History and Events Blog

President’s Year in Review 2017

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We have had a good year! When we were children, the saying was, “Will Christmas ever get here?” Now we say, “Is Christmas here already?” We had many good things happening in 2017. Our accomplishments include: Contributing SAAAB photo displays and volunteer hours for the grand opening of Heroes Hall at the Orange County Fair & Event Center in February. Hosting successful meetings which attracted new members to the society including January’s installation dinner with speaker Michele…

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Read more about the article Celebrating Lil’ Pickle
Lil’ Pickle, Costa Mesa, CA

Celebrating Lil’ Pickle

Even though Pete Bower has owned Lil’ Pickle almost 13 years, people still come in and ask, “Are you the new owner?” But that’s what happens when you own a 55 year old institution. Every week, he says, he’ll get a customer who will say, “My mom used to bring me in here when I was a kid. Now I’m bringing my kids in.” Or, looking at the team photos lining the walls, one will say, “That’s…

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Read more about the article Lost Landmark: The Clark House Fire

Lost Landmark: The Clark House Fire

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When George H. Clark visited the boomtown of Fairview in the spring of 1889, he declared the area “the prettiest place I have ever seen.” In a matter of weeks he sold his business interests in Chicago and purchased over 100 acres in what would later become Costa Mesa. He then set about building a house that would rival the beauty of the landscape. The result was a grand three-story mansion boasting airy arched verandas, striking decorative…

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They Were Here Before Us

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It was a warm day in July 1769. A small band of soldiers were slowly riding north. They stopped on the bluff overlooking the ocean to refresh themselves. Perhaps they looked towards the Pacific, thinking to them- selves the area would make a great harbor someday. Turning inland, they noticed a band of about five hundred Indians quietly going about their daily lives. Don Gaspar de Portola led his small band of soldiers slowly riding northward, never…

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Read more about the article Nat Rochester, Costa Mesa War Hero
Nat Rochester leads the color guard at the "Homecoming of Company L," April 6th, 1918, on 4th Street in Santa Ana. Source: "The Story of Company L: Santa Ana's Own", 1958.

Nat Rochester, Costa Mesa War Hero

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In the Argonne Forest, October 8, 1918, Sergeant Nathaniel N. Rochester became one of the first Costa Mesans to die for his country. Nat, as he was called, moved to what was then Harper in 1908 at age ten. His parents were artists, but he was drawn to patriotic duty, like the great-great grandfather for whom he was named, the Revolutionary War colonel and founder of Rochester, New York. He enlisted with Company L, “Santa Ana’s Own,”…

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Goddards Honored at City Council Meeting

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Our own Art Goddard addressed the city council at its April 16 meeting by presenting a short history of Costa Mesa. He posed this thought provoking question: will he and his wife, Mary Ellen, live to see the costa mesa freeway finished? After Art's presentation, he and Mary Ellen Goddard were presented the mayor's award for their decades of service in helping to preserve the city's history with the Costa Mesa Historical Society.

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