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Palo Alto Streets A
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ABEL AVENUE was named soon after World War II; Abel is the first
letter of the military phonetic alphabet in use at that time. The next
street, BAKER, the second letter of the military phonetic alphabet, was
named for the property owners, Linda and Clark Baker, who bought the land
from George and Georgia Reed. This explains the name GEORGIA AVENUE in the
same Barron Park tract.
ACACIA AVENUE was known as Forest Avenue until the town of Mayfield
was annexed to Palo Alto in 1925. It is one of a series of streets named for
familiar exotic trees. Acacia trees were popular in the Bay area; the seeds
of these fast growing trees were brought from Australia by Gold Rush
immigrants. The other streets in the series are OLIVE AVENUE and PEPPER
AVENUE.
ADDISON AVENUE*
was named for Joseph William Addison (1672-1719),
English essayist and statesman. lt is one of a series of streets in Palo
Alto named for famous writers or men.
ADOBE PLACE was named for nearby Adobe Creek.
AGNES WAY was one of the many streets in Palo Alto named for employees
of the developers and builders. Agnes Norman, secretary, for whom the street
was named, recalled that street names in tracts often were chosen in less
than twenty-five minutes.
ALANNAH COURT was named for Alannah McKeever, daughter of George
McKeever, a superintendent for contractors Barrett and Hilp, who were the
developers of a 1941 Crescent Park tract.
ALESTER AVENUE. The first names of Al and Esther Spielberger,
property owners in the 1941 Crescent Park tract, were combined to create
Alester.
ALEXIS DRIVE, located in the Country Club Estate tract, was named by
developer Dan Dana. He wanted the first street of his subdivision to begin
with ``A''. The name Alexis came to mind and he liked it. For the second, he
wanted a Spanish noun starting with ``B''. His father suggested BANDERA
(flag) because of the flags on the golf course across the road. The golf
course itself prompted the name of COUNTRY CLUB COURT for the third street.
ALGER DRIVE was one of five streets in a tract the developers Stern
and Price platted in Palo Alto in 1948. They named the streets for members
of their families and business associates. Alger was a financial backer.
MAUREEN DRIVE was named for Maureen Prendergast, daughter of an executive of
the Federal Housing Authority. ASHTON AVENUE and ASHTON COURT were named for
a U.S. Veterans Administration official. RAMBOW DRIVE was derived from the
maiden name of Mrs. Alfred Stem (Johanna Rambow). MURDOCH COURT and MURDOCH
DRIVE recalled H. Murdoch whose family once owned the property.
ALLEN COURT was named for William Steven Allen, a member of the San
Francisco firm of architects, Anshen & Allen, designers of many of the
Eichler homes. Alvin Eichler recalled that, when a plat was being drawn
during the hectic days of the post-war housing boom, streets would often be
named for associates of the project.
ALMA STREET*
was named by Timothy Hopkins for a friend of his family.
Originally it was a path along the railroad tracks. The name predated the
platting of Palo Alto.
ALTA MESA AVENUE. The name is Spanish for ``high table land.'' By 1922
the Alta Mesa tract belonged to Catherine Irven, for whom IRVEN COURT is
named.
AMARANTA AVENUE and AMARANTA COURT. Amaranta Avenue was named for an
old-fashioned flower Amaranthus. The street divided the property of
the Buckley brothers who sold the land to the developers of Encina Gardens
and Encina Grande Park. All the streets have Spanish names. See Encina Grande
for more information.
AMARILLO AVENUE. Amarillo is Spanish for yellow or
golden. In the 1950's the Palo Alto Planning Commission began to urge
builders to select more appropriate street trees. Mimosa trees with their
showers of golden blossom were planted to complement the street name.
AMES AVENUE and AMES COURT. Ames Research Laboratory at Moffett Field,
Mountain View, also was named (in 1927) for Joseph Sweetman Ames, chairman of
the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. He was the fourth president
of Johns Hopkins University and an authority on spectroscopy and
aerodynamics.
AMHERST AVENUE in College Terrace was named for Amherst College,
Amherst, Massachusetts, established in 1821. This is one of a series of
streets named for established universities, placed in alphabetical sequence
(except for Cornell).
ANTON COURT, created by the widening of Oregon Avenue in 1963, was
named for a property owner.
ARASTRADERO ROAD originated from arrastre, the Spanish name for
a hauling road, and refers to the hauling of logs and lumber. It was also
used as a cattle trail. The Palo Alto portion of Arastradero Road connected
Rancho del Corte de Madera, belonging to Maximo Martinez, and Rancho Rincón
de San Francisquito, belonging to José Peña. Old maps refer to
the trail as ``Camino Arrastradoro para la Sierra'', or the ``Paseo'' or the
``Pass''. To avoid paying taxes and the cost of building a bridge to cross
Adobe Creek, the present straight portion of Arastradero Road connecting it
with El Camino Real was created in the 1860's to meet with Charleston Road.
ARBOL DRIVE. See Encina Grande.
ARBORETUM ROAD commemorated Senator Leland Stanford's arboretum. ln
1888 he wrote of his wish to establish an arboretum on the Stanford
University campus that would exhibit ``all the trees and woody plants of the
world that may be expected to grow to maturity in the locality.'' At the
request of Stanford University, the street on the site of the original
arboretum was named Arboretum.
ARBUTUS AVENUE was perhaps named for the flowering tree, Madrone
(Arbutus Menziesi), native to this area, or for the
closely-related trailing arbutus of the eastern woods. The developer
continued the theme with TALISMAN DRIVE, for a variety of rose; LUPINE
AVENUE, for a native wildflower; ASPEN WAY, for a tree of the high mountains.
EVERGREEN DRIVE, THORNWOOD DRIVE and DRIFTWOOD DRIVE completed a
complementary series.
ARCADIA PLACE echoed the original Arcadia tract name.
ARROWHEAD WAY was located in the Montezuma Gardens tract. The other
streets in the tract were appropriately named AZTEC WAY, CARDINAL WAY and
INDIAN DRIVE.
ASH STREET. In the 1904 Evergreen Park tract, Ash Street and Birch
Street ran from Park Avenue to Palo Alto Avenue, now College Avenue. These
streets were comparable in placement to First and Second Streets in the
original town of Mayfield, platted in 1867, east of California Avenue. By
action of the Palo Alto City Council in 1952, the interrupted lengths were
similarly named Ash Street and Birch Street. To accommodate business firms in
the California Avenue district which had not been aware of the contemplated
changes of name, the official name change was not made for another two years.
ASHBY DRIVE. This is located on the former Crescent Park School site.
Delmar and Ella Ashby were early residents and major property owners in the
Crescent Park area.
ASHTON AVENUE and ASHTON COURT. See Alger Drive.
ASPEN WAY. See Arbutus Avenue.
AVALON COURT is one of several streets which were named for famous
California resort towns. See also El Dorado Avenue.
AZTEC WAY. See Arrowhead Way.
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BAKER AVENUE. See Abel Avenue.
BANDERA DRIVE. See Alexis Drive.
BARBARA DRIVE. When the Leland Manor tract was opened in 1939, the
developers held a contest to name the streets. Walter Vogel, a friend of the
Seale family, won ten dollars for his suggestion that the street be named
Barbara Drive to honor Barbara Seale. The name was especially appropriate
since a street named MARION AVENUE honored her sister, Marion Seale. See also
Seale Avenue.
BARCLAY COURT was named by Roy Stevens, realtor, who built the Barclay
House Apartments and named the street in the belief that an English name lent
dignity.
BARRON AVENUE. Edward Barron (1821-1893) had the luck of the Irish,
twice over. In 1851 he came to the boom town of San Francisco and engaged in
the cattle business. He made a fortune and retired by the age of 28. Restless
in his retirement, he organized a mining company to exploit the newly
discovered Comstock Lode. He settled near Mayfield after purchasing the Sarah
Wall is estate in 1878. His additions to the house caused some to refer to it
as a wedding cake. The reception hall was a mirrored fantasy and the tower
was a favorite place to view the surrounding area. The house was destroyed by
fire in 1936. Barron Park, also named for Edward Barron, was an
unincorporated area until 1975 when it became part of Palo Alto. See also
Crosby Place and Wallis Court.
BAUTISTA COURT, on the former De Anza School site, was named for Juan
Bautista De Anza (1735-1788) who led the expedition from Mexico to California
and also discovered El Palo Alto.
BAYSHORE HIGHWAY. In 1920 a new highway from San Francisco to San
José was projected to be named Bay Shore Boulevard after the Bay Shore
Division of the Southern Pacific Railroad. The elegant name evoked a picture
of leisurely motoring until commuting evolved and the highway earned the
sinister nickname ``Bloody Bayshore.'' Frontage roads, BAYSHORE, EAST and
WEST, were named in the early 1960's about the time that Bayshore Highway
became Highway 101.
BELLVIEW DRIVE. Bellview, a popular street name in the United States,
was called Barry Court until 1957 when the Fire Department requested the name
be changed because of the phonetic similarity to Gary Court.
BEN LOMOND DRIVE is one of a series of streets named for California
mountains and passes. In Scotland, Ben Lomond would be translated ``Mountain
Lomond.'' Ben Lomond is a mountain and a town south of Big Basin near Santa
Cruz. Other nearby streets are TIOGA COURT, DIABLO COURT and SHASTA DRIVE.
BIBBITS DRIVE. Developer Wayne Brown used his wife's nickname
``Bibbits'' when he bestowed this unusual name. Elizabeth Brown's name later
was legally changed to Bibbits Brown.
BIRCH STREET. See Ash Street.
BLAIR COURT.
BOWDOIN STREET in College Terrace was named for Bowdoin College,
Brunswick, Maine, established in 1794.
BOYCE AVENUE. Charles and Anna Boyce were ranchers in Arizona before
they purchased what was then open farm land northeast of Mayfield in 1882. On
May 31, 1899, Timothy Hopkins dedicated a portion of his own land bordering
the Boyce property and named the road Boyce Avenue.
BRET HARTE STREET honors Francis Brett Harte (1836-1902), an American
author best known for his tales of the West during the California Gold Rush.
BRIARWOOD WAY was named by Ralph Calcaterra, developer.
BRUCE DRIVE was named by Sherman Cornblum, developer of the 1946
Middlefield Park tract, for one of his sons. He also named a nearby street,
MARSHALL DRIVE, for another son. In the same tract he honored his sister,
Rose, by choosing the name ROSEWOOD DRIVE.
BRYANT STREET*
commemorated American poet and editor William Cullen
Bryant (1794-1878). BRYANT COURT was added at a later date.
BRYSON AVENUE honors Bryson ``Biddy'' Hills who was born in Idaho and
came to Palo Alto as a young boy. During World War Il, Hills enlisted in the
USAAF and trained at Chanute Field. After joining a bomber squadron in
England, Tech. Sgt. Bryson Hills was killed September 14, 1943 on a mission
over Europe. He held an Air Medal and three Oak Leaf Clusters. A new housing
tract developed in 1948 by his parents was named Bryson Park as a memorial to
their son because the tract and its street included an area where he played
as a boy.
BURNHAM WAY was named for the real estate broker, Milton Burnham, who
secured the land for the 1957 Oregon Park tract which opened this street.
BYRON STREET was named for the English poet, George Gordon Lord Byron
(1788-1824).
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CALCATERRA PLACE was named by its developer Ralph Calcaterra. He named
adjoining streets FERNE AVENUE and FERNE COURT for his wife, Ferne.
CALIFORNIA AVENUE is one of several streets named for western states.
