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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 go out to Susan Mangini who was the first to correctly identify the

Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) three links symbol. It is at the entrance to the Odd Fellows lodge building on the east side of Court Street between Main and Acequia. Nice work Susan!

Now for the next one. This is a plaque mounted in Visalia. Here are the clues:

1.     This location was a school site for many years.

2.      It is near a street that was once called Cottonwood.

3.      It is not mounted on a building

4.      Many “card carriers” pass by this almost everyday.

Where is this plaque? Good luck

Talk About Taxis

Friends Peggy and JM Bragg came across a photo recently that absolutely astounds me and puts a smile on my face. This undated photograph shows the City Taxi Service at 120 No. Locust Street across from Chan Bros. Market. The thought that Visalia had a taxi

service doesn’t surprise me but this photograph shows 14 taxi cabs lined up with a lot of employees standing nearby. I checked the 1944 city directory and sure enough the City Taxi Service is listed. But in 1944 Visalia had only about 9,000 people. Why so many taxis? I’m sure Visalia now with a population of 130,000 doesn’t have 14 taxis. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the subject. Thanks Peggy and JM for sharing!

Dedicated to Visalia

Recently Rosemary Hendrickson shared a poem about Visalia that she found in the 1968 COS Tangent. I’m not sure what the Tangent was, but this 8 stanza poem was written by Jim Compton as a dedication to the publication. Jim was quite the Visalia fan. It is worth a read. Was Jim a student at the time? Is he still in Visalia. Thanks Rosemary for finding this cute poem.

Legrand Ellis Insurance

Normita Ellis Error, member of the VUHS class of 1948 and daughter of Legrand Ellis, recently contacted me and mentioned her father. Between Normita and Marsha Robbins, niece to Normita, we have some interesting information and a photograph of Legrand. He came to Three Rivers in 1923, and while recuperating from TB he took a correspondence course to become an insurance agent, which he became. He went to work for Buckman-Mitchell when the company was on No. Church Street. Later he opened his own insurance office at 121 So. Church. This photograph shows Legrand at his office on the west side of Church Street between Main and Acequia. Thanks to Legrand’s daughter and granddaughter for sharing.

Amazing, Simply Amazing

Peter Neeley contacted me some time back and alerted me to an unusual Visalia photograph that he had seen on a Fresno Bee Facebook page. John Walker, historian and a Fresno Bee Staff Photographer, I believe posted this picture believing  it was taken in Fresno, but Peter recognized it as really Visalia. Peter knows his Visalia pictures! Here is the photograph and it clearly shows dozens of motorcycles lined up on the north side of Main Street between Church and Court. The photo is looking west on Main and shows Cross Hardware, Leslie Cook Racket Store, then the Palace Hotel. Across Court Street is J. M. Boynton’s Drug Store (cupola on top). Appears to be early 1900s, maybe a motorcycle rally of some kind? There has got to be an interesting story here. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks John for sharing this photograph and thanks Peter for bringing it to our attention.

Structures, Styles & Stories Program – Next Monday Eve

We all know that Visalia is a pretty amazing place. For lots of reasons, the town is amazing. For one, Visalia has some very neat old buildings…buildings that are not only historically important, but also still in use. How nice is that! We have many that fit in that category, but on Monday evening December 12^th beginning at 7:00pm, I will be highlighting 12 buildings that fit in that category. The following old photographs will be included: Visalia Co-operative Creamery (now Arts Visalia), Studebaker Bldg (now 210 Center), Montgomery Auditorium (now L.J. Williams), Fox Theatre,

Town Center Station Post Office (downtown post office), Palace Hotel, Pacific House, Dudley House, Southern Pacific Depot, Spalding House, and Bank of Italy (now Bank of Sierra). At the end of the presentation 12 enlarged (20” x 30”) photographs of the old buildings will be auctioned off and there are two special items also in the auction—two beautiful artistic pieces of history. The program will be at the 210 Center (Locust and Center). It’s free and I will also have my books for sale. The proceeds from the auction will go to the Visalia Rescue Mission. The evening is part of the on-going 210 Connect Community Program, a series sponsored by First Presbyterian Church and the Visalia Times-Delta. Should be an informative and enjoying evening. Hope to see you there.

