In 1890, “The Nest” at 116 Cascade Drive was one of the first weekend/summer cottages built in Cascade Canyon. The owner was Jerome Stanford, nephew of Leland Stanford, a governor of California and founder of the Leland Stanford Jr. University.
The cottage originally had seven tiny bedrooms, and a lean-to for a kitchen.
In 1914, David and Ella Bork bought “The Nest” from the Stanford estate. In 1922 they also bought the house next door on the corner of Josephine and Cascade.
Ella Bork created a dahlia garden on the sunnier upper section of the property. She named it “Sans Souci”, and opened it to the public.
One of its features was a drinking fountain.
David Bork worked for the Southern Pacific Company. He frequently combined his commute to San Francisco with delivering armloads of dahlias to the flower market.
In 1942, the Borks sold both the house and “The Nest”.
In the 1970’s, Francis Ford Coppola bought “The Nest” — it adjoined his property on the corner of Throckmorton and Laurel. His friend George Lucas lived at “The Nest” while writing “American Graffiti”.
(Complied by the Mill Valley Historical Society.)
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