A History of Business in Corona del Mar

by Peg Haapa, 2004-06-28

1904 Survey Map of Corona del Mar (Photo Credit: Sherman Library)

Courtesy of Sherman Library and Gardens.

I believe the first building in Corona del Mar was the Hurley Bell Inn, which is now Lawry's  Five Crowns Restaurant. It was patterned after the Bell at Hurley on the Thames near London.  I have seen the original from a boat on the Thames but never was inside. The original Hurley Bell in Corona del Mar was very English, having a room for bathing halfway down from the bedrooms on the second floor just like the old British inns. Our original Hurley Bell was said to be a "roadhouse," where movie stars and other celebrities stopped to eat and drink on their way south. The bar was always popular and the food excellent, with prime rib a specialty. At one time the bar was fined by the government because the drinks they served were too big. The rule was they must get so many drinks from a bottle. Probably the first fashion show in town was held at the Hurley Bell when the Ensign Newspaper sponsored the fashion merchants of Corona del Mar in a luncheon-style-show.  

President FDR drives down Coast Highway in CdM in July 1938. Photo courtesy of Sherman Library Collection.

Possibly the oldest continuous business in Corona del Mar was sold a month ago to Cal's Camera (former owner, Howard Folsom, can now be found at his other store in Irvine). He originally opened the store with his partner, Glenn Couch, in 1945. Howard has a picture of the store standing alone on Pacific Coast Highway with no buildings on either side. The current· store is a new building in the same location (Howard also has a picture of Corona del Mar's only snowstorm. It was in 1949.) They let the kids have a "snow holiday" from school to build snowmen). Next to Harbor Photo Lab in the same building was Wallace Calderhead's Jewelers. His son Rod was in real estate here until he moved to Pismo Beach.  

The Newport Harbor Ensign Newspaper was started August 13, 1948. We were located in  "Cameron's Corner," a little driveway-type street which also had the Knitting Shop, owned by  Margaret Welsh, and Corona del Mar's first library. The library later moved to a tiny building at the end of the Corona del Mar Elementary School's playground. On Goldenrod, backing into Cameron's Corner, were two shops, Katie Doane's Cleaners and Oliver Broomhead's Vacuum Cleaner Repair Shop (he had a business card with a broom head on it).  

The Corona del Mar Treasure Days and Lobster Bake were started by the Ensign while we were still in the small building. In the fall of 1950 business in Corona del Mar was so slow our adman got the idea to bring a little life to the town. The first event was held at the corner of Marguerite and Pacific Coast Highway. We had an art exhibit in connection with it and therefore needed a night watchman to guard the pictures, etc. Since we couldn't afford one, the committee took turns acting as watchmen. Ours was the graveyard shift between 4 and 5 a.m. The second Lobster Bake as held in the parking lot of what lot is now Albertson’s grocery store. I remember that Thelma O'Brien, owner of O'Brien's Dress Shop, and I started cooking the lobsters on the grill, not realizing they had to be cleaned and eviscerated first. Later, the Lobster Bake was moved to the Corona del Mar Main Beach. Lobster Dinner was $2.95.  

One of the highlights of the second Lobster Bake was when our adman's wife discovered he'd been cheating on her and she tried to run him down with her car at the gas station at the corner  of Jasmine Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway. That gas station was originally owned by Bob Callis, I believe. He was a big oil man and also active in Rotary. Later, the station was owned by the Burgers.  

One of the big events of the Lobster Bake and Treasure Days (the treasures were in the Corona del Mar shops) was the kids' treasure hunt. We had a big pirate's chest with stuff in it … mostly gift certificates. And we spread clues all over town so the kids could find them and locate the chest. One of the first "finders" was Walt Howald, now president of the Board of Orange Coast College.  

When I first came here, the Post Office was in a storefront in the middle of the block on the south side of the highway between Marguerite and Marigold Avenues. Florence Anderson was the Postmistress. On the Marguerite corner was Hampton's Drugstore complete with soda fountain. Next to them was Fitzpatrick's Department Store. Mr. Fitzpatrick also had stores in Balboa (the Bay Department Store), on the oceanfront at Newport, Barrows in the Lido area, and Reinert's in Costa Mesa. Many of his stores were run by his nephews, Jack and Myron Reinert, Rod Barrow, Lorne Huycke (who later started the Wet Seal chain), and Roger Hannaford. Next to the department store, which later was called Brandt's, was Brookings Variety store, a glorified five-and-ten, the Post Office, and on the Marigold corner was Coast Supermarket.