COS Plays and Musicals

When Richard Drath mentioned “My Fair Lady” in HH some time back,  he tried to recall the year it was put on by COS. Sheila Caskey Holder came to the rescue and remembered it was 1964. Sheila also shared that she had a collection of COS plays and musical programs. And wow, does she have a collection. About 40 of them, one as early as 1951, “The New Moon.” Believe me the local college has performed all the classics. Thanks Sheila for your help on this.

Memoirs of George Washington Duncan

A regular reader of HH shared these memoirs of an old pioneer named George Washington Duncan. It is a fun read, typed on 24 pages with the last 5 or so dealing with Tulare County, especially around the Tule River area. There are a few Visalia references, but not many. “Grizzley” bears and lots of material describing the land. It is dated 1901 however, the date is a little suspect, but it is early. If you would like me to email you a PDF copy, I’d be happy to do that. Just email me and ask for a copy of the “memories” and I will get one to you.

***Byron Smith recently shared that when the famous “The Pioneer” statue by Solon Borglum collapsed at Mooney Grove Park on May 28, 1980, at least partly due to an earthquake here,  he was working there and  remembered seeing in the rubble, “a wooden frame with chicken wire” infrastructure, and recalls the rotting termite damaged wood.  No wonder it collapsed.

***If you would like to know more about the history of Visalia’s Palace Hotel, which by the way is probably the San Joaquin Valley’s oldest commercial building still in use, pick up the November 2016 issue of Lifestyle Magazine, the article starts on page 12. Or you can go online http://www.visalialifestyle.com/history/ 

***Historian Andrew Crane is working on a historical project that involves Jasper Harrell, a pioneer of Visalia who was probably the richest man in Tulare County during the 1880s. Andrew is looking for a picture of Jasper and I can’t help him. He is trying to find a member of the Harrell family that might have a photograph. Any relatives of Jasper Harrell still around? Help would be appreciated.

Visalia

Few people beyond the borders of our county, and indeed, some within its boundaries who have never visited our thriving young town, can form any adequate idea of its resources, its rapid advancement in wealth and population, and its prospects of future greatness. Its name is often mentioned abroad, and the inquirer, anxious for information, eagerly inquires, Where is Visalia?

The day however, is not far distant when the whole world shall know where Visalia is, and when its name shall be no more an enigma to the most unsophisticated.   The Tulare County Record and Fresno Examiner (Visalia’s first newspaper), July 2, 1859

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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.   

                                                   

Well, Dorothy Downing is the winner. She was the first to correctly identify the last mystery spot as one of the ice shoots at the old ice plant building now the Ice House

Theater. Nice work Dorothy and again thanks to Kim Gunter for suggesting this as a mystery spot.

Here are your clues for the next one:

1)      This sign is in plain view—not hidden in any way

2)      This 3 link emblem symbolizes that people are bound together

3)      At one time this building was sandwiched between Jasper Harrell’s building and a theater

4)      The 3 initials stand for what “ the organization “ believes are the 3 guiding principals of life.

On what building is this sign located? Good luck.

An Old Transit Center

Bruce Geiger found this neat old photograph of an Orange Belt Stage bus at the Visalia Bus Depot and boy is it nice. It is apparently a 1960 photograph showing the bus at the Greyhound Bus Depot at 211 S. Court Street. During this period of time the location served the community like the transit center does today.

This location was the pickup and drop-off point for Continental Trailways, Greyhound Bus lines, and Orange Belt stages. It  served as a taxi stand as well. The second photo shows on the far left a partial view of the depot and shows its position in downtown Visalia. It was on Court Street just south of the alley behind the Town Center Post Office. Great picture, Bruce. Thanks for sharing it.

