More Street Names South of the Trestle
“Following last week’s query concerning street names in Muir Oaks, Bob Latchaw, a resident of the area for many years, called to tell us that Milden Road was derived from the developers’ names Milburn and Dennis. But he didn’t know the origin of other names in the area. He did, however suggest how we might […]
Street Names in the Northwestern Hills
One of the first areas of the city outside of the flat downtown core to be settled in the 1850s was the northwestern hills overlooking Escobar, Marina Vista and Ferry Streets. According to Charlene Perry in her posthumous book, the second edition of ‘MARTINEZ A Handbook on Houses and History’, “Island Hill” was the place […]
Downtown Street Names: First Smith, Then Jones And More
Editor’s Note Harriett Burt Editor’s Note: This the second in a series of Charlene Perry columns documenting how early Martinez got its street names. For those interested in how at least some streets were named south of the original southern city boundary at G Street, there will be satisfaction in future columns. Having worked our […]
Street Numbers and Signs: Quite A Project in 1920-21
Walking or driving around town, it is easy to assume that street signs and house and building numbers have been there since the town was founded in 1848-49 or at least shortly thereafter. But in fact, it was not until the town was 70 years old that the Martinez Chamber of Commerce pressured the City’s […]
The Story of Martinez Street Names….
Picking up where Charlene left off After Thomas Brown completed the survey, streets began appearing on a north/south – east/west grid. We believe Col. Smith had an ulterior motive for naming the downtown east/west streets after his San Francisco business friends and associates listed above. He was hoping they would invest in the new town. […]
Col. William Smith founded a city. So why not name the streets?
Editor’s Note: The late Charlene Perry, her husband, Al, and a number of other town ‘history buffs’ formed the Martinez Historical Society in 1976. Charlene, the only official “City Historian” in Martinez, spent the next 25 years working to preserve and increase awareness and pride in the history of our city. One of her many […]
Wrapping up the Western Hills – Foster Street etc.
As always, thanks to the late Charlene Perry for the gift she gave to the Historical Society and therefore the City of Martinez by not only working to establish the Borland Home Museum site but for spending hours research and writing about early Martinez history. Many have followed her lead and added to it over […]
The True Story of How Soto Street Got Its Name
Frank Silva Soto and Antonio Bertola: Their History and Streets This week we present something unusual: a correction that is not buried on the right–hand bottom of page umpteen under the lottery results and that day’s list of famous peoples’ birthdays but is actually the lead paragraph of this week’s column. Following the admittedly speculative […]
Street Names, Street Names! Everywhere in Martinez a Street Name!
Todays column will start exploring the origin of street names south of the Alhambra/Berrellessa merge at the county hospital extending towards Forest Hills. But first, one more ‘old town’ street name mystery’s solution: the origin of the naming of Duncan Drive that runs south up a hill off the western part of Arreba. Bill Kelleher, […]