The street known as North California since 1927 (on the bay side of the
railroad tracks) was shown as California Avenue on 1912 maps. It ran from the
railroad tracks to the Henry Seale home near Webster Street. The entire tract
of land was part of the Seale subdivision which was annexed to Palo Alto in
1917. On the other side of the railroad tracks, a street running in the same
direction was called Lincoln Avenue when the town of Mayfield was platted in
1867. It was the principal business street, second only to the highway going
through the village. When Mayfield was annexed to Palo Alto in 1925, the name
of Lincoln Avenue was changed and the street on both sides of the railroad
tracks was designated California Avenue.
CAMBRIDGE AVENUE. In the early days Stanford University was often
referred to as the ``Cambridge of the West.'' The prestigious Cambridge
University was founded in England in the thirteenth century. The avenue once
extended the length of College Terrace, traversing the shorter streets named
for American colleges and universities.
CAMPANA DRIVE. Campaña is the Spanish word for
countryside. See also Encina Grande.
CAMPESINO AVENUE. Campesino is Spanish for countryman or
peasant. See also El Dorado Avenue.
CANYON ROAD. The name is derived from the Spanish word cañon
meaning gorge, ravine or gulch.
CARDINAL WAY. See Arrowhead Way.
CARLITOS COURT. This is one of several streets in Barron Park given
hispanicized names. In 1928 Charles and Agnes Wedde built one of the first
houses on Barron Avenue. They sold land for development in 1956 with the
stipulation that the cul-de-sac be named after their grandson, Charles, known
as ``Chuckie'', who died in 1951 at the age of two. Years later, their
great-grandchildren continued to live in the house on Barron Avenue.
CARLSON CIRCLE and CARLSON COURT. James San Jule, vice president of
marketing for Burke and Wyatt, contract builders, named the street for
Brigadier General Evan Fordyce Carlson, U.S.M.C. (1896-1947). San Jule became
acquainted with the marine in the 1930's and greatly admired him. Known as
``an old China hand,'' Carlson studied guerilla warfare under Mao Tse-Tung.
During World War II Carlson organized and commanded the famed guerilla force
known as Carlson's Raiders.
CARMEL DRIVE. This is one of several streets named for California
cities and resorts. Carmel, an early name used by the Spanish in California,
is Hebrew in origin and means garden land. The Carmelite friars who came with
Sebastián de Vizcaíno in 1603 were among the first Spaniards to
see the river now called the Carmel River.
CAROLINA LANE is one of several streets named for states in the U. S.
CASS WAY was named for a former property owner, Ruby Cass, whose
husband, Louis Cass, was a local attorney.
CASTILLEJA AVENUE is located in the 1923 Southgate Subdivision.
Castilleja School, with its predecessor, Castilleja Hall, has been a girls'
preparatory school since the opening of Stanford University. The name was
proposed by President David Starr Jordan and was derived from the
flame-colored wild flower, Castilleja, the Indian Paint Brush.
CEDAR STREET. The street has a popular name used for several species
of trees.
CELIA DRIVE.
CENTER DRIVE was the central avenue of the first Crescent Park tract.
CEREZA DRIVE. Cereza is the Spanish word for cherry. See
Encina Grande Avenue.
CERRITO WAY. Cerrito is Spanish for little hill
or high land. This street is located in the 1962 Palo Verde
tract.
CESANO COURT is a cul-de-sac at 4339 El Camino Real. It was named for
James and Clotilda Cesano, responsible for annexation of land south of Adobe
Creek by Palo Alto instead of Mountain View. For years they owned Cesano
Liquors which was located on the corner of El Camino Real and Cesano Court.
CHABOT TERRACE is a part of the 1950 Chabot tract. Two streets within
this tract were named for California lakes. An artificial lake created in
1868-1869 in Alameda County was named for Anthony Chabot, a Canadian, who
helped establish the first water supply system for the City of San Francisco.
CHANNING AVENUE*
was a name selected by William Mills or his daughter,
Mary Mills, both ardent Unitarians, in honor of William Ellery Channing
(1780-1842), Unitarian minister and author.
CHARLESTON ROAD and CHARLESTON COURT were named for George Charleston.
Coming from Scotland in 1852, he purchased 160 acres of marsh land in what is
now known as South Palo Alto and Mountain View. Charleston Slough also bears
his name. Over the years Charleston wrote letters to his family in Scotland
which were then circulated to other members of the family as far away as New
Zealand. Many of the letters were preserved and some are in the archives of
the Mountain View Pioneer and Historical Association. They give an
interesting insight into farming in the area. His farm did not prosper and
eventually it was abandoned and sold for taxes. See also Arastradero Road.
CHAUCER STREET was named for Geoffrey Chaucer (1340-1400), English
poet.
CHERRY OAKS PLACE was named by the real estate developer.
CHESTNUT AVENUE is located in a section where the streets were named
for trees. The residents frequently refer to the sycamores growing there as
mock chestnuts because of the similarity of sycamore burrs to chestnut burrs.
Its original name was Maple Street, changed in 1925 with the annexation of
Mayfield to Palo Alto.
CHIMALUS AVENUE. The street cuts through a section of land once
labeled ``Chimiles'' on early maps. Chimiles is an old Indian term meaning a
tangled growth or chaparral.
CHRISTINE DRIVE was named for Christine Giosso, daughter of Jack
Giosso, the developer.
CHRISTOPHER COURT.
CHURCHILL AVENUE was named for the American novelist Winston Churchill
(1871-1947). The street was platted in 1898 by Alfred Seale for the Seale
subdivision. He continued an author theme with the selection of COLERIDGE,
LOWELL, TENNYSON, and MILTON, (now known as SEALE.)
CLARA DRIVE. Andres Oddstad, a builder of homes in the 1951 Sterling
Gardens tract, named the street for his wife, Clara, and the cross-street,
SANDRA PLACE, for his daughter.
CLEMO AVENUE was named for William Clemo who was appointed Palo Alto's
first full-time Fire Chief in 1930. As a young man he served with the Palo
Alto Police Department and was later a volunteer fireman. He dedicated his
life to fire prevention and was called the ``fireman's fireman''. The old
Mayfield Fire Bell that summoned volunteer firemen to duty is now at the Fire
Station on the corner of Arastradero Road and Clemo Avenue.
CLIFTON COURT. According to Gordon Hanson, an associate of builders
Finson and Oddstad, Clifton Cooper was a supervisor for the firm in the
Sterling Gardens and Sterling Terrace tracts.
COASTLAND DRIVE was given its name by the Coastwise Construction
Company, the firm that built the first houses on the street.
COLERIDGE AVENUE was named for the English poet, Samuel Taylor
Coleridge (1774-1834). See also CHURCHILL AVENUE.
COLLEGE AVENUE was named in 1925 to conform with the other street
names in College Terrace. Before Mayfield's annexation to Palo Alto, its name
had been Palo Alto Avenue.
COLONIAL LANE derived its name from the Colonial Court subdivision.
COLORADO AVENUE received its name in 1926 as one of several streets
honoring states, but its route had once been a private road through a ranch
purchased in 1868 by Jeremiah Clarke, pioneer attorney, landholder and
rancher. A road ran from his house on Matadero Creek east of Middlefield Road
to his landing on Mayfield Slough. The name was later extended to COLORADO
PLACE (1980) and COLORADO COURT.
COLUMBIA STREET in College Terrace was named for Columbia University,
New York City, established in 1754.
COMMERCIAL STREET is one of three streets located in the extreme
southeast corner of Palo Alto which were apparently named for their intended
usage. The other two are INDUSTRIAL AVENUE and TRANSPORT STREET.
COMMUNITY LANE is an alley adjacent to the Lucie Stern Community
Center. It runs intermittently between Harriet and Newell.
CORINA WAY was named for Corina Kauffmann, the wife of Sam Kauffmann,
the builder.
CORK OAK WAY. Dr. Emory Evans Smith, Assistant Professor of
Horticulture, Stanford University, 1892-1896, introduced cork oaks to Palo
Alto with the idea that they might develop into a cash crop. A Cork Oak
(Quercus suber) is now growing at 3400 Cork Oak Way.
CORNELL STREET in College Terrace was named for Cornell University,
Ithaca, New York, established in 1865. It was originally named Washington
Street, but its name was changed when Mayfield was annexed to Palo Alto in
1925.
CORPORATION WAY was named by Robert H. Taylor in 1955. Taylor
pioneered in developing the commercial area near Charleston Slough.
COULOMBE DRIVE was named for Frank Coulombe in 1952.
COUNTRY CLUB COURT. See Alexis Drive.
COWPER COURT*
and COWPER STREET were named for the English poet,
William Cowper (1731-1800).
COYOTE HILL ROAD took its name from Coyote Hill which it crosses.
CREEKSIDE DRIVE is located near Adobe Creek in the Green Meadow
subdivision.
CRESCENT DRIVE derived its name from the Crescent Park tract in 1926.
CROSBY PLACE was named in honor of Elisha O. Crosby, an important
leader in early California statehood. He was a member of the first State
Constitutional Convention and served as an attorney for many land grant
rancheros struggling to prove their rights before the U.S. Land Commission.
In 1853 Crosby purchased 250 acres of Rancho Rincón de San Francisquito,
which today approximates the Barron Park area. He named his place Mayfield
Farm, which is the most probable origin of the nearby town name. His property
was later owned by Sarah Wallis and by Edward Barron.
CURTNER AVENUE is on the site of the former William Curtner ranch.
CYPRESS LANE. Following a Palo Alto tradition of naming streets for
trees and shrubs, the choice also acknowledges a cypress hedge that,
according to Miss Janet Thain, a long-time resident of the Barron Park area,
once bordered the highway near this site.
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DANA AVENUE. Al though popularly attributed to author Richard Henry
Dana, this street was named for William Dana, associate of J. J. Morris,
pioneer Palo Alto realtor.
DARE AVENUE. John Dake, Mountain View contractor and builder, sold the
land to developers McKellar and Mackay in the 1950's. They named the street
for him.
DARLINGTON COURT.
DARTMOUTH STREET in College Terrace was named for Dartmouth College,
Hanover, New Hampshire, established in 1769.
DAVENPORT WAY was named for a property owner, William Bromich
Davenport.
DAVID AVENUE was named in 1956 for David Burnham, son of Milton
Burnham. See also Burnham Way.
DE SOTO DRIVE is believed to honor the Soto family. In 1835 Rafael
Soto was granted Rancho Rinconada del Arroyo de San Francisquito. See also
Greer Road.
DEER CREEK ROAD. The name of this road was inspired by the nearby Deer
Creek.
DENNIS DRIVE.
DIABLO COURT. A note on the zoning map states that Diablo Court
presented a vista of Mt. Diablo in Contra Costa County. See also Ben Lomond
Drive.
DIXON PLACE.
DONALD DRIVE was named in 1956 for Donald Moerdyke, son of N. Perry
Moerdyke, a Palo Alto attorney and member of the company responsible for
subdividing Greenacres tract, No. 2.
DOWNING LANE was named for Thomas Benton Downing. The Downing family
came to California from Missouri in 1879 and their Palo Alto residence was at
706 Cowper Street. Downing was a member of the City Council from 1909-1913
and served on the School Board from 1893-1898 and from 1900-1902.
DRIFTWOOD DRIVE. See Arbutus Avenue.
DRISCOLL COURT. This cul-de-sac in Barron Park was named in 1979, some
forty years after purchase of 350 acres of the Edward Barron property by R.
F. and B. F. Driscoll and J. E. Reiter. Although most of the property was
subdivided, part was retained for growing strawberries. $5,000 to $7,000
worth of strawberries were shipped daily from their properties during the
1920's.
