"Henry and Sarah Becker of 50 Van Ness Ave. on the Westside of Santa Cruz liked to brag about their American-born niece, Mildred Southmayd, who around 1920 married well-to-do Englishman Mr. Fowler," writes columnist Ross Eric Gibson. "He had been living in China when the first World War started and headed home to defend Britain."
"On Sept. 22, 1941, the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf was hit by a major arson fire doing $10,000 in damage," writes Ross Eric Gibson. When news of the Pearl Harbor attack came Dec. 7, the wharf was closed to all fishing, with access controlled by a guarded gateway. It was hoped the special thick-cut lumber needed for wharf repairs wouldn't get prioritized for military use only. "