Penngrove, California
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Penngrove is a
census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...
(CDP) in
Sonoma County Sonoma County () is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, its population was 488,863. Its county seat and largest city is Santa Rosa, California, Santa Rosa. It is to the n ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, United States, situated between the cities of
Petaluma Petaluma (Miwok: ''Péta Lúuma'') is a city in Sonoma County, California, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census. Petaluma's name comes from the Miwok village nam ...
and Cotati, at the foot of the western flank of
Sonoma Mountain Sonoma Mountain is a prominent landform within the Sonoma Mountains of southern Sonoma County, California. At an elevation of , Sonoma Mountain offers expansive views of the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Sonoma Valley to the east. In fact, ...
. It is part of the North Bay subregion of the
San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Go ...
. The population was 2,522 at the 2010 census. The area is the site of a historic grove called Penn's Grove; it was formerly a freight station on the
Northwestern Pacific Railroad The Northwestern Pacific Railroad is a regional shortline railroad utilizing a stretch of the 271 mile mainline between Schellville and Windsor with freight and Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) commuter trains. Formerly, it was a regi ...
and a center of egg and chicken farming.


Geography

Penngrove's
downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
consists of Main Street, a street linking Old Redwood Highway to Adobe Road. Penngrove School is located at the corner of Adobe Road, where Main Street becomes Petaluma Hill Road.
Lichau Creek Lichau Creek is an U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed March 9, 2011 southwest-flowing stream in Sonoma County, California, United States, which flows through the town of ...
flows southward through the town, paralleling the railway. The creek feeds into the
Petaluma River The Petaluma River is a river in the California counties of Sonoma and Marin that becomes a tidal slough for most of its length. The headwaters are in the area southwest of Cotati. The flow is generally southward through Petaluma's old town, ...
, which flows to
San Pablo Bay San Pablo Bay is a tidal estuary that forms the northern extension of San Francisco Bay in the East Bay and North Bay regions of the San Francisco Bay Area in northern California. Most of the Bay is shallow; however, there is a deep water ch ...
. Due to the
Sonoma Mountain Sonoma Mountain is a prominent landform within the Sonoma Mountains of southern Sonoma County, California. At an elevation of , Sonoma Mountain offers expansive views of the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Sonoma Valley to the east. In fact, ...
's ancient volcanism, Penngrove is rich with
obsidian Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements s ...
and
petrified wood Petrified wood, also known as petrified tree (from Ancient Greek meaning 'rock' or 'stone'; literally 'wood turned into stone'), is the name given to a special type of ''fossilized wood'', the fossilized remains of terrestrial vegetation. ''P ...
. Its soil is unique, composed mainly of clay-like
adobe Adobe ( ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for ''mudbrick''. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is used to refer to any kind of e ...
, which has been used for centuries as building material. A prime example of adobe architecture is the
Rancho Petaluma Adobe Rancho Petaluma Adobe is a historic ranch house in Sonoma County, California. It was built from adobe bricks in 1836 by order of Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo. It was the largest privately owned adobe structure built in California and is the largest ...
, a State Historic Park in nearby Petaluma. Penngrove enjoys a mild Mediterranean climate. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the CDP covers an area of , all of it land.


Demographics

The
2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...
reported that Penngrove had a population of 2,522. The population density was . The racial makeup of Penngrove was 2,212 (87.7%)
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 19 (0.8%)
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 24 (1.0%) Native American, 54 (2.1%)
Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 2 (0.1%)
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...
, 112 (4.4%) from
other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 99 (3.9%) from two or more races.
Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...
or
Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...
of any race were 292 persons (11.6%). The Census reported that 99.6% of the population lived in households and 0.4% lived in non-institutionalized group quarters. There were 1,040 households, out of which 260 (25.0%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 483 (46.4%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 117 (11.3%) had a female householder with no husband present, 65 (6.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 80 (7.7%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships, and 10 (1.0%) same-sex married couples or partnerships. 285 households (27.4%) were made up of individuals, and 83 (8.0%) had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42. There were 665
families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...
(63.9% of all households); the average family size was 2.89. The population was spread out, with 442 people (17.5%) under the age of 18, 244 people (9.7%) aged 18 to 24, 585 people (23.2%) aged 25 to 44, 889 people (35.2%) aged 45 to 64, and 362 people (14.4%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44.8 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.0 males. There were 1,120 housing units at an average density of , of which 61.5% were owner-occupied and 38.5% were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4%; the rental vacancy rate was 3.1%. 64.6% of the population lived in owner-occupied housing units and 35.0% lived in rental housing units.


