Santa Cruz County Place Name: Folger Canyon (May 3, 2026)
According to Jerome Alexander, that canyon shown as unnamed on Watsonville East Quadrangle (USGS:17) as trending from the summit of the Santa Cruz Mountains in a southwesterly direction immediately to the west of and parallel to Casserly Ridge is known locally as Folger Canyon. Origin undetermined; however, Ed Martin in his 1873 Directory of the Town of Watsonville mentions “Peter Folger [who ran a skating rink at that time] has a snug little farm well improved of 200 acres on the former Rancho Salsipuedes” and the map listed below shows the lands encompassing the gulch were owned in 1908 by Clara Folger.
What I'm Currently Reading (August 2026)
My current focus is finishing two physical books I picked up from the Santa Monica Public Library in June, for Pride Month, via the corresponding display in the Main Library:
- We Set the Night on Fire: Igniting the Gay Revolution by Martha Shelley
- The Boy With the Thorn in His Side: A Memoir by Keith Fleming
They're both fascinating first hand accounts of growing up in 1960s (Shelley) and 1970s (Fleming) America and how the changing social mores and customs of the era impacted children and young adults. Memoir is not my typical fare, but I make an exception for first person queer history. Both of these are definitely recommended reads.
Shelley is one of the founders of the modern queer rights movement, co-founder of the Gay Liberation Front. The book extends from her childhood to her young adulthood as a queer rights activist in late 1960s, early 1970s New York and California. I'm in Chapter 19, where we're introduced to the Gay Liberation Front (about halfway through). The book (so far) details her youth as the child of immigrants and young adult life, how she explored being lesbian (and what that looked like back then). She was intersected all sorts of interesting people and events (Stonewall, the Sullivan Institute cult, worked for Robert De Niro's mother before he became famous). She had a relationship with famous bi+ activist Stephen Donaldson aka "Donny The Punk" which caused quite a bit of stir, as they were each spokespeople for lesbian and gay rights groups, respectively (identities != behavior, as this makes clear).
Fleming's book intersects with the queer world primarily through his account of his life with his uncle, Ed White, a famous author (whose works were also on display), who was, per the book flap, "completely caught up in the beehive of social and sexual activity of 1970s gay Manhattan." Fleming's lucid prose provides a fascinating first hand glimpse into the life of a portion of the city's queer community in that era. I'm about three-quarters of the way through the book, where Fleming has been living with his uncle for a bit, and his girlfriend Laura has just managed to escape captivity in a convent (not kidding). I think she is about to come live with them (haven't gotten to that part yet). The book also documents Fleming's experience in various psychiatric facilities, and is a damning account of the often abusive and exploitative nature of psychiatry / psychology (used as a tool for social control of otherwise rational people). Fleming's ability to turn a phrase, to recall the details of events and paint a verbal picture, is marvelous. His prose is luminous and lush, a pleasure to read on its own.
I'll post about the other stuff I'm reading / have been reading once I finish these two off (hopefully tonight).
Tags: reading, smpl, library-books, history, memoir, lgbtqia, queer
Santa Cruz County Place Name: Moreland Notre Dame Academy (June 3, 2026)
A Catholic school for girls on Brennan Street in Watsonville, operated by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur; opened October 1899.
The situation of the school, in the beautiful Valley of the Birds, in the quiet suburbs of the pretty little city of Watsonville, beside the sea, beneath the bounding hills, was unsurpassed.–In Harvest Fields (1926, p.234).
Named for the order [Notre Dame, “Our Lady,” for the Virgin Mary] and to honor Josephine Moreland, the daughter of Mrs. Margaret S. Moreland who founded the school in her memory. Josephine died in 1888 at the age of nineteen. Margaret S.
Loftus [Moreland] was born in Ireland in 1829; arrived in the United States in 1852 and in California in 1862. “When a young lady, Miss Loftus learned of the beautiful climate of California and having friends in Santa Cruz decided to join them.”–Guinn (1903, p.392). She married Samuel Moreland, a prominent Pajaro Valley rancher in 1866. Mrs. Moreland died in 1919. The school is located at 133 Brennan Street, Watsonville. Also known as College of Notre Dame.
Santa Cruz County Place Name: Woods Lagoon (June 13, 2026)
The lagoon that today forms the base for the Santa Cruz Small Craft Harbor. The lagoon was a favorite picnic spot, swimming hole, and duck hunting area during the 1880s and 1890s. Named for the landowner, John Woods, whose property abutted the lagoon. Volume One of the Santa Cruz County Books of Deeds includes a petition, November 14, 1849, by John Woods for this land. Woods, a charter member of the Santa Cruz County Society of California Pioneers, was born in Georgetown, Ohio, on December 30, 1818; he migrated to Missouri, served in the Mexican war, back to Missouri, married, then left for California on April 20, 1848. After a very short period in the mines, he settled in Santa Cruz county, worked at the Bennett Sawmill on Love Creek, but settled shortly thereafter in the area now known as Seabright in Santa Cruz. Woods died October 11, 1887. See also Lake Marina and Santa Cruz Small Craft Harbor.
