Summary: Anne Fiorentino Grodin was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in February, 2005. Anne describes how Lafayette grew and changed during the 50 years from 1955 to 2005. Along with other family members she helped operate Valley Disposal from 1979 to 1989, when the company was sold to Waste Management Inc. Soon afterwards she became active […]
Oral History: Jack Marchant – November, 1984
Summary: Jack Marchant was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in November, 1984. He grew up in Berkeley and went to Cal. In 1933 he became active as a homebuilder in Berkeley and Kensington. After service in World War II and being a teacher for a few years Jack resumed his homebuilding career in Lafayette, where he […]
Oral History: Bob Sherman – October, 2005
Summary: Bob Sherman was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in October, 2005. Bob taught and coached divers and swimmers for over 30 years at the Sherman Swim School, which he founded in 1961. He was also a physical education teacher in the Orinda School System. A champion diver himself, Bob trained divers at UC Berkeley as […]
Lafayette History Rabbit Holes – Acalanes Radio Station KCEQ: Transition To Acalanes (1979-1980)
We finally made it! It’s the 1979-1980 school year at Acalanes. This is the year when things were in flux. Faculty advisor, Wendell Pleis, and several students who were involved in the FM Club at Del Valle came to Acalanes. The license for the station had been obtained, but without Del Valle, it was up […]
Oral History: Ed Stokes – November, 2004
Summary: Ed Stokes was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in November 2004. He founded Diablo Foods in 1968, and 37 years later he was still working six days a week. In addition to operating the store, he was an active participant in and supporter of many Lafayette civic organizations, and was honored to be selected as […]
1920s Acalanes Ridge Mail Arrow Featured On History Hunters
Back in January of 2022, we published an article in our newsletter about the old 1920s mail arrow in the Acalanes Ridge Open Space. Recently History Hunters did a video featuring the arrow. We thought we’d share it along with our original article. There are some photos of the Mail Arrow from the past 10 […]
Highway 24 Opening Ceremony ~ Lafayette CA ~ 1957
Miss Vera Richardson, Dean of Girls at Acalanes was asked to select three senior student women to be princesses to celebrate the opening of the new freeway. Betty Clark, Dolores Roeschen and Patricia Whitehead were selected, one of whom would be chosen queen after participating it all the festivities of the Fiesta. There were luncheons […]
Oral History: E. G. Craig – November, 2004
Summary: E.G. Craig was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in November, 2004. He moved to Lafayette and opened an architectural office in 1956. Over the next 4 decades he developed over 30 homes in the city, along with three office complexes. He practiced for 12 years before Lafayette became a city, then for three decades after. […]
Oral History: Miler Magrath – October, 2005
Summary: Miler Magrath was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in October, 2005. In 1990 Miler took over management of Diamond K Supply from his father William, who had operated the business for over 40 years. Miler describes how the customer base shifted over the years from farmers and ranchers to builders and developers, and how Diamond […]
Lafayette Reservoir Display At Whole Foods
The Lafayette Reservoir, whether one goes there often or rarely, is in the communal mind of Lafayette…right now, more so, with the controversy over the height of the tower. The display by the Lafayette Historical Society on the side of Whole Foods across from Blue Gingko, follows the saga of East Bay Mud, the organization […]