History

The
Mexican government The Federal government of Mexico (alternately known as the Government of the Republic or ' or ') is the national government of the United Mexican States, the central government established by its constitution to share sovereignty over the republi ...
granted Rancho Cotate to Captain Juan Castaneda in July 1844 for his military services in the region.DeClercq, 1977.Harris, 1980. The grant encompassed present-day Penngrove, Cotati and
Rohnert Park Rohnert Park is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located approximately north of San Francisco. The population at the 2020 United States Census was 44,390. It is an early planned city and is the sister city of Hashimoto in ...
. Cotate Rancho is a part of Vallejo Township which encompasses the plain between Sonoma Mountain and Petaluma Creek,
San Pablo Bay San Pablo Bay is a tidal estuary that forms the northern extension of San Francisco Bay in the East Bay and North Bay regions of the San Francisco Bay Area in northern California. Most of the Bay is shallow; however, there is a deep water ch ...
, with an east–west line dividing the tract from
Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, La Pampa * S ...
Township." Rancho Cotate was sold in 1849 to Dr. Thomas S. Page of Cotati, and eventually broken up and sold off piecemeal to incoming settlers. The first European settlers in the Penngrove area were David Wharff, W.J. Hardin, and J.M. Palmer, who arrived in 1852. In October 1870, the
San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad San Francisco and North Pacific Railroad (SF&NP) provided the first extensive standard gauge rail service to Sonoma County and became the southern end of the regional Northwestern Pacific Railroad. Although first conceived of by Asbury Harpen ...
completed the first railroad from Petaluma to Santa Rosa, running through Penngrove.


Culture

Every summer on the Sunday closest to July 4, Penngrove celebrates the 4th of July with a parade sponsored by the Penngrove Social Firemen. On Saturday at the Penngrove Fire Station, located at the corner of Main Street and Old Redwood Highway, the Rancho Adobe Firefighters' Association sponsors a breakfast.


Name

The naming of Penngrove is uncertain; there are three main "histories" of the name's origin. Ruth Anderson, the famous "Bell-Lady" of Penngrove (who lived on the site of the old schoolhouse on Oak Street), recalls, "In the late 1860s, two brothers by the name of Penn came out from Pennsylvania and bought of land in this area. They planted the area with olive trees, but when the trees matured it was found that the olives were not edible. The Penn brothers tore out many of the groves, sold the land and moved away. However, while they were here, they named their place Penn's Grove. Later it was changed to "Penn Grove," and still later, because our mail got confused with that of Pine Grove (the former name of
Sebastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...
), the U.S. Postoffice Department changed the name to one word—Penngrove." (Harris 1980) Other accounts state that because there was another town with the name of Penn's Grove in New Jersey, this could be a reason as to why the post office changed the name. Others claim that the Woodward family, who came from Pennsylvania, named their property Penn's Grove in honor of their home state.


Community development

Along with the chicken and egg industry, Penngrove was a source of basalt paving stones, which were used to pave the streets of major cities in the
Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area Gov ...
, including San Francisco. Harris notes that 200 men were employed at the three major cobblestone quarries at the end of the 19th century, and that quarry scars can still be seen dotting the hills between East Railroad Avenue and Roberts Road. When the Northwestern Pacific Railroad was completed in 1870, the paving stone industry kept Penngrove station busy. After the turn of the century, Penngrove became the "second largest egg and poultry producing area in the country. Only
Petaluma Petaluma (Miwok: ''Péta Lúuma'') is a city in Sonoma County, California, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Its population was 59,776 according to the 2020 census. Petaluma's name comes from the Miwok village nam ...
outdid this area" (Harris 1980). Apparently, according to ''
The San Francisco Examiner The ''San Francisco Examiner'' is a newspaper distributed in and around San Francisco, California, and published since 1863. Once self-dubbed the "Monarch of the Dailies" by then-owner William Randolph Hearst, and flagship of the Hearst Corporat ...
'', chickens paid better than gold mines. To this day, many dilapidated chicken houses dot old farms and country roads in the area.


