A READER’S MONTHLY Celebrating Vol. XV • April 2002 • No. 186 PAG E 2 • THE PETALUMA POST • APRIL 2002 The Marvelous People of Petaluma Unite Again For Butter & Egg Days! E FEEL GLAD YOU LIVE Butter and Egg Days 2002, try industries, all of us owe a AND VISIT HERE AS AN “Moosic, Magic and Make- tribute of thanks. Without those WEXCELLENT TRADITION Believe,” will let your imagina- who have gone before us, none CONTINUES. Congratulations to tion soar. As a media partner of this would be possible. It Event Coordinator Linda Buffo and sponsor, The Petaluma Post was in 1925 when Petaluma and The Petaluma Downtown encourages you to bring your was known as the “World’s Egg Association for their labor of family and friends to enjoy the Basket” producing 35 million love. And, many thanks to the parade on Saturday, April 27 in dozen eggs. several hundred people in the historic downtown Petaluma. It’s absolutely fabulous! It’s parade and the tens of thou- In memory of Petaluma’s a day to remember, a day to be sands who enjoy recalling our pioneers in agriculture and neighborly and a day that you’ll special heritage. trading and the dairy and poul- never forget. Farmerettes of 1926 were Jane King, Frances Tassi, Mabel Lounibos, and Anita Reed. (Courtesy Petaluma MIKE & HIS TEAM WELCOME YOU!80 East Washington St., Petaluma100% Unconditional 707- SAVE UP TO 40% at Gro- Money Back Guarantee 763-2700cery Outlet¹¹•ðwww.groceryoutlets.com Everyday! On Everything We Sell. ÁÒÒATM PHONE: 707-773-1271 • FAX: 707-773-1272 THE PETALUMA POST • APRIL 2002 • PAGE 3 Remembering the OLD The Golden Chicken in PETALUMA Hist or y & St o- r ies In 1906, in the Petaluma Valley, there were over 1,000,000 laying hens. Gradually, the stock and dairy ranches also switched to chickens as a big money crop. per day (1,800 eggs). By 1906, chicken farm. It also had the ad- 1906 300 cases a day were common vantage of the Petaluma creek N THE 1840’S AND 1850’S, THE and the chicken and eggs to feed for shipping to San Francisco EARLY SETTLERS OF PETALUMA those who rebuilt San Francisco, and Sacramento. The cost to BROUGHT A FEW CHICKENS WITH San Francisco was .8 cents per I Petaluma had the THEM ACROSS THE PLAINS. The case of 36 dozen eggs. Plus, the perfect climate, soil chickens thrived in our climate cases were returned for free. and water to start a and, from that stock, came the The Scow Schooners and small chicken farm. beginnings of the immensely “ steamers shipping freight also successful Petaluma chicken carried passengers. It cost .50 industry. cents to travel to San Francisco. By 1889, there were several ” Chicken feed was cheap. ranches devoted solely to poul- came from Petaluma. It cost about $1.40 per hen try. You were doing very well Petaluma had the perfect per year. 1,500 to 2,500 hens Marjory Park and Charlotte Chamberlain loading then to produce 50 cases of eggs climate, soil and water to start a were recommended for a 5-acre bushel baskets of eggs onto a wagon at Sprouer Ranch. parcel. The Petaluma mills could charge less because of the huge volume. Many local poultry men would buy one or two thousand sacks on each trip to the mill. In 1906, over 100,000 tons of feed were sold in Petaluma. The white leghorn chicken became the preferred breed be- cause it was small in size, needed less feed and laid more eggs. The average hen laid about 140 eggs per year and exceptional hens laid 175 eggs per year. The chicken business became so suc- cessful here that 9 out of 10 peo- ple settling in Petaluma in 1906 went into the business. Even downtown, everyone kept some chickens in their yard. Ten to fif- teen miles from town the ranches averaged over 10,000 birds. In 1906, in the Petaluma Val- ley, there were over 1,000,000 laying hens. Gradually, the stock and dairy ranches also switched to chickens as a big money crop. Transport was vital for marketing all the eggs being laid, chicks hatched, and grain harvested. Farnsworth & Sons Drayage, above, loaded The average net profit per hen goods onto a “low-boy” in front of Dodge Sweeney and Company. Farnsworth manager Peter J. Blin is standing in front of the wagon. was between $1.00 to $1.50 per (Ed Fratini Collection, Courtesy Petaluma Museum.) PAG E 4 • THE PETALUMA POST • APRIL 2002 The yard of the Martin ranch, west of town in Chileno Valley, was a busy place in the days before William L. Sales established Sales Hatchery on 3rd Street in 1888. milking barns. Cows were milked in the yard, and the milk was then poured into shallow pans and The business was destroyed by fire in 1932 and Sales merged kept overnight in a cool shed so the cream could be skimmed off in the morning. (Ed Fratini Collec- in 1935 with Bourke’s Must Hatch Hatchery. By the 1950s, Sales and Bourke’s was selling chickens in 11 western states. (Courtesy year. (Keep in mind that $5,000 barn, 14 chicken houses, Our community had be- Nothing on earth will here with state funding. per year income was a lot of 3 acres vineyard, 1,500 come specialized by 1906 and pay as well for the The largest chicken hatch- money). white leghorns, 1 Durham every conceivable kind of feed, space it occupies. ery in the world was located (continued on page 4) family cow, wagon and appliance and device for the in Petaluma. The Must Hatch poultry industry was carried by “ only oc- (continued from page 3) harness, all new furni- Incubator Company Here is a typical real estate ture and tools. 