Mike Read/Pages From The Past
100 Years Ago
July 1923
– Improving Property – A.H. Anderson is changing the appearance and greatly improving the recently acquired town property. The awning of the old Community House has been removed, the building given a coat of paint, a neat sign painted on the front directing visitors to the farming section of the Valley of No Regrets and the ground prepared for concrete sidewalk. It is understood that a sort of department store will open in the building.
– The flatiron building, recently vacated by the Advance, is also being remodeled by Mr. Anderson, and made to look quite respectable. A little paint and a feeling of home pride works wonders.
– To Build Concrete Block – Recognizing the importance of this section of Marin County and the future of Novato as a great business center, H. Pini & Co. have purchased from J. Verissmo the four lots on Grant Ave near Nave’s garage and will build a modern concrete store and warehouse. This is a good stroke of business, for it not only gives the local corporation room to expand but a most desirable business location. The H. Pini Company is composed of shrewd, far-seeing business people who take advantage of legitimate opportunities, and the proposed step will not only help themselves but be a benefit to Novato as a whole.
– Miss Lulu Sutton and Miss E. Nisson, two of Novato’s school teachers, left Monday on a motoring trip to Lake Tahoe. They went by way of Auburn and will return by Placerville. We hope the ladies will have as pleasant a time as their courage deserves.
75 Years Ago
July 1948
– Mrs. R. T. Lobaueh suffered a burned shoulder, right arm and face when a jar of fruit she was canning exploded. She is recuperating under the care of Drs. Weseman and Boice.
– The Death of Mrs. Dolores Homeres occurred recently in San Francisco. Mrs. Homeres brought her husband, a shellshocked casualty of World War I, to Novato at the close of the conflict in the hope of improving his condition. She purchased the Third street property which she later sold in 1938 for the French laundry after her husband’s death. Mrs. Homeres was buried beside her late husband in the National cemetery at the Presidio.
– BILLIARD PARLOR at Novato with all fixtures in good condition, new lease $40 monthly. Owner moving will sacrifice for a quick sale.
– The annual picnic and barbecue of Novato firemen Sunday at Armbruster’s grove on the Redwood highway was a great success. Three hundred firemen, with their families enjoyed the good old-fashioned picnic and barbecued meats with Harry Hale, Joe Gnoss and other local firemen, chefs.
50 Years Ago
July 1973
– John C. Coleman, 47, police chief of Brawley, Calif., was appointed Novato’s fourth police chief about 2:30 a.m. today by City Manager Charles Brown with the unanimous concurrence of the Novato City Council. Technically, Brown did not need the concurrence of the council as he was still operating under the old Ordinance 34 which gave him sole power to hire and fire department heads. The council amended the ordinance last night to require its ratification in the matter of hiring new heads, but the amendments will not become effective for 30 days.
– Novato Liberty Cable TV has moved its location from 947 Fourth Street to 856 Sweetser Avenue. The new offices in east Novato have more than 3,000 feet of floor space, or four times the amount available at the old Front Street location. It should fulfill our needs for at least 10 years.” Liberty is leasing the property from Olompali Investment Company of Novato. The contract includes an option to purchase after the l0-year period expires. The 856 Sweetser building was formerly occupied by North Marin High School.
– “We’re ashamed of the $23 an hour we charge for plumbing repair.” So says Juan Ferrer, owner of Ferrer Plumbing of San Rafael, and with this in mind he will open a do-it-yourself business in Novato in late August. The store, to be located at 700-A Grant Avenue (where the old Mann Color Service used to be), will be totally geared toward tool rentals, selling plumbing and heating system equipment and sheet metal and giving instructions to buyers on how they can install the equipment themselves, without having to pay the exorbitant fees plumbers charge.
25 Years Ago
July 1998
– Novato’s first mayor, Wayne Womack, and his wife Colleen celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a gala at the Marin Country Club on June 25. Over 150 friends and relatives of the couple showed up for the evening of dinner and dancing. Gene Womack of Novato—who served as best man at the couple’s Beaumont wedding in 1948—was also in attendance. Wayne retired in 1994 from a career that included banking, retail, and real estate. He has been a member of the Novato Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club and has served on the Novato Community Hospital board and real estate boards. Colleen retired since 1985 from a career in retail and real estate. She has been active as a Novato Community Hospital volunteer, a PTA member, with the “Jolly Rogers,” the Marin General Hospital Auxiliary and the Sunny Hills Guild. They are the parents of Craig Womack of Novato; Diane Michaelis of Pukalani, Maui; Elaine Womack of Mountain View; Jennifer Kelley of Petaluma; and Matthew Womack of Novato. The Womacks’ eight grandchildren all attended their golden anniversary celebration.
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