Notable landmarks


Penngrove Community Church

One of the oldest buildings in Penngrove, the old Methodist Episcopal Church was built in 1898 at the corner of Formschlag Lane and Petaluma Hill Road. In 1910, the church was moved on wooden rollers to its present location at 9970 Oak Street. The original building now serves as a fellowship hall, while a newer structure, built in 1955–7, now serves as the main sanctuary. The original structure is still used by Girl Scouts of the USA,
Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded i ...
, 4-H, and various other community organizations.


Penngrove School

The first classes were taught in a small building on Peters' Ranch (Harris 1980: 33). In 1876, the first school was built at the southwest corner of Adobe Road and Main Street. It was named the Eagle School after the Eagle Hotel located across Main Street and shown on Thompson's map of Sonoma County (1877). In 1906 after construction of the second Eagle School, the old school was used as a teacher's residence. It was later moved about south to its current location and reconfigured into an ell. The second Eagle School was built between Main and Oak streets. The original structure no longer exists, and a private home now stands on that property, however, the steps leading to "Eagle School" from Main Street are still visible. Some of building materials were recycled for construction of the Community Center and a small building in Penngrove Park. In 1926 a beautiful mission-style school house was built and named Penngrove School, Eagle District. Penngrove School joined the Petaluma City School District in 1962. In 1963, the present multi-purpose room was constructed and newer wings were developed between it and the older portion of the school. The multi-purpose room was expanded with a stage in 2006. The 1926 school building is now primarily used for offices and the school library.


Post Office

"The Post Office at Penn's Grove was established on October 30, 1882. A series of name changes occurred because of mail mix-ups with Penn's Grove, New Jersey and Pine Grove (later renamed Sebastopol). In May 1895 the Petaluma paper reported: 'The Penngrove Post Office has had its name changed again and is now officially known by its former and best known title, Penn's Grove.' In 1908 the name was changed back to Penngrove and has remained so since" (Harris 1980). The first Post Office was located in the Edwards Building and was then moved into the Terribilini Building on the East side of Main Street. It was then moved next to Penngrove Market and a new structure for the Post Office was built in the 1980s on Main Street across from Penngrove Market.


Fire Department

At the turn of the century, three fire chemical carts served as Penngrove's fire protection. The foundation of Firehouse #1 can be found between Penngrove Church and the Old Eagle School lot on Oak Street. "The fire department was established in the fall of 1928. In 1929 the first fire engine was put into service" (Harris 1980). In 1938, the art deco fire house was built on Woodward Avenue, just above Main Street. This structure still bears the title "Penngrove Firehouse." It is a now a private residence. In 1975, the current firehouse was built at the corner of Old Redwood Highway and Main Street, the unofficial entrance to Penngrove. Until the 1990s, a siren placed at the top of the building would sound in order to alert volunteer firefighters of a fire. The siren had a greater than radius and could be heard frequently through the hot, dry summer months. This system was replaced by pagers in the 1990s, although the siren remains perched on top of the firehouse. Currently, the Penngrove Firehouse is part of the Rancho Adobe Fire District, along with Cotati and other surrounding communities.


Penngrove Community Club House

"During World War I, a group of Penngrove ladies met in Evart's Hall to do
Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...
work. After the war they decided they wanted to stay together as a group and have a club house of their own" (Harris 1980: 33). In 1922, after raising funds and materials, Penngrove came together to build the Community Club House. The total cost was $9,000. The building was first named the "Penngrove Social Welfare Club House", but was later shortened to Penngrove Women's Club House. After a fire destroyed portions of the building in the late 1970s and the Women's Club could no longer afford the upkeep, the Penngrove Social Firemen bought the building. It is now used for various community events, such as voting and fundraisers.


Bank Building

"The Bank Building was built in 1922 for the Central Commercial and Savings Bank. The bank lasted only 2 or 3 years. The bank manager and his family lived upstairs" (Harris 1980: 48).


Penngrove Rail Station

The Penngrove Rail Station burned to the ground in 1980, and nothing of it survives. The poultry loading docks still exist behind Penngrove Market, adjacent to Penngrove Park, and now house businesses.


Notes


Works cited

* *


General references

* * *


Further reading


''Miwok Indians''
from Access Genealogy, a list of all verified Coastal Miwok villages in the area


External links

* Historical Penngrove Images at th
Sonoma County Library Digital Collections
{{authority control Census-designated places in Sonoma County, California Census-designated places in California