Across Marigold was Anthony's Shoe Repair Shop. For several years, owner Anthony “Larry” Modica made shoes for some lucky little girl in a "Cinderella" contest. One year he had both a prince and a princess and the boy was so excited he wet his pants. Anthony was from a line of expert shoemakers. I know of one time he lost a shoemaking contest in San Francisco because the   shoes were so perfect the judges wouldn't believe they were handmade. South of Anthony's was a hearing aid establishment for several years run by Hal Aebischer. Next to him was Petite Ville, a dress shop run by two ladies and later purchased by Mrs. Blanche Wakefield. Her daughter, Diane, who was often seen in the shop, later married Don Isbell, son of mayor Les Isbell. Don served on the Newport Beach City Council as well. The dress shop location later became the Bay Window dress shop run by our own Lovina Hayton. Next to her was CDM Travel Service run by three women: Colleen, Dorothy, and Margaret.

When I first came to Corona del Mar, a furniture store was in the building where Albertson's now is. They later moved the store to Newport's "Miracle Mile." After that, the location became All-American Market and later Albertson’s. Across the parking lot where CitiBank is now located was Christensen's Drug Store. Gina's Pizza has been here for a long time in back of the drugstore. It is a family business run by Gina Costa's sons.  

There used to be four motels in town. The one at the corner of Iris and Pacific Coast Highway had a swimming pool where the Holiday Liquor Store and Best Cleaners are today. The other was just south of the business buildings on Marguerite. Later a third motel, the Kirkwood was  

built in Coast Highway beyond Hazel at the entrance to Corona Highlands. This site later became condominiums. 

The first grocery store in town had come and gone by the time I arrived in 1948. It was located  near Ocean Blvd at Bayview and Goldenrod, the bottom floor of a building still standing owned by Jeanine Pacquette. However, when I came, on the ocean side of PCH a few blocks north of Goldenrod was Cannon's grocery store. Since they stocked comic books, they became free babysitters for the after-grade-school crowd. More than one mother called to say, "Dorothy, is Jimmy there? He's supposed to be home taking his piano lesson." Mrs. Cannon once complained that everyone shopped at their store when they were broke and could charge it, but when they had cash they went to the big chains.  

Also south of Goldenrod was Hidy's Pet Shop, and next Kindell’s Pottery where they manufactured their own ceramic ware. In fact, their kiln became Hop's (the editor's) office when the Ensign newspaper bought the building at 2721 E. Coast Highway. Dorothy Kindell was famous for manufacturing her striptease mugs where the handles showed girls in progressive stages of undress. In the Kindell/Ensign building was Kuhn's framing studio and a series of little restaurants. One was a Russian lady and her attractive daughter, who put a playful sign on the  cash register saying "Stamp out Snack Shops," which she quickly removed when the Snack Shop had a fire.  

(The Snack Shop, by the way, started at the corner of Acacia and Coast Highway where Ruby's Diner is currently located. It was started by Johnny McIntosh and his wife – with help from his wife's father, Ez Skinner, of Balboa Island. It was an immediate hit because of its spic-and-span appearance and its limited good menu. The second Snack Shop was opened at Narcissus and Coast Highway where Coco's is now.)  

The Ensign building housed other restaurants over the years. In fact, it was the location of the  first Mother's Kitchen (now Mother's Market) before it became a big food and vitamin purveyor on 17th street in Costa Mesa. Mother's, a health restaurant of course, started small with volunteer young people as servers.  

Another early business in our building was Fairchild's Men's Shop – small but with high end  merchandise. Mr. Fairchild also owned that quaint little cottage on Ocean Front at Iris. One of the businesses that started in our building was "Li'l Audrey's Recycled Rags," still in business at 2731 E. Coast Highway. Audrey started with a partner and later owned it herself. She moved to the little house where she is now located when it was vacated by Mrs. Murphy, who owned the Little Miss Muffett Shop. Miss Muffet's was a beautiful and expensive children's clothing shop.  

