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Thanks for visiting Historic Happenings! If you are not on the email list, and would like to be notified via email when a new posting of this newsletter is made, please email Terry Ommen at histerry@comcast.net. I will add you to the list. I will never share your email address with anyone without your permission.
Congratulations to Doug Silveria
for being the first to identify the last mystery spot as the concrete
overcrossing of Mill Creek on Main Street near Mayor's Park. It is a dominant
feature there, but one we take for granted as we pass over it all the time.
Nice work, Doug!
Now for the next one. It think it’s
going to be easy. Here are your clues:
1) This building was finished in
1918.
2) People lived here on a
temporary basis
3) Oftentimes those that
occupied this building were noisy.
4) There was a strict code of
conduct if you lived here.
Where is this building?
Ralph and Helen Drath—Educators Through & Through
The recent HH discussion of
teachers in Visalia has led me to conclude that Visalian's really do love their
teachers and educators. And in my opinion there are no better examples of
respected educators than Ralph and Helen Drath. Ralph was born in Kansas in
1911 and moved to Visalia in the 1930s. He taught school here, then became a
principal at Webster, Highland and Houston schools. He was also
Help, Help, I Need Your Help!
I recently came across this
photograph marked "Visalia, May 3, 1908." It has no other markings. I
do not recognize the house at all, but the man sitting on the steps is so
familiar to me, but I can't recall his name. Does anyone recognize him or
anyone else in this group? Come on, please!
76-Year Old Pioneer Newspaper Surfaces
Doug Silveria recently found an
older "The Pioneer" newspaper for December 15, 1939. The Pioneer was
the official Visalia High School newspaper and was written by journalism
students. It reported on serious school news like, "Fourteen students
receive all A's," but included lighthearted material as well like,
"Gladys Trembly and Neal Ensign get the title of the cutest couple on the
campus." Fun stuff to read. Thanks Doug for sharing this interesting old
high school newspaper.
Wheaton Gray’s Home Becomes Mortuary
The carpenter's union building
located on the southwest corner of Church and School streets was once home to
Superior Court Judge Wheaton Gray. The residence was constructed about 1875,
and over the years it went through several remodels and additions. At one time
it was home to the A. E. Brooks Mortuary. Here is the building as a mortuary in
1929. Architect Michael Kreps is wondering if anyone has a photograph of this
building when it was the judge's residence, before all the remodels and
additions. Can anyone help?
Monty Sands Does it Again
Well, Monty Sands has written
another. Yep it is another history book and this one is called In More Innocent Times. I have not read
it yet, but it looks like another good one to me. In it he describes life in
the San Joaquin Valley in the 1940s, '50s, and '60s. It has occasional mentions
of Visalia and includes a short chapter on Spanish Town and saddle companies.
Just glancing through it, I know you will recognize topics familiar to you. In More Innocent Times is available at
Amazon and at Bargain Books and Linda's
Books in Visalia.
Photograph of the W. B. Wallace Home
Recently I was talking to
Marilynn Mitchell at Josten's and she mentioned an old photograph that had been
in her father's (Hank Speer, the well-respected identification officer with the
Tulare County Sheriff's Dept.) collection. His picture is shown here and is of
an old house on Acequia near Willis. Marilynn believes the house once belonged
to a superior court judge. I did some further checking and I now believe that
this house belonged to Judge W. B. Wallace. It was torn down years ago, but there
is an interesting story connected to it. The judge complained vigorously to
Herbert Askin who owned a tin smithing business nearby on Main Street. He said
the business was too noisy and disturbed his peace. Askin moved his tin shop to
a new location on E. Main Street. Thanks for the photo, Marilynn
Speaking of School Newspapers
I recently came across what I
think to be a pretty rare item. The Visalia Junior College opened for the first
time on the Visalia High School campus in 1926. The junior college which became
COS stayed on the high school campus until 1940 when it relocated to its new
location on Mooney Blvd, where it is now. This Volume 1 Number 1 VJC
campus newspaper was issued on September
29, 1933 and was 4 pages single sided and 8 ½" x 13" in size. It says
it was "mimeographed" no less. Now there's a term we rarely hear
anymore.
City Hall Covered In Snow
Recently Bob Hargrove, Troy
Tuggle and I had coffee and Bob shared these photographs. They are undated, but
I believe they were taken during the snowfall in Visalia in January 1962. The
two pictures on top show the Visalia City Hall complex on Johnson Street. The
bottom photo shows a parked Visalia police car covered in snow also at city
hall. The snow sure looks refreshing in these days of triple digits. Thanks,
Bob, for sharing.
***Troy Tuggle
reminds us all that just in case you didn't know, Black Bart, the famous California
stage robber, was last seen in Visalia before he disappeared. Finding his
burial location would be a real find. It's a mystery that should be solved.
***An HH follower asked about a
bar near Mooney and Walnut called something like "Monkey's Uncle." A
little checking found out that the bar was in fact near Mooney and Walnut in
the late 1960s and it was called "Monkey's Eye."
***For those interested in Babe
Ruth and Lou Gehrig, these two famous ball players appeared in Visalia—well,
sort of. You can read more about it in the May 2015 issue of Lifestyle Magazine starting on page 13.
Or you can read the article online at http://issuu.com/lifestylemagazine/docs/lifestyle_may15_web
***The teachers in Visalia that
were listed in the school directory in the last HH created quite a lot of
interest. So many of you recognized names and remembered stories about the
beloved teachers. Thanks to all of you who shared them.
***John Bergman was able to
confirm that Betty Treaster's memory was correct. The Sugar Beet Factory was at
K Road and Santa Fe. Thanks John and Betty for that confirmation.
Good Whiskey – Persons desiring pure whiskey can find it
at F. W. Blake's. We were the recipient of some of it, the other day and have
been using it under the doctor's orders of course, and is the best we have met
with in Visalia. Visalia Tulare Times, October 2, 1869