circa 1929
Obviously—to Mill Valley residents for sure—this photo is of Throckmorton Avenue looking up toward the Sequoia Theater. The year is 1929 and the Sequoia was about to open. Now a cineplex, it is still showing first run movies. At right in the photo, Purity Meats occupied the space where Tyler Florence now sells kitchenware. And located just past the Sequoia was Mill Valley’s Studebaker dealership. On the left, as the sign indicates, sat the offices of the ubiquitous PG&E—as we say, some things never change. Note however, this would soon become—and still is—the location of Mill Valley Market. Beyond that is the current location of Mill Valley Flowers; then comes the iron railing that kept pedestrians from falling into Mill Creek, and still does. On a sad note: 1929 was the year of the disastrous fire that destroyed 117 homes and, but for a sudden shift in 60 mph winds, could have decimated all of Mill Valley’s downtown.
