Winter 2025

Capital,” he describes Monterey as “…a place of two or three streets, economically paved with seasand, and two or three lanes, which were water courses in the rainy season… Short sec- tions of wooden sidewalk only added to the dangers of the night…” In 1889, Charles Crocker decided to extend his Southern Pacific Railroad from his Hotel Del Monte terminus to his sand operation just beyond Pacific Grove. A roadbed was created to the east of Custom House, burying La Playa de los Insurgentes. Railroad tracks were laid within mere feet of Custom House. In 1890, trolley tracks were placed on Alvarado Street, to the immediate west of Custom House. Initially horse-drawn, the trolley was electrified in 1903. At the turn of the century, the Native Sons of the Golden West (NSGW) resolved to restore Custom House. NSGW arranged to lease the building from the Federal Government for a dollar a year, then transferred the lease to the C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 2 5 119 Known as “The Renaissance Man of the West,” artist Jo Mora featured Custom House prominently in his “The Seventeen Mile Drive” carte (map), which was commissioned by the Del Monte Company. Notice he dates Custom House to 1814, not 1827. (Left) Children loved Sebastian the par- rot, who lived in Custom House from 1969 until the mid-1980s. Sebastian gen- erally flew free, but liked to sleep in his cage. (Right) M. Evelyn McCormick paint- ed Custom House many times, including in this late work. She used the upstairs of the Custom House north building as her art studio for five years, until NSGW restoration work forced her to vacate. Photo: Courtesy of Monterey History & Art Association and Pebble Beach Company Photo: Courtesy of Monterey History & Art Association Photo: California State Parks