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Found Remnants / Architecture
Victor Talking Machine Pavilion
Leon Douglas of San Rafael, who is credited with having originated the Victrola slogan, “His Master’s Voice” took possession of the pavilion at the close of the Exposition and had it barged across San Francisco Bay to his home in San Rafael. He eventually sold it to the ladies of the San Rafael Improvement Club for $500.00, and they had it moved to its current location which at the time was property owned by Arthur W. Foster. He deeded the land to the club in November of 1922 for the sum of $10.00.
The building served as a soup kitchen during the Great Depression. During World War II, the Blood Bank collected blood their after Pearl Harbor, First Aid and Civil Defense classes were conducted under its roof, Christmas boxes to be sent to servicemen overseas were packed there, and the grounds were used as a staging area for scrap metal drives.
The building remained in the possession of the “Improvement Club” until November 1997 when the aging membership, unable to raise the money needed for its upkeep and repair, gave the building and property to the Rotary Manor Corporation, a non-profit adjunct of the San Rafael Rotary Club. Before turning over the keys to the Rotary Club, the 104 members of the Improvement Club exacted a promise that the Rotary Club would restore the aging structure to its former glory.
A September 10, 1999 article in the Marin Independent Journal indicated that the Rotary Manor Corporation had received over $1 million in private donations, plus in-kind support from San Rafael Rotary Club members with which to effect this restoration which was to be completed by June 2000. However, in February 2001, citing cost overruns as the motivation, Rotary Manor Corp. notified John Taylor, the contractor who had worked more than two years on the replication, that he was to cease work on the project though the replication was only about 60% complete.
Though the “clubhouse” was declared a City and State Historical Landmark, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in May of 1984, there are grave doubts as to its future. For the present, it is a boarded up relic patiently awaiting the decisions of city and corporate functionaries who appear to have little interest in preserving a unique historical treasure.
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Home——History——Remnants——Appendix——Acknowledgements——Coming——Contact——Links |