DULUTH CIRCLE. Contractors Edward Whitmyre and Leo (Lee) Clemson were
responsible for the Charleston Meadows, Rae Park and Blossom Park No. 2
tracts of 1950-51. These men seemingly enjoyed inventing names. Duluth Circle
combined the names of Dulleck and Luthy, property owners in the Rae Park
tract. EDLEE AVENUE is a combination of the first names of the subdividers,
Whitmyre and Clemson. RUTHELMA AVENUE was derived from the first names of
their wives, Ruth Whitmyre and Thelma Clemson. WHITCLEM COURT, WHITCLEM
DRIVE, WHITCLEM PLACE and WHITCLEM WAY combined the first syllables in the
contractor's names.
DUNCAN PLACE was suggested by the Post Office in 1953 as a substitute
for the original name, Oliver, which too closely resembled the established
Olive Street.
DYMOND COURT was named for property owners, Jack and Katherine Dymond.
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EDGEWOOD DRIVE was probably a developer's name given in 1920 for one
of the first streets in the Crescent Park tract, No. 1.
EDLEE AVENUE. See Duluth Circle.
EL CAJON WAY was apparently an application of a popular California
place name meaning a box-like canyon.
EL CAMINO REAL is Spanish for the royal road or
may be translated as the king's road in the old English
sense of main highway. The Palo Alto section was surveyed in 1852. lt was
first known as the San Francisco-San José Road and was the route of the
weekly stage coach. It was also known as the County Road and as Mayfield's
Main Street. In 1906 the road received the official designation of El Camino
Real, making it the second nationally named highway in the United States. It
became California's first State Highway about 1911 and was known by this name
during the 1920's. At intervals the highway was marked with bronze bells in
honor of the route's origin as ``the old Mission trail'' although Palo Alto's
section is not actually a part of the padrés' trail.
EL CAMINO WAY. Until the 1920's El Camino Way was a portion of the
original route of El Camino Real.
EL CAPITAN PLACE. The name was inspired by Yosemite National Park's
towering cliff.
EL CARMELO AVENUE uses a Spanish derivative for a street platted in
1905 for the proposed City of Leland. See also Eldorado Avenue.
EL CENTRO STREET is located in the 1950 El Centro Garden tract.
El centro means the center in Spanish.
EL CERRITO ROAD uses the Spanish word for little hill.
El Cerrito was also the name of a 1950 Barron Park tract. Spanish street
names were suggested by the Barron Park Maybell Improvement Association.
EL DORADO AVENUE seemed to be a suitable street name for an expansive
1905 real estate dream that never materialized, the City of Leland. The
projected town included approximately the area from Colorado Avenue to El
Verano Avenue and from Alma Street to the Bay. The promotion maps envisioned
a university, hotel, opera house, fish cannery and docks for ocean-going
steamers. The Indians of South America spun their fanciful stories for
Spanish explorers. The phrase el dorado (meaning gold-covered)
was applied to a region where gold and silver were imagined to be plentiful.
However, the City of Leland was not to be an el dorado. The real estate
promoter's vision was shattered during the 1907 depression, leaving a tangle
of debts and disappointed land owners.
EL VERANO AVENUE uses the Spanish word for summer.
ELBRIDGE WAY was named for a secretary of James McKellar, a local
builder.
ELLSWORTH PLACE.
ELMDALE COURT took its name from the 1954 Elmdale tract.
ELSINORE COURT and ELSINORE DRIVE are some of the several streets with
California place names. Lake Elsinore in Riverside County was named for a
Danish castle, the setting of Shakespeare's Hamlet.
ELWELL COURT. In 1969 the City of Palo Alto honored Cyril F. Elwell, a
pioneer electronics researcher, by choosing his name for this street. Elwell
came from Australia to Palo Alto in 1902 and later was granted a degree in
electrical engineering at Stanford University. In 1908, at 1451 Cowper
Street, he built the first radiotelephone station on the West Coast. The
following year he founded the Federal Telegraph Company, located at 913
Emerson Street, employing a group of scientists who would later become
world-famous.
ELY PLACE. According to James San Jule of the firm of Burke and Wyatt,
contract builders, the street was named for Henry Ely, a librarian in Palo
Alto and Menlo Park, who had a financial interest in the Greenmeadow tract.
EMBARCADERO ROAD*
and EMBARCADERO WAY. Embarcadero is Spanish
for landing place. Embarcadero Road was one of a number of
early trails crossing the old Seale and Greer properties to a bay landing on
San Francisquito Creek. John Wesley Boulware (1830-1893), Santa Clara County
Supervisor, who farmed 100 acres in the vicinity of the present-day Newell
and Embarcadero Roads, was responsible for having an early route of
Embarcadero Road surveyed. It was declared a county road in 1872. See also
Walnut Drive.
EMERSON STREET*
was named for Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882),
American author, philosopher and noted Unitarian.
ENCINA AVENUE. Encina is the Spanish name for the California Live Oak
(Quercus agrifolia), one of the most abundant of the native
oaks.
ENCINA GRANDE DRIVE used the name of the 1946 Encina Grande Park
tract. The name is Spanish for a large Live Oak. Early aerial photos show an
unusually large oak tree near the comer of Encina Grande and Arbol. This
might have been the inspiration for both names. All the streets of this tract
have Spanish names: AMARANTA AVENUE was named for an old-fashioned garden
flower Amaranthus; ARBOL DRIVE after árbol, the word for
tree; CEREZA DRIVE for cherry; SOLANA DRIVE for a sunny place;
FLORALES DRIVE for flowers; CAMPANA DRIVE used the word for country.
ENSIGN WAY. The street name was selected in 1976 by the local
membership of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, located at
Ensign and Middlefield Road. Ensign is the name of the Church's
monthly magazine and is also the name of Ensign Peak near Salt Lake City.
ERSTWILD COURT. According to a long-time Palo Alto businessman the
late George ``Pat'' Carey, Erstwild Court was named for the Ersted family,
property owners in the Crescent Park tract, No. 2.
ESCOBITA AVENUE. Escobita is Spanish for small
bush. The street is located in the 1923 Southgate Subdivision where
many streets were given Spanish names.
EVERETT AVENUE*
and EVERETT COURT. These streets were named for Edward
Everett (1794-1865), formerly a Unitarian minister who also served as
governor of Massachusetts, president of Harvard University and Secretary of
State of the United States.
EVERGREEN DRIVE. See Arbutus Way.
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FABER PLACE. In 1893 Peter Faber entered the dairy business in
Mayfield. By 1917 he acquired a dairy of approximately 800 acres near the
Palo Alto Baylands. Later, a part of the land was sold for a portion of the
City of Palo Alto Airport.
FABIAN STREET and FABIAN WAY were designated by the City of Palo Alto
in 1958 to honor Fabian Miller who joined the engineering department in 1925,
becoming City Engineer in 1945. His engineering background included
employment in building the Alaska Railway.
FAIRFIELD COURT was renamed at the request of the residents in 1958.
It was originally part of Mackay Drive.
FAIRMEDE AVENUE. Fairmede was a name selected to harmonize with the
country scene of the Green Acres tract in 1950.
FERNANDO AVENUE appears as a name as early as 1904 on a tract platted
by William R. Bartley. The map was signed by Fernando Sanford who was serving
the young town of Palo Alto on the Board of Trade and the Board of
Freeholders. He was an original member of the physics department faculty at
Stanford University.
FERNE AVENUE and FERNE COURT. See Calcaterra Place.
FIFE AVENUE bears the name of the Fife family. Dr. George Fife
practiced medicine in San Francisco. For many years Dr. and Mrs. Fife spent
the summers in a Palo Alto home built in 1905 at 908 Boyce Avenue. The house
was destroyed by fire in 1939.
FLORALES DRIVE. See Encina Grande.
FLORENCE STREET. Guy Miller, early City historian of Palo Alto,
believed that the street was named by H. F. Perry, a property owner, for his
fiancee, Florence.
FLOWERS LANE was named for property owner Joseph A. Flowers
(1900-1972).
FOOTHILL EXPRESSWAY. A large portion of the Expressway follows the
foothills of the San Franciso peninsula. Its route was once the right-of-way
for the Peninsular Railway, a suburban spurline serving the foothill
communities all the way to Santa Cruz.
FOREST AVENUE*
and FOREST COURT. The area of Forest Avenue was
especially noted for its oaks, particularly in the 400 block where several of
the earliest residences were built.
FRANDON COURT. The street name combined the first names of Frances and
Donald Manning, landowners.
FULTON STREET. According the Guy Miller, Fulton Street was named after
a well-known Reno, Nevada resident, Robert Lardin Fulton, author of The Epic
of the Overland who purchased property in Palo Alto. The street now has the
nickname of ``Christmas Tree Lane.'' The custom of lighted Christmas trees
has been observed since 1940 and the display has drawn a seasonal throng of
visitors from Palo Alto and nearby communities.
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GAILEN AVENUE and GAILEN COURT were named by Wayne Brown of the firm
of Brown and Kauffmann, land developers in this area. Mr. Brown named several
streets in honor of his family members; GAILEN AVENUE for his father; MAY
COURT for his mother; NATHAN WAY for his son; and BIBBITS DRIVE for his wife.
GARLAND DRIVE. In the late 1920's John and Temperance Garland
purchased Dr. W. H. Ketcham's fifteen acres of dairy land east of Middlefield
Road and north of the present Oregon Avenue. In 1945 the acreage was
subdivided into seventy-two lots. Winding through it was Garland Drive, one
of the first curved streets in Palo Alto.
GARY COURT was named for the grandson of property owners Jack and
Katherine Dymond.
GASPAR COURTwas created in 1993 as part of the subdivision of land
owned by St. Mark's church. The street is named for the famous Spanish
explorer, Don Gaspar de Portola, whose party camped near El Palo Alto in
1769.
GENEVIEVE COURT was named for Genevieve Finson, wife of Chris Finson
of the firm of Finson and Oddstad, builders and developers.
GENG ROAD in Palo Alto's baylands was once part of a dairy farm
belonging to Jacob J. Geng. ln 1917 Geng, a native of Alsace-Lorraine, was
stationed at Camp Fremont in Menlo Park. After the war, he purchased the
dairy which he ran until 1942 when he sold the property to the City for the
building of the municipal golf course.
GEORGE HOOD LANE. George Hood was employed by the City of Palo Alto
for 38 years and is best remembered as a Superintendent of Parks Maintenance.
He was often called Mr. Arbor Day since he was responsible for planting more
than 50,000 trees in Palo Alto. As early as 1892 his father owned nursery
land not far from the site of the present George Hood Lane. See also Oregon
Avenue. MACLANE STREET. When the Ben-Mac Construction Company realigned the
Cogan Tract, they created a new street, Maclane.
GEORGIA AVENUE. See Abel Avenue.
GILMAN STREET was named by Mrs. Kate G. Gilman, property owner, for
her husband Charles H. Gilman. There was a movement in 1929 to honor
Charlotte Perkins Gilman, an ardent feminist, with this name but the City
Council refused to take any action.
GLENBROOK DRIVE. This attractive street name was provided by a real
estate firm involved in the development of the Palo Alto Orchards tract.
GOEBEL AVENUE was named by an early professor of German at Stanford
University, Julius Goebel. As owner of the land in 1905, he built houses
tucked away on this street in Barron Park.
GRANT AVENUE was named for Ulyssus Simpson Grant (1822-1885), Civil War
general and eighteenth president of the United States. Platted in 1867 on
William Paul's map of Mayfield, the name was a typical choice of the time
after the Civil War when cities were honoring Civil War heroes. Other streets
in this plat were SHERIDAN AVENUE which commemorated General Philip Henry
Sheridan (1831-1888) and SHERMAN AVENUE named for General William Tecumseh
Sherman (1820-1891).
GREENMEADOW WAY was named after the Greenmeadow tract.
