Scotts Valley is a small city in Santa Cruz County, California, United States, about thirty miles (48 km) south of downtown San Jose and six miles (9.7 km) north of the city of Santa Cruz, in the upland slope of the Santa Cruz Mountains. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 12,224. Principal access to the city is supplied by State Route 17 that connects San Jose and Santa Cruz. The city was incorporated in 1966.
City of Scotts Valley | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 37°3′5″N 122°0′48″W / 37.05139°N 122.01333°W | |
Country | United States |
State | California |
County | Santa Cruz |
Incorporated | August 2, 1966[1] |
Area | |
• Total | 4.62 sq mi (11.96 km2) |
• Land | 4.62 sq mi (11.96 km2) |
• Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) 0% |
Elevation | 561 ft (171 m) |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 12,224 |
• Density | 2,663.18/sq mi (1,028.70/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−8 (PST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−7 (PDT) |
ZIP codes | 95060, 95066, 95067 |
Area code | 831 |
FIPS code | 06-70588 |
GNIS feature ID | 0277598 |
Website | scottsvalley |
History
editApproximately ten thousand years ago there was a lake in the lowest elevation of Scotts Valley.[3] Archeological excavations of site CA-SCR-177 (Scotts Valley Site) in 1983 and 1987 support dates for human settlement of this area as between 9,000 and 12,000 years before present (YBP). The lake drained during the Mid-Holocene warming period (4,000-5,000 YBP) forming what is now known as Carbonera Creek. When the lake drained, the people moved downslope following the lake water's transformation as in became the creek. Around 2000 BC, Ohlone people occupied areas along the remaining creeks, spring and seep areas, along with permanent and seasonal drainages, and on flat ridges and terraces.[4] Permanent villages were usually placed on elevations above seasonal flood levels. Surrounding areas were used for hunting and seed, acorn, and grass gathering. Therefore, areas along watercourses are considered likely locations for prehistoric cultural resources. Several watercourses, including portions of Carbonera Creek, Bean Creek, and MacKenzie Creek, are within the city.
Scotts Valley was named after Hiram Daniel Scott, who purchased Rancho San Agustin, including the valley, in 1850 from Joseph Ladd Majors. Before Majors, the property was owned by José Bolcoff. Bolcoff was the original settler and first European to claim title and live in what was to be Scotts Valley. He was born Osip Volkov around 1794 in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Siberia. Working as a fur trader around 1815, Bolcoff jumped ship on the Monterey Bay shoreline, quickly assimilated into the Spanish culture, and was well received by the Spanish authorities. Volkov had his Russian Orthodox baptism validated in Mission Soledad in 1817, and was given the Spanish name José Antonio Bolcoff. Bolcoff lived with and traveled with Alta California's governor Pablo Vicente de Solá, acting as an interpreter.
Becoming a Mexican citizen in 1833, Bolcoff moved his family to his 4,400-acre (18 km2) land grant building, an adobe casa historians speculate was located near present-day Kings Village Shopping Center. Bolcoff relinquished his interest in the Rancho San Augustin, selling and accepting $400 from Joseph Ladd Majors, also known as Don Juan José Mechacas. July 7, 1846, marked the shift of power in the region from Mexico to the United States.
Hiram Scott built the Greek revival style Scott House in 1853. Situated behind City Hall, it is a Santa Cruz County Historical Trust Landmark and is on the National Register of Historic Places. The house originally stood on Scotts Valley Drive, near where a Bank of America branch is now located.
