SonomaPlazaHistory

06/18/2024

This is part of the free Sonoma Plaza History Tour. Tell a friend.

06/18/2024

This is part 1 of a 4-part Sonoma Plaza Wine History Series at the free Sonoma Plaza History Tour. Tell a friend.

06/17/2024

A 4-part Sonoma Plaza Wine History series is part of the free Sonoma Plaza History Tour. Tell a friend.

06/10/2024

This is 1 of 23 stories on the free Sonoma Plaza History Tour, coming very soon. Tell a friend.

06/10/2024

This is 1 of 23 stories on the free Sonoma Plaza History Tour app/website coming soon. Tell a friend.

06/04/2024

Coming soon.

06/04/2024

Coming soon

06/03/2024

"Samuele's Vision" tells the story of Sebastiani building a destination theater and modernizing the Sonoma Plaza during he Great Depression. It's 1 of 23 stories on the free, upcoming Sonoma Plaza History Tour app.

05/31/2024

The free Sonoma Plaza History Tour app will be available next week. Here's one of the 23 stories you'll find there.

06/12/2023

This will be part of the Sonoma Plaza History video tour... coming soon! Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

06/05/2023

I hope you will join us at the Sonoma Community Center on 6-8 @ 6pm for this special conversation about Sonoma Plaza History. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

05/24/2023

This Friday at 8:20 is my premier "Back in the Day" episode on KSVY. Check it out! More on Monday. Tell a friend. Jim

05/22/2023

In the 1870s, around 25% of the people living in Sonoma were Chinese. Peter Meyerhoff and the Sonoma Valley Historical Society produced a more extensive history of Chinese in Sonoma.

05/15/2023

Mike Acker's portrait of Mission Solano

05/08/2023

The Barracks on the Sonoma Plaza has been many things; home to Mexican soldiers, Bear Flaggers, U.S. Army soldiers, Sonoma's Jewish pioneer - Solomon Schocken - and his store. When Army soldiers lived here, for entertainment they staged bear and bull fights, a blood sport popular in 19th century California. The animals' attack methods - downward slashing and upward thrusts - are at the root of the Wall Street term - bear and bull markets. More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

05/01/2023

I don't know the backstory for this mid-century looking postcard but it suggests that the more things change, the more some things stay the same. More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

04/24/2023

SONOMA PLAZA FUN FACTS:
- For many thousands of years, this place was home to Miwok and Pomo people.
- Mission Solano was the last of California's 21 missions.
- The Plaza was on the northern edge of Mexico in the 1830s.
- The Bear Flag Revolt (1846) marked the start to American California.
- California's state Bear Flag first flew over the Sonoma Plaza.
- Before steamboats began plying the Sacramento River, Sonoma was a major jumping off point to the Gold Rush.
- The Sonoma Plaza is the largest historic plaza in California.
More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

04/17/2023

I think Burgers & Vine occupies one of the coolest buildings on the Sonoma Plaza. Its charming Mission Revival architecture is unrivaled. The building has great history dating to 1929 and our valley’s dairy history. It and Simmons Pharmacy were local destinations for ice cream. But in the 1830s it was a billiard hall called Casa de Billiar. Between it and the saloon and gambling den next door, now known as the Blue Wing adobe, it probably was one of the wildest corners in Northern California. In fact, it was so well known that the 3rd United States Post Office in California was established right there. More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

04/10/2023

The Sonoma Mission was founded 200 years ago. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

04/03/2023

There is no finer introduction to Sonoma Plaza history (she covers more than the Plaza) than Barbara White Perry's DRAWING SONOMA (3rd edition). Along with her detailed architectural drawings, her notes help you look carefully. For instance, she describes the fascinating Salvador Vallejo adobe being constructed as 2 separated buildings. Today it looks like one large symmetrical building with no visible separation. Curious. More on Monday. Tell a friend. Jim

