Miles Paoli, born in Mendocino in 1906, was instrumental in bringing radio to the Mendocino Coast. As a young man, Miles was not drawn to school particularly. Miles’ parents, Raffaelo and Emelia, were hard working immigrants who had found opportunity in the logging industry. Later, the Paoli family purchased the hotel on Mendocino’s Ukiah Street, which had belonged to the Borgnas, and had been known as the Sempione Hotel. Miles was thirteen when his family moved from their home near[... see full page]

Forty-seven years ago today the cast of the Jennifer O’Neill film Summer of ’42 arrived on the Mendocino Coast to begin work locally on the bittersweet coming of age classic. According to the Shooting Schedule in the Kelley House Museum’s archives, the first day of filming involved the exterior of character Hermie’s house, at present day 45300 Ukiah Street in Mendocino. The schedule noted that the filming location was Fort Bragg, although scenes were shot in both towns. Water towers,[... see full page]

by Katy Tahja, Kelley House Museum Volunteer I wish I could have gone to the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition. At a recent book sale I picked up the official guide book, priced 25 cents, and was fascinated by the attractions offered, even if they happened 78 years ago. Called a World’s Fair, it lasted from February 18 to December 2, 1939, and featured nations on parade with art and industry added to make a pageant of the Pacific for 20 million[... see full page]

Seeing Mendocino as it is today, it may be difficult to think of the town as a mill town, but it certainly was. The mill was central to the existence of the town, and to the presence of the other towns which came into being as a result of the lumber industry. The mill’s beginning is well-documented, with the players named and the chronology established. The end of the mill, however, seems to be a somewhat different story. There is[... see full page]

The Kelley House recently received a bound booklet containing a handwritten collection of recipes given to Elise A. Drexler by San Francisco friends in 1898. Elise was born into the William and Eliza Kelley family in 1866, Daisy’s younger sister. It is hard to imagine her with so much as a pin curl out of place or a bead of sweat on her brow, but she must have had a talent in the kitchen and a desire to share with[... see full page]

Edith Kent Conway was born into Little River’s pioneering Kent family on August 5, 1901. She kept a diary, which is part of the Kelley House Museum collection, from January to October of 1938. In reading her brief diary entries, one gets the sense that her life was occupied almost entirely by work. She must have been an amazing cook, turning out cakes and pies, roasting meat and making stews on a near daily basis. The men worked hard, too,[... see full page]