The next building south had Bragg's Dress Shop, owned by Marge and Buzz Bragg. And next to them was the Silhouette Shop, owned by Mr. and Mrs. Paul Bruce or Corona Highlands. This was a lovely high-end lingerie shop. Across Goldenrod was "The Colonel's Wild West Show" in a little shop that was so lightweight that when a Buick drove through it by accident one night, the Buick was unscathed but the Wild West show was demolished. The colonel was a colorful character who lived in a big white house next to the Corona del Mar Congregational Church (his house is now the recreation rooms of the church). The Colonel always wore western clothes with a huge silver belt buckle. Every year he went to Tombstone, Arizona, for the Wild West celebration. 

For a while, a young couple, the McFarrens, had a mug shop back of the Wild West Show, where they personalized coffee mugs. The next building to the south was Denny's Cafe. Mr. and Mrs. Denny did the cooking and ran a fairly large establishment. I remember eating lunch there while watching Don Larsen pitch his famous no-hit World Series baseball game on TV in 1956. The Dennys paid everything in cash ... we had to go there with the bill and she would pay us for her ads. After Mr. Denny died, his wife wanted to build an apartment at the back, but she couldn't get financing because she had always done business with cash.  

For years there was a sign at the corner of Orchid and Coast Highway saying, "Future Home of  Port Theater." But suddenly, the theater started going up at the corner of Heliotrope and Coast  Highway. It was built by Wilmot, who did quite a bit of building in the area. For a long time, the movies were pretty much first-run with double features, but later, perhaps after the Edwards chain became active, it featured a lot of foreign films. The town had a few special activities there, but the stage was too narrow for much of a production. When the Plymouth  Congregational Church started, they met at the Port (before moving to Newport Heights). I  always wondered if someone should cover up the frequently lurid movie posters as we went  into church service. 

One of the early buildings in town, built in the late 1940s, was the Bircher building at 1515 E. Coast Highway at the corner of Carnation. The restaurant on the corner was Ragan's dinner house run by Cap Ragan and his wife, who made such delicious dinner rolls! Ragan's was a real landmark in town. Their daughter Patty still lives in the area. Next to the restaurant (which has meanwhile housed several dining establishments, including a Vietnamese dinner house, and now boasts Oysters) was the very lovely dress shop, O'Briens, owned by Velma O'Brien, who still lives in CDM. I remember Myford Irvine (of The Irvine Company) always seemed to show up before Christmas to buy his wife an elegant nightgown. One year it was decorated with rhinestones – (I wonder how that was for sleeping.)

Other businesses there were a beauty salon, an optical shop, and at the corner the Dorothy Jo  Dance Studio, where all the children seemed to learn some dancing in their younger years.  Dorothy Jo Swanson was fresh from the Chicago area where she had had a studio in South Bend, Indiana. Her husband, Hal, was with the Post Office. One of the offices in the Bircher Building housed the Blurock architectural firm. Also in that building, John Poole started his Catalina radio station which is still going. 

One of the oldest businesses in town was Gino's. Gino Boero owned the whole corner at  Marguerite and Coast Highway (and I believe the family still does). Gino had a delicatessen and restaurant. At the deli you could get real Italian sausages and cheeses and at the restaurant [had] delicious Italian food. For a special night out we'd go to Gino's for his wonderful spaghetti dinner. I should underline "special" because, after all, it was $1.89. Gino's son Gino was a [Newport] Harbor High [School] football great (we called him "Speedy"). And he is still in the area, usually connected with some eating establishment here or somewhere else in southern California. The Gino's site has since been home to a number of restaurants, including the Chef's Inn, Alejandro's, Studio Cafe, and now Banderas.   

Across Coast Highway, Whitman's garage was here when we arrived in 1948. That building was later an antique shop, a garden shop, a plumbing shop, and is now a café. Next door is The Quiet Woman, and on the corner is Franklin Real Estate. One of the employees at Whitman's Garage was Eddie Anderson, whose mother was Florence Anderson, the first Postmistress in Corona del Mar. She was followed by Postmaster Ross King. Next was Verne Watson, who later moved to Fallbrook. Verne was followed by Grant Howald, after whom the Corona del Mar Youth Center was named. Grant's widow, Inez, still lives in CDM and their son, Walter, who was one of the Ensign's first newsboys, is now president of Orange Coast College Trustees.