From the 1840s, money-making activity in Scotts Valley centered on several industries: lumber, grain, the milling of grain, and most importantly the tanning of hides and working of leather.[5] Beginning in the 1930s, peat moss was removed from Scotts Valley and taken to San Francisco to supply soil for difficult indoor plants such as gardenias.[3][6] When the peat ran out, sand and gravel were quarried and sold.[5]
The area was the site of Santa's Village, a Christmas-themed amusement park which opened on May 30, 1957, on a 25-acre (10 ha) site which was formerly Lawridge Farm, part of the former Rancho San Augustin. "Residents" of the park included Santa, Mrs. Santa, and elves and gnomes who operated the rides and sold tickets. There was a petting zoo, a bobsled ride, a whirling Christmas tree ride, and a train ride, as well as a Fairy Tale Land. The park was sold in 1966 but continued to be operated under lease by the Santa's Village Corporation. When that corporation went bankrupt in 1977. the owner considered launching a Knott's Berry Farm type of complex but was denied a permit by the city of Scotts Valley, and the park closed for good in 1979.[7]
Scotts Valley's most famous resident was film director Alfred Hitchcock, who lived in a mountaintop estate above the Vine Hill area from 1940 to 1972. Florence Owens Thompson, made famous by Dorothea Lange's Migrant Mother photograph, died in Scotts Valley in 1983.
Netflix was founded in Scotts Valley by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in 1997.
Economy
editTourism
editFrom its early years as a stop on the stage route across the mountains, the Scotts Valley area has provided services to travelers. With the growing usage of the automobile in the early 20th century, the area became commercialized and tourism developed as a local industry.
In the early 1920s, Edward Evers established Camp Evers at the junction of the State Highway and Mt. Hermon Road. Camp Evers consisted of a small store, gas pumps, dance hall and tents, becoming a resort and rest stop for travelers.
The Beverly Gardens were established in the 1930s and featured a collection of exotic birds and animals, a restaurant, and cabins.
Axel Erlandson opened The Tree Circus in 1947, featuring trees grafted and trained in strange and unusual shapes. Bright "life size" painted dinosaurs overlooking Highway 17 were added to the Tree Circus in 1964 when it changed its name to The Lost World. Surviving trees have since been moved to Gilroy Gardens.
Santa's Village, one of three locations in America's first theme park chain, was established in 1956. It was the most popular of the many attractions, attracting millions of visitors to Scotts Valley for over twenty years, and it was the last of Scotts Valley's theme parks to close its doors, in 1979. H. Glenn Holland, who had already developed a Santa's Village elsewhere the previous year, leased 25 acres (100,000 m2) at the former Lawridge Farm, which was a portion of the former Rancho San Augustin for the Scotts Valley location of Santa's Village. The park maintained a historically correct team of Mexican burros that lived on the back 20-acre (81,000 m2) field. Four reindeer from Unalakleet, Alaska, pulled Santa's sleigh. All the buildings were designed to look like log chalet-type structures, replete with snowy roofs and gingerbread trim. One chalet housed a legendary fresh gingerbread bakery. Theme-appropriate music flowed from speakers hidden in towering redwood trees. In 1977 the Santa's Village Corporation had filed for bankruptcy, and in 1979 the park's gates were finally closed. The site is currently a playing field at the former headquarters of Borland.
Scotts Valley is also near Big Basin Redwoods State Park, Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, and Roaring Camp Railroads. The town is surrounded by coast redwood forests. The city of Santa Cruz lies to the south. A relatively large municipal skateboard park, where pro skateboarder Eric Costello died in October 2005 due to improper helmet use,[8] is near Skypark, the site of a former airport, in central Scotts Valley.
Three hotels operate in Scotts Valley: a Best Western hotel located near the Granite Creek entrance to Highway 17, a Four Points by Sheraton located on Scotts Valley Drive, and a Hilton hotel located near the Mount Hermon junction with Highway 17.
Redevelopment and high technology
editEvidence regarding blighted conditions in the Redevelopment Area of Santa's Village and the Skypark Airport was established in the year 1990.[9]
E-mu Systems, Seagate Technology, Sessions, and Borland Software Corporation were all formerly headquartered in Scotts Valley.
Zero Motorcycles manufactures all-electric motorcycles in Scotts Valley.
Netflix's first headquarters were established in Scotts Valley by Reed Hastings, a Stanford graduate, in 1997. The headquarters were later moved to nearby Los Gatos, California.
