Old Town Irvine

DID YOU KNOW THAT, until the fifties, "Irvine" was Irvine Village, located on Sand Canyon? It was founded as a "hub" by the Irvine Ranch in 1887—when the Santa Fe Railroad came through—and soon included a lima bean warehouse (1895), general store (1911), hotel (1913), blacksmith's shop (1916), and post office. By the mid-60s, the focus had shifted to the new development surrounding UCI, and "Irvine village" became "East Irvine." The new-fangled fools with their planned city to the southwest took the name "Irvine."

"East Irvine" didn't stick, I guess. Today, I dropped by what is now called "Old Town Irvine," the neat product of redevelopment (and some bulldozing) by the city in 1984.

Here's a photo of the warehouse as it appeared in the 40s or 50s:

I took the shot below—of the northeast part of the building, now occupied by Tia Juana's Long Bar—maybe a year or two ago. (See history.)

I'm not sure when this one (below) was taken. It is a shot from the east, about where the 5 meets the toll road nowadays. Observe that we see two long buildings. I suspect that they were joined after the 1984 redevelopment.

You can see that western warehouse(?) below, too:

I'm told—by a friend who once worked in the building—that much of the original (processing?) machinery is preserved and visible inside the west end (at right), now offices. I'll check that out one of these days.

Below: judging by the hairstyles, this pic is, what, from the 1930s?

This shot (below) is from an earlier era, I think. Circa 1910-1920?

The general store, hotel, etc. were restored and moved closer to the warehouse decades ago. The Knowlwood restaurant occupies the old blacksmith's shop.

This appears to be from circa 1920-25. The general store?

The hotel? Circa 1913?

Compare these images with the restorations depicted above.

The east end, about a year ago.

According to La Quinta, the hotel includes "unique rooms built in a lima bean silo."

Pepper tree, across Sand Canyon, near the spot where, I believe, the general store once stood.

For information about the "Old Town" redevelopment project (1984), see city document. "Old town" was first designated "Myford," after James Irvine's son, since the name "Irvine" had already been taken. That was in the 1880s. By 1914, the other Irvine must've dissolved, cuz the name became available; they took it. Hence: "Irvine Village." Then, in 1964, the Irvine Co. needed the name for their UC-centric development to the southwest. "Irvine" or "Irvine Village" became "East Irvine," or "Old Town Irvine." Now, it's pretty much forgotten, except by customers of Tia Juana's Long Bar.

Holiday cat

TigerAnn pretty much does what she wants to do. You can make requests, but she generally ignores them. Luckily, most of what she wants to do is pretty acceptable. Plus she tolerates hugs and kisses and such--up to a point. It cannot be denied that she has settled into a kind of permanent peevishness, although it is combined with a kittenesque inclination to do stuff, keep active, rip around.

Most cats I've known betray at least a hint of solicitousness, unless they're solitary brutes who seek to avoid or destroy humanity. Not TigerAnn. If I'm working on my laptop and she wants attention, she'll climb right on my chest or laptop and plant herself there, as though my interests couldn't possibly matter. It is a remarkable thing. It is marvelous. Sometimes, I try to communicate the existence of my contrary interests, but it is of no use whatsoever. She commences pressing keys, standing on them. Her expression: utter inscrutability.

She is, I think, a tolerant cat. That is, she tolerates me. She does not annoy easily. If I want something from her, she will quietly ignore me, communicating only an utter indifference to my interests. She is, in her mind, rising to the occasion, waiting patiently for me to just go away. She is virtuous.

The infernal feline often looks into the distance, but I have yet to observe her actually offering an opinion or inclination about it. I am vexed.