Gary Bedsworth was interviewed by Andree Duggan on October 22, 2021. Gary’s father, Jay Bedsworth, operated the Tunnel Inn Restaurant and also performed professional-level magic tricks on its stage in the 1940’s and 1950’s. In one trick Gary’s mother would be raised four feet into the air, then made to disappear. Gary later worked alongside […]
Oral History: George Blodgett — October 2004
Summary: George Blodgett was twelve years old in 1946 when his father Kermit founded Blodgett’s Linoleum. His father also purchased land off Reliez Valley Road, then put in Vaughn Road, and developed homes for his family and others. Eleven years later George joined the business, expanding it to offer carpeting in addition to other floor […]
Oral History: Dave Cutter — December 2005
Summary: Dave Cutter was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in December, 2005. Dave grew up in Berkeley, then went to Stanford for both an undergraduate degree and MBA. He worked in the accounting field for a couple of years, then returned to Berkeley to work in the family business, Cutter Labs. He settled and raised a […]
Oral History: Fran Schroder — November, 2004
Summary: Fran Stanley Schroder, the daughter of M.H. Stanley, was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in November 2004. Her father had been instrumental in developing Lafayette Schools for over 30 years while serving on the Lafayette School Board and the Acalanes High School District Board. Fran has fond memories of growing up in Lafayette in the […]
Oral History: Tom and Percy Whitten — November, 2005
Summary: Percy and Tom Whitten, father and son, were interviewed by Julie Sullivan in November 2005. In 1960 Tom and wife Patricia settled in Lafayette. In that same year his parents bought 4 lots on Lafayette Circle and built apartments on them. For six decades up to the present day members of this family have […]
Oral History: Eddie Bill — November, 2005
Summary: Eddie Bill was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in November, 2005. Both of his parents were German Immigrants who met in Stockton, where Eddie was born. in 1934, when he was 5, Eddie’s parents moved to Lafayette and opened the restaurant “Bill’s Place”. They struggled to keep it open for a few years, with the […]
Oral History: John Cosso — October, 2004
Summary: John Cosso was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in October, 1994. John’s uncle, who had emigrated from Genoa, Italy, bought 55 acres in Happy Valley in 1920. Members of his family operated a truck farm for almost thirty years, after which they sold most of the land to developers who built homes. Individual lots were […]
Oral History: Louis Persico — June, 2005
Summary: Louis Persico was interviewed in June 2005. He was born in Oakland in 1918, but a year later his family moved to Lafayette, where they at first operated a farm on the present day site of Acalanes High School. After serving as a mess sergeant in World War II, including the Battle of the […]
Oral History: Ray Peters — October, 2005
Summary: Ray Peters was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in October, 2005. He came to Lafayette in 1962 when he co-founded a civl engineering and surveying firm, and he soon became fascinated with its history. Ray used his skills to locate the sites of the three homes built by Lafayette’s founder, Elam Brown, and in 1978 […]
Oral History: Bill Eames — October, 2004
Summary: Bill Eames was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in October, 2004. Bill was only two years out of pharmacy school when he and his wife Karin opened Acalanes Pharmacy in Lafayette in 1959. There were three other pharmacies operating in town at that time, but due to Bill’s talents and hard work—he worked all the […]
