WHERE DID THOSE NAMES COME FROM???

A Brief History of the

Major Arterial Streets and Avenues

by Gary B Speck

When the town of Alessandro was established during the late 1880s land boom in Southern California, it was just the beginning of development in the upper end of the valley that today is covered by the City of Moreno Valley. In 1890, the Bear Valley Land & Water Company established the town of New Haven at the east end of the area, and in 1892, a development map was platted, then filed in San Bernardino County (Riverside County wasn’t established until 1893). This map covered a large area stretching from west of present day I-215 nearly to the Badlands, and from the northern cove east of Box Springs Mountain (just south of today’s Sunnymead Ranch development) to the northern end of today’s Perris. The north-south trending arterial streets were 60 feet wide, were a half-mile apart and were alphabetically named from “A” at the far west to “V” in the east after prominent investors or employees of the townsite company. The east-west trending arterial avenues were 80 feet wide, a quarter-mile apart and carried botanical (plant) names alphabetically arranged as they moved north and south away from centrally located Alessandro Boulevard. Alessandro and Redlands boulevards were the major thoroughfares and were 120 feet wide.

NORTH – SOUTH STREETS

AMMON

Ammon Platt Kitching, vice president and general manager of the Bear Valley Irrigation Co, (Bear Valley Land & Water Co.) suppliers of water to the towns of Alessandro & Moreno. Kitching was a rich wool merchant originally from Boston, MA. Frank Elwood Brown (Moreno's original developer) graduated from Yale University in New Haven, CT and was obviously acquainted with him and his $$$. When Brown conceived of building the Bear Valley Dam (Big Bear Lake), Kitching was one of the financial backers, and became an officer in the company that funded and operated the project. Ammon Street was shown on the original plat map in an area west of present I-215, between Eschcholtzia (JFK) & Mariposa. It is no longer shown on maps, but would be approximately near the intersection of Orange Terrace Pkwy and Van Buren Blvd, north of Air Force Village West. In Mead Valley, Alexander Street follows the southern extension of where it was, as does Alexander St off the 1600 block of Alessandro just west of the Moreno Valley city limits.

BROWN

This street was named after one of the principals in the Bear Valley Land and Water Company, Frank Elwood Brown. Frank Brown, along with partner Edward Judson established the little town of New Haven at the intersection of Alessandro and Redlands boulevards in 1890. He was an energetic and charismatic man, and avid developer, having his headquarters in Redlands. Jane Davies Gunther in her book, Riverside County, California, Place Names, credits him with the development of Alessandro (take over in 1890), Moreno (originally New Haven), Lakeview, and Brownlands (1913-1915).

CLARK

JAMES GARDNER Clark was another New Haven CT investor, and was a lawyer and financier.

DAY

WILBUR F. DAY was a stockholder in the Bear Valley Irrigation Co., and was a one-time New Haven, CT banker.

ELSWORTH

Unknown, but possibly WILLIAM H. ELSWORTH of Redlands.

FREDERICK

This street was named after the Secretary for the Bear Valley Irrigation Company, FREDERICK E. HOTCHKISS. He was from New Haven, CT, and his wife was the daughter of Willard F. Pettit.

GRAHAM

This street was named after Senator James Graham, of Connecticut, a major investor in the development.

HEACOCK

This street was named after the Honorable Willard J. Heacock of Gloversville NY. He was a member of the board of directors for the Bear Valley and Alessandro Development Company.

INDIAN

This street was named to honor the Native Americans who inhabited the valley prior to development, and who were used in construction projects for the dam and water system.

JUDSON

Judson Street was the 10th major north-south street from the west, and lies in the heart of the plat for the community. Originally it ran between Ironwood Ave on the north and Filaree Avenue on the south, and was named after Frank Brown's partner, Edward GLOVER Judson. Brown, Judson and other investors, were the guiding force behind the Bear Valley Land & Water Co. which began the original development of old Moreno. In April 1952, it was renamed to Perris Boulevard as it linked the City of Perris to the then busy little town of Sunnymead. The City of Perris was named after Frederick Thomas Perris, who was born in 1837 in England, and emigrated to the US, receiving his citizenship in 1858. He was a civil engineer, and in 1882 was hired by the California Southern Railway Co as a chief engineer and construction superintendent for the San Diego-San Bernardino branch that went through Temecula and up the west side of the Moreno-San Jacinto Valley paralleling today's I-215. The first train arrived in San Bernardino in September 1883. The California Southern Line was later taken over by the Santa Fe. A major portion of that line south of Perris is no longer in existence, having been washed out by floods, but the section along I-215 between Perris and Riverside, and on into San Bernardino is still being used.

