park area (near present-day Fremont) settled by Ohlone and continually inhabited until 1800 CE ... More

1500s CE  European exploration of California began in the 1500s. The Bay Area population of native people is estimated at 10,000. Over the coming centuries the population of all California Indians decreased dramatically.