GREENWICH PLACE was named as a result of a contest sponsored by
developers Hare, Brewer and Kelley, Inc. in 1939. Mrs. C. L. Phillips
received a ten dollar award for suggesting the name of the street which is
located in the Leland Manor subdivision.
GREENWOOD AVENUE was named for Frank (Francis) Monroe Greenwood, a
member of the pioneer real estate firm of Morris and Mershon. Greenwood was
also president of the Greenwood Safe Company, the Sunset Telephone Company
and served on the boards of several banks. To make things more interesting,
Greenwood used combinations of his name for his various enterprises. LOS
TRANCOS WOODS ROAD. Only a small part of the road lies within Palo Alto
boundaries. Los trancos is an American misspelling of the Spanish las
trancas, meaning cattle bars. Los Trancos Woods Road
follows the meanderings of Los Trancos Creek and led to a summer retreat
subdivision of the same name promoted by W. D. Wasson.
GREER ROAD commemorates one of the pioneer families in Palo Alto. In
1850 John Greer, an Irish seafarer, leased land of the Rancho Rinconada del
Arroyo de San Francisquito. He later married the widow Maria Luisa Soto de
Copinger, a daughter of Rafael Soto, gaining control of the Soto ranch, now
Palo Alto, and of Copinger's Ranch Canada de Raymundo in Woodside. During the
1860's the Greer's large family house was relocated on the northwest corner
of El Camino Real and Embarcadero Road. In 1951 the house was razed and the
property sold to make way for the Town and Country Village Shopping Center.
Other streets which commemorate the Soto and Greer families are: LUCAS LANE,
RINCONADA AVENUE, LOUISA COURT, DE SOTO DRIVE and O'BRINE LANE. Greer Road
was once named Pablo Avenue, but no explanation for the change exists.
GROVE AVENUE and GROVE COURT are in an area which was a walnut grove.
The Grove Park tract was developed in 1958.
GUINDA STREET*
. Guinda is Spanish for wild cherry
and wine-colored. The name was selected by Timothy Hopkins, it is
said, because he liked its sound.
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HALE STREET*
. Edward Everett Hale (1822-1909) was the nephew of Edward
Everett and the grand nephew of Nathan Hale. Hale was a forthright Unitarian
pastor, known for his strong opposition to slavery. He is best known for his
fictional story ``The Man Without a Country'', which was so realistically
written that readers thought it was true.
HAMILTON AVENUE*
and HAMILTON COURT were named for the American
statesman Alexander Hamilton (1757-1804).
HANOVER STREET in College Terrace is believed to be named for Hanover
College, in Hanover, Indiana, founded in 1827.
HANSEN WAY was named for William W. Hansen, a pioneer in microwave
electronics. With the Varian brothers he invented the klystron, a
revolutionary high-frequency vacuum tube. Stanford University recommended the
name, thus honoring one of their outstanding graduates.
HARKER AVENUE. In 1902 Catherine Harker founded Miss Harker's School
for Girls at Harker Avenue and Harriet Street. She continued to serve as its
headmistress until her death in 1938. Her sister, Sara Harker, carried on
until 1956. Under new ownership, the school continues today as the Harker
Academy in San José.
HARRIET STREET. According to Guy Miller, the street was named for the
daughter of a Palo Alto pioneer, G. M. Morton, who was on the Board of
Directors for the Bank of Palo Alto.
HARVARD STREET in College Terrace was named for Harvard University,
Cambridge, Massachusetts, established in 1683.
HAWTHORNE AVENUE*
was named for the American author Nathaniel
Hawthorne (1804-1864).
HEATHER LANE was one of a series of streets named for plants and
flowers which are located in Floyd Lowe's Green Gables subdivision. Other
streets in the area likewise named were IRIS WAY, PRIMROSE WAY and TULIP
LANE.
HEMLOCK COURT was named by the developer for a familiar tree.
HIGGINS PLACE was named for Ray Higgins, an associate of the firm of
Finson and Oddstad, contractors.
HIGH STREET. According to Guy Miller, Timothy Hopkins named this
street for reasons unknown today.
HILBAR LANE resulted from a combination of the firm name of Barrett
and Hilp, contractors and builders in Crescent Park.
HILLVIEW AVENUE. The name was selected for its topography in 1959.
HOLLY OAK DRIVE was named for the Holly Oak (Quercus ilex), a
small evergreen introduced from Southern Europe which was planted on this
street.
HOMER AVENUE*
was named for the Greek epic poet of the eighth or
seventh century B.C.
HOPKINS AVENUE in the early Alba Park subdivision was named by J.F.
Parkinson to honor Timothy Hopkins (1860-1936). Hopkins Avenue was a part of
the original boundary line of the Timothy Hopkins tract. Hopkins purchased
approximately 700 acres of the Seale and Greer property in 1887 on behalf of
Senator Leland Stanford. This acreage eventually became Palo Alto.
HUBBARTT DRIVE was named by Paul Hardy, an engineer who platted the
subdivision Greenacres II. The street name honored his wife, Shirley, whose
maiden name was Hubbartt.
HUTCHINSON AVENUE honors Joseph Hutchinson (1857-1910), a lawyer who
commuted to San Francisco. He was the first president of the Improvement
Club, a forerunner of the town government. The town of Palo Alto was
incorporated in 1894 and Hutchinson was elected president of the first Board
of Trustees, serving from 1894 to 1902.
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ILIMA COURT and ILIMA WAY. These streets took their names from the
tract name, Ilima Gardens, 1955, in Barron Park. The ilima is a small shrub
of the genus sida. It bears tiny orange flowers which are sweet-scented
favorites in Hawaiian leis. It is the lei flower of the island of Oahu. The
song Sweet Lady of Ilima is one of the traditional Hawaiian songs. The next
street over, PARADISE WAY, also recalls an Hawaiian song.
INDIAN DRIVE. See Arrowhead Way.
INDUSTRIAL AVENUE. See Commercial Street.
INTERDALE WAY. This is a private street off Maybelle. It was named by
the developer, William Reller.
IRIS WAY. See Heather Lane.
IRVEN COURT. See Alta Mesa Avenue.
ISLAND DRIVE was named for the barrier in the middle of the street put
there to preserve a stately, spreading Deodar.
IVY LANE. See Heather Lane.
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JACARANDA LANE. In 1968 the Planning Commission decided that alleys
should be given names to replace the numbers by which many of them were
known. The Public Facilities Naming Committee for the City Council suggested
the following names for alleys in the California Avenue area: JACARANDA LANE,
for the Brazilian jacaranda tree with feathery leaves and conspicuous bluish
lavender flowers; MIMOSA LANE for a leguminous tree often with prickly leaves
and globular heads of small white or pink flowers; PERAL LANE, Spanish for
pear tree; NOGAL LANE, Spanish for walnut, and SEDRO
LANE, which uses an anglicized spelling of the Spanish cedro which
means cedar.
JACKSON DRIVE is located in a series of presidential streets, but it
was named for Hugh C. Jackson, a financial backer of the 1941 Crescent Park
tract.
JACOBS COURT was the location of the Palo Alto Cattery, owned and
managed from the 1930's by Irene Jacobs (Mrs. William) until her death in
1976 at the age of ninety. Irene Jacobs' love of felines earned her the name
of ``cat lady''. She had a preference for Siamese and Burmese varieties.
JAMES ROAD was named for Arthur George James (1899-1949), who joined
the City of Palo Alto's engineering department in 1925 and served
intermittently until 1945 when he became planning engineer for the Palo Alto
Planning Commission. Recognized as an expert in city planning, he authored
the 1946 James Plan for Palo Alto, which laid the groundwork for the
City's post-World WarII development.
JANICE WAY.
JEFFERSON DRIVE was named for Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), third
president of the United States.
JOHN MARTHENS LANE. The lane is the access road to the Arastra
property owned by the City of Palo Alto. The name was chosen by the City in
cooperation with the County Communications Commission and was a condition for
permitting a three-lot subdivision in unincorporated lands off Arastradero
Road near Alpine Road.
JORDAN PLACE. There are several possibilities for the origin of the
use of the surname Jordan. It may have been for Stanford University
Chancellor David Starr Jordan (1851-1931).
JOSINA AVENUE was named for Josina Bol, wife of Cornelis Bol, inventor
of the mercury vapor light. The Bol family sold the land comprising the major
portion of Bol Park to the County at well below the market value, in effect a
partial gift to form the park. For many years the Bol family ran a private
water company supplying this part of Barron Park with water.
JULIE COURT was named for the daughter of Frank Meagher who was one of
the area's developers.
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KEATS COURT was named for the English Poet, John Keats (1795-1821).
The name was chosen by the South Palo Alto Church Property Company in 1956.
KELLOGG AVENUE*
. The street was named by Timothy Hopkins for his wife,
Mary Kellogg Crittenden, whom he married in 1882.
KELLY WAY was named for Matthew E. Kelly, a partner of the McKellar
and Kelly Construction Company, developers of the Palo Alto Orchards tract,
in 1950.
KENDALL AVENUE honors the family of Kendall Bower, real estate
developer. His family were property owners in Barron Park.
KENNETH DRIVE was named for Kenneth Elvin, architect employed by the
firm of Anshen & Allen.
KENT PLACE was located in the 1938 Mayfair Subdivision which featured
names with an English theme. Other streets in the subdivision are SOMERSET
PLACE and REGENT PLACE. Mayfair was advertised as a subdivision for
particular people and was ``one of the few areas which prohibits live
poultry.''
KING ARTHURS COURT is located in the 1955 CamelotGardens tract. The
original name, Arthurs Court, was attributed to Arthur Asmussen, landowner.
The developers changed the name to King Arthurs Court to carry out the
Camelot theme.
KINGS LANE was originally named Pluns Court for William Pluns, an
early and well-known building contractor. The name was changed in 1951 at the
request of some of the residents of Pluns Court who stated the name was often
misspelled. The Pluns family has requested many times that the street name be
restored. Kings Lane was selected for its phonetic quality.
KINGSLEY AVENUE*
was named for Charles Kingsley (1819-1875), English
clergyman, historian and novelist.
KIPLING STREET honors English author Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936). The
name was changed to Kipling in 1908 from Margarite Street (sometimes spelled
Marguerite), but the original portion of this street had been called
Margareth, which used a Danish spelling.
KIRBY PLACE, located in the 1938 Mayfair Subdivision, was named for
the Kirby family, property owners. See also Kent Place.
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LA CALLE AVENUE. The name, selected by William Wasson, realtor, is
Spanish for street. It is located in the 1944 Laguna Vista tract.
LA DONNA STREET. Starting in the 1930's, many street names in Barron
Park were changed to harmonize with a Spanish theme. In 1949 the tract was
advertised as La Donna Gardens. The street was the site of Edward Barron's
arboretum nursery. See also Barron Avenue.
LA JENNIFER WAY was named for Jennifer Hill, daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Maurice Hill, property owners.
LA MATA WAY is located in the 1949 La Mata Tract. La
mata is either the Spanish name of a bush, or a word designating a
group of trees. Eleanor Price, who lived on Los Robles in the 1940's,
remembered the naming of La Mata as a condensation of Laguna and Matadero.
LA PARA AVENUE. The name may have some link to the Spanish verb
parar or pararse which means to stop or to
end. The avenue was once an area of strawberry fields.
LA SELVA DRIVE. The street was originally named Woodland Drive but the
Post Office requested the name change because of confusion with a Woodland
Drive in Menlo Park. La selva is Spanish for forest.
LAGUNA AVENUE and LAGUNA COURT marked the site of a small reservoir
for irrigation which was located between Los Robles Avenue and Shauna Lane.