3 miles to local merchants. We even had cupied 2 acres on the corner ad from 1906: Petaluma. $3,500. the only chicken pharmacy in versity of” California established of 7th and F Streets, but it incu- the world. In 1903, the Uni- an experimental poultry station bated over 40,000 eggs contin- 8 acres, 4 room house, Wow! � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � Just Relax...and think about trees ��� ������ F���� ����� ��� ������ ����� ������� ���� ����� ���������� ���� ���������� ��� ������������ ��������� ����� ����� ����� ����� ���� ������� ������� Valley Oak, along Highway 101. ����������������� � ���������������������������� “ Petaluma’s historic neighborhoods have magnificent trees.” � ��������������������� � ������������������������������� Trees provide oxygen... � ������������������������� Trees give a home to wildlife... �������������� Trees increase property values... � ����������������� ���������������������� Trees just make life better... ��������������� If you are interested in a Walking Tour of the Trees of Historic Petaluma �� ��������������������������������������������������������� �������������� brochure, free trees for your neighborhood, helpful planting guidelines, ����������� ��������� ���� ��������� ���� ���� ��������� ���� ����� ������ ���������� pruning information. protecting existing trees, an approved street tree list, or to help us plant trees in Petaluma please send a SASE to: �������� CITY OF PETALUMA �������� TREE ADVISORY COMMITTEE �������������������������������������� ����������������������������� ������������������������������������������������������������ P.O. BOX 61 ������������������������ PETALUMA, CA 94953 �������������� ����� ����������� ������ THE PETALUMA POST • APRIL 2002 • PAGE 5 OLD PETALUMA Hist or y & St o- r ies in “The perfect panorama of ranches in 1906. Most of them flowing rivers, massive pines and ranged in size from 2 acres to whose waters team with fish, 40 acres. Perhaps Mr. Snow a veritable paradise for those was right about the crop. You seeking health and recreation.” needed only $3,000 to $5,000 (I couldn’t have said it better my- to start. That would buy you 5 self). It didn’t hurt, that many of acres ($1,000), a modest home If a town has enough chickens, the birds rate their own drug store. Started in 1923 by James Keyes these travelers bought eggs and ($1,000), a horse, wagon, tools, (in doorway), the Chicken Pharmacy on Main was featured in a February 1939 National Geographic some tourists came back to stay. well and chickens ($800) and article and also appeared in Ripley’s Believe It or Not as the world’s only drug store devoted solely One of the most amazing you were in business. The to poultry. (Courtesy Petaluma Museum.) statistics about poultry and eggs Chamber of Commerce said as a money product is that, by in 1906: “With no danger of uously. This hatchery, owned by than any single thing to put the were 12 firms here dealing ex- The perfect panorama of flowing rivers, massive pines and A.E. Bourke, had become a sort name of Petaluma on the map. clusively in the purchase and whose waters team with fish, a veritable paradise for those of poultry college by 1906, and In shone a spotlight upon the shipping of poultry and eggs. seeking health and recreation. novices entering the business fact that Petaluma, California They paid cash on the spot. The were always welcome to learn had the largest poultry indus- total shipment of poultry alone “ from Mr. Bourke himself. was 400,000 fowl at $5.00 per The existing poultry men We even had the only dozen and that number was ” held back no secrets. All took chicken pharmacy in growing yearly. 1897, they had a value higher over production, one should pride in explaining how to start the world. Petaluma even had The than the combined gold and sil- have no difficulty in making and succeed. Beginners were Petaluma Poultry Journal de- ver product of the entire world a success with this amount of encouraged to start with young “ voted solely to the industry. It was during any single year since the money, ($3,000).” It really did pullets between 3 to 5 months ” published by Frank Snow, esq.: beginning of record keeping. work too. old and then, income would try in the world. In 1893, the “A man gifted with rare attain- By 1904, the average price Well, it worked until right start coming in about 2 months California Poultry Association ments and one who has grown of eggs in the San Francisco after World War II when the later.