History of The Pheasant Club

Video of Pete Palamidessi filmed in December 2019 and shared by David Kamminga with the Rotary Club of West Sacramento. 

Goodbye to Old Town Inn-Suites

These pix were from our blog post in 2009. Years ago this motel was called the Pony Express Motel and the pony was still standing in front of the Old Town Inn-Suite on West Capitol Avenue. The motel served as transitional housing recently to many of the West Sacramento homeless population.

Cemex Rubble Pile

The demolition is complete...all that remains of the old Cemex Cement Plant is a pile of cement rubble.

Silo Demolition in Progress

The progress is slow but steady in the demolition of the old Cemex Cement storage silos on South River in West Sacramento.

RIP Goose Club (1987 to 2014)

The Goose Club on Jefferson Boulevard closed this week.  A local hangout for many years, most recently it was owned and operated by Carl Zagar and his son Joe.  Many will remember when it started out as pizza and beer joint in the 1960's (some say in the 1950's) then later became the Wild Goose. Carl and his wife Judy bought the business back in 1987 and we have great memories of meeting up with friends to play pool and shuffle board there.  We look forward to the grand opening of the new West Sacramento Sports Bar and Grill in this memory filled building! 

Goodbye to the Old Cemex Silos

These old silos at the Cemex cement plant on South River Road are now being  torn down as part of the continuing redevelopment of the riverbank area. See more at the Business Journal.
Photo by Barbara Smith (2008)

Neon Relic- A blast from the past!

Today's post will bring back some memories for the old timers in West Sacramento. This neon sign once welcomed folks to the El Rancho Bowl on West Capitol Avenue (now the Capitol Bowl). Thanks to our sleuth Michael Nyberg who found this relic of the past at a recycling facility off Harbor Blvd. It sure brings back memories for me.

Photo by Michael Nyberg

Kiesel Crossing and Pump Building

Returning to West Sacramento from Woodland on the Old River Road we crossed the
tracks at the Kiesel Crossing. Just before the tracks sits this old pump building.

Gone but not forgotten...

This photo of the underpass leading to West Capitol Avenue from the Raley Field was shot last January during heavy rains...it was torn down to make way for the bridge district project.

Remnants of Lighthouse Golf Course

Robert Peffer shared this "not-yet-developed" part of the old Lighthouse Golf Course just west of Fountain Drive. Robert said "Who would have suspected that there would still be relics of the old golf course?". Personally, I loved that course as that is where I took my first golf lesson years ago when it was called Riverbend Golf Course...

A Classic...Willys Jeep Pickup Truck

Driving through the neighborhood we saw this great Willys Jeep Pickup Truck. Our grampa had one of these that he used to deliver shrubs and trees for his plant nursery in Idaho.....Trivia: The original pronunciation of "Willys" was with a short "i" sound for the 'y"; so it was pronounced "Will-iss".

Vintage Mustang Convertible

By now you must know we never pass up the opportunity to get a photo of a great vintage car in the neighborhood. We think this beauty is probably a 1966 Ford Mustang..in perfect shape!

A sad statement for the new Westmore Oaks Campus

As most of you know the old James Marshall High/River City High School campus is now home to the K-8 Westmore Oaks School. Here is a picture of what Washington Unified School District has allowed to happened to the gym. Evidently they don't have enough money to repair damage done to the gym from a fire several years ago. The gym smells terrible now...musty.. like an old basement from being used for storage. I did hear from an ex district employee that there might be funds earmarked for repairs to the gym. But right now this campus has a huge student (over 800) population that has no activity area on rainy days. This property is all that is left of my alma mater...and this makes me sad!

Classic Mustang II

Spotted parked in the hood.. a second generation Mustang II -MPG Stallion (1974–1978). Sweet!
If you are a Mustang or classic car buff, the Sacramento Area Mustang Club is hosting their upcoming car show on Saturday June 5th in Rancho Cordova.

Joe's Giant Orange--Shasta Lake, CA

Thank you Ken Jourdan for sharing these photos of Joe's Giant Orange in Lake Shasta, CA. Joe's is one of the few remaining Giant Orange Stands in California. Per Ken: "The part behind the front door was added a number of years ago and remodeled when Joe bought it. You can see the openings in the Orange where they used to serve out of when it was built. I don't think they have been used since the freeway was put in and it was moved from the corner. (Less that 100yds.) We were told that this was the last one since the one near Chowchilla was hit by the truck; but the web site Weird California shows some others."

The Spirit of Sacramento is Still Sinking

This photo was sent to us by Charlie Gordon who said "I enjoy your photo blog and wanted to share this sad photo with you. This boat has been in disrepair for years, sitting just south of Linden on the river road. Maybe it was the last storm that sunk it. What a shame."

See previous photos posted on this blog in November of 2007.

Disappearing Relic "Cigarette Machine"

Those coupons that Phillip Morris is sending out won't work in the vending machine thank you...This machine was in a pub in Siesta Key,Florida. In some countries like Germany and Japan cigarette machines are still common but it is pretty rare to find one in California.

The Blue Relic

The Plymouth Valiant was manufactured by the Plymouth division of Chrysler Corporation from 1960 to 1976. It was created to give the company an entry in the compact car market which was emerging in the late 1950s.

Goodbye Hollywood Hardware West

Hollywood Hardware West has closed their store on Merkley Avenue. For many years they were the only hardware store in the West Sacramento area. Over the years it was always a regular stop for our family whether we needed 1 screw, a gallon of paint, a 2 x 4, or the screen door repaired. I really could spend hours there just looking..... We will miss you Denny & Jerry and thank you for 40 years of service to our community!

Relic at the old River City High Campus

I walked around the recently retired River City High Campus on Clarendon Street and saw this great old flat bed truck parked in back. The campus will re-open in the fall as the new West More Oaks School housing K thru 8th grades.

More photos of my walk about the campus that day can be found here on Webshots.