The earliest gas station still in operation is Tom Sharp’s 76 Station at PCH and Avocado, (Before 1958 it was called Kenneg’s.) There used to be a Shell station owned by Bill Canning at Goldenrod and PCH. And for years Stowers had a gas station with tow truck service at Orchid and PCH. Les Schunck and his son have had Newport Tire for a number of years even though the building is quite new. Sid's Garage was another early place to get your car fixed.  

Fittingly, one of the oldest businesses in town when I arrived was Baltz Mortuary. For a while, it was called Baltz-Bergeron. In the early days the chapel at Baltz was the largest meeting place in town, and Lewis and Bernice Baltz were generous with its use (providing it didn't interfere with their real business). Now that location is the home of Carmelo's restaurant.  

Although it has changed ownership, Crown Hardware dates from the 1940s. It was originally owned by Cliff Lionbarger and manned by several members of his family. One year Cliff was audited by the IRS because he had given so much money to his church and other Christian charities…The donations proved correct, but the IRS found an error in addition so it cost Jett Lionbargers anyway.  When bought Crown, it was Schubin his first store, but now through purchasing other stores and opening new ones he has a whole chain of hardware stores.  

Lots were $1,650 in Corona del Mar when I first moved here, but even then there were many  realtors. Price McQuiston had an office just in front of Cardoza Sloan Gardens. Mrs. Sloan still lived here and I was informed that her late husband, Cardoza, helped lay out the flower named streets. At the corner of Fernleaf and PCH, part of the current Sherman Gardens was the Vogel real estate office. Johnny Vogel, was one of the area's earliest and shrewdest realtors, married his best saleswoman,  Lois. You always saw a bunch of people in John's office…many of them bill collectors from the utilities because Mr. Vogel liked to hang onto his money until the last possible moment. An early real estate firm in town was Harbor Investment, run by Hadd Ring and now his son Bill. Hadd was a big man in town, a city councilman and one of the ones who negotiated the Bay Club deal. Bill has seen a lot of real estate come and go since he has been in the business for about 40 years. Hal Pinchin was  another Realtor who had his office in CDM. For a while he was at the corner of Goldenrod and PCH on the north side of the highway. Charlie Brown, builder turned realtor, was at 2721 E. Coast Hwy.

Probably the first regular business in town was Kay Finch Ceramics at Hazel and PCH. Kay  developed a beautiful line of animals that you'd like to hug if they weren't ceramic. She had her pottery plant for years, and her products are now very collectible. She also was a dog lover and raised and bred Afghan hounds and Yorkshire terriers. She traveled worldwide to judge  prestigious dog shows. Her husband, Braden Finch, was a city councilman.  

Another city councilman was Dee Cook, owner of Johnny's Liquor Store. He later moved to  Bishop, California, and became mayor up there. The Newport Beach City Hall council chairs were shipped to Bishop after our city council redecorated.  

One of the jewels in Corona del Mar's crown is the prestigious Sherman Gardens. Before the  Sherman trust bought the property. Norman's nursery occupied the Dahlia end of that property.  Also there was Karen Margreta (Impers), owned by Karen Margreta Bruning. She sold exquisite crystal and other imports from Scandinavian countries. She did a big business in collectible Christmas plates, and the family lived in a house behind their store When Sherman Gardens first opened, she ran a little coffee garden on the upper level, using women's charity group volunteers for waitresses. Later, Karen Margreta imports moved across the highway and eventually to Laguna Beach. For a short time, Eunice Knox ran a ladies clothing shop called "Fun Fashions” in that block midway between Dahlia and Fernleaf.

The spectacular international Boy Scout Jamboree was held in 1953 on the “Vacant Prairie” land from  MacArthur to Jamboree. This was originally in Corona del Mar as was everything to the Back Bay, but when the Irvine company built Fashion Island on this site, they preferred a Newport Beach address, so land east of MacArthur was designated Corona del Mar. At one time there was a drive-in restaurant (the first for miles around) called Merle's Drive-In, on the inwards of MacArthur and PCH–a great place to take your sweetie if you had a car. The eatery later became "The Zoo" and a guy in a gorilla suit stood out in front to wave the customers in.  

Across MacArthur on the hill which now holds Harbor View Hills was the original movie site for "All Quiet on the Western Front." When we came, we could still see the trenches dug on the hillside, a reminder of the World War I epic.