In May 2016, the University of California, Santa Cruz signed a 20-year lease to occupy the former Borland headquarters establishing its Scotts Valley Center.[10] The center serves as the professional offices for three of its divisions — Information Technology services, Business and Administrative services, and University Relations.[10]
Top employers
editAccording to Scotts Valley's 2021 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,[11] the top employers in the city are:
# | Employer | # of Employees |
---|---|---|
1 | Central California Alliance for Health | 509 |
2 | Threshold Enterprises | 435 |
3 | Fox Racing Shox | 301 |
4 | Bay Photo Lab | 203 |
5 | Zero Motorcycles | 179 |
6 | Bell Sports, Inc | 101 |
7 | The Camp | 91 |
8 | Permanente Medical Group | 83 |
9 | Nob Hill Foods | 72 |
10 | Oxford/X-Ray Technology Group | 60 |
Demographics
editCensus | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1970 | 3,621 | — | |
1980 | 6,891 | 90.3% | |
1990 | 8,615 | 25.0% | |
2000 | 11,385 | 32.2% | |
2010 | 11,580 | 1.7% | |
2020 | 12,224 | 5.6% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[12] |
2010
editThe 2010 United States Census[13] reported that Scotts Valley had a population of 11,580. The population density was 2,520.4 inhabitants per square mile (973.1/km2). The racial makeup of Scotts Valley was 9,958 (86.0%) White, 101 (0.9%) African American, 57 (0.5%) Native American, 590 (5.1%) Asian, 18 (0.2%) Pacific Islander, 292 (2.5%) from other races, and 564 (4.9%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,158 persons (10.0%).
The Census reported that 11,308 people (97.7% of the population) lived in households, 264 (2.3%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 8 (0.1%) were institutionalized.
There were 4,426 households, out of which 1,588 (35.9%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 2,423 (54.7%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 474 (10.7%) had a female householder with no husband present, 189 (4.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 206 (4.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 43 (1.0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 1,054 households (23.8%) were made up of individuals, and 516 (11.7%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55. There were 3,086 families (69.7% of all households); the average family size was 3.03.
The population was spread out, with 2,863 people (24.7%) under the age of 18, 969 people (8.4%) aged 18 to 24, 2,513 people (21.7%) aged 25 to 44, 3,660 people (31.6%) aged 45 to 64, and 1,575 people (13.6%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.0 males.
There were 4,610 housing units at an average density of 1,003.4 units per square mile (387.4 units/km2), of which 3,248 (73.4%) were owner-occupied, and 1,178 (26.6%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.2%. 8,558 people (73.9% of the population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 2,750 people (23.7%) lived in rental housing units.
2000
editAs of the census[14] of 2000, there were 11,385 people, 4,273 households, and 2,969 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,473.7 inhabitants per square mile (955.1/km2). There were 4,423 housing units at an average density of 961.0 units per square mile (371.0 units/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 88.63% White, 0.48% African American, 0.40% Native American, 4.62% Asian, 0.18% Pacific Islander, 2.15% from other races, and 3.53% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.40% of the population.
There were 4,273 households, out of which 36.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.3% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.05.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.8% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 30.2% from 25 to 44, 23.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $72,449, and the median income for a family was $88,573. Males had a median income of $74,183 versus $40,492 for females. The per capita income for the city was $35,684. About 0.9% of families and 2.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.2% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over.
Government
editIn the state legislature, Scotts Valley is in the 17th Senate District, represented by Democrat John Laird, and in the 28th Assembly District, represented by Democrat Gail Pellerin.
Federally, Scotts Valley is in California's 19th congressional district, represented by Democrat Jimmy Panetta.[15]
Education
editFrom 1950 to 2011, Scotts Valley was home to Bethany University, a four-year private Christian university. The campus was leased to Olivet University for the 2011–2012 school year,[16] but Olivet was unable to complete a purchase and moved back to San Francisco in May 2012.[17] The parent Assemblies of God denomination is seeking another buyer for the campus.
The Scotts Valley Unified School District operates four public schools:[18] Scotts Valley High School (grades 9 to 12), Scotts Valley Middle School (grades 6 to 8), and two elementary schools: Vine Hill School (grades Kindergarten to 5) and Brook Knoll School. They also operate an Independent Study/Home School program. Together these schools serve more than 2,600 students each year.