Jean Shepard and Her Visalia Connection

On September 25, 2016, former Visalian and Country Music Hall of Famer, Jean Shepard passed away. Jean and her family came to Visalia from Oklahoma in the early 1940s looking for a better life. The whole family was musically inclined but Jean had the very special voice. All the family members worked in the fields picking fruit around Visalia including Tagus Ranch.  Even Jean did this as a youngster. Jean attended Visalia Senior High School and graduated in 1951. Carl Mathewson was in her class and remembered her wonderful voice especially when she sang at school assemblies.

Phil Kneeland also knew the Shepard family and knew early on that Jean was going to be a big country western star. Gary Holder knew Jean’s brother Hoyt and was also familiar with the family. While in high school Jean organized an all girl singing group which later became known as Noble’s Melody Ranch Girls. (Jean can be seen on the far right in both photographs.) When I talked to Jean about the advertising poster shown here and asked about “6 Musicians From Hollywood” she laughed and said they were not from Hollywood and she wasn’t sure how that got there. Jean’s big start began when Hank Thompson heard her sing in 1951. She and her fellow country singer, Ferlin Husky teamed up and their song “A Dear John Letter” made it to the top of the country chart. In 1953 she continued her climb, this time to the Grand Ole Opry and stayed a member until her passing. I had an opportunity to meet Jean in her dressing room at the Opry in 2011 and got to see her perform on stage. Quite a thrill for me.

Eleanor Calhoun—More Visalia Royalty

Speaking of Jean Shepard and her almost royalty status to country music fans, Visalia lays claim to another royal citizen—this one was actual royalty. Eleanor or Nellie Calhoun was born in Visalia in about 1862. Even though she left Visalia with her family for Bakersfield while still a young girl, Visalia still claims her. Nellie had a gift. She was an actor and boy could she act. She was a star in San Francisco and throughout the United States. She toured Europe and became a famous French actress learning to speak French fluently. She eventually married the Prince of Serbia and became Princess Eleanor. Here is a rather poor photograph of her as Dora in the stage play “Diplomacy” in about 1884.  She wrote her memoirs called Pleasures and Palaces. The second photograph was Eleanor at the time the book was published in 1915.

Chamber of Commerce—Over a Century of Promoting Business

The Visalia Chamber of Commerce has been around for a long time. In its early years, it was called the Board of Trade or Improvement Association, but regardless of its name, the group that promotes business in Visalia has always attempted to make the business climate a healthy one. Their  office locations have moved

around town over the years. In this photograph the chamber was housed in the old California Highway Patrol office building on the northeast corner of Stevenson and Mineral King. It stayed here for many years, then the building was torn down and the chamber was on the move again. Does anyone recognize this patch? I have had it for many years and need assistance  in identifying what years it was used. Help please!

Visalia Municipal Auditorium—A Popular Venue

In 1916, Visalia built a magnificent municipal auditorium large enough to attract conventions and groups of all sizes to town. For nearly 50 years, it  played host to all sorts of events, meetings and activities. In 1963, the building was determined to be unsafe and had to be torn down. During its heyday, it hosted wrestling matches, political rallies, National Guard exercise and so many other events. It had a stage and few, if any, remember the artwork on the main

curtain on the stage. It had a mountain scene in the middle and at the bottom it showed settlers heading west by covered wagon. There were also scenes of what I believe to be Giant Sequoias on either side. Many of these stage curtain paintings were created by well-known artists of the day, but the artist that painted this one remains a mystery. Does anyone know how we can find out?

***If you would like to know more about the historic Estrada’s Restaurant and its years in Visalia, take a look at the September 2016 issue of  Lifestyle Magazine beginning on page 12.

