Research and photographs contributed by The Healdsburg Museum
100 years ago – Nov. 22, 1923
Camp Visited by 540 Auto Parties
Over 600 automobile parties, numbering around 1600 persons, were entertained at the automobile camp grounds of the Healdsburg Chamber of Commerce during the touring season just completed. The camp grounds were closed Thursday for the winter. The records show that 540 automobiles were registered at the local auto park, which carried an average of three persons each.
Many improvements are being planned by the camp committee of the Chamber of Commerce for next season. Among other things, redwood trees are to be planted, a Fort Bragg nursery having offered the young trees free of charge.
75 years ago – Nov. 26, 1948
High School Netmen Capture League Cup
New tennis champs of Section II of the North Bay League are Al Worden’s Healdsburg High School netmen who climbed to the top of the ladder with wins over teams of Sonoma, Tomales, Calistoga and St. Helena High Schools.
The local men defeated Sonoma last Friday, clinching the league championship. In the first singles match Healdsburg’s Alfred Elgin trounced Sonoma’s No. 1 man, Jim Kirk, 6-2, 6-0. Grandin Worden continued the win for the locals, acing Glenn Purcell, of Sonoma, 6-2, 6-3. Sonoma failed to bring out a doubles combination, and was forced to forfeit additional points.
50 years ago – Nov. 29, 1973
The City Responds to Nation’s Energy Crisis
If everyone turns out unneeded lights it will help, city fathers say. Otherwise, do ‘‘roving brown outs” suit you?
Steps to reduce national consumption of gas and fuel oil have already been called for by President Nixon and it seems likely that Congress will act soon. In a nationally televised speech Sunday, President Nixon called for a prohibition of gasoline sales on Sunday and a limiting of Friday and Saturday sales. Lower highway speed limits to 50 miles per hour for cars and 55 miles per hour for trucks and buses were also needed, he said, as were lowering heating deliveries to homes by 15%, to merchants by 25%, and to industry by 10%. More reductions in commercial airline schedules are likely because of further jet fuel supply reductions.
The Sunday voluntary driving cutback and no gasoline sales provisions may produce mixed reactions in Healdsburg. Most city gas stations have been closed for months on Sunday, so it is tourists coming here who may be most affected. Even before Nixon’s Sunday speech in which he outlined the cutbacks, which are as of now voluntary, the Healdsburg City Council had taken the first steps to set an energy saving example. In its meeting Nov. 19, the Council voted not to light the traditional downtown Christmas ornaments and authorized the city manager’s office to institute other energy savings actions.
Mayor Badger, expressing fellow councilmen’s uncertainty about the crisis, said, “It is obvious that solid information on fuel is not available. The only attitude we can take is that we do have an energy crisis.”