03/27/2023

The Sonoma Plaza is filled with history stories. That's why I'm producing a free, mobile Plaza history storytelling tour in English and Spanish (working with the Sonoma Community Center as the fiscal agent). If you'd like to learn more about the tour - message me. I'll also be leading free guided tours later this spring. More on Mondays. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

03/20/2023

Imagining the Sonoma Plaza 200 Years Ago

03/20/2023

Sitting in front of the Swiss Hotel, a building from nearly 200 years ago, we talked about the view back then from where we sat. The Plaza was an oak meadow. Before Vallejo arrived, Mission San Francisco Solano was a much larger compound surrounded by a community of hundreds of Wappo, Pomo, Miwok and Patwin men, women and children, some Mexican soldiers and a handful of padres. Adobe making pits for building the barracks, Casa Grande and homes for Salvador Vallejo, the Leese family and others must have marred the view. Then we blinked, rubbed our eyes, saw things as they are, ordered another Glarifee and toasted Ted for his invention. More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

03/13/2023

Peter Meyerhof brilliantly tells a complex story of Chinese history in Sonoma. The video is posted at https://www.facebook.com/SonomaValleyHistoricalSociety/
Scroll down to find "Murder at the Chinese Laundry." More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

Collecting, Preserving, and Sharing the History of Sonoma Valley

03/06/2023

A geologic history of the Sonoma Plaza begins around 150 million years ago, when it was part of the ocean floor. The coastline was east of the Sierras. Sandstone and shale were being formed. Dinosaurs came and went. Seven million years ago redwoods and oaks grew here along with palm and avocado trees. Rhinos roamed. Volcanoes formed our hills and valleys, forming obsideon and basalt. Sonoma city hall's basalt stones quarried from Schocken Hill are that old. Next time you visit the Sonoma Plaza, take a closer look. More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

03/03/2023

The area on the Sonoma Plaza around the little kids' playground hasn't always looked like it does today. in the 1870s, there was a railroad turntable and related structures. The depot was finally moved. It's now the Depot Park Museum. From the 1920s to the 50s, there was a round animal pen with two white peacocks, a baby deer and other animals. When it closed, a reader remembers the animals were dumped off near the Laveroni Road bridge. Her family raised peacocks so they adopted the two white ones. So while you watch little kids play, remember what once was there. Tell a friend. Thank you for sharing memories. Jim

03/01/2023

In 2000, the chickens disappearance from the Sonoma Plaza reflected our town's change from a farm community to a wine country destination. Nobody admits to knowing who started dropping off hens and roosters on the Plaza. Legendary friend of fowls, Bob Cannard, encourged it. Some celebrated their feathered presence. Buffy took a nesting liking to a shop where she laid eggs. A comical editorial equated their way of crossing streets with tourists' behavior. Little kids chased them. But when aggressive roosters struck back, responsible adults took control - but not without costumed protesters' pushback. "Save our Peckers." More on Friday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

02/27/2023

What do you know about this?
More on Wednesday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

02/24/2023

Here's a wonderful video about the Blue Wing Adobe across from the Sonoma Mission. Peer through the old glass windows. Look closely at the adobe. It's pretty amazing. More on Monday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim

http://bluewingadobe.org - 'A priceless relic of Sonoma's history, the Blue Wing Adobe is the most historic hostelry in the state of California, being essent...

02/22/2023

Among the many businesses that once stood around the Sonoma Plaza, some of the most beloved were gathering places as much as they were businesses. Jeanine's Coffee and Tea, later known as The Briar Patch, was tucked down the alley where Murphy's Irish Pub now holds sway. The soda counter at Simmons Pharmacy, now Chico's, still looks good even after generations of lingering kids and families. The Parkside, a nearby saloon stood where the Pioneer once was before it was carted off to become a residence. Marioni's, next door to the Swiss Hotel, had that welcoming smell and local ambiance. Now it's Mary's Pizza Shack, which still smells wonderful and has that welcoming feel. They're gone but not forgotten. More on Friday. Tell a friend. Thanks. Jim