Oral History Committee Mill Valley Public Library Mill Valley Library Association Mill Valley, California
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Oral History Committee Mill Valley Public Library Mill Valley Library Association Mill Valley, California WILLIAM PROVINES An Interview Conducted By Carl Mosher @ 1973 by the Mill Valley Public Library WILLIA}.{ PRO VINES Miss Abraham - 3 climate 19,20 Alaska pakers' ships at "Cliquot Club Ginger 1U.ett 25 Belvedere 14 Clvio, Gene and train rides alcohol for medicinal use 38 with rainroad men 33,34 Almonte (100.) 6 Clivio, Pete and train injury 33 Arden, Eve vactress) 4 cobbler on Bernard Street 33 automebiles and toll road, College of Marin 12 1926 27 College of Marin's :f":.i..rBt automobiles, increas and enrollment II danser to gt"avity train 14 conductor's valve wire 40,41 automebile kills railroad 21 6 Corte Madera Avenue 36 BS degree in economics from 12 Corte Madera Avenue 32 U.0. Berkeley 12 Corte Madera Creek 37 "bachears and their wivestt 27 cost of Old Mill School -10 backyard dramatics 4 creamery at loC;[ of Quinn IS Bagshaw, Albert E. 8 Tavern 36 Bagshawt Jack 5 creamery robbery 36 Bagshaw, Sam 8 Crocker Bank (100.) 3' Bagshaw, Sydney 8 Crookedest Railroad 14,15 Bank of M:ill Valley 4 The Crookedest Railroad bay fill, Marinsh:i.p 38 in the World (book) 15 Bell Dry Goods Store, 1916 31 crude oil 23 Bell Savings and Loan Co. 32 Ouddebach, iilolua, principal 3 Bernard Street and Lovell 33 Mr. Culverd and tr<l>mbone "Between the Actst1 5 lessons 6 birth date 1 Cuthberts()ll, \va1t 8t 61 Bishop, Sylvia house, first dairies around MV1920 fS 37 to burn in '29 fire 29 Davidson t James B';' 3 Blithedale Avenue, narrow Davidson, Steve 12 winding road, 1920 's 37 De Lasaux, (Pinky) T.J~ 22 brakeman~(occupation) 14 Depression and the rail Buena Vista A~nue 3 road 27 buried tanks of' crude oil 23 derailment 15 bUteher-a 32 description of burned end darmen.,~nt'l . i,9 burning locations 29,30 C.a$fiaab;·~ReservOir and fire 29 "disreputable part of cash and carry business 32 town" 13 Catholic Ohnrch 4,13 Dr. Rice's optometry shop 22 Callet" Joe, policeman 1920's 36 doors unlocked at night 36 Cervelli, Charlie 32 The Double Bowknot 13,14 Cerve1li, Gerald 32 dry goods store, 1916 31 Cervelli, Melvin' 32 uDu.lcy" (senior play; 1926). 5 Chase, James B., attorney Eas:g Blithedale and Dell St'.' 13 and n1ght watchman 35 East Blithedale Ave~ c. 1899 13 Chinese laundry 33 Eastland Bakery, 1916 30 clam neek: bait 35 eel fishing 34 clams .in Richardson's Bay 35 Egger's Nursery 37 electric po''I1er, early 20th century 20 William Provines oral history interview continued Index page 2 engine construction 16 gravity car ttpra:nk, t1 1928 38-40 Engines 4,5,7,8 27,28 gravity man (occupation) 14 engine oil 23 gravity train and automobiles 14 engine pictured in ~ Halloween pranks and train 0reokedest Railroad in . steam whistle 38 the World 15 ham radio licenses, 1933 7 Engine 7 jumps track, hand brakes 14 day of 1929 fire 28 Harriman Lines 16 Eureka Passenger 1 heat of engines 23 father and occupation 1 heeling of sailing ships Fern Canyon and West· Point in low tide 14 sunshine 20 Heisler No. 2 & others l5 t 16 Fern Canyon electric pump 25 hiking drops off, 1923 21 Fern Canyon flat spot 19 houses burned (105) 29 Ferrari, Joe, fireman Mr. Huntoon 4 on railroad 15 icecream parlor, 1916 31 f:£nger testing oil heat 24 insurance business l2 fire, duration and pecu jag town 13 lia:rr~ed 30 Japanese laundry (M. V~) 33 fire, Ju1:y 2, 1929 28 job on railroad 11,12 fire bell 9 jobs for students 14,15 fire expands rails 28 Johnson, Ruth 2 firing on the Tam RR 32 Kanki family 33 fireman (occupation) 14 kee1ies in locomotives 15 first houses below Pa:ek Kindred, Cecil 6 Schoo~, 1923-24 37 Kindred, Walt 6 fishery on Belvedere Korean cobbler 33 Island 14 Lawson-Dyer Drug store (loc.) 13 5¢ coins 13 learning to lSlIIqke (Charlie V¢. sign for bee~, 1916 13 Smith) 5 flagpole in Lytton Square, Lee Street terminal 14,17 1916 30 liquor stores 32 four-~eled wagon for Lovell and Corte Madera <loc.) 22 groceries 32 Lockwood Pharmacy 30 frog ponds 38 McDonald's Jewe1re Store (loc.) 22 :f'urn:i.t'tl:l"Ef. repairman McGowan, Jim (police chief, (Korean) 33 third policeman of M.Vi.) 36 garbage hauled down McNamee, Beatrice 5 mountain by flatbed McNamee family 34 car 18 Maggai:'d" p~~s:.l:C!ent of NWP 31 The Gard!le.r twins 5 Mantell, .Eliz.abeth 4_ gear dope 24 Mantell, George 4 Dr. Gilbride, Rodney, Marinship, World