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By the turn of the century, many parcels of Cotati land had been sold
as small farms. The freight transportation offered by the railroad
through town, the development of the new county road, and the sudden
need for businesses serving a growing agricultural community, all
combined to make Cotati something of a boom town.
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During
the first decade of the century, churches, schools, meeting halls and
homes by the score were built. By 1911, the town could boast that a
thousand people had celebrated the Fourth of July there. Around the
Plaza businesses sprang up, including the Cotati Hotel.
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Cotati Hotel |
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The
November 1911 edition of The Northern Crown, a Petaluma journal,
extolled the virtues of Cotati and its public-spirited inhabitants. The
citizens of Cotati built and maintained their own public parks, built
churches, schools and meeting halls. The trees they planted still stand.
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During
the teens Cotati continued to grow. Automobile dealerships appeared in
the 20's along with the need to establish a fire department. In the past
Cotatians had banded together to fight their own fires or else relied
on the Santa Rosa department. The combination of high winds and
tinder-dry summertime grasses helped to make parts of Cotati subject to
frequent grass-fires. In an area where everyone knew, or knew of
everyone else, it was natural to join together in saving one another's
property and, in some cases, lives. By 1927 the number of structures and
the size of the area needing fire protection necessitated the
organization of the Cotati Volunteer Fire Department.
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Congregational Church
Church of the Oaks |
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Many
of the men, and sons of men, who had helped one another spontaneously,
now joined together in an organized way. The area the men protected was
even larger than the current North Bay Fire Authority. In fact the need
was so great and their performance so effective, that in 1935 the
Volunteer Fire Department entered into a contract with the state,
forming the Fire Protection District which still exists.
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Cotati Volunteer Fire Dept. |
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the 30's and 40's, agriculture continued as the most important influence
in the Cotati Valley, and the town changed more slowly. In the 40's and
50's, small family farms were having a hard time surviving, and some of
Cotati's agricultural lands began to develop as residential and
commercial areas. Opening of the 101 freeway in the mid-1950's made it
feasible for San Francisco workers to commute to homes in Cotati. |
POPUP EXHIBITS
Cotati School (circa 1910)
Congregational Church
Post Office/General Store
Train Depot (opened 1907)
Cotati Speedway
Speedway Racecar
Volunteer Fire Dept.
Catholic Church
Cotati Hotel