by Georg Romero | Dec 18, 2025 | Fun History
There is a lot to learn from comparing old photos with what a place looks like now. For instance, in these two photos of the intersection of Main Street and Freedom Boulevard, almost none of the buildings visible in the 1970s image are still there – although you might...
by Claudia Mize | Jan 7, 2025 | Fun History
History of Clothing in the Pajaro Valley 1940’s Velvet Suit & U.S. Army Air Force UniformRust colored velvet suit with asymmetrical peplum jacket, bandana effect collar, self-belted by “Helen of California”. Donor: Kathi Alasti Uniform worn by...
by Claudia Mize | Jan 7, 2025 | Fun History
100 Year Span of Wedding Dresses: 1890 – 1990 This display of 17 wedding dresses at the Bockius-Orr house is one of the largest at PVHA to date. These gorgeous dresses and wedding items can be seen from now until sometime in August. We invite you to come take a tour....
by pvha | Nov 3, 2024 | Fun History
By Alice Sams Montgomery, February 8, 2002 The late Alice Sams Montgomery wrote this story at the request of Jane Borg, Historian at PVHA. Alice was a PVHA volunteer who was a telephone operator in 1955 at Pacific Bell in Watsonville. In 1955, I married a Hartnell...
by Claudia Mize | Nov 3, 2024 | Fun History
In the late 1800s, two local men invented two types of telephones, similar but different from Bells’ style, and actually hooked them up in Watsonville! In 1877, W. A. Beck invented a telephone energized by a horseshoe magnet that was practical only for short...
by Georg Romero | Apr 24, 2024 | Fun History
The Marinovich Building, constructed in 1899, graced the Peck Street / Union Street corner of the downtown square for many years, providing a human-scale presence that charmed with its bowed bay windows and architectural scrollwork. Sadly, the building was demolished...
