CASTRO STREET: WHERE IT CAME FROM, WHY IT SHOULD BE PRESERVED.
• 1852 The first Mountain View was a tiny settlement formed around the first stagecoach stop for the first stagecoach service originated by John W. Whisman near Grant Road and El Camino. Richard Carr opened the first general merchandise store.
• 1853 The Weilheimer brothers, Seligman and Samuel, German-Jewish immigrants, arrived from Germany and take a shot at the American Dream. They opened the second general merchandise store. Competition and diversity had an early start in Mountain View.
• 1854 The settlement is named “Mountain View” by a local store shop keeper and post master, Jacob Shumway.
• 1856 The Weilheimer brothers established a general store, livery, and hotel in Mountain View.
• 1860 The census listed Julius Weilheimer as being 9 months old. He would eventually run the family businesses, serve as town mayor, town trustee, help create and serve as co-founder and vice president of the local Farmers & Merchants bank (now occupied by Red Rock Coffee) which eventually became Bank of America. He also built and resided in the Weilheimer House at 938 Villa in 1894 (whose living room served as the city council meeting chambers and is currently occupied by Chez TJ), led the effort to rebuild a shattered downtown after the 1906 earthquake, and served as postmaster and Wells Fargo representative among other contributions to our city.
• 1864 The railroad in the form of the Southern Pacific arrived and by locating its rail line in its present location, the Mountain View we know today grew and prospered.
• 1865 The new Mountain View town grid was laid out and remains today with Castro as the main street. The area was called Villa Lands.
• 1867 Henry Rengstorff built his house near Rengstorff Landing where he operated a ferry between Mountain View and San Francisco.
• 1870-71 The Weilheimer brothers thrived and opened more businesses on and near Castro Street. Their 1874 Farmers Store at 124 Castro Street remains today and is occupied by Oren’s Hummus. It is believed to be the oldest building on Castro Street and perhaps the peninsula.
• 1880 The Weilheimer family built its home and opened a stable on what is now Evelyn Street with and another general merchandise store in the first block of Castro Street.
• 1902 Mountain View was incorporated and Mountain View High School opened. We had electric streetlights, telephone service and a municipal water system.
• 1905 The Ames Building at 171 Castro Street, was built with its Spanish influenced tiled roofline and is one of Castro’s oldest commercial structures. For decades it was occupied by the Jehning family lock business and Lock Museum.
• 1906 The Mockbee Building at 191 Castro Street, occupied by Knapps, is an example of the Italianate Style of commercial buildings popular in Mountain View. It was originally a hardware store and meeting place for civic groups.
• 1906 the San Francisco Earthquake destroyed many downtown businesses including the Ames Building which was quickly rebuilt.
• 1913 The Jurian Building at 194 Castro Street, most recently a candy and pop shop, was a drug store and general merchandise building that had a hall upstairs for dances, civic gatherings and celebrations.
• 1920 The Farmers and Merchants State Bank at 201 Castro Street, now occupied by Red Rock Coffee was built with the participation and investment of Julius Weilheimer and remains a distinguished building with Romanesque features and elaborate decoration.
• 1933 U.S. Naval Air Station, Moffett Field was established with buildings in the Spanish Revival style then popular in California. The Air Base Laundry, now occupied by Tied House, opened at 954 Villa Street to serve the needs of the Air Base and utilized the same Spanish Revival architecture, as do other buildings in Mountain View, Sunnyvale and Palo Alto.
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