History of Petaluma

By Mr. Richards & Mrs. Novoa

  • Capt. Fernando Quiroz, a Spanish explorer, sails up from San Francisco Bay to see if the Petaluma Creek will lead to Bodega Bay.

  • John Martin leases the Two Rock-Chileno Valley-Petaluma area from the Mexican governor. He is the first non-aboriginal settler (the first person who was not there originally).

  • Garrett W. Keller commissions the first official survey of Petaluma, establishing lots and streets and the first American Hotel is constructed on Main Street.

  • Petaluma’s first bridge is built across the Petaluma River

  • Petaluma’s first newspaper, the Petaluma Journal and Sonoma County Advertiser, is established by Henry Weston and Thomas L. Thompson.

  • The Petaluma Brewery, the first of its kind in Sonoma County, is established.

  • The first fire company in Petaluma is established.

  • The first policeman, John Brown, is appointed at a salary of $60 a month.

  • An act to include the town of Petaluma in California is approved.

  • Wilson Elementary was established as a public school.

  • Isaac Wickersham, an early settlers, establishes the county’s first bank.

  • Charles Minturn opens the Petaluma Haystack Railroad, a 21.2 mile track, only the third railroad in the state.

  • George Purdy builds the three-story Cosmopolitan Hotel on Main Street.

  • Cypress Hill Cemetery is established by John A. McNear.

  • St. Vincent’s Academy is established.

  • Petaluma's first public library opens.

  • A disastrous fire destroys several downtown buildings.

  • Peter Donahue opens regular service on his San Francisco and Santa Rosa railroad line.

    This allows for products to be moved by both train and boat.

  • Another disastrous downtown fire causes $75,000 in damage.

  • The Citizens Gas Company receives rights to lay and open gas mains in Petaluma.

  • The first egg incubator is invented by Petalumians Lyman Byce and Isaac Dias.

  • A drawbridge at D Street over the Petaluma River is constructed and Main Street is paved with blocks.

  • Some of Petaluma's most beautiful buildings are constructed.

  • One hundred walnut trees are planted at the D Street Plaza (now known as Walnut Park).

  • Petaluma City Hall is completed at a cost of $16,000 by Samuel and Joseph Newsom.

  • The Petaluma Woman’s Club is organized.

  • The Petaluma Street Railroad runs for the last time.

  • Lyman Byce patents (says it belongs to him) the first egg incubator.

  • Construction begins on the Petaluma Free Public Library at Fourth and B streets.

  • The Petaluma Chamber of Commerce is formed.

  • Fred J. Wiseman makes the first airmail flight, delivering a letter from Petaluma to Santa Rosa.

  • Elsa Little opens Petaluma General Hospital at Sixth and I streets. The 33-bed hospital operates until 1974.

  • The Petaluma Creamery is organized with 35 stockholders and 1,900 cows.

  • Contract for construction of the new high school on Fair Street is signed.

  • Petaluma called “The Egg Basket of the World”, and the first Egg Day celebration is held.

  • The Petaluma Jewish Center (now Congregation B’nai Israel) opens on Western Avenue.

  • Passenger service is closed down on the Petaluma-Santa Rosa Railway.

  • A steel bridge is constructed at D Street, replacing an earlier bridge that was built in 1883.

  • The fire station on D Street is completed.

  • Period: to

    The Petaluma Leghorns, a semi-pro football team, is formed.

  • McKinley Elementary School is built on Ellis Street.

  • Sky Ranch Airport (Petaluma Municipal Airport) opens.

  • The Petaluma, the last steamboat on the Petaluma Creek or any California river, makes its final trip.

  • A new four-lane freeway is completed, bypassing downtown Petaluma.

  • A fire begins in the balcony of the California Theater (now the Phoenix).

  • A new hospital, Hillcrest, opens on Hayes Lane.

  • Main Street and Third Street are renamed Petaluma Boulevard North and Petaluma Boulevard South.

  • The Golden Eagle Milling Co. at Second and C streets is destroyed by fire.

  • Fire destroys the Continental Hotel at Western Avenue and Kentucky Street.

    Washington Mutual Bank is now located at the site.

  • The Healey Mansion, once known as one of Petaluma’s most beautiful homes, is demolished and replaced with a gas station.

  • Petaluma Plaza shopping center on North McDowell Boulevard opens.

  • One hundred years of passenger service on the Northwestern Pacific Railroad comes to an end.

  • Casa Grande High School, a new public high school, opens.

  • Movie director George Lucas comes to Petaluma to shoot scenes for American Graffiti.

  • The Washington Square Shopping Center opens for business.

  • Skip Sommer begins a major renovation of the Great Petaluma Mill, a complex of stone, brick and wood buildings.

  • The Petaluma Creamery is damaged by a fire.

  • The new library at East Washington and Payran streets is dedicated

  • The Friedman Brothers Hardware building on East Washington Street is destroyed by a fire.

    The Downtown River Apartments are now located on the site.

  • Lucchesi Park, a 31-acre park, opens.

  • Petaluma Valley Hospital opens on North McDowell Boulevard, replacing Hillcrest Hospital.

  • The 177-acre Helen Putnam Regional Park is opened.

  • More housing appears as chicken ranches and hay farms disappear.

  • Sonoma County’s first factory outlet mall opens in Petaluma.

  • The Petaluma campus of Santa Rosa Junior College opens.

  • Petaluma’s downtown is formally listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

  • The Petaluma Creamery closes after 91 years of operation.

  • Theatre Square opens.

    The six-block Theatre District includes a 12-screen movie theater, restaurants, offices and living units.