The Madera Movie Theater
This architect’s drawing of the new Madera Theater thrilled the town when it was published in the Madera Tribune in 1941. Before the year was out, the building had become a reality. Before movies, people were entertained in the Old Madera Opera House on the corner of B Street and Yosemite Avenue. Residents flocked there […]
The Madera Sugar Pine Lumber Company in 1927
The Madera Sugar Pine Lumber Company obtained its logs in the mountains of Madera County. After they were hauled to this mill in the mountains, they were cut into rough lumber and put into a flume for a 56-mile ride down to the Madera mill where the boards were sawed into finished planks. This 1925 […]
The Webster School in 1927
In 1927, the Webster School student body numbered 20, including three children of the teacher, Mrs. Mary Alice Cunningham Pitman. Shown here with their mother and their classmates are Robert Pitman (first row, far left), Rinard Pitman (second row, second from the left), and Willard Pitman (third row, fourth from the left). Webster School still […]
The 1931 Alta Hotel Fire
On September 27, 1931, at 6 a.m., Miss Nellie McSweeney, a Madera High School teacher frantically threw open the window of her room in the Alta Hotel and began to yell; the building was on fire. Chief John Brammer, who was directing the fire-fighting efforts, was the first to see the imperiled teacher. He shouted […]
1904 Fourth of July Parade
The 1904 Fourth of July parade proceeded down Yosemite Avenue and, as this photograph shows, passed the Alta Hotel on C Street. The day stood in sharp contrast to the Fourth of July celebration of 1903 when deserted streets gave mute testimony to the fact that Madera did not officially observe Independence Day that year. […]
The Schmitz Ranch
The Schmitz Ranch on what was once the old Chapman place, came about through the industriousness of the first John Walter Schmitz, who obtained employed employment as a supervisor for Miller and Lux in 1871. At first he was a fence builder but soon caught the eye of the cattle king because of his attention […]
Madera Agriculture in 1905
Agriculture in and around Madera first began with dry-wheat farming. This 1905 image was taken on the Ripperdan Ranch. George E. Ripperdan came to what is now Madera County in the 1880s and began to buy and lease land to farm wheat and barley. In 1887, he and his wife, Effie, established a home opposite […]
Doctor J.L. Butin
Madera’s pioneer physicians, Dr. J.L. Butin (far right) and his wife, Dr. Mary Butin (far left) were directors of Madera’s second financial institution, the First National Bank located on Yosemite Avenue and C Street. In addition to tending to their patients, J.L. served as president of the bank, while his wife functioned as the first […]
Ford garage on South C Street
By 1920, there were enough automobiles in Madera to support this Ford garage on South C Street. Virgil Gordon (center) was the proprietor. It was a time of transition for Madera during which horses and buggies competed with horseless carriages for the right-of-way on Yosemite Avenue. (Madera Images-Bill Coate)
Friedberger and Harder’s at 109 North D Street
On May 14, 1916, Caroline Kegel made a fateful decision to visit this grocery store, Friedberger and Harder’s at 109 North D Street. After making her purchases, she got in her buggy and headed back to her home near where the Schnoor Bridge now crosses the Fresno River. However, when she reached the railroad tracks […]
