One of the great things about the Aptos History Museum is that I get to interact with people who stop by. Some people have questions, and some people have new stories to tell. Sometimes I have already learned the answers that people want to hear and sometimes I get to be a detective. Fortunately, I […]
Round and Round We Go By John Hibble
The traffic circle/roundabout at the foot of Rio Del Mar Boulevard was the solution to the problem of four roads and a parking lot converging at a single point. The intersection is now able to deal with nine lanes of travel that must also accommodate fire trucks and busses. This was not always the case. […]
Highway One, a Blessing and a Curse By John Hibble
The construction of Highway One in the late 1940s has had a profound impact on our Aptos community. Before there was a Highway One there was the Santa Cruz-Watsonville Road which passed right through Aptos Village. Today the old highway is called Soquel Avenue where it connects to Santa Cruz, Soquel Drive in the mid […]
Polo in Aptos? By John Hibble
How did the Polo Grounds Regional Park get its name? The park has a total area of sixty-two acres with forty hidden acres of flat alluvial plain located between Valencia Creek on the west and oak woodland hillsides on the north and east sides, topped by Huntington Drive. The valley empties out to the intersection […]
The Seawalls of Seacliff Beach by John Hibble
When Seacliff Beach is exposed to heavy surf, a jigsaw puzzle of metallic construction rises from the sand. That always brings up questions of what that might be. The answer is that they are the remains of the original seawall. After the death of Claus Spreckels, his Aptos Ranch was sold during the roaring twenties […]
And the Rest is History by John Hibble
Aptos is an amazing place. It is today and it has an amazing past. Stop by the Aptos History Museum and you will be amazed. My wife Karen and I have been collecting photographs, artifacts and stories since 1985. Karen and I started managing the Aptos Chamber of Commerce in Redwood Village in 1985. Bob […]
Historic Sand Rock Farm by John Hibble
What is Sand Rock Farm and where is it located? I first learned of Sand Rock Farm in 1997 when the new owners, Susan Van Horn and Brian Denny showed my wife Karen and me the property at 6901 Freedom Blvd, which they wanted to turn into a bed and breakfast inn. It needed a […]
I Can Fly by John Hibble
Any child who has ever seen a bird soar through the sky has wanted to fly. Greek mythology tells of Icarus who died trying to fly. Leonardo da Vinci designed a flying machine but never built it. The first time that people ascended into the rarefied air was in a hot air balloon in 1783 […]
The Santa Cruz Rail Road, Built by Giants
By John Hibble When and why did the railroad come to Santa Cruz County? Who built it? What has been its impact and what will it mean to our future? Setting the Stage In the early days, travel between Monterey and Santa Cruz might be by foot, horse, ox cart, horse drawn wagon, or buggy. […]
The Sea Breeze Tavern of Rio Del Mar
By John Hibble One of the few remaining icons of the lux Rio Del Mar Resort and Country Club era is the Sea Breeze Tavern building on the Esplanade at Rio Del Mar beach. Before there was an Esplanade, the location was part of an estuary where Aptos Creek joins the Monterey Bay. In 1875, […]
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