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Founded amidst the din
of timber mills in 1876, this small, attractive and peaceful village
evolved out of a colorful and restless past, full of conquest,
conflict and reckless ingenuity, with more peculiar characters than
the funny papers, and more conflagrations and natural disasters than
even the naughtiest town deserves.
Today, Occidental
remains an unincorporated village (though more often, as here,
referred to as a town), with no mayor or elected government. The
work of running the town is shared out between organizations like
the Occidental Community Services District, the Occidental Chamber
of Commerce, the
Harmony
School District, the
Occidental
Community Council, Occidental Emergency Preparedness, the
Redwood
Arts Council and others in a remarkable demonstration of
cooperation.
Two
brothers, Ermenegildo and Dionisio Gonnella, are often credited with
beginning, in 1897, one of Occidental’s most picturesque
“industries” -- the making of redwood wreaths for use as holiday
decorations. The wreaths were originally formed on hazel twigs, then
later on wire frames, and this aesthetic use of redwood trimmings
reached surprising proportions over the years, with as many as
70,000 wreaths going to a single retailer. Over the years, entire
families would suspend other late-fall activities to make their
“Christmas money;” in a 1948 newspaper article it was estimated
that about 40 Occidental families were then involved in
wreath-making. Occidental families have continued the business of
weaving hoops and garlands of redwood for at least a century now,
and Occidental wreaths have hung on San Francisco’s Market Street
and in its City of Paris department store, in Los Angeles’
Ambassador Hotel and Coconut Grove, and in the White House for
several administrations.
After the departure
of the railroad (due to competition from autos and the trucking
industry) in 1930, the town began to depend even more on tourism.
Impressive scenery and an often delightful climate had been
attracting visitors to the Russian River area since the turn of the
century, but with the railroad gone, they were now much less likely
to find their way to Occidental. Fortunately a number of superb
Italian restaurants were already in operation in conjunction with
several hotels, and Occidental’s main draw became hearty
family-style meals in a pleasant country setting. The
counter-cultural explosion of the 1970s also brought many artists
and craftspeople to the area, and within a few years, diners could
also stroll and shop in a number of new and unusual stores.
Today, many
Occidentalites still earn a living by providing food, accommodations
and shopping opportunities for visitors. A corollary to the wreath
business, for instance, is the number of Christmas-tree farms that
dot the surrounding area. A trip to Occidental for a Christmas tree,
Christmas shopping and a hearty meal has become a yearly tradition
for many Bay Area families.
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707-545-0209