Baymonte Christian School serves students from pre-Kindergarten through eighth grades. Baymonte is a non-denominational Protestant Bible school that was founded in 1968. In 2003, it earned the distinction of being a Blue Ribbon School, a distinction awarded to one school in 25 across the nation.
Monterey Coast Preparatory School, a private school offering a college preparatory curriculum for middle and high schoolers with learning differences, moved from its original location in Santa Cruz to Scotts Valley in 2014.[19]
Former venues
editThe Barn
editIn the fall of 1965, Eric Nord,[20] proprietor of coffee houses including the Hungry I in San Francisco, and the Sticky Wicket[21] in Aptos, also opened The Barn (1965–1968), an art gallery and coffee house, with a large area for concerts, on the site of the Frapwell Dairy Barn (1914–1948), in Scotts Valley.[22][23][24] Janis Joplin[25] and the Grateful Dead performed at The Barn.[citation needed] Tom Wolfe describes the Merry Pranksters and Ken Kesey, from La Honda, at The Barn, in the last chapter of The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. At Scott's Valley Drive, just off Highway 17, The Barn as a nightclub closed by 1968, with the Baymonte Christian School taking control of the property. The Barn resurrected as a dinner theater in an RV park in the 70s, and eventually a warehouse for Seagate Technologies. The Barn was torn down in 1991.[26][27][28][29][30][31][25][32][33][34][35][36]
Santa's Village
editUnrelated to the prior Santa's Village (Jefferson, New Hampshire) (1953—), Santa's Village (Scotts Valley) (1957–1979) was an amusement park, built after Santa's Village (Lake Arrowhead) (1955–1998, 2016–present), San Bernardino County, and built before Santa's Village AZoosment Park (1959–2006, 2011–present), East Dundee, Illinois, located near highway 17, Borland would later built its campus on the site.
Geography and environment
editScotts Valley is in the west hills of the Santa Cruz Mountains.[37] State Route 17 connects Scotts Valley to Santa Cruz to the south and to Los Gatos, San Jose, and the South Bay area to the north.
Scotts Valley is located at the southern end of the WWF-designated Northern California coastal forests ecoregion.
According to the United States Census Bureau, it has a total area of 4.6 square miles (12 km2), all land. It is in central Santa Cruz County, in the northern portion of the North Central Coast Air Basin.
Climate
editAir in Scotts Valley is typically maritime in origin, as it moves over the land from the Pacific Ocean. Summers are warm and dry, while winters are mild and generally rainy. Most rain falls as a result of winter Pacific storms between the months of November and April. Sound levels in Scotts Valley are typically in the range of 57 to 65 dBA, except for somewhat higher levels within 150 feet (46 m) from Highway 17.
Scotts Valley has mild weather throughout the year, enjoying a Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csb) characterized by cool, wet winters and warm, mostly dry summers. Due to its proximity to Monterey Bay, fog and low overcast are common during the night and morning hours, especially in the summer.
Climate data for Scotts Valley, California (1981–2010 normals) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 60.6 (15.9) |
62.3 (16.8) |
64.4 (18.0) |
67.5 (19.7) |
70.1 (21.2) |
72.9 (22.7) |
73.4 (23.0) |
74.3 (23.5) |
74.5 (23.6) |
71.5 (21.9) |
64.9 (18.3) |
60.0 (15.6) |
68.0 (20.0) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 40.8 (4.9) |
42.7 (5.9) |
44.0 (6.7) |
45.5 (7.5) |
48.6 (9.2) |
51.5 (10.8) |
53.7 (12.1) |
53.9 (12.2) |
52.6 (11.4) |
49.0 (9.4) |
44.3 (6.8) |
40.8 (4.9) |
47.3 (8.5) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 6.40 (163) |
6.24 (158) |
4.67 (119) |
1.99 (51) |
0.85 (22) |
0.19 (4.8) |
0.01 (0.25) |
0.04 (1.0) |
0.27 (6.9) |
1.44 (37) |
3.75 (95) |
5.68 (144) |
31.53 (801) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 10.6 | 10.9 | 10.0 | 5.9 | 3.3 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 1.5 | 3.5 | 7.5 | 10.7 | 66.2 |
Source: NOAA[38] |
Infrastructure
editDrinking water is supplied to the City of Scotts Valley by the Scotts Valley Water District and the San Lorenzo Valley Water District. Domestic water supplies are obtained solely from groundwater sources extracted by wells. Wastewater in Scotts Valley is treated at the Scotts Valley Wastewater Treatment Plant at Scotts Valley and Mount Hermon Roads. Treated wastewater effluent is pumped via the city of Santa Cruz into the Pacific Ocean.