***Richard Drath shared a couple of things that I found interesting and I want to share them with you. He said, “I heard that Marni Nixon recently died. She did the voice over singing for many movie stars, including Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady. I wonder if any of your followers remember her singing the lead role of Eliza Doolittle in the COS production of My Fair Lady. I don’t remember what year it was, but it many have been in the early to mid-1960s.”

***Richard also said, “I seem to remember in the mid-50s when the Lucy and Desi movie The Long Long Trailer was shown at the Visalia Theater (not the Fox, the one farther down Main Street) that there was a long, long trailer parked outside the theater that you could walk through after the movie. I’m hoping someone else might remember this and my memory isn’t playing tricks on me.”

***Start thinking about your December calendar. On Monday December 12^th as part of the 210 Connect series, I will be doing a presentation that I am calling “Structures, Styles and Stories.” It will be about existing old buildings in Visalia with more information about them. It should be informative, so watch for more details as we get closer.  There will also be some pleasant surprises.

Emigrants are constantly coming into our town and valley. Scarcely a day passes but we can see from one to half a dozen wagon loads of emigrants coming in and passing through. Let them come, we have room to spare for all who desire to come to this, the garden valley of the State. Visalia Weekly Delta, November 24, 1869.

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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.   

                                                    

Well, congratulations go out to Steve Gerrard – that makes 2 in a row for him—for

correctly identifying the last mystery spot as the old Southern California Edison power building at the corner of Main Street near Ben Maddox. Nice work again, Steve.

Now for the next one. By the way Kim Gunter, provided this mystery spot. Where is this feature? Here are the clues:

      1)    This would have been a popular spot on a hot summer day.

      2)      It was conveniently located near a major transportation route not functioning today.

      3)      The product that was once sold here is certainly taken for granted these days.

      4)     A variety of people work here now and there is regular turnover.

Good luck!

Tokens—They Enticed You to Return

My good friend Alan George recently shared a couple of Visalia tokens with me. Tokens were a merchant’s way of getting you to come back to their business and buy more product. In a way it was what we would call a loyalty program today. A merchant would hand out “good for” tokens to customers offering them a discount

or free merchandise on their next visit. It was reward for old customers and provided incentives for new ones to come to your business. The White Fawn was a saloon at 207 E. Main Street and this token, upon presentation, earned you 25 cents in trade. The other token shown here was for 12 ½ cent cigar at The Stag. Sweeney and Necklaussen (notice S & N on token) owned the saloon. Thanks Alan for sharing these wonderful relics with us.

Images of America—Visalia Book Now Available

For the past year and a half I have been compiling old Visalia photographs, some of which were generously provided by some of you,  for a book. This is another Arcadia book which happens to be the second one I have done for this publishing company. The current book which  was just released a couple of days ago is part of a series they call Images of America. The publisher will be placing the book at local outlets, but I have not heard yet where they will be offered locally. Amazon has them too. The book is a historical photograph book and features on the cover a picture of the Visalia Electric train in front of the old county jail on Oak Street. The Arcadia series is nice for anyone interested in old photographs of towns. It can be enjoyed straight through or glanced at with interruptions. Not a lot of text, so you don’t have to read very much, but I have included very good historical information in the captions. If you would like to purchase a copy and can’t find it locally, call me at (559) 901-3227 or email me at histerry@comcast.net and I will make sure you get access to a copy.

Visalia Landmarks in Pencil

David L. Smith is a local architect and pencil portraiture artist in Visalia and is he good! Recently he created a set of 4 note cards, each one drawn by him capturing an iconic Visalia landmark. The End of the Trail, the COS Giant, the Fox Theatre, and the former Mearle’s Drive-In, make up the four card set. His detail is amazing. For example, take a look at the Fox Theatre note card—he has even drawn the individual

ceramic tiles below the theater ticket windows. He is making these available to all of us and envelopes are also included. Printed on heavy white cardstock, the cards are top quality and perfect for sending a personal message to an old friend the old fashion way. Drop by his office at 303 No. Church Street in Visalia or make arrangements with him by telephone (559) 733-7833 to get a set or two. Perfect, too, for art collectors and Christmas stocking stuffers.

