Marin history: Dimitroff’s in Mill Valley

Dimitroff’s in 1954.

Stephen Pope Dimitroff was a well-known muralist. He and his artist wife, Lucienne Bloch, daughter of the internationally famous composer Ernst Bloch, met while working for Diego Rivera in New York.  

Dimitroff started his art and picture framing business in Mill Valley, because he saw the need for such a business. His success more than justified his expectations. 

Dimitroff’s picture framing business began in 1947 with a shop at 33 Lovell. In 1950 it moved to 32 Miller. Since 1911, the Telephone Co.’s operations center had been located in the west half of the Bank of America Building. 

 In 1949 it moved to a large new building at 300 East Blithedale where more modern circuitry was installed.   

Dimitroff’s moved into the bank’s vacated space in the early 1950s. In 1960, Dimitroff’s moved to the Maurer Building at 173 Throckmorton. In 1961, ownership passed to an employee, Don Lincoln, and in 1967 to Matthew Davis, with a partner until 1993. Matthew Davis had worked at Dimitroff’s since the 1950’s. 

In 2000, he sold Dimitroff’s business to the owner of Art and Frameworks in Tiburon. That ended the picture frame business in Mill Valley. Mill Valley Beer Works now occupies 173 Throckmorton.