Best of Picture from the Past
Of local bankers, football players and railroad men
By John S. Baggerly
Builder John Lyndon named this sturdy piece of architecture that housed the Bank of Los Gatos "the Theresa Block" in honor of his wife, a third generation Californian, which was a rare lineage to have in turn-of-the-century California.
The rotund gentlemen in the photo are presumably bankers or businessmen. In the early part of this century, cartoonists took to drawing these types with dollar-marks on their tummies. That was before dieting became an industry.
When A. J. Giannini built a Bank of America building on the corner in the early 1920s, this location became known as "the Bank Corner." Incidentally, since telling how A.P. Giannini started the Bank of Italy in San Francisco, this writer heard that Giannini's daughter Claire Giannini Hoffman died in San Jose at age 92. Her obituary in the San Jose Mercury News tells how she became the first woman to serve on the bank's board. Her husband, "Biff" Hoffman, was an All-American fullback at Stanford University.
Speaking of football, last week this space told of recent Los Gatos High School graduates playing in holiday bowl games. Here's an update on some winners: LGHS grad and quarterback Gus Farwell was with Arizona State in its 17-7 victory over Iowa in the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, while end Manuel Austin played for Washington in a 51-23 win over Michigan State in Honolulu's Aloha Bowl.
Untold in the W.E. "Bill" Mason/Myron Alexander piece Nov. 24 was the fact that besides starting Mason Electric Contractors--run today by son Bill--Bill Sr. was twice a town council member in the 1950s and accepted phone calls while eating meals at home. He met his wife, Kamille Steberg, as couples sometimes do in the movies.
Both were riding on a bus in the state of Washington when the bus broke down and the driver announced, "Make yourselves comfortable"--there would be a delay until help arrived. Bill thought he would be "more comfortable" sitting next to a pretty girl across the aisle and up a few rows. He asked if he might sit down, she nodded yes and, as they say, the rest is history. He was playing football at the University of Washington at the time; she was a student at Washington State.
As he was a businessman and two-time council member, word soon spread about Mason's magnanimous habit of taking phone calls at home. It was thought that Mason even kept a phone on the dining room table, although his wife disputed that.
Retired railroad engineer Billy Jones originally ran his little narrow-gauge train in his family orchard at Vineland and N. Santa Cruz avenues. By preserving the train for installation at Oak Meadow Park, Mason and friends performed a major town service.
Los Gatos, California Since 1881