National Guard Gets Mascot

Laura Heberling recently shared with me some photos from her family scrapbook, and boy are they beauties. In mid 1916 the border with Mexico was a “hot” spot with Pancho Villa working it over pretty good. The United States was worried that the Mexican Revolution was going to spill over into the United States, so US troops were sent to the border including Visalia’s Company “D” 2^nd Infantry Regiment of the California National Guard. On June 23^rd of that year, about 100 Visalia national guardsmen boarded the train on Oak Street bound for their assigned border area near Nogales, Arizona. While the troops were in the field Visalia’s well-wishers found an abandoned bear cub in Giant Forest and shipped him down to them to keep the troops company. The little bear was a big hit and quickly became the company mascot. They named him Phil-Bear, and he was treated like royalty. Here Marvin Heberling, one of Visalia’s guardsmen, is shown holding him. Laura, thanks for keeping the family photos in such nice condition and thanks for sharing them with us. The other photo shows the troops in Visalia boarding the train with a huge sendoff.  

Sweet Building—Remodel and Recognition

Visalia’s Sweet building has been around a long time and stands as a constant reminder of the importance of the Sweet family in Visalia history. At one time the big Sweet building housed one of the largest, if not the largest department stores in Tulare County. The Sweet family later closed the store and sold the building. It was divided into three buildings and Links Clothing store occupied one portion. In the last couple of years Links closed and their portion of the building was sold to Sam and Marlene Sciacca. They have transformed it into a modern and 

luxurious apartment building utilizing the upper floors as well as the ground floor. Now the Visalia Kaweah Kollectors created a bronze plaque to place on the building recognizing the building’s history. It is part of the City of Visalia’s Historic Recognition Program, and it will be mounted soon. Thanks to the Visalia Times-Delta for covering the event, and appreciation goes out to Mike Alvarez, the photographer and Luis Hernandez, the reporter.

Buena Vista Grocery—A Rare Photograph

For a long time I have enjoyed and appreciated the era of the neighborhood market. Visalia had plenty of them sprinkled around residential neighborhood. They carried minimal groceries, lots of staples and had candy and ice cream bars for neighborhood kids to buy. Some even had pickle barrels where you could get a big dill pickle for a nickel. Many of them have disappeared from neighborhoods over the years forcing shoppers to go to the big supermarkets. Lucy Perez Stump, who I have known for many years, grew up in a family that owned and operated a neighborhood store in Visalia—Buena Vista Grocery. It was opened by her parents, Antonio and Alvina Perez at 117 E. Buena Vista in about 1937 and it stayed in the Perez family until it closed in about 1990. Lucy and her siblings worked there after school. Lucy shared this photograph of the store, and I think it is a rare one. Does anyone else have a photograph of a Visalia neighborhood market? Thanks a lot Lucy.

A Piece of the Old Tulare County Courthouse

Construction of the fancy Tulare County Courthouse in Visalia began in 1876 and was finished in 1877. It was built in Courthouse Square which is located on Court Street between Center and Oak streets. After the turn of the century, additional courthouse space was needed so they added north and south wings to the original building. In 1952 the big Tehachapi earthquake shook the old building and shut it down. It was red tagged as too dangerous to occupy. A few years later, the old timer was demolished. Some relics of the building were saved, like the redwood carving of Minerva, the goddess of wisdom which sat at the very top of the building. Minerva is at the Tulare County Museum. Many years ago, Annie Mitchell gave me another saved piece of the old building. This salvaged mail slot hardware had been given to her by probably someone in the demolition crew. The salvager etched on the back of the mail slot some important information about it. In her later years, she gave it to me as a keepsake and I have cherished it ever since.

***Not too long ago Bob Stewart contacted me and said he had an old milk bottle with Visalia California embossed on it, but he also said it had the letters MCDA. He is curious as to what those initials stood for. Does anyone know? A guess on my part says it stands for _____?________ Cooperative Dairy Association, but again only a guess.

