Friday, January 31, 2014

The Mission Bells


This week I've been posting about San Juan Bautista. I can't let the week go by without a stop at Mission San Juan Bautista, the 15th mission that the Franciscan friars established in California. Founded in 1797, the mission was built near the Popeloutchom, a Mutsun village.

The mission did not have a bell tower at first. The one we see today was built in 1976 when the mission was being reconstructed. Originally, the mission's two bells hung from a wooden bell rack. The bells rung in the early morning, noon, and evening, according to  Issac Mylar in Early Days at the Mission San Juan Bautista. He wrote,"They could be heard from six to seven miles away—yes, even over to the sheep ranch owned by Mr. Hollister, now the flourishing county seat of San Benito County."
 
Resources for Mission San Juan Bautista:
California Missions Resource Center: San Juan Bautista
Old Mission San Juan Bautista
Early Days at the Mission San Juan Bautista by Issac Mylar (originally published in 1929)s

Note: So that FCC won't get on my case, the link to Issac Mylar's book leads you to Amazon.com. And, if you happen to purchase it via that link, I may get a bit of change for my effort of referring you to the page.

Thursday, January 30, 2014

Santana Gallery


Painting by Manuel Santana (1927 - 2008)

Santana Gallery, at 115 3rd Street, is one of several art galleries in San Juan Bautista. It opened last summer with an exhibit of the late Manuel Santana's paintings. Mr. Santana was known not only for his art work, but also for his community activism and for his popular restaurant next door to the gallery -- Jardines de San Juan.

If you're like me, your first visit to Santana Gallery will make you think you've been there before. You have. The building was once the home to Galeria Tonantzin, which featured workds of contemporary women artists. I finally remembered when I saw the trap door in the floor that leads to a tunnel system which runs under the city.

My Sources:
Santana Gallery
Manny Santana: Santa Cruz County Artist of the Year
Jardines de San Juan

The open door between Santana Gallery 
and Jardines de San Juan

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Ferry-Morse Seed Company


Who else remembers the fields upon fields of beautiful flowers about halfway between Hollister and San Juan Bautista on the south side of San Juan-Hollister Road (aka Highway 156)? As a kid sitting in the back seat, I looked forward to that stretch of the drive. And, today, those brilliant splashes of color come to mind when I first see the buildings of the old Ferry-Morse Seed Company in the distance.
One of the old Ferry-Morse buildings

Ferry-Morse grew the flowers for seeds. I have no idea whether the seeds were directly sold in stores or if the horticulturists were experimenting to find the best seeds to eventually sell. Anyone know?

Originally, the C.C. Morse Company bought about 900 acres of the San Justo Ranch, in 1910. Twenty years later, it merged with D.M. Ferry Company to become the infamous Ferry-Morse Seed Company. I don't know when Ferry Morse sold its San Juan Bautista branch. Today, Ag-Biotech, a company that offers plant genetic analysis services, has facilities there.

My Sources:
Gilroy's Early Seed Companies
Ferry Morse Seed Company
Ag-Biotech 

FYI: Since this past Sunday, I've been blogging about San Juan Bautista and the San Juan Valley.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Apple Orchard Down



In the 1960s and 1970s, driving the back roads of San Juan Valley for me meant going by apple orchard after apple orchard after apple orchard. Today, many of the orchards have been replaced by vegetable fields. I wonder what will be going in place of the apple trees that were recently pulled out around Lucy Brown and Duncan Roads.

FYI: I'm blogging about San Juan Bautista this week. Here are yesterday's post and Sunday's.

Monday, January 27, 2014

San Juan Bautista



Have you taken more than a glance at the cool sign in front of Windmill Market in San Juan Bautista? It most definitely tells the truth.  

San Juan Bautista is about 7 miles west of Hollister. If you're driving south on Highway 25 from the 101 exit, you would turn right at the traffic light where 25 intersects with Highway 156. It's a nice drive through San Juan Valley to the second largest city in San Benito County. In 2012, its population was about 1,900. If you love very small cities, then take a stop in San Juan Bautista.

Some Websites to Check Out
City of San Juan Bautista: History
Old Mission San Juan Bautista
San Juan Bautista, California, USA
City-Data.com: San Juan Bautista

FYI: I'll be blogging about San Juan Bautista this week. Here's yesterday's post about The Cross on Pagan Hill.

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