Laguna means lake in Spanish. Laguna Court apparently had an
earlier name, shown as ``Neal'' on the 1941 and 1949 maps. The Neals were
early 1920's landowners for whom the Peninsular Railway named its stop at the
corner of Matadero and Laguna avenues.
LAGUNA OAKS PLACE AND LAGUNA WAY. See Laguna Avenue.
LAMBERT AVENUE was named for Lambert Dornberger, a pioneer Mayfield
resident. Born in Alsace in 1828, Dornberger, known to many as ``Mr.
Lambert,'' came to California in 1852 and bought land on which he farmed,
raised stock and had a dairy. To this 1200 acres he added forty-eight acres
in Mayfield, where he moved in 1865 so his children could attend the Mayfield
school. The street is located in a section then known as Sunnyside or the
Dornberger Addition.
LAURA LANE was named for Laura Faber, wife of Peter Faber. She was the
daughter of Maximo Martinez, grantee of Rancho del Corte de Madero. See also
Faber Way.
LAUREL GLEN DRIVE was probably named for a native evergreen,
Umbellularia californica, abundant in the canyons and hillsides of
Foothills Park. In this part of California it is commonly called Bay Laurel
or Bay Tree.
LAWRENCE LANE honored black educator, Dr. Paul Lawrence. At the time
the street was named he was a graduate student in education at Stanford
University. The Friends Service Committee had purchased six acres of land in
South Palo Alto with plans for setting up a tract that would serve as a
``Laboratory of Interracial Living.'' This would allow non-Caucasian families
the opportunity to find housing in Palo Alto and ``to develop attitudes of
friendliness and understanding among dissimilar groups within our
population.'' In 1948 Lawrence helped the group work out the problems of
platting the tract. In recognition of his practical aid, which enabled the
theory to become a reality, the Committee named the tract and the street for
Lawrence.
LAYNE COURT. The 1957 Layne Subdivision was the property of Roy and
Doris Layne. When the City staff official asked the name of the street on his
subdivision map, Roy Layne said he thought the city named the streets. The
staff person said, ``We do. Would you like it to be named Layne Court?''
LEGHORN STREET lies mostly within Mountain View limits and is one of
the reminders of the Weeks Home Ranch Colonies. Charles Weeks was a
well-known poultry man who had a scheme for independence for small farmers
called ``Little Landers''. He developed colonies in Runnymede, Ravenswood and
Menlo Park where he preached ``one acre and independence.'' The key to
independence was a small poultry farm with eggs and chickens as the cash
crop; in addition, a vegetable garden provided all the food needed. Street
names in adjoining towns also remind us of these by-gone colonies.
LELAND AVENUE. The street, located in the 1904 Evergreen Park
subdivision, which appropriately parallels STANFORD AVENUE, presumably honors
Senator Leland Stanford.
LINCOLN AVENUE*
and LINCOLN COURT were named for Abraham Lincoln
(1809-1865), sixteenth president of the United States. Until 1930 part of
Lincoln Avenue in the Ashby Addition was named ASHBY AVENUE for Delmar E.
Ashby, early orchard owner.
LINDERO DRIVE. Located in the Charleston Meadows tract, this street
was originally part of Starr King Circle. Because of the difficulties of the
numbering system, the residents petitioned to have the name changed to
Lindero, meaning border or edge in Spanish.
LOIS LANE was named for Lois Morrison, a secretary for Barrett and
Hilp, contractors.
LOMA VERDE AVENUE and LOMA VERDE PLACE. Loma
verde means green hill in Spanish. The street was once
named College Avenue. A 1907 news article told of a Methodist College Board
planning to build a college there. The name was changed to Loma Verde in
1940. See also El Dorado Avenue.
LORABELLE COURT. See McKellar Lane.
LOS PALOS AVENUE, LOS PALOS CIRCLE and LOS PALOS PLACE. Los
palos means the trees (literally, the
sticks) in Spanish.
LOS ROBLES AVENUE. Los robles is Spanish for the
oaks. Robles refers to the local deciduous Valley Oak (Quercus
lobata).
LOUIS ROAD. Research points to Louis Road as a classic sign-maker's
mistake. It should be spelled Lewis Road. A 1919 map shows the Lewis
Subdivision as an area planned for small farms. The street and subdivision
were named for Charles Lewis Smith, one of the founders of the Palo Alto
National Bank.
LOUISA COURT was named for Maria Luisa Soto de Copinger who married
John Greer. Later the spelling was changed to Louise or Louisa. Her son,
Joseph Greer, built his home in 1905 at 785 Newell Road. When the cul-de-sac
Louisa Court was created in 1954, the address for the Greer House became 1517
Louisa Court. See also Greer Road.
LOWELL AVENUE commemorates the American poet and diplomat, James
Russell Lowell (1818-1891). See also Churchill Avenue.
LUCAS LANE is a short street on former Greer property. John Lucas
Greer (1852-1945) was the eldest son of Maria Luisa Soto de Copinger and John
Greer. Lucas Lane sometimes is left off recent maps. See also Greer Road.
LUNDY LANE was named for the Lundy family, property owners in the
area.
LUPINE AVENUE. See Arbutus Avenue.
LYTTON AVENUE*
. The street was named for Edward George Earle Lytton,
Bulwer-Lytton, Baron (1803-1873) an English novelist best known for The Last
Days of Pompeii.
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MACKALL WAY was named by property owners Warren and Effie Mackall, who
developed a small tract called Cardinal Manor in 1951. Warren Mackall was
active in the South Palo Alto Civic Club and founded the Mackall Appliance
Company.
MACKAY DRIVE was named by the builder, John Mackay, who was active in
real estate development on the peninsula in the 1950's.
MADDUX DRIVE. The early plat maps of this area reveal that in 1925
Thomas Maddux owned the land now crossed by this street. At a later date
Parker S. Maddux, a significant figure in Palo Alto's financial history,
helped to arrange financing for the homes built in this area. It is not clear
which member of the Maddux family is remembered by this name.
MADELINE COURT.
MADISON WAY honors James Madison (1751-1836), fourth president of the
United States.
MADRONO AVENUE. The name is Spanish for madrone (Arbutus
menziesi), one of our native trees.
MAGNOLIA DRIVE was once the formal entryway to the Wallis-Barron
mansion. Some of the stately magnolias still standing were a part of the
arboretum. See also Barron Avenue and Wallis Court.
MANCHESTER COURT was named for Floyd Earl Manchester, founder of
Manchester Auto Repair Company. He owned the property before selling it to a
developer.
MANUELA AVENUE, MANUELA COURT and MANUELA WAY. The Public Facilities
Naming Committee approved the name Manuela. Juana Briones de Miranda
purchased Rancho Purísima Concepción in 1849 and deeded this portion to her
daughter, Manuela Miranda Mesa. In the 1920's an apricot orchard known as
Fruitdale flourished where these streets are now platted. In 1974 the streets
were developed as part of the Manuela Manor subdivision.
MANZANA LANE. Manzana is the Spanish word for apple. The
street is located in a section of Barron Park where Spanish names were
selected.
MANZANITA AVENUE is located in the 1923 Southgate Subdivision. Two of
the tract's streets carry the names of local preparatory schools of the
period: Manzanita Hall for boys and Castilleja School for girls.
Manzanita in Spanish means little apple and is the
common name of a native shrub whose berries were valued by California
Indians.
MAPLE STREET, a widely used American street name, was selected by the
Crescent Park developers. The street is now shaded with fine magnolias, but
there are no maples on the street.
MAPLEWOOD AVENUE and MAPLEWOOD PLACE are located in the Charleston
Gardens tract. The street names were selected by a real estate developer.
MARGARITA AVENUE first appeared on a 1905 map of the Bartley Tract.
The street was once the borderline of property purchased by William Paul in
1855, from the Robles' Santa Rita Rancho. Margarita and Santa Rita were names
often used by the Robles family. Saint Margarita is the patroness of births,
appropriate for the large Robles family who had twenty-nine children.
MARION AVENUE and MARION PLACE. See Barbara Drive.
MARIPOSA AVENUE. Although mariposa means butterfly in
Spanish, it is believed the street, located in the 1923 Southgate
Subdivision, was named for the Mariposa Lily (Calochortus).
MARK TWAIN STREET. Mark Twain is the pseudonym of American author
Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910), whose 1864 visit to California resulted
in his first success, The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County.
MARLOWE STREET*
was named for English dramatist Christopher Marlowe
(1564-1593).
MARSHALL DRIVE. See Bruce Drive.
MARTIN AVENUE was named for Tevis Martin, property owner in the
Mayfair Subdivision. See also Tevis Place.
MARTINSEN COURT was named for property owner, A. E. Martinsen, who
once owned an auto repair shop in South Palo Alto.
MATADERO AVENUE and MATADERO COURT take their names from Matadero
Creek. The creek served as the border between Rancho Purísima Concepción and
Rancho del Corte de Madera. The land was used as a slaughtering place by
surrounding rancheros. Matadero means place of slaughter or
killing in Spanish.
MAUREEN AVENUE. See Alger Drive.
MAY COURT. See Gailen Avenue.
MAYBELL AVENUE and MAYBELL WAY. The streets were dedicated in 1952 as
part of the Maybelle Gardens tract which was cut from an earlier tract of
1905. In early days the area was used by a co-operative devoted to growing
seeds and flowers. In 1926 the residents successfully organized to prevent
the State Highway Department from excavating two barrow pits for the
construction of Bayshore Highway. For many years the Barron Park Maybelle
Improvement Association continued to serve as an informal type of local
government.
MAYVIEW AVENUE. The 1931 Mayview Homesites subdivision, from which the
street derived its name, originally had small homes and large lots to allow
the dwellers to farm and raise chickens.
MCGREGOR COURT and MCGREGOR WAY. In an earlier development by realtor
Douglas Couch, a Scot-Irish theme had proved so successful that he chose a
comparable name for his next development. Apparently these streets were not
named for any particular person. McGregor Court is no longer shown on recent
maps.
MCKELLAR LANE was named by developer James McKellar who opened the
Palo Alto Orchards tract in 1950 with Matthew Kelly. The firm also named
LORABELLE COURT for Lorabelle McKellar, McKellar's wife, and SUZANNE DRIVE
for his daughter. The area was once apricot orchards irrigated by an artesian
well located on Suzanne Drive.
MEADOW DRIVE, EAST and WEST, was known for many years as Diss Road. In
1953 the name was changed at the request of the developers of real estate
tracts along this major road. Diss Road marked the site of the Diss and
Berner ranches. EAST MEADOW CIRCLE is an extension of East Meadow Drive.
MELVILLE AVENUE*
was named for Herman Melville, American novelist
(1819-1891). A section of Melville was once named Katherine Street. The name
Katherine is visible on the curb at Melville Avenue and Fulton Street.
MESA AVENUE and MESA COURT recognized the married names of two of
Juana Briones de Miranda's daughters who married Mesa brothers, sons of Juan
Prado Mesa of the adjoining Rancho San Antonio. See also Miranda Avenue.
METRO CIRCLE.
MIDDLEFIELD ROAD*
originally was called el Camino de en Medio, or the
middle road, by the early Spanish colonists. In late 1851 a fence, known as
``Steinberger's Fence,'' had been built along the northeast side of the road
in the present Menlo Park and Atherton, marking the border of marshland. By
1853 the fence was referred to as the Middle Field Fence. Thereafter, the
name was often transferred to the old road. It became the official
designation by an act of the State Legislature in 1878.
MIDTOWN COURT was named for the Midtown shopping area in 1957.
MILITARY WAY was once the entryway leading to the California Military
Academy, which for several years occupied the old Barron mansion. See also
Barron Avenue.
MILLER AVENUE and MILLER COURT preserved the local memory of the
fabulously wealthy cattleman, Henry Miller, who came to California in 1849.
