Making History Blog

Elevated View of Central Mendocino, 1909-1912

An elevated view of central Mendocino probably taken from the water tower belonging to the Sempione Hotel, formerly the Lisbon House, 1909-1912. This is a view to the east, looking across Kasten Street and down Albion Street. On the left, the roof of the John Dougherty House is visible, with its small water tank in the back yard to the right. Behind the John Dougherty House [...]

By |2023-01-13T07:44:08-08:00March 2, 2022|

Ocean Cave, 1898

Man and child standing in front of an ocean cave at low tide. Caption on back of photo, "This is a cave in Cape Mendocino 9 miles from here. Taken March 1, 1898. That's the ocean back of those boys." (Kelley House Collection, Kelley House Photographs) Mendocino from the Beginning: Twenty Billion Years of History of a Small Town by Don and Wilma Tucker - A [...]

By |2023-01-13T07:50:25-08:00March 1, 2022|

North Side of Main Street, c. 1883

View of businesses on the north side of Main Street in Mendocino, looking westward, c. 1883. The two-story J. D. Murray Drug Store is the structure on the far left. To its right is the Chung Kow Wash House and Laundry, which was located on the northwest corner of Kasten and Main Streets. Both buildings have been demolished, with the Laundry being replaced by a bank [...]

By |2023-01-13T07:57:26-08:00February 28, 2022|

Joel Fisher Hills

M. M. Hazeltine photograph of west Main Street in Mendocino, c.1863. J. E. Carlson's City Hotel can be seen on the left. Right of the hotel was a livery stables and another three-story building that was probably the saloon and hotel owned by Silas Osborn and Fred Heldt. On the south side of the street is a large building that is thought to house Joel [...]

By |2023-01-13T08:01:26-08:00February 26, 2022|

Sarah Prentiss

Second Grade Class of the Mendocino Grammar School, 1921. Front row L-R: Delphine Valenti, Katherine Silva, Lebania DeSilva, Marie Christiansen, Ruth Knack, Katie Lawrence, Thelma Barnes, Buster Salvador, Domingo Valador, Laura Nichols 2nd row: John Granskog, Harold Hee, Dolores Silveria, Kenneth Maxwell, Pete Donoho, Louie Fratis, unidentified, James Paoli, Arthur Moilenan, Rose Silva, Sarah Prentiss 3rd row: Jesse Paoli, Janet Nystrom, ? Norberry, Herman Costa, [...]

By |2023-01-13T08:28:37-08:00February 25, 2022|

Albion’s Lost Railroad

Map illustrating the extent of the Albion Branch of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad (“Western Railroader” by Stanley T. Borden, Vol. 24, No. 12. December 1961, Issue No. 264) Questions about the Albion Lumber Company’s miles of railroad on the Mendocino Coast have been popping up at the Kelley House Museum recently. Here’s a review of how this little-known railroad came to be, what it [...]

By |2023-01-13T08:33:45-08:00February 24, 2022|

Stone Jewelry Store, Main Street, 1924

Albert "Bert" Grindle Stone inside his family's jewelry and clock store located on the south side of Main Street in Mendocino. Bert is dressed in a suit and tie and stands on the right, behind chest-high, glass-topped display cases filled with jewelry and other goods. A row of clocks sits on a long wall shelf behind him.  A row of electric light bulbs with glass shades [...]

By |2023-01-13T08:39:31-08:00February 23, 2022|

Main Street, Mendocino, 1883

A westward view of Main Street in Mendocino in 1883. A pair of mules pulls a wagon down the graded dirt street lined with wooden sidewalks. On the right is a two-story building occupied by Walker's Saloon and Restaurant, which became the Alhambra Hotel after Duncan Walker died suddenly on April 26, 1883 of tuberculosis. Farther down the street beyond the small tree is Central House, [...]

By |2023-01-13T08:50:21-08:00February 22, 2022|

Daisy Henderson

Daisy Henderson, 1922. February was always the best month of Daisy Henderson’s short life. The other months weren’t quite so kind. Born in Mendocino on February 18, 1899, Daisy was the middle child and only daughter of James Albert and Daisy Gregor Henderson. She and her brothers attended the Mendocino Grammar and High Schools. Growing up, Daisy performed in school plays, sang solos at [...]

By |2023-01-23T10:38:59-08:00February 20, 2022|

Aerial View of West Main Street, 1900

Early view of Mendocino looking southwest along Main Street toward the Shipping Point with stacks of lumber waiting to be loaded. The small white dwelling in the foreground is a Chinese dwelling, and is behind the Chung Kow Wash House, which is not visible to the left. A total of three Chinese buildings are on this one lot, according to the 1894 Sanborn map. This lot [...]

By |2023-01-13T09:11:55-08:00February 18, 2022|
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