***Recently, Joseph Vicenti while walking downtown spotted a small bronze or brass plaque embedded in the sidewalk. It is only about 3” x 5” in overall size and it has printed on it: Erdman Madison, Wisconsin. Does anyone know anything about the plaque or that name?

***If you’d like to read about Visalia’s “taming” Mill Creek take a look at the June 2016 issue of Lifestyle Magazine beginning on page 12 or you can read it online at https://issuu.com/lifestylemagazine/docs/lifestyle_1606_web

The oil sprinkler or sprayer, which is being operated on the streets in Visalia at present, is doing what appears to be splendid work. The oil is sprayed on to the streets, while highly heated, and as a result it dries into the dust very rapidly, and a buggy driving directly behind the sprayer, will pick up scarcely any of the oiled dust at all. Under the old plan, the oil was put on in large quantities, formed in puddles and stuck to the wheels of passing vehicles and the shoes of pedestrians for a week afterwards. Daily Visalia Delta, March 22, 1908

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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 go out to many of you who correctly
identified the last mystery spot as the sidewalk clock on Main Street in front of the coin shop at 204 W Main Street, but special congratulations to Stephen Gerrard who was the first to get it right. Nice work, Steve. Ok here is your next one. The clues are:


1) This brick building is very close to the site of the old Mt.

Whitney Power Steam Plant. 

        2) The building is near “lots” of automobiles 
3) It is nearly hidden by vegetation so you have to look closely

       4) It is near a street with a name connected to early electricity in Visalia

Where is this building?

The Fox Loved Kids

Children have always been an important part of Visalia’s Fox Theatre. Whether it was when they performed on stage, or when
they came for children’s movies, youngsters were always welcome by the theater management. In the old days the theater even created a “Kiddie Club” for the youngsters, and it was a big hit. Guy Shelley shared this official Kiddie Club pin. What a nice keepsake.
Thanks Guy.

Concrete Post Mystery Solved

Back in 2008 Joseph Vicenti, a local historian, asked about a strange concrete post that poked up from the sidewalk on the northeast corner of Main and Liberty streets marked 1948. He wondered why it was there. It was a great question. David Miller and a couple of others commented that they thought it was an abandoned post that once held a post office mail collection box. Well, Henry McLaughlin, while perusing the archives of Historic Happenings read about the 2008 question and discussion and went to work. Henry happened to find similar posts in Fresno and eventually solved the mystery when he found this website http://forgotten-ny.com/1999/12/ancient-mailboxes/ Great piece of detective work, Henry. Now it is confirmed! Visalia’s post mystery is now solved for good …it once held a post office box. The Visalia post is the first image shown here.

Pioneer Judge—James S. Clack

For some time I have wanted to highlight a man who played an important part in Visalia’s criminal justice history. His name is James S. Clack. He came to Visalia in about 1884. He became an attorney, then justice of the peace for Visalia Township, then police judge and then superior court judge. He married Julia Hinds in 1907 and they lived in Visalia. She passed away in 1955, and the
judge died in 1934. For several years Justice’s Clack’s office was on the ground level floor of the Templars Building (205 N Court across from the courthouse.) On the far left you can see the Justice of the Peace sign hanging down. The building, of course, is now gone. Sorry about the poor quality of the portrait of Judge Clack here, but it’s all I have. If by chance you have one, or know where one can be found, I would appreciate knowing. Thanks.

Cloth Concrete Bag

Speaking of the Visalia Fox Theatre, Guy Shelley who worked in construction in Visalia for many years, also shared an unusual souvenir of the theater that was in the family. When construction for the theater project broke ground in April 1929,much of the building materials were brought in from out

of the area. The Spanish style building used cement or concrete from San Francisco. Hundreds if not thousands of these bags of
cement/concrete were shipped to Visalia by rail. The bags were opened and mixed on the site. The movie house had its grand opening in 1930. Here is a photograph of one of the empty cement bags that was part of the Fox Theatre construction. Thank Guy again for sharing.