Having been a butcher's apprentice in Germany, he realized that gold could be
``on the hoof.'' He began to buy up cattle with the profits from a meat
packing enterprise. Miller's cattle were driven up El Camino Real to feeding
lots along Adobe Creek. He built a small dam near the present Foothill
Expressway where the cattle could be watered and fed until they would bring
top price in San Francisco. Miller also purchased land elsewhere in
partnership with Charles Lux and together they were at one time the biggest
land owners in California.
MIMOSA LANE. See Jacaranda Lane.
MIRAMONTE AVENUE is located in the 1923 Southgate Subdivision. It was
probably named in honor of a large, early California family, the Miramontez,
often spelled Miramontes, with the last letter dropped. Manuela Copinger,
daughter of Maria Luisa Soto de Copinger (later the wife of John Greer)
married Antonio Miramontez. Another suggestion has been that it may be
derived from the Spanish words mira and monte, meaning look at
the hill.
MIRANDA AVENUE and MIRANDA GREEN were named for Juana Briones de
Miranda (1790?-1889) who purchased Rancho Purísima Concepción in 1844. An
ancient oak on Miranda Avenue was dedicated as Palo Alto's Bicentennial Tree
in 1976.
MITCHELL LANE. The street was named in 1947 to honor Lydia Mitchell
(Mrs. John W., 1854-1958) the first managing director of the Palo Alto
Chapter of the American Red Cross. She served the organization for forty
years. The street leads to the Red Cross Chapter House and runs between the
Veterans' Building (now MacArthur Park Restaurant) and the Southern Pacific
Railroad Station and right-of-way.
MOANA COURT. No reason has been found for the use of the Hawaiian name
for this street on former Rancho San Antonio land.
MOCKINGBIRD LANE. A property owner on this hill bestowed the name
``Mockingbird Hill'' on his residence in the 1950's when that species of bird
was first noted in the area. In 1972 the area was subdivided and called by
the same name.
MOFFETT CIRCLE was named for nearby U. S. N. Moffett Field. Admiral
William A. Moffett was the U. S. Navy's chief proponent of lighter-than-air
craft. Moffett Field was the largest LTA base on the West Coast. Admiral
Moffett was lost April 4,1933 when the dirigible Akron crashed off the New
Jersey coast. The large dirigible hangars at Moffett Field, with their
orange-peel doors, have long been a landmark and were clearly visible from
Moffett Circle when it was laid out.
MONROE DRIVE was named for the property owner, L. G. Monroe.
MONTE BELLO ROAD. The name Monte Bello is often used as a street name
when there is a pleasant view of a mountain. The Palo Alto section of the
road is closed at the Monte Bello Open Space Preserve.
MONTROSE AVENUE is located in the 1951 Charleston Gardens tract No. 1.
Montrose was listed as a property owner on the plat map.
MORAGA COURT is located on the former De Anza School site. Lt. Jose
Joaquin Moraga (1742-1785), who was second in command to Juan Bautista De
Anza, founded the Presidio of San Francisco, the Pueblo of San José and
established Mission Dolores with Father Palou.
MORENO AVENUE bears the name of the property owner which appeared on the
plat map. Moreno in Spanish means brown. Part of this street
was originally known as Elmdale.
MORRIS DRIVE was named for Morris Faldstadt, who was employed by the
firm of Finson and Oddstad, builders.
MORTON STREET was named for property owners Louis and Mary Morton.
MUMFORD PLACE. James San Jule of Burke and Wyatt, contract builders,
named this street for one of his favorite authors, Lewis Mumford, an urban
expert.
MURDOCH COURT and MURDOCH DRIVE. See Alger Drive.
MURRAY WAY is located in the 1 Faircourt tract; Murray was listed as a
property owner on the plat map.
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NATHAN WAY. See Gailen Avenue.
NELSON COURT and NELSON DRIVE were named for Steve Nelson who was a
labor organizer in the 1930's. He was a friend of James San Jule of Burke and
Wyatt, contract builders, who named the streets for him.
NEVADA AVENUE is one of several streets named for western states.
Others include WASHINGTON, CALIFORNIA, OREGON AND COLORADO.
NEW MAYFIELD LANE was named to retain some remembrance of the old town
of Mayfield that once existed in this district. Elisha O. Crosby's Mayfield
Farm gave Mayfield its name. After 50 years of existence, the town was
incorporated in 1903. ln 1925, when its residents voted to be annexed to Palo
Al to, the town of Mayfield lost its identity.
NEWBERRY COURT.
NEWELL PLACE and NEWELL ROAD were named for Dr. William A. Newell, a
prominent physician in San Francisco, who bought 47 acres from Henry Seale in
1864 for a country estate. Parts of his house, located at 1456 Edgewood
Drive, date back to 1866. The updated carriage house and ``cow barn'', once
part of the estate, remain next door at 1450.
NOGAL LANE. See Jacaranda Lane.
NORTHAMPTON DRIVE is part of the 1939 Leland Manor subdivision. In a
contest for naming the streets in this subdivision sponsored by Hare, Brewer
and Kelley, Inc., Leila Gates won twenty dollars for suggesting the names
Northampton and SOUTHAMPTON DRIVE.
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O'BRINE LANE is in an old marshland tract called Clayton Park which
was the property of members of the Greer family. Mary Greer, daughter of John
and Maria Luisa Soto de Coplinger Greer, married Thomas O'Brine in 1888. See
also Greer Road.
OAK HILL AVENUE. This gently sloping avenue leads to a privately owned
hill beyond. Beside it is a narrow creek bed lined with fine old oaks.
OBERLIN STREET, located in College Terrace, was named for Oberlin
College, Oberlin, Ohio, established in 1833.
OLD ADOBE ROAD is the 1970 designation by the Palo Alto City Council
for a new road providing access to the house site of Rancho Purísima
Concepción and to a modern subdivision of nearby property. Presently in the
house there exist two walls of tamped earth in a crib framing, which were
constructed by the rancho grantee, a Christianized Indian, José
Gorgonio, in the 1830's. After Juana Briones de Miranda purchased the rancho
in 1844 she enlarged the house with wood construction additions.
OLD PAGE MILL ROAD is the original portion of Page Mill Road which
lies between Foothill Expressway and Freeway 280 within the jurisdiction of
Palo Alto. It was renamed in 1973. See also Page Mill Road.
OLD TRACE COURT, OLD TRACE ROAD and OLD TRACE LANE were so named in
1954 as a private lane leading from Arastradero Road to the Rancho Purísima
Concepción house site. Santa Clara County required a designation in order to
provide adequate fire and police protection. The names were proposed by Mrs.
Edith Cox Eaton, the owner of the property, and her companion, Mrs. Lucretia
Van Horn. Trace is an archaic word for road or path.
OLIVE AVENUE was called Palm Street before 1925, the year Mayfield was
annexed by Palo Alto. Olive probably commemorates one of the first trees
brought to California by the Franciscan Fathers.
OREGON AVENUE and OREGON EXPRESSWAY are examples of streets named for
western states. When Oregon Avenue was widened in 1961, creating the
expressway, 123 homes were removed. But the mature street trees were saved by
removing and storing them in the former city nursery until they could be
replanted along the expressway--an innovative technique for that time
suggested by George Hood. See George Hood Lane.
ORINDA STREET was named by William Bartley of the San Francisco Real
Estate Company in 1909. He planned a development of small homes near the
present California Avenue depot of the Southern Pacific Railroad. The name
Orinda may have been derived from the town in Contra Costa County,
established about 1890.
ORME STREET takes its name from the Orme family. Frank and Gertrude
Orme owned many acres in Barron Park.
ORTEGA COURT is located on the site of the former Ortega School. Jose
Francisco Ortega (1734-1798) founded a prominent California family. He was a
sergeant on the Portola expedition of 1769 which discovered San Francisco
Bay. He co-founded the San Francisco Presidio (1776) and the Mission Santa
Barbara.
OTTERSON COURT remembers a Mayfield pioneer, James Otterson, who built
a public house called Uncle Jim's Cabin in 1853. The approximate site of the
original cabin is marked by a plaque near the corner of El Camino Real and
California Avenue.
OXFORD AVENUE was named for the venerable English university
established in the twelfth century. The street once extended the length of
College Terrace, traversing the shorter streets named for American colleges
and universities.
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PAGE MILL ROAD can be traced to the early lumbering days, when the
road was constructed to link Mayfield with Page's and Peers' lumbering
investments in the area now identified as Portola State Park. William Page,
who first settled at Searsville, was interested in the Pescadero area where
he purchased government land and good stands of timber. Alexander Peers, who
became Page's partner in a store in Searsville, was also his partner in a
lumber business in Mayfield by 1866. Early residents of Mayfield recalled, as
late as 1918, watching the big lumber wagons bumping over Page Mill Road and
listening for the melodious bells attached to the horses' harnesses to warn
travelers of their approach along the steep and narrow road. See also Old
Page Mill Road.
PALM STREET is an early street that reflects the popular landscape use
at that date of the palm tree. Stately old palms still stand along this
street.
PALO ALTO AVENUE was named for El Palo Alto, the old Coast Redwood
tree on the corner of Senator Stanford's Palo Alto Farm. Timothy Hopkins gave
the land for Palo Alto Avenue in 1894 which was dedicated by the City for
public use in 1895.
PARADISE WAY. See Ilima Way.
PARK AVENUE is a short street located in the Evergreen Park tract.
PARK BOULEVARD. In 1904 Park Boulevard was platted on the Evergreen
Park tract as a main thoroughfare northwest of California Avenue. Comparable
in placement was Third Street, east of California Avenue, platted in 1867 in
the town of Mayfield. In 1952 the City Council changed the name of Third
Street to Park Boulevard so that the same designation could be applied to the
entire length of the street. The official change was not made until January
1, 1954 because of requests from merchants in the area. The name Park
Boulevard is particularly appropriate because it is the location of Alexander
Peers Park and Robles Park (formerly Mayfield).
PARKINSON AVENUE is located in the early Alba Park subdivision. John
F. Parkinson (1864-1956) was president of the Board of Trustees from
1906-1908. He served as postmaster from 1892 to 1894, operated an early
lumber yard and initiated the streetcar line. He was responsible for
obtaining funds from Andrew Carnegie for the first Palo Alto Public Library,
established in 1904. His strong leadership after the 1906 earthquake
prevented the merchants and others from exploiting the public during a
disaster period.
PARKSIDE DRIVE, located in the Greenmeadow tract, was a name selected
by a real estate developer.
PASTEUR DRIVE honors Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), eminent French chemist
and bacteriologist. In 1957 the name was selected as appropriate for a street
near the Stanford Medical Center.
PATRICIA LANE. Richard Barrett of Barrett and Hilp, contractors, named
the street for his wife, Patricia.
PAUL AVENUE was named by Paul Boldt, owner of several acres in this
area. The street appears as El Central Place on the 1949 map.
PAULSEN LANE was named for Jasper W. Paulsen (1870-1953) who
established the first livery stable in Palo Alto in 1891 when Stanford
University opened its doors. He was fondly known as the operator of the
legendary Marguerite, a horsedrawn 32-passenger wagonette. The lane is not
shown on recent maps.
PEPPER AVENUE. See Acacia Avenue
PERAL LANE. See Jacaranda Lane.
PHILLIPS ROAD was named for Joseph Phillips, a pioneer dairyman who
owned property in the area.
PIERS COURT is located off Louis Road and is part of a development
which was created from the former Piers Dairy property in 1984.
PINE STREET is located next to Cedar Street in the Alba Park Addition.
It is another example of the popular use of tree names for streets.
