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Discover LOST Gatos: The wets and the drys
Happy New Year, Los Gatos!
After overindulging during the holidays, many people begin the new year by observing a “Dry January.” The practice of abstaining from alcohol for a month started in the U.K. in 2012 as part of a campaign by Alcohol Concern, a...
John Bean and the Valley of Heart’s Delight
Spring has finally arrived! As beautiful as it is today, imagine what spring was like when thousands of acres of fruit and nut trees were in full bloom in the “Valley of Heart's Delight.” Did you know that many of those orchards might not...
Discover LOST Gatos: Happy Birthday, Los Gatos!
On Aug. 10, 1887—135 years ago today—a newly created Board of Trustees voted to officially incorporate the Town of Los Gatos. Let’s mark the occasion with a quiz about our beloved town’s history.
1. Who was awarded a land grant for El Rancho Rinconada de...
The ‘Wild’ case of a woman placed at-risk due to sketchy Santa Clara County paperwork
The office of Harry Ryan was the place Jack London penned his seminal novel “the Call of the Wild,” about a dog that’s taken from the Santa Clara Valley to the Klondike, where he befriends wolves and leads a sled team.
Ryan, who met London...
DISCOVER LOST GATOS: The historic Coggeshall Mansion
As we bid farewell to The Palms restaurant, let’s take a look at the history of this landmark Los Gatos property.
The stately nine-room Queen Anne Victorian home on what was then a residential section of North Santa Cruz Avenue was built for Mary Barry...
Hakone Estates gets Heritage Grant; nude hiking at Lupin Lodge; locals honored at universities
Grant awarded to Hakone Estate and Gardens
On June 7, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a County Historical Heritage Grant to Hakone Estate and Gardens in Saratoga. The grant will support the restoration of the 1932 Mon (Main Gate) roof originally...
The long and winding road (Discover LOST Gatos)
—This is the first in a two-part series.
Summer is here, accompanied by the usual traffic gridlock, so let’s all take a deep breath while I share the mostly forgotten history of our much maligned Highway 17.
If you think traveling over the hill is an...
Discover LOST Gatos: The railroad era pt. 1
Of all the events in Los Gatos’ history, none had a more lasting impact than the arrival of the railroad. In this two part series, we’ll explore how the “iron horse” became the driving force behind the transformation of our town from an obscure...
Town’s efforts to acknowledge earliest residents fraught with challenges
Earlier this year while tweaking the history section of the Draft General Plan, Los Gatos planning commissioners suggested zooming-out from the previous version, which only told the story of settler expansion, to also share the history of the original inhabitants.
What may have seemed, to...
Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Mountain Charlie!
St. Patrick’s Day offers the perfect opportunity to pay homage to one of Los Gatos’ most fascinating and colorful characters, Charles Henry McKiernan, better known as “Mountain Charlie.”
McKiernan was born in Ireland in 1825. He joined the British navy to escape the potato famine...

