Bus service from Scotts Valley to Santa Cruz, California; the San Lorenzo Valley; and San Jose, California; is provided by the Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District.
The Santa Cruz Sky Park, a small recreational airport, closed in 1983.
Sister cities
edit- Nichinan, Japan
References
edit- ^ "California Cities by Incorporation Date". California Association of Local Agency Formation Commissions. Archived from the original (Word) on November 3, 2014. Retrieved August 25, 2014.
- ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- ^ a b Pokriots, Marion Dale (1988). "A Glimpse at Scotts Valley's History". Scotts Valley Historical Society. Archived from the original on July 24, 2001. Retrieved June 29, 2012.
- ^ Environmental Impact Report for the Scotts Valley Redevelopment Area, Earth Metrics Incorporated, State of California Clearinghouse Report 7888 (1990)
- ^ a b Laffey, Glory Anne (1990). "Evaluation of Potential Historic Structures in the City of Scotts Valley". Scotts Valley Historical Society. Archived from the original on March 23, 2002. Retrieved June 29, 2012.
- ^ Pokriots, Marion Dale (1995). "Women of the Rancho". Scotts Valley Historical Society. Archived from the original on March 17, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2012.
- ^ "Santa's Village Scotts Valley". Santa's Village. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
- ^ Home – Santa Cruz Sentinel Archived March 11, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Preliminary Report to the City of Scotts Valley Proposed Redevelopment for the Scotts Valley Redevelopment Project, Burns & Watry/Williams-Kuebelbeck, prepared for the city of Scotts Valley, February 1990.
- ^ a b Nathan Donato-Weinstein (May 2, 2016). "Scotts Valley's old Borland campus lands huge new tenant". American City Business Journals.
- ^ "City of Scotts Valley CAFR 2021". scottsvalley.org. p. 171. Retrieved May 25, 2022.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "2010 Census Interactive Population Search: CA - Scotts Valley city". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "California's 18th Congressional District - Representatives & District Map". Civic Impulse, LLC. Retrieved March 14, 2013.
- ^ White, Kimberly (August 23, 2011). "Olivet University to take over Bethany campus, begin teaching classes in September". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Archived from the original on September 18, 2011. Retrieved October 1, 2012.
- ^ White, Kimberly (May 30, 2012). "Olivet heads back to San Francisco; lease ends at Scotts Valley campus". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Archived from the original on July 6, 2012. Retrieved October 1, 2012.
- ^ Official website of the Scotts Valley Unified School District
- ^ Official website of MCP Middle and High School
- ^ FOLKART, BURT A. (May 2, 1989). "Eric (Big Daddy) Nord; 'Beat Movement' Leader". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ Bratton, Bruce (August 14–21, 2002). "Bruce Bratton's Column". Metro Santa Cruz. Metroactive. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
Covello & Covello Historical Photo Collection's Photo of: Original Sticky Wicket: This particular art show was held Oct. 6, 1958, at the original Sticky Wicket, a coffee house on Cathcart Street. You can see the stairs going up to the back rooms of the Catalyst. The Wicket later moved to Aptos and is mostly known as the birthplace of what became the Cabrillo Music Festival.
