San Lorenzo
San Lorenzo, California, is a small city that is unincorporated and falls under the jurisdiction of Alameda County. It has less than 24,000 residents and is also known as San Lorenzo Village. John Shiman opened the first store in San Lorenzo in 1853. Farmers were among the biggest customers at that time, but they were only paid once a year when they were able to harvest their crops. The shopkeepers let the farmers run a tab and pay it off at the end of the year. The businesses in the area had to be strong enough to be able to withstand the situation that the farmers were in and stay solvent with once-a-year payments. Today the main industry is retail, and most residents of this area commute to other locations to work.