Rodeo Buttons Were Everywhere

Rodeos historically have been a part of Visalia life for many years. In the heart of cattle country, Visalia has hosted some of the finest rodeo cowboys competing from throughout the country. For many years the local Moose Club organized the event and made it an annual one, and one to be proud of. Supporters of the different rodeos would buy these buttons and proudly wear them each year. Here is a partial collection showing just a few. I’m convinced that many of these and others are to be found tucked away in jewelry boxes and drawers. They represent some of Visalia’s exciting days.

More Tunnels in Visalia—Now the Mysterious Courthouse Tunnel

For several years I have heard about a mysterious tunnel that allegedly connected the old Tulare County Jail at Church and Oak Street to the Courthouse (presumed to be the Courthouse Annex) in old Courthouse Square. The Courthouse Annex building continues to stand on Court Street between Center and Oak. The people who I have talked to never actually saw or walked into the tunnel but swear it exists or existed. In each case, they had  heard about it from others. The idea of a tunnel makes sense. Prisoners in the jail could be escorted below ground to the courthouse for their judicial proceedings and therefore the authorities did not have to expose them to the public. A tunnel also could help in preventing escapes. Several people have mentioned that they found what looks like the tunnel opening, now caved in, in the basement of the Courthouse Annex building (note this building was finished in 1935). Recently, Faye Phillips, an employee of the Tulare County Probation Department offered to give us access to the basement, and we found what was purported to be the tunnel opening. My partner in this adventure, Russ Hurley, a prominent Visalia attorney and history buff, accompanied me and he climbed through the relatively small crawl opening leading to what was supposedly the beginning of the tunnel. Once nearby, he took a closer look at the alleged tunnel opening. Although interesting, he and I believe it was not a tunnel, but more than likely a small channel access to utility pipes and wires. But there are still several possible tunnel theories that could be in play here. Can you help?  Have you heard of the tunnel from sources other than me?  Please share if you have. If you have personal knowledge of the tunnel between the jail and the courthouse, I’d appreciate knowing. Also, if you have additional information about this, please share and help solve this mystery. Thanks Faye, for making this tour happen and thanks Russ, for your role as Indiana Jones.

***If you would like to learn more about the old Spanish style city hall/fire department that was located at Church and Acequia streets, please get a copy of  Lifestyle Magazine, May 2016 edition and go to page 12. You can see photographs and read about it. Or you can go online at https://issuu.com/lifestylemagazine/docs/lifestyle_1605_web

***Thanks, Sheila Caskey Holder for a nice photograph of Frank and Betty Lowe, owners of Commercial Printing at 123 N Court Street. They were important people of the day and it’s nice to have a photo of them.

***By the way, Dorothy Downing found out that Visalia changed to area code 559 on November 14, 1998. Thanks, Dorothy for that tidbit we wondered about.

***Betty Treaster shared a photograph of the Dedication of the Tulare County Historical marker at the old Liberty School that she attended back in 1992. Thanks Betty. By the way Betty was one of the finest Recording Secretaries any organization could ask for. She did it for the Tulare County Historical Society for many years.

Emergency Order Announced in Response to Spanish Influenza Pandemic:

“Now, therefore, it is ordered by the Board of  Trustees of the city of Visalia that every person within or who comes within the city of Visalia during the prevalence of the present epidemic of the influenza shall at all times and places within said city, wear a mask of a design approved by the health officer of said city:  provided, however, that said mask may be removed at all reasonable times for the purpose of eating and drinking and provided, further, that the mask shall not be worn in private homes or private rooms unless a case of influenza shall exist in said place. This order shall be effective immediately. Dated and done this 30^th day of October, 1918 at a duly called meeting of said Board of Trustees.” Visalia Daily Times, October 31, 1918