PITMAN AVENUE preserves the memory of Andrew Jackson Pitman
(1821-1896), who came to California in 1849 lured by tales of the gold
fields. After successfully panning for gold, he brought his family West,
settling in 1852 near Mayfield where he became a farmer and a stockman. He
sold his original 50 acres in 1862 to George Gordon, whose Mayfield Grange
Estate later became part of Leland Stanford's Palo Alto Farm. Pitman's second
farm, north of Embarcadero Road, became the Pitman Addition, near the
present-day Pitman Avenue.
POE STREET, in keeping with the author theme, was named for American
author, Edgar Allen Poe (1809-1849).
POMONA AVENUE recalls the Roman goddess of orchards and is located in
the Palo Alto Orchards tract. Pomona Avenue marks the borderline between
Rancho Purísima Concepción and Rancho Rincón de San Francisquito.
PONCE DRIVE. The street name honors Mayfield blacksmith, Joseph P.
Poncé (1849-1923), a native of France who came to California in 1857. He
owned a farm between Mayfield and Mountain View. In pioneer days the local
blacksmith not only shod horses, he replaced and fashioned machinery,
repaired farm tools and created new tools.
PORTAGE AVENUE. In 1925 zone changes were enacted and Portage Avenue
marked an industrial district.
PORTAL PLACE is located in the Leland Manor subdivision. Mrs. J. D.
Burks won ten dollars in a contest for street name suggestions held by Hare,
Brewer and Kelley, Inc. in 1939. This street, appropriately, led into the
subdivision.
PORTER DRIVE, located in the Stanford Industrial Park, is near the
site of Hewlett-Packard Co. Noel Porter joined Hewlett-Packard as production
manager and rose to the office of vice-president. In 1973 he was elected to
the Board of Directors. Porter was a member of the City Council of Palo Alto
from 1953-1965 serving as mayor from 1955-1960.
PORTOLA AVENUE is located in the 1923 Southgate Subdivision and was
named for the famous Spanish explorer, Don Gaspar de Portola, whose party
camped near El Palo Alto in 1769.
PRICE COURT was named for Longueville ``Lon'' Price, a real estate
developer who owned property in the area.
PRIMROSE WAY. See Heather Lane.
PRINCETON STREET, located in College Terrace, was named for Princeton
University, Princeton, New Jersey, established in 1746.
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QUARRY ROAD is the 1954 extension of the road from a quarry which was
near the present eighteenth hole of the Stanford Golf Course. A similar
route followed approximately the course of an irrigation ditch shown on an
1880 map of Leland Stanford's property. The ditch watered Stanford's
vineyard and fields and the road beside it is labeled Ditch Avenue on an
1883-1885 map of Stanford's property. Later the name was upgraded to Crooked
Avenue on a map circa 1890.
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RAMBOW DRIVE. See Alger Drive.
RAMONA CIRCLE and RAMONA STREET were named for the heroine of the
popular novel, Ramona, about life in early California. It was written by
Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885), who was an American writer and defender of
the American Indian.
RAMOS WAY was named for Jesus Ramos (1830-1912), who came from Mexico
to California to mine gold in the Sierras. In 1851 he settled in what was to
become the town of Mayfield. He assisted with the enlargement of the
Secundino Robles' adobe. In 1883 he bought acreage near Page Mill Road and
El Camino Real where the Palo Alto Financial Center now stands. Don Jesus
Ramos Park is also named in his honor.
RANDERS COURT was named by Peter Nielsen, a realtor, who recalled a
settlement by that name in Denmark; Randers was also his wife's maiden
name.
REDWOOD CIRCLE originally was named ``Rochdale'' in honor of the
Cooperative Movement which began in Rochdale, England in 1844. In 1953 the
residents requested a change of name because of difficulty in its
pronunciation and spelling. They felt that Redwood was a more pleasing name.
REGENT PLACE. See Kent Place.
RHODES DRIVE was named for Theodore Rhodes, son-in-law of Harry Hilp
of Barrett and Hilp, contractors.
RICHARDSON COURT was named for the property owner who sold the land
for the 1956 Faircourt tract.
RINCON CIRCLE. Rincón is Spanish for bend or
elbow or corner. Rincon Circle was named for Rancho Rincón de
San Francisquito, on which part of Palo Alto was built. The rancho was
granted to José Peña who sold it to Secundino and Teodoro Robles
after the Mexican-American War. See also Santa Rita Avenue.
RINCONADA AVENUE. This avenue is on land which was part of Rancho
Rinconada del Arroyo de San Francisquito, granted to Rafael Soto in 1835.
Like Rinconada Park, the street and the original townsite of Palo Alto were
once part of Rancho Rinconada. In modern Spanish rinconada means an
inside corner. See also Greer Road.
ROBB ROAD was named by a property owner, Maureen Robb (Mrs. E. J.
Beckett), who was employed by Cornish and Carey, realtors.
ROBLE RIDGE. Roble is the Spanish name for the California White
Oak, from which the street probably took its name.
ROOSEVELT CIRCLE in the Fairmeadow tract was named for Franklin Delano
Roosevelt (1882-1945), thirty-second president of the United States.
RORKEWAY. Origin unknown.
ROSEWOOD DRIVE. See Bruce Drive.
ROSS COURT and ROSS ROAD were named for Albert E. and Mary Elizabeth
Ross, early land owners who came to Palo Alto in 1894. They had lived
previously in Reno, Nevada and in Lassen County, California. Their daughter
Grace married Alfred Seale, son of Thomas Seale. The area known as Ross Park
was platted in 1921. See also Seale Avenue.
RUTHELMA AVENUE. See Duluth Circle.
RUTHVEN AVENUE, a street that cut through one of the original city
blocks was platted in 1891. The land belonged to Miss Ida S. Hall, sister of
B. F. Hall, pioneer Palo Alto druggist. She named the street after a Scots
lord.
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SAN ANTONIO ROAD and SAN ANTONIO AVENUE. San Antonio Road passes
through three communities: Palo Alto, Mountain View and Los Altos. The name
is derived from Rancho San Antonio. A portion of the present-day road passes
through the lands of Rancho San Antonio which was confirmed to Juan Prado
Mesa in October 1843.
SAN CARLOS COURT is one of a number of streets in Palo Alto named for
saints. The Spanish explorers and missionaries frequently bestowed as a place
name the name of a saint on whose feast day the place was first sighted. San
Carlos was also the name of one of the ships of the 1524 Cabrillo
expedition.
SAN JUDE AVENUE is in the 1941 Los Robles Manor tract of the Boldt
Subdivision. St. Jude is known as the Saint of the Impossible and prayers
are directed to him requesting intercession in a hopeless or impossible
situation. The street appears as La Jude on the 1941 map.
SAND HILL ROAD, first named Willow Road, had its name changed in 1977
to conform to San Mateo County's Sandhill Road so that the same designation
could be applied to the entire road.
SANDALWOOD COURT is near WILDWOOD LANE. The developer was evidently
following the pattern, started by EDGEWOOD DRIVE, of creating street names
ending in wood.
SANDRA PLACE. See Clara Drive.
SANTA ANA STREET, located in the Oregon Terrace tract of 1941, was
originally Santa Barbara Street. Santa Ana (Saint Anne, mother of the Virgin
Mary) is often used for place names.
SANTA CATALINA STREET was a street name proposed for the projected
City of Leland. It is one of several streets named for California resorts.
Santa Catalina is an island twenty-two miles off the coast of Los Angeles
County. See also El Dorado Avenue.
SANTA RITA AVENUE is located on land which was a part of Rancho
Rincón de San Francisquito. The Robles family, who purchased the Rancho from
its grantee, José Peña, often referred to it as Rancho Santa
Rita. This name appears on old plats and deeds. See also Margarita Avenue
and Rincon Circle.
SCOTT STREET was named for Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832), a Scots poet
and novelist. Miss Emma J. Miller, the property owner, allowed her mother to
select the name. She chose Scott because of her admiration for his writings.
SCRIPPS AVENUE and SCRIPPS COURT are located in the Greenmeadow tract,
where houses were built by the Mackay Realty Company. The Mackays are related
to the Scripps family of Scripps-Howard newspaper fame.
SEALE AVENUE was named for Palo Alto pioneers Henry Seale, Thomas
Seale and the Seale family. Henry Seale, like John Greer, came from Ireland
and started a contracting business in San Francisco with his brother,
Thomas. In 1853 the Seale brothers acquired a large part of Rancho
Rinconada del Arroyo de San Francisquito from the Soto heirs. The
Seales at one time owned most of the land on which early Palo Alto was
located. See also California Avenue.
SECOND STREET is an extension of an early Mayfield street which is
now called Birch. In this area, First Street became Wilkie Way and Third
Street was changed to Park Boulevard, but Second remains and is the only
numbered street in Palo Alto.
SEDRO LANE. See Jacaranda lane.
SEMINOLE WAY can only be named for the Seminole Indians of Florida.
The Seminoles are made up of six tribes that once inhabited Florida and they
still dwell in the Florida Everglades. The street is located in the
Charleston Gardens tract.
SENECA STREET*
was named for the Roman statesman and philosopher,
Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 B.C.?-A.D. 65).
SEQUOIA AVENUE. The generic name, Sequoia, was bestowed on
California's native redwoods by the botanist Stephen Endlicher in honor of
Sequoya, the Indian creator of the Cherokee alphabet. This street is located
in the 1923 Southgate Subdivision where some of the other streets were also
named for California native plants.
SEVYSON COURT was named after the Sevy family, according to Don S.
Sevy, realtor. Sevy owned six lots in the area and wanted to put the family
name on the map but the name did not meet the approval of the Fire Marshall;
instead the Court was named Sevyson.
SHARON COURT, located in the 1955 Crescent View tract owned by Karl
and La Verda Wilson, was named for their daughter Sharon.
SHASTA DRIVE is one of a series of streets named for mountains. The
name Shasta is popular in California and memorializes an Indian tribe known
as the Shatasla Nation. See also Ben Lomond Drive.
SHAUNA LANE, located in the 1957 Laguna Gardens tract, was named for
the daughter of Patty and Don Humphrey, the developers.
SHERIDAN AVENUE. See Grant Avenue.
SHERMAN AVENUE. See Grant Avenue.
SIERRA COURT is found in the 1949 Sierra Tract. Sierra is
Spanish for sawtooth mountain and the street and the tract were
probably named for the California mountain range, Sierra Nevada.
SILVA AVENUE and SILVA COURT. Silva is the Latin for forest.
SIMKINS COURT was named in 1983 to honor Henry W. Simkins, pioneer
businessman, once owner and editor of The Palo Alto Times and first elected
town clerk when the City was incorporated.
SKYLINE BOULEVARD was constructed on the crest of the Outer Coast
Mountains in 1925 and was appropriately named.
SOLANA DRIVE. See Amaranta Avenue.
SOMERSET PLACE. See Kent Place.
SOUTH COURT was named by the Santa Clara County Del Rey Planning
Commission of 1929. It commemorates the South family.
SOUTHAMPTON DRIVE. See Northampton Drive.
SOUTHWOOD DRIVE perpetuates the name of William Southwood, who came
to Mayfield in 1888 and worked on the Inner Quadrangle at Stanford
University. Four of his children attended the kindergarten maintained by
Mrs. Stanford in Mayfield. His family moved to Palo Alto in 1902 where he
became an independent contractor.
ST. CLAIRE DRIVE was named for St. Clare (1194-1253), known as St.
Clare of Assisi, foundress of the Convent of the Poor Clares. The Drive is
located in St. Claire Gardens tract, once the property of the Roman Catholic
Archdiocese of San Francisco. The 1952 tract also includes ST. MICHAEL COURT
and ST. MICHAEL DRIVE.
ST. FRANCIS DRIVE was named in 1956 in a development known as St.
