The waymark coordinates are for a small historic sign about the Atwood Adobe that stands on the sidewalk in front of the San Bernardino County Government Center. The Atwood Adobe house was demolished to build this ugly government building in 1975.
40 years (and many heartbreaking losses) later, the good folks in San Bernardino are trying to save their historic buildings.
This article on the historic structure demolitions of the past appeared in the San Bernardino County Sun: (
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"A closer look at downtown San Bernardino’s preservation
By Nick Cataldo, San Bernardino County Sun
POSTED: 03/23/15, 5:54 PM PDT
During the State of the City speech on May 6, Mayor Carey Davis and other civic leaders seemed upbeat about San Bernardino’s future.
They emphasized that there will be many challenges ahead, but by focusing on partnerships and working together, “we will develop strategic plans that will propel the city forward”.
Hopefully, “partnerships” and “working together” include collaborating with the San Bernardino Historic Preservation Commission and the San Bernardino Historical and Pioneer Society.
Both groups are steadfast about providing a vibrant and attractive downtown by using our historic buildings for businesses; restaurants and cultural venues rather than seeing them fall to the wrecking ball and becoming costly to the city’s residents.
Examples of such travesty in the past include the destruction of the Carnegie Library, the Atwood Adobe and the Martin Adobe. Perhaps the worst tragic event of all was tearing down the California Hotel, which was replaced by a parking lot.
As was emphasized last month during part one of this two part series, San Bernardino has a wonderful historic downtown district. Here are a few reasons why this is so.
The creative William Fox introduced to San Bernardino three of his luxurious Fox West Coast Theaters during the 1920s — two of them still standing. One of them was the California Theater, 562 W. Fourth St.
This beautiful 1,700-square-foot gem has been in continuous use since it opened to a sold out crowd with the movie “Street Angel” on Aug. 15, 1928. The old theater — listed on the National Register of Historic Places — thrives today as an upscale performing arts house.
For many of today’s theater goers who can still remember, the most beautiful theater of all was the Fox Theater on the north side of Court Street, between D Street and Arrowhead Avenue. Its grand opening was on Sept. 20, 1929.
During that evening the films were: “Big Time,” an all talking, singing, dancing comedy-drama; a new Laurel and Hardy offering called “Men o’ War”; and the Walt Disney cartoon “Skeleton Dance,” described as “a silly symphony in sound.”
The Fox closed down in the late 1950s and over the ensuing 40 plus years, The Sun used part of the edifice for its storage warehouse. This is currently the home of the American Sports University.
Of the structures within San Bernardino’s “Historic Downtown District,” the oldest is a two-story commercial building located on the west side of D Street between Court and Fourth streets, originally known as the Garner Block.
A recent stucco facelift over its outside brick walls belie its age; but according to the late award-winning local historian Arda Haenszel, Robert F. Garner built it in 1877.
Over the years the Garner Block housed a varied clientele — ranging from law offices, a YMCA, a dance studio, a women’s auxiliary branch and other businesses, including an alleged house of ill repute.
The city directory for 1887 specifies that San Bernardino’s YMCA took quarters up in the second floor, while retired San Bernardino County Judge A.D. Boren used one of the offices in the Garner Block for business interests and another section of the building housed a library and reading room. Meanwhile, Robert Garner, the building’s namesake, was living next door to the north and running a wholesale meat market there as well.
At the northeast corner of F and Fifth streets is St. Bernardine’s Catholic Church. The first St. Bernardine’s Church was completed in 1863. The second was constructed in 1867, burned down and was rebuilt the same year. A fourth church replaced that one in 1870.
St. Bernardine’s Church, as we know it now, was built between 1910 and 1912 in close proximity to where the original once stood. Craftsman interior design, stained glass windows and fine polished wood are indicative of the Arts and Crafts Movement.
During the past decade, the church, the oldest in the San Bernardino Diocese, has received seismic retrofitting and interior and exterior restoration occasioned by earthquake damage that caused the removal of the bell tower in the 1950s.
Located at the northeast corner of D and Fifth streets, stands the city’s historic United States Post Office. Opened on Aug. 1, 1931, with a staff of 23 clerks and 23 mail carriers, it became San Bernardino’s first federal building. By 1940, the post office had 49 carriers, 34 clerks and various other employees for a total of 99. This building — the first structure in San Bernardino listed on the National Register of Historic Places — served as the city’s main post office until 1968 when a larger structure was built on south E Street.
Many local residents who are old enough to remember what downtown San Bernardino looked like before Central City (more recently known as Carrousel) Mall was constructed have fond memories of the J.C. Penney department store at the southwest corner of E and Fifth streets.
On Aug. 25, 1948, The Sun raved how the upcoming grand opening will showcase an important milestone in the growth of the city’s business district as this new building will be the first major postwar structure to reach completion.
The three-story, 43,000-square-foot building that included a balcony promenade, mezzanine and a cafeteria was four times the size of an earlier J.C. Penney store located on Third Street.
Since J.C. Penney relocated to Central City Mall in 1972, the former department store at this corner has been serving in a variety of business capacities.
As you can see, San Bernardino has a wonderful historic downtown, one that has made generations of residents feel proud to live in this city.
Hopefully, today’s civic leaders will strongly consider preserving this historic downtown so that future generations of residents will feel proud to live in this city as well."