Santa Cruz County Place Name: Winkles Bridge (July 15, 2026)
A bridge that crossed Rodeo Creek along what is now known as Soquel Drive. It existed at least some time before 1888 when the following notice appeared in the Santa Cruz Surf, June 2, 1888:
…a subscription is being circulated to raise funds to defray the expenses of sprinkling Soquel Road from the covered bridge at Santa Cruz to Winkle’s bridge near Soquel.
Named for a land owner. Hatch’s county map of 1889 shows lands in Section 9, T11S, R1W, bordering both the road and the creek which were owned by one H. W. Inkel, obviously a mistake for H. Winkel. On the south side of the road the map shows property of Winkel. H. Winkel is listed in the roster of members of the Santa Cruz Society of California Pioneers as a native of Germany born February 22, 1822, who arrived in California in September 1850. His name is given as Henry Winkle in Guinn (1903, p.636) where the author writes:
Landing in New Orleans, Mr. Winkle subsequently went to St. Louis, where he lived for four years, and during the latter part of that time was disturbed by the rumors of gold that came from ship passengers and overland travelers. He therefore joined a caravan bound for the great plains, and upon arriving at this destination on the coast, located at Placerville, where for seventeen years he tempted fate in the surrounding mines. He experienced the average number of disappointments and failures, but he was successful to the extent that he was able to purchase his present ranch of two hundred acres upon his removal to Santa Cruz] county in 1866.
He is listed as Henry Wenkle, farmer from Prussia, Soquel, in The Great Register of Santa Cruz County, 1867. He became a naturalized citizen on August 14, 1867. The Soquel Cemetery records show the name as Henry Winkle, died February 20, 1903, aged 81.
Santa Cruz County Place Name: Mary Easton Picnia Area (July 29, 2026)
A picnic spot in The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park. Named for Mary Easton Porter, wife of Warren R. Porter. Porter, born in Santa Cruz, March 30, 1861, was the son of John T. Porter, one of the founders of the Loma Prieta Lumber Company incorporated in 1883 to log much of the area encompassed by today’s state park. Warren R. Porter was bookkeeper (1884), then secretary (1886-1902) of the lumber company. He was incorporator (1888), director and (1900-1922) president of the Pajaro Valley National Bank, Watsonville. From 1907 to 1911 he was lieutenant-governor of California. Mary Easton was the daughter of Rev. G. A. Easton, rector of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Berkeley. They were married August 23, 1893, and built their residence at the company town, Loma Prieta. See also Porter Family Picnic Area, and Porter Gulch [3].
Santa Cruz County Place Name: Vue de L'Eau (July 22, 2026)
One of the very few French place names in the county. This was a gazebo type structure with a pagoda style roof that was built along the cliff above Monterey Bay in 1892 as part of a promotion scheme of the Santa Cruz, Garfield Park & Beach trolley line. It was advertised as an “observatory, cliff house, waiting station, and depot.” Nearby was the Casino at the junction of Cliff Drive and Garfield Avenue (now West Cliff Drive and Woodrow Avenue). Vue de L’Eau, with its spectacular view of the ocean (hence, the name), became a popular attraction, but it slowly faded in interest and in 1905 Vue de L’Eau and six surrounding acres were bought for the winter quarters of the Norris and Rowe circus. The building burned in 1925.
Bratton Online
Bruce Bratton (RIP) is a major figure in the social and political history of Santa Cruz. For decades, my wife Gunilla functioned as his editrix / webmistress, handling all the nuts and bolts of publishing his column online every week via Bratton Online. He passed on a while back, at 91, after long and illustrious career of being a thorn in the side of the establishment (and getting fired from every then existent local publication for not censoring his opinions about big advertisers like the Seaside Company, owner of the Beach Boardwalk and most of Beach Flats), but the motley crew of curmudgeonly contributors he gathered as contributors over the years has continued to publish the column, joined by a select few new conspirators, including myself.
My contribution, oddly enough given my political inclinations, is to write a column on the history of Santa Cruz, keeping with the theme introduced by the Covello & Covello Historical photo featured at the head of every column. Each week, I feature a selection of interesting and historically significant places in Santa Cruz County, through the lens of Donald Thomas Clark's wonderful book, Santa Cruz County Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary, originally published in 1986 by the Santa Cruz Historical Trust, now a unit of the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History (SC MAH).
I'll be posting my columns here under the "place-names" tag, just for easy future reference. Note: I'll be making very slight edits to the original postings as I go (typo / formatting corrections, slight clarifications, maybe an additional link or two).
Each week, I will feature a selection of interesting and historically significant places in Santa Cruz County from the 1986 edition of Donald Thomas Clark‘s wonderful book, “Santa Cruz County Place Names: A Geographical Dictionary“, published by the Santa Cruz Historical Trust.
“Nuggets” If I find something topically relevant, but not necessarily directly related to the week’s selection, you’ll see it under the Nuggets heading. Note: for reasons of brevity, sources are usually dropped when I reproduce an entry. You can always email me if you’re curious, or, even better, buy a copy of the book!
Tags: columns, place-names, bratton-online, santa-cruz, history, adventures, writing