- ^ Baine, Wallace (July 15, 2016). "Santa Cruz County Stories: UCSC's Ralph Abraham keeps alive the memories of Santa Cruz's hip golden era". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
Came to Santa Cruz: 1968. Abraham was a professor at Princeton University in his early 30s when a UCSC recruiter visited him. He had developed an interest in psychedelic culture and mystical experience, but had no interest in relocating to California. 'I accepted the free airline ticket to see friends,' he said. His interview didn't go well, he said. But before leaving, he went to find a friend at the Barn in Scotts Valley, where "I saw the musicians playing inside large metal sculptures, psychedelic paintings on the wall and 300 people stoned on LSD dancing to the music.' Soon after, he changed his thinking: 'I was interested in Santa Cruz the town, not Santa Cruz the university. But it was a job, so I accepted it.'
- ^ "David Nelson and The New Delhi River Band, Fall 1966 (Nelson II)". Lost Live Dead. March 22, 2012. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
The configuration of Highway 17 and Scotts Valley has completely changed, and no trace of The Barn remains. The site is now the parking lot of The Baymonte Christian School
- ^ Arnold, Corry (February 9, 2013). "The Barn, Scotts Valley, California 1965-1968". chickenonaunicycle. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ a b Dilles, Jack Dilles (March 23, 2019). "Scotts Valley has a colorful history | Jack Dilles, mayor's message". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
Scotts Valley became a city in 1966 at a time when there were concerns about the City of Santa Cruz annexing the Sky Park Airport (site of the currently proposed Town Center) and concerns about a proposed cemetery project. The airport was closed in 1983, two years after Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple, crashed his Beechcraft Bonanza at Sky Park, injuring his three passengers. During the 1960s, the Barn at the north end of Scotts Valley was leased to Eric "Big Daddy" Nord, a hipster of the Beat Generation. He opened a coffee shop at the Barn and later a concert hall. Even though the Barn was refused a permit for live music, he held dances, concerts and art shows anyway, complete with lively wall murals and a psychedelic light show. Well known bands, including Big Brother and the Holding Company, featuring Janis Joplin, performed at the Barn. Ken Kesey and his merry band of pranksters attended concerts there and had their colorful bus ticketed by Scotts Valley police for illegal parking.
- ^ Bobson, Sarah (February 23, 2017). "Yesterday Into Today: The Barn in Scotts Valley". The Independent. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
The Barn, according to information from the Scotts Valley Historical Society, originally operated as the Frapwell Dairy Barn from 1914 to 1948. After that, it was remodeled as a sort of community center/gymnasium/theater. In the mid-60s, Eric Nord, known as Eric "Big Daddy" Nord, a Beat Generation-era nightclub owner who founded the hungry i in San Francisco, and a poet, actor, and hipster as well, who newspaper columnist Herb Caen called the "king of the Beat Generation," converted the barn into The Barn. But it was a Santa Cruz clinical psychologist named Leon Tabory who took over its operation and later bought it who turned it into the happening place it became for a few short years in the late 60s. With these stories and pictures buzzing in my brain, I set off for Scotts Valley. I didn't expect to find The Barn because I learned from news clips and from Jay Topping of the Scotts Valley Historical Society that it was torn down in 1991.
- ^ "As the owner of the hippie hot spot The Barn, Leon Tabory planted a flag for the counterculture in quiet Scotts Valley". Santa Cruz Sentinel. November 14, 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
"The Barn was my first experience in Santa Cruz County," said Ralph Abraham, a longtime friend of Tabory and a leading figure in an online project called the Hip Santa Cruz History Project. "Leon was the reason I moved here." Abraham said Tabory used The Barn as a kind of incubator of what was then radical new era values of community and human potential. "Those light shows, he really took seriously," he said. "He used psychedelics as therapy." Coincidentally, the city of Scotts Valley was first incorporated the same year Tabory took control of The Barn — 1966. The Barn wasn"t the first outpost of the counterculture in the area — the Hip Pocket Bookstore and the old Catalyst in downtown Santa Cruz had opened earlier, providing a welcoming atmosphere for the politically conscious beat-generation vibe that had flourished in San Francisco in the 1950s. He wasn"t even the first to bring a new cultural scene to The Barn. Fabled beat figure Eric "Big Daddy" Nord opened a coffee shop in The Barn in 1964. But it was Tabory who first brought the full-blown hippie aesthetic to the county, and it was Tabory who found himself in a long, draining battle with the newly established city. The Scotts Valley Planning Commission approved Tabory"s first application to open The Barn as a community center, but warned him with a "no beatniks" rule.
