Related Records

1. Locke McCorkle on Druid Heights - Druid Heights Oral History

   In this oral history, Locke McCorkle reminisces about Druid Heights and many of the people associated with the legendary bohemian community. Locke recounts first visiting Druid Heights in the early 1950s and his subsequent involvement in building some of the structures there. He conjectures that the community received its evocative name from one of its early residents, the poet Elsa Gidlow. In addition to Elsa, Locke discusses various other peopl...

   Record Type: Archive

   
2. Oral History of Catherine Shaw - Oral History

   In this oral history, Mill Valley resident Catherine Shaw recounts her "life in the woods" with her husband and their two daughters. Born in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1943, Catherine moved out to the West Coast with her family as a child, living first in San Diego and then Bellingham, Washington. Catherine recalls meeting her future husband, Larry Shaw, at Reed College in Portland, and their wedding a few years later in 1963 on Mount Diablo in the...

   Record Type: Archive

   
3. Oral History of Ebrahim Nana - Oral History

   Recorded at the Islamic Center of Mill Valley, Ebrahim Nana, one of the original Board members of Mill Valley's first mosque (or masjid), recounts a life devoted to family, community, and religion. Born in 1951 in Mumbai, India, Ebrahim grew up in Thailand where one branch of his transnational merchant family has been living for two centuries. Ebrahim describes coming to California in 1969 to study industrial engineering at U.C. Berkeley and late...

   Record Type: Archive

   
4. Oral History of Edmund (Ed) Stiles - Oral History

   In this oral history, Edmund Stiles recounts his more than 50-year residency at Druid Heights. Born in Michigan in 1939, Edmund grew up on the East Coast and attended Dartmouth College. Edmund describes how he first came out to the Bay Area in the early 1960s, just as he was discovering his vocation to make furniture. He recounts the first time he visited Druid Heights and his first impressions of Roger Somers, one of the founders of the communit...

   Record Type: Archive

   
5. Oral History of Fredrik Cassee - Oral History

   In this oral history, Fredrik "Frits" Cassée recounts his life as a postwar wanderer and cosmopolitan baker who ended up rooting himself firmly in the community of Mill Valley. Born in Haarlem, Holland, in 1936, Frits came to the United States in 1957 as a trained and certified baker. Initially settling in Coalinga in the San Joaquin Valley, he soon moved north to San Francisco for better employment opportunities. After getting married in 1963 an...

   Record Type: Archive

   
6. Oral History of Gary Yost - Oral History

   In this oral history, filmmaker and visual storyteller Gary Yost recounts a life of openness to the opportunities that arise, devotion to Mount Tamalpais as his spiritual home and creative muse, and commitment to a place-based though temporally-extended sense of community. Born in 1959 in Bergen County, New Jersey, Gary left the East Coast at the age of 19, driven westward by an especially intense winter spent in Boston. He settled in San Francis...

   Record Type: Archive

   
7. Oral History of Greg Sarris - Oral History

   In this oral history, author, scholar, and chairmen of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria Greg Sarris tells the story of his life as a journey of self-discovery and social commitment. Raised in adoptive family in Santa Rosa, Greg did not know about his Coast Miwok/Pomo ancestry until adulthood. Greg recounts how he recovered his tribal identity and, in the process, became a successful author and academic. Greg explains that the historical ...

   Record Type: Archive

   
8. Oral History of John R. Boettiger - Oral History

   In this oral history, retired academic, writer, Redwoods resident, and member of the Roosevelt family John Boettiger discusses his life, lineage, and love of community. Born in 1939, John lived in the White House of his grandparents Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt from the age of three to six. John subsequently grew up on Mercer Island, outside of Seattle. He attended both Amherst and Columbia University, and went on to become a professor of psych...

   Record Type: Archive

   
9. Oral History of Mark Watts - Oral History

   In this oral history, field recording specialist, archivist and epigrapher Mark Watts recounts his life and narrates the life story of his father Alan, famous spiritual teacher and former Druid Heights denizen. Born in 1953, Mark grew up in Mill Valley; El Cerrito; and Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania. After high school, he attended Duquesne University in Pittsburgh where he studied psychology. Mark recounts how he moved back to California in the early ...

   Record Type: Archive

   
10. Oral History of Ruth Lescohier - Oral History

    In this oral history interview, Ruth Lescohier recounts a long career steeped in local history and political activism. Ruth first moved to Mill Valley with her husband after his naval service during World War II. The couple eventually built a home in Blithedale Canyon with two decks and a "beautiful view" of the Bay. Ruth was teaching elementary school in Marin City when a credentialing requirement led to a serendipitous discovery of her passion ...

    Record Type: Archive

    
11. Oral History of Terry Haggerty - Oral History

    In this oral history, musician, psychedelic explorer, and end-of-life guide Terry Haggerty shares the encounters, events, and experiences that have shaped his life. Born in Marin in 1946, Terry grew up in a family of performers: his father was a musician and his mother was a dancer who immigrated to the U.S. from Cuba. Terry recalls jam sessions and dance parties held at the family home in San Anselmo during his childhood, which had a formative e...

    Record Type: Archive