August 28, 1937 - The high school’s new gymnasium was dedicated with a dance that was open to the public. The Beacon reported that almost 550 people attended the dance, which was sponsored by the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA). The PTA President was Mamie Mendosa. First Mendocino High School Gym, c. 1954 Dancing started about 9 o’clock, and “the floor is in excellent shape and [...]
In 1887, Charles Denslow, bookkeeper for the Mendocino Lumber Company, purchased this lot on the northwest corner of Kasten and Calpella Streets. Denslow moved an existing small house north onto an adjoining property, and master carpenter J. D. Johnson built this house on the south end of the lot. Undated photo of the Denslow-Maxwell House. Note its distinctive round window and brick chimney top, the [...]
August 24, 1912 - The Mendocino Beacon reported that a shipment of 3,000 pounds of huckleberries had been sent to San Francisco. The editorial suggested that the huckleberry had “a distinct place as a pie fruit and for other purposes, and the apparent good demand seems to bear out this conclusion.” “There are thousands of acres of these berries along this coast, and in most cases [...]
When Beth Stebbins and Dorothy Bear of Mendocino Historical Research accepted the generous gift of the Kelley family property in April 1975, they received more than just the house and grounds. There was also a resident feline, described in the July 31, 1975 issue of the Beacon. “Then there is the Kelley cat. She is small, black with white markings and naturally, was pregnant when we [...]
August 20, 1860 - Patrick Padden purchased a lot on Main Street, west of Kasten, where the Mendocino Jewelry Store is located in 2022. Here, he built and operated Mendocino's second saloon. West Main Street, c. 1865. View of the west end of Main Street in Mendocino looking northeast before the fire of 1870 destroyed this part of town. A group of men gather in [...]
View looking northwestward showing the Company lumberyard, located on the north side of Big River flat. The gantry crane at the end of the rails was used to move the stacks of lumber around within the lumberyard. The rails ran out from the mill (behind the camera), through the lumberyard to the Incline behind the crane. Loaded railcars were pulled by a hoisting engine to [...]
I was walking down Calpella Street toward the ocean last week when I crossed Woodward Street, Heeser, Rundle, and finally Kelly. Heeser and Kelly I know, but who were Woodward and Rundle? Coming back on Ukiah Street, I encountered Osborn and William. Locals know that, with a few exceptions, the north-south streets in Mendocino are named after early settlers and the east-west streets after nearby places. [...]
Herman Fayal and His Miniature Houses, 1986. For years the Fayal family home on the corner of Calpella and Kelly streets, where Herman lived for over 80 years, was a showplace for his carpentry skills with a miniature scene of Mendocino’s old Main Street, doll houses, water towers, wind mills, flower boxes, and a series of miniatures showing the progression of lumber from the log [...]
Ships in Albion Harbor, 1897. Ships in Albion harbor are: an unknown craft on far left carried tanbark; the Amethyst, second from left, carried ties; and the scow, Sacramento, second from right, loading from lighter - all lined up to load lumber at Albion wharf on August 15, 1897. Other ships are unidentified. (Gift of Emery Escola) New! Cemetery Tour - Take a hauntingly beautiful walk [...]
Main Street Courtyard, 1963-1977. In 1961, Bill Zacha, founder of the Mendocino Art Center and owner of this property, constructed a new building that housed on its lower floor the Mendocino Laundromat, seen here on the right. The Laundromat operated until 1977, when water shortages caused it to close down. (Gift of Karen McGrath) August 14, 1967 - Mendocino Laundromat was the scene of [...]