Maru No.1 on Big River, c. 1908. Note the smoke other than that coming from the main steam engine. This smoke is coming from a wood stove on which a member of the crew would prepare the workers’ meals. (Gift of Alice Earl Wilder) May 15, 1900 - A steamer delivered the boiler and engine for the new river boat that was being built [...]
Mendocino Pentecost Queen and her attendants, c. 1904. L-R (front): Maggie Jerome, Annie Pereira, Mamie Bettencourt - Pentecost Queen, Amelia Perry, Unidentified, Mamie Gonzales, Adelaide Costa, Florence Lawrence, Constantine Silveira with sash, Herman Fayal with straw hat, Joe Quaill - front left. 2nd row: Mamie Jerome, Marian Thomas, Dino Figaro, Mayme Mendosa, Johanna Thomas, Annie Jerome. May 14, 1922 - Florence King passed away [...]
Do you love learning about your town and talking with people curious about Mendocino’s past? The Kelley House Museum is searching for some new folks to docent in the museum or offer walking tours of the town. The job is easier than you may think! Juliet Way sports a Victorian outfit for her walking tours, but other guides wear whatever they put on that morning. [...]
Brown Sisters and Family, c. 1941. Back row: Mayme Brown, Art Lemos, Mae Lemos, Annie Brown Stone, Emily Brown Lemos. Front row: Carrie Brown Redmayne, Tom Lemos, Patricia Lemos, and Mary Redmayne. On May 11, 1885, Annie L. Brown was born in Mendocino. Her parents were John Q. and Maria Brown, immigrants from the Azore Islands and early day settlers of Mendocino. John and [...]
May 10, 1895 - Dr. William McCornack and pharmacist Herman Baum purchased Mrs. Murray’s drug store, located on Main Street across from the Ford House. A clause in the purchase contract stated that the property could be used for any activity, "excepting for saloon use or immoral purposes.” I.D.E.S. Drill Team, 1925 - 1933. Photograph of I.D.E.S. (Irmandade di Espirito Santo, Brotherhood of the Holy [...]
Henry Reed Ferrill and son, John, in his general merchandise store in Albion, 1910 - 1915. A pile of pants are folded behind John and father, Henry, stands behind the counter. A wide brim hat hangs on the wall and several boots hang from the ceiling. Numerous shoe boxes are stacked in the background, some made by "Buckingham & Hecht,” a large San Francisco shoe [...]
Four Generations of the Flood-Escola Family in Mendocino, 1948. Four generations starting with Rose Watkins Flood, who is seated in this photo. Standing behind Rose, on the right, is Rose’s daughter, Nannie Flood Escola, and on the left, is Nannie’s daughter, Dorothy Escola Schlafer. Dorothy's son (Rose’s great-grandson) Steve Schlafer, standing in front. Photograph taken in 1948 at the Flood home in Mendocino, located on Pine [...]
Personal Expressions, 1974 In July 1893, construction began on the Kelley Baptist Church building on Ukiah Street. The church was dedicated in June 1894 by the Reverend J. S. Ross, and the building was in use until about 1936. Although it was still owned by Kelley family descendants at that time, the church sat vacant for almost 40 years. Corners of the Mouth, [...]
The Kelley House pays tribute to legendary local ‘70s band Cat Mother and their impact on the Mendocino Coast with a collection of ephemera, albums, artwork, and articles. Cat Mother was an eclectic rock band formed in Greenwich Village, New York in 1967. They toured with Jimi Hendrix who co-produced their first album which featured the hit "Good Old Rock N Roll" in 1969. By 1970 [...]
As I was strolling through Hillcrest Cemetery the other day, I counted up all the languages spoken by the people buried there. In the early days, immigrants came to the Mendocino Coast from nearly every corner of the world, leaving behind their mother lands, but bringing with them their mother tongues. Judging from the birthplaces inscribed in the tombstones in Hillcrest, you could have heard snatches [...]