Francis Terrace. St. Francis (1182-1226) was the founder of the Franciscan
Order and the Patron Saint of all foreign missions.
ST. MICHAEL COURT and ST. MICHAEL DRIVE. See St. Claire Drive.
STANFORD AVENUE, named for Senator Leland Stanford, bounds the
Stanford University campus side of College Terrace.
STANLEY WAY was named for Stanley Brown, a superintendent for Barret
and Hilp, contractors. The street is located in the 1950 Crescent Park tract
No. 2.
STARR KING CIRCLE was named for Thomas Starr King (1824-1864), a
noted Unitarian minister who was best known outside the Unitarian Church for
his role in keeping California on the Union side during the War Between the
States. Although he lived only his last four years in California, he was
considered one of the best known and most beloved men on the Pacific Coast.
His name is borne by a peak in Yosemite National Park, Mt. Starr King.
STAUNTON COURT. The name of this street is of uncertain origin. The
one-block-long street is located at the end of a series of streets named for
colleges. Therefore, the most appropriate explanation may be for Staunton
Military Academy, Staunton, Virginia, established in 1860.
STELLING DRIVE. According to Miss Ida M. Stelling, the street was
named for her parents, Charles and Emma Stelling, who came to Palo Alto in
1919 and established a chicken ranch.
STERN AVENUE was named for the Stern brothers, Alfred and Menhart, of
Stern and Price, builders in South Palo Alto.
STOCKTON PLACE, located in the Sterling Gardens tract, was presumably
named for the city of Stockton in the San Joaquin Valley.
STONE LANE was named for Thomas Stone, a San Francisco lawyer, who
developed Stone Manor Homes in 1955. See also Thomas Drive.
SUTHERLAND DRIVE was named by George Sutherland Nolte, former City
Engineer of Palo Alto.
SUTTER AVENUE and SUTTER COURT are located in the 1950 Golden Gardens
tract. John A. Sutter's mill was the site of the discovery of gold by James
Marshall in 1848. Coincidentally, the cover sheet of the Golden Gardens tract
map contained the name of Lewis Sutter, vice president of the bank which
financed the tract.
SUZANNE DRIVE and SUZANNE COURT. See McKellar Lane.
SYCAMORE DRIVE. The Western Sycamore or Plane Tree (Platanus
racernosa) is a common, conspicuous native tree. Growing along rivers
and streams, it reaches a large size. A hybrid Platanus, being smaller, is
widely used here as a street tree. See also BARRON AVENUE and WALLIS COURT.
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TALISMAN DRIVE is named for a variety of rose. TALISMAN COURT, 1985,
is on the former Ross Road School site. See Arbutus Avenue.
TAMARACK COURT presents a common name for conifers of the genus larix,
also called larch.
TANLAND DRIVE was named for the builder S. T. Tan, who had been a
prosperous businessman in China before the Communist regime. After he came to
Palo Alto, he constructed more than 2,000 apartment units in this area.
TASSO STREET. In 1908 this street was named for the Italian poet of
the late Renaissance, Torquato Tasso (1544-1595).
TENNESSEE LANE is one of two streets in the 1950 Charleston Meadows
tract named for southern states. See also Carolina Lane.
TENNYSON AVENUE was named for the English poet, Alfred, Lord Tennyson
(1809-1892). See also Churchill Avenue.
TERMAN DRIVE is located on the site of the former Terman Middle
School, also known as Terman Junior High School. The school was named for
Lewis M. Terman (1877-1956), who is considered to be the father of Silicon
Valley.
TEVIS PLACE was named for Tevis Martin, property owner, who was
associated with Cornish and Carey Real Estate. See also Martin Avenue.
THAIN WAY. The Thain family has been identified with property in this
area since the early 1900's. Frederick Thain, a native of Glasgow, Scotland,
purchased ten acres of property and became an orchardist.
THE CIRCLE. During Palo Alto's formative years, the Circle was the
traditional hub of the community. Hotels, livery stables, and all varieties
of businesses were nearby. At The Circle hitching rails were placed for the
convenience of shoppers and for people meeting trains. Under a native oak
tree growing there Stanford students frequently met their dates and the tree
soon was labeled the ``trysting oak.'' The Circle was also the site of the
town's first flagpole. A World War I memorial monument was erected in the
center of The Circle which was landscaped with palms and flower beds.
Progress dictated an underpass in 1941 and the City of Palo Alto lost a
convenient meeting place.
THOMAS DRIVE in the Palo Vista tract was developed by and named for
Thomas Stone. See also Stone Lane.
THORNWOOD DRIVE. See Arbutus Avenue.
TIMLOTT COURT and TIMLOTT LANE were named for Clarence Timlott,
property owner. The source of this information was the late Clarence
Henshel, a long-time realtor in the Barron Park area.
TIOGA COURT. See Ben Lomond Drive.
TIPPAWINGO DRIVE was named by Vera Young Colby, property owner, in
honor of her husband who was part Iroquois. The Indian name means House of
Happiness. Mrs. Colby had the name ``Tippawingo'' carved on the lintel of her
house.
TORREYA COURT was named for a native evergreen known as California
Nutmeg (Torreya californica).
TOWLE PLACE and TOWLE WAY were named for Kay Towle, a member of the
City Planning Commission for eight years, including five years as chairman.
She also held other important civic offices. After her death in 1964, civic
officials paid this tribute to her achievements.
TOYON PLACE uses the common name of our ``California Holly'' (Photinia
arbutifolia), a widely planted native shrub. The Indians ate the handsome red
berries and the Californios used them to make an agreeable drink. Residents
of the street suggested this name to the Public Facilities Naming Committee.
TRANSPORT STREET. See Commercial Street.
TULIP LANE. See Heather Lane.
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UNIVERSITY AVENUE*
was named by Timothy Hopkins in 1889 when the
town's name was University Park. The avenue was planned to lead directly to
the Stanford University campus.
URBAN LANE. The street connecting Wells Avenue and Homer Avenue and
leading to the early Corporation Yard was named in honor of William and
Joseph Urban, who established a gravel and sand business in Palo Alto in
1926. ln 1931 they were among the first to introduce transit mix, later known
as `ready-mix' cement.
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VAN AUKEN CIRCLE was named for Miss Elizabeth Van Auken, a teacher
and school principal, 1912-1969. In 1950 the Elizabeth Van Auken Elementary
School was named for her. Students of the school annually celebrated her
birthday until her death in 1969.
VENTURA AVENUE and VENTURA COURT are located in the Ventura Tract
once owned by William Curtner. California has a city, river and county with
this name. The U.S. Post Office concluded that the original name, San
Buenaventura, was ``too long to write and too difficult to pronounce.''
VERDOSA DRIVE. See Amaranta Avenue.
VERNON TERRACE was named in honor of Vernon Smith of Dallas, Texas,
who had a financial interest in the area.
VICTORIA PLACE was named by Joe Dolan, developer, in honor of his
grandmother.
VILLA VERA, VILLA VISTA, and VILLA REAL are all private streets
created as part of the Villa de las Plazas Townhouse Development. Located
between Los Robles Avenue and Vista Avenue, it is the site of the former
McElroy Lumber Company.
VISTA AVENUE in Barron Park was named in 1940. Vista is the
Spanish word for view.
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WALLIS COURT was named for Sarah and Joseph Wallis, who came to
Mayfield in 1857. Shortly thereafter, Sarah bought the Mayfield Farm of
Elisha O. Crosby. Wallis was an Associate Judge in the Santa Clara County
Court of Sessions and was active in public affairs. Although Mrs. Wallis was
involved in the social and civic life of Mayfield, her greatest honor was
being elected head of the newly formed State of California Women's Suffrage
Movement. See also Barron Avenue and Crosby Place.
WALNUT DRIVE. About 1870 John Wesley Boulware owned and farmed a
triangular tract bounded by the present Embarcadero, Newell and Greer roads.
He planted walnut trees along the Embarcadero side. The original trees are
now gone, but the trees on nearby Walnut Drive were perhaps planted in
remembrance of his grove.
WALTER HAYS DRIVE was named for Dr. Walter Hays (1869-1920),
outstanding pastor of the Palo Alto Presbyterian Church and member of the
Palo Alto School Board. ln 1916 he became the first president of the Union
High School District. A resident of Palo Alto for fifteen years, he saw
the building of a new church and ``took an active part in every movement
for the advancement of Palo Alto.''
WARREN WAY. The name was selected by a toss of a coin. William Reed
and Kendall Bower were business partners and developers of the property.
Bower was a Democrat and Reed was a Republican. Reed won the toss and named
the street after Republican Governor Earl Warren.
WASHINGTON AVENUE. See Nevada Street.
WATSON COURT.
WAVERLEY OAKS is a court off Waverley Street in an area where many
old oaks remain and where their staunch defender, Pedro de Lemos
(1882-1954), artist and architect, built his home.
WAVERLEY STREET*
was named for Waverley. a successful novel by
Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832), published anonymously in 1814. His subsequent
novels were attributed to the author of Waverley and were labeled ``The
Waverley Novels.''
WEBSTER STREET*
was named for Daniel Webster (1780-1852), American
stateman and orator.
WELCH ROAD, located near the Stanford Medical Center, honors Dr.
William Henry Welch (1850-1934), pathologist at Johns Hopkins University.
WELLESLEY STREET in College Terrace was named for Wellesley College,
Wellesley, Massachusetts, established for women in 1870.
WELLS AVENUE was named for Wells Goodenough (1867-1950), building
contractor and long-time Palo Alto area resident.
WELLSBURY COURT and WELLSBURY WAY were named by James Blackman,
property owner, for the maiden name of his wife, Harriet Wellsbury.
WHITCLEM COURT, WHITCLEM DRIVE, WHITCLEM PLACE and WHITCLEM WAY. See
Duluth Circle.
WHITMAN COURT probably was named for Walt Whitman (1819 1892),
American poet.
WHITSELL AVENUE. Mr. and Mrs. Everett Strain (Mrs. Strain was the
daughter of John Whitsell) owned the property along Whitsell Avenue and may
have used her maiden name as the name for the street. Alternatively, the
naming may honor John Whitsell himself.
WILDWOOD LANE. See Sandalwood Court.
WILKIE COURT and WILKIE WAY were named for Robert Max Wilke, owner of
an apricot orchard at the corner of Charleston Avenue and Wilkie Way. The
name has been spelled incorrectly on City maps since 1926.
WILLIAMS STREET, located in College Terrace, was named for Williams
College, Williamstown, Massachusetts, established in 1793.
WILLMAR DRIVE. William Anderson of Moerdyke, Hardy and Anderson,
owners and subdividers, named the street in 1952 for his sons Steven William
and Greg Martin. Willmar combines William and Martin. The Streets of Palo
Alto booklet published by the Palo Alto Historical Association contains
a photograph of the boys.
WILSON STREET. There are two possible explanations for the name of
this street. It could be named for H. G. Wilson, whose name is shown on a
hand-drawn map of the area as property owner. He leased the Ramona Hotel in
1893 for two years but he and his family soon moved to San Francisco. On the
other hand, it might honor Charles Gordon Wilson (1836-1910), a pioneer
steamboat captain who established Wilson's Landing near the former Palo Alto
harbor. His residence was on Newell Road near the street bearing the name.
WILTON AVENUE was named by William Bartley of the Bartley Tract for
Henry Wilton, an early real estate dealer.
WINTERGREEN WAY was named for the low evergreen plant of the heath
family (Gualtheria rocumbens).
WRIGHT PLACE. Property owner William Wright was remembered by this
street name in 1938.
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YALE STREET, located in College Terrace, was named for Yale
University, New Haven, Connecticut, established in 1701.
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