- ^ Abraham, Ralph. "1964 – The Golden Years Begin". Hip Santa Cruz History Project. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
Leon Tabory hears Eric "Big Daddy" Nord was opening the Loft, a cafe at a barn in Scotts Valley. Leon went there, met Cathy, they married.
- ^ abraham, ralph. "The Hip Santa Cruz History Project". ralph-abraham.org. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
A multimedia website project cooked up over sushi by Judy, Tandy, and Ralph on 06 February 2002. Mission: to document the history of Hip Santa Cruz, ca 1964-1972 or so.
- ^ Lleon Tabory. "Hip Santa Cruz History Project". hipsc.blogspot.com. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
HipSCHP is group devoted to documenting the history of Hip Santa Cruz, ca 1964-1972 or so. This site is a companion to the physical meetings, archival collections, and individual efforts that have been underway for several years.
- ^ Baine, Wallace (November 13, 2009). "Leon Tabory planted a flag for the counterculture in quiet Scotts Valley". The Mercury News. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
"The Barn was my first experience in Santa Cruz (County)," said Ralph Abraham, a longtime friend of Tabory and a leading figure in an online project called the Hip Santa Cruz History Project. "(Leon) was the reason I moved here." Abraham said that Tabory used The Barn as a kind of incubator of what was then radical new-era values of community and human potential. "Those light shows, he really took seriously," he said. "He used psychedelics as therapy." Coincidentally, the city of Scotts Valley was first incorporated the same year Tabory took control of the Barn — 1966. The Barn wasn't the first outpost of the counterculture in the area — the Hip Pocket Bookstore and the old Catalyst in downtown Santa Cruz had opened earlier, providing a welcoming atmosphere for the politically conscious beat-generation vibe that had flourished in San Francisco in the 1950s. He wasn't even the first to bring a new cultural scene to the Barn. Fabled beat figure Eric "Big Daddy" Nord opened a coffee shop in the Barn in 1964. But it was Tabory who first brought the full-blown hippie aesthetic to the county, and it was Tabory who found himself in a long, draining battle with the newly established city. The Scotts Valley Planning Commission approved Tabory's first application to open the Barn as a community center, but warned him with a "no beatniks" rule.
- ^ Wood, Wallace (August 11, 1966). "SV Planners Fear Beatnik Influx, Defer Barn Ruling". Santa Cruz Sentinel. via: Newspapers.com. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
No "beatniks" and no "dead-beats" in Scotts Valley. This was the aim of...
- ^ Wood, Wallace (July 29, 1965). "'Big Daddy' Makes The Scene". Santa Cruz Sentinel. via: SCPL Local History. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
Clipping: Eric 'Big Daddy' Nord, The Barn, picture
- ^ Morgan, Terri (July 22, 1991). "Barn readies for razing with one last concert". San Jose Mercury News. via: SCPL Local History. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
Clipping:
- ^ Gaura, Maria (January 19, 1989). "Historic barn faces destruction". Santa Cruz Sentinel. via: SCPL Local History. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ COOPER, SCOTT (September 24, 1999). "The Doobie Brothers, headlining the Sunday half of this weekend's Fat Fry Festival". Santa Cruz Sentinel. Santa Cruz, California: via: Newspapers.com. p. 51. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
I've been coming to Santa Cruz since I was a. kid," says founding Doobie Pat Simmons, who also lived on Branciforte Drive for about 20 years. "I used to go shows at the Cocoanut Grove. They used to have rock shows. I saw the Tikis, Paul Revere & Raiders. I used to go a club in Scotts Valley called the Barn. It was a real popular place. Big Brother & the Holding Company played there. The Dead. You name it, they all played there.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
- ^ "NowData - NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved March 3, 2012.
External links
edit- City of Scotts Valley official site
- Information for Scotts Valley visitors from the Santa Cruz County Conference & Visitors Council