War II 38 DDS, 1916 30 marshland and sloughs 37 Goheen, George 37 Martin, Wheeler, 1916 31 Goheen tract 37 Masor\s Distillery, Pme Golden Gate Bridge affect Street, Sausalito 38 on 11V's uniqueness 35 Matson ships, jobs for musicians 5,6 Golden Gate Bridge change Mr. Melvin, station master, 1916 30 of Marin's character 37 "the Mesa" 14 grade crossing and gravity Meyer, Hertha 4, train 14 Middle Ridge and fire 29 gravity cars and Muir Mill Valley Hardware and Woods 14, 18 Fuel Company 32 William Provines oral history interview continued Index page 3 Mill Valley Market 32 Old Mill School, first grad Miller Avenue-Camino Alto 37 uating class, 1921 9,10 401 Miller Avenue 37 fiIr. Olney 11 419 Miller Avenue 37 open fields of M.V. below Park 525 Miller Avenue 37 School 37 Miller Grove (lo~.) 5 open space 13 Modern Bakery, 1916 30 Oppenheimer, Gus (store), 1916 30 molasses for alcohol 38 orchestra 5,6 molasses on barges, Richard oriental "settlement" area of son Bay 38 Bernard St., M.V. 33 money in wooden railroad Osgood, Bill, guide 20 platform 31 overheated engines 24 Morse code calls (Provines Owen, Chrissie 3 and Smith) 7 Panoramic Highway, 1928 27 Mt. Carmel School 4 Pantoll tOllgate 27 Mt. Tamalpais and Muir Park School 3 Woods Railroad 11 passenger train, 1st ran mountain railroad 14,34 August 22, 1896 13 mountain railroad loco Pat and Joe's Restaurant <loc.) 32 motives 15,16 Patterson, John 20 moving houses for Old paving, c. 1920 21 Mill SChool 10 pay (railroad crews) 25 Muir Woods as tourist Pete, "The Italian" 33 attraction 34 Petermeier, Hans 4 mussel feeds, Stinson Miss Perks 3 Beach 34 phones, all busy during fire 28 mystery of empty water picnics and camp fires (con tanks at tavern, 1923 35 duct of campers) 34 Nagel, Freddie 6-8 Pine Street distillery, New Years :are, 1923, Sausalito 38 laundry fire 33 plough on mountain trains for night w\3:tchman before snew 11 police force 35 Plummer, Ida 3 North Pacific Coast 16 police, 1970's, M.V. 36,37 Northwestern Pacific 1 pond at Miller and Evergreen 38 Northwest Pacific, Sausa ponds between Evergreen and lito 28 Reed Streets 38 Nostrand house, 2d to population, Mill Valley, 1920's burn in 1929 fire 29 (4000) 36 Nye, Betty 10 post office, 1916 (old loc.) 31 Nye, Jimmie 10 powerhouse at Alto 13 Nye, John, 10 pranks with railroad equipment 38 O.S.Prichard's Cash and Prichard's store 11,12 Carry Store 32 Prohibi~ion, 1926-1929 25 O'Connor, one of first Provinse, William, quits two policeman, M.V. 36 railroad in 1929 28 odor of cereal, Pine St. Quedens, . Eunice 4 Sausalito 38 Quinn's Tavern 36 100 mile hike, 1920's 37 rail still at Sunnyside Avenue oil burners, 1902 17 parking lot 31 oil burners in locomotives railroad fares compared to and ferry boats 15 automobile travel to Tam 22 aId Inn siding, Muir Woods railroad rights to mountain top branch 19 1926 21 William Provines oral history interview continued Index page 4 railroad station, 1916 1 a0:\'i 31 Dr. Spottiswood, M.D., 1916 30 railroad station, 1925, new 31 station on Miller Avenue 13 rails and oil lubrication 17 Stinson Beach mussel feeds 34 rails and water lubrication 17,18 Stocker, Charles (Charlie) 11,13 Red Balloon (loc.) 31 33,34 Redhill Liquors (loc.) 32 streetcar line (prospect) 20,21 reflection of train exhaust streetlights with reflectors, sounds 35 1916 30 Richardson's Bay 35 Suey Kee, Chinese grocer, Ridgecrest Boulevard, 1926 21 description 32 road from Tam High to su~phur spring 10 Sausalito 38 Summit School and physical rooming house on Throck description 3,9iP morton Avenue 32 Sunset Grocery, 1916 31 Roth, Ered, taximan, 1916 superintendent of schools, Marin 3 8,30 Sycamore Village 37 Roth, Melvin . 8 Tamalpais Grocery 32 Miss Roumiguiere 11 Tarna1pais High School 5 Royal Globe Insurance Co. 12 Tamalpais Railroad 9,11,12,13 rumor of forest fire, 1923 25 16,34 Mrs. Runyon 15 Tamarin Orchestra 6 Rutherford's Pharmacy 22,31 Tavern, 1924 25 safety of the streets, Tavern accomodations 25,26,27 M.V., 1920's 36 Tavern fire, June 1, 1923 25 Safeway Store (loc.) 37 taverns on Tam 25 sailing ships 13,14 taxi in Mill Valley 8 saloon, jagtown 13 teachers, Mill Valley 3 Sam Kee Laundry 33 teachers' boarding house 4 Santa's Toys (loc.) 37 Terzich, Dan, police chief 36 SBusalito and Belvedere Mrs. Thacher, neighbor ,29 sailing ships 14 third rail 13 school bell 9,10 Thomas, Bill 18 semooling 2 Thomas, Bill, inventor of oil schools in M.V., 1917 3 burning locomotives 15 Shay locomotives 16 Thomas, Bill, superintendent Mr.