Isn't it interesting that neither of the two men who spearheaded the development of the future City of Moreno Valley no longer have a major street named after them? Ed Judson did, but only for a short time. Brown's legacy is long forgotten, and lies outside the city limits. Yet one of the major streets in town is named for a man that had nothing to do with Moreno Valley!

KITCHING

Ammon P Kitching, vice president and general manager of the Bear Valley Irrigation Co, (Bear Valley Land & Water Co.) suppliers of water to the towns of Alessandro & Moreno. Kitching was a rich wool merchant out of Boston, MA. Frank Elwood Brown (Moreno's original developer) graduated from Yale University in New Haven, CT and was obviously acquainted with him and his $$$. When Brown conceived of building the Bear Valley Dam, Kitching was one of the financial backers, and became an officer in the company that funded and operated the project. He was the only person who had two streets named for him. Probably because he also have the only “A” and “K” in the sequence.

LASSELLE

No information for the person this street was named after.

MORRISON

Frank P. Morrison, ended up being a receiver when the Bear Valley Irrigation Company folded. He was a member of the board of directors for the Bear Valley and Alessandro Development Company and hailed from San Francisco.

NASON

This street was named after a landowner and Bear Valley Irrigation stockholder, FRANK L. NASON.

OLIVER

No information for the person this street was named after, but it likely was someone’s first name.

PETTIT

HENRY H. Pettit and his wife were early land owners and originally came from Gloversville, NY. Her father was Willard Heacock. Much of the Pettit street right-of-way was renamed Moreno Beach Drive after Lake Perris opened in 1974. The Pettit, Heacock and Hotchkiss families were the originators of the Moreno Fruit Company.

QUINCY

Frank Brown’s son’s middle name was Quincy, as were the middle names of his father and grandfather. So I guess in a way, this street honors Frank Brown in a round-about way!

REDLANDS

Redlands Blvd was named after the city of Redlands which was the hometown for the Bear Valley and Alessandro Development Company.

SINCLAIR

John E. Sinclair, from Worcester, MA was a member of the board of directors for the Bear Valley and Alessandro Development Company. He was a former professor

THEODORE

This street was named for THEODORE CLARK. He was another New Haven investor, and served as manager for the Bear Valley Irrigation Company.

ULYSSES

No information for the person this street was named after, but it likely was someone’s first name.

VIRGINIA

This was probably named for VIRGINIA HEACOCK, daughter of Willard J. Heacock.

EAST - WEST AVENUES

The east-west avenues don’t have the historical connections that the north-south streets do. It should be noted however, that they are just as colorful, and have undergone some significant changes, both in name and in some cases, alignments. The two largest east-west thoroughfares do not carry botanical names, as does one other. These are SUNNYMEAD and ALESSANDRO boulevards and JOHN F KENNEDY Drive. Alessandro was designed to connect the towns of Alessandro and New Haven/Moreno and the other avenues were alphabetically named moving north and south away from the main boulevard. But, where does that leave Sunnymead & JFK? We shall see – below.

Starting at the north end of town, we will cross each of the avenues as we head south towards the south end of town.

MANZANITA

Properly a member of the Archtostaphylos family, Manzanitas (spanish-“little apples”) are evergreen bushes and small trees that grow prolifically in the western coastal mountains. The most common variety is a large shrub with red-purple bark and gnarly, hardwood branches. The leaves are small and in the early spring the plant is covered with small white, bell-shaped flowers, followed by pea-sized berries that look like miniature apples. It is said that the Native American people used them as a laxative. In 1995, a small spur of Manzanita Avenue, just east of Pigeon Pass Road was renamed Cougar Canyon Drive. In actuality, this “road” is the driveway into Canyon Springs High School, and the name was changed to reflect both the name and mascot of the school. The “Cougars” of Canyon Springs High School. From Heacock east, the rest of Manzanita Avenue remains unchanged.

LOCUST

Locusts are members of the Robinia family, and are deciduous shrubs and trees that can reach a height of 75’. The leaves are fernlike and the trees have clusters of flowers that look like sweet peas. The trees give a golden show in the autumn.

KALMIA

Kalmias are evergreen shrubs whose small elongated leaves and branch-end flower clusters are poisonous. Kalmia is more popularly known as Mountain Laurel and Western Laurel. Western Laurel is generally a small spreading plant less than two feet high, and is found as far north as Alaska.

JUNIPER

This group of small to medium-sized coniferous bushes and trees is very popular for landscaping and can reach heights of 60 feet or so.

IRONWOOD

Native to the southwestern US, the Desert Ironwood (Olneya tesota) is a slow-growing, gray-leafed, semi-deciduous tree that can reach heights and widths of 40 feet, but is generally smaller. In late spring and early summer the pinkish-purple, sweet pea-like flowers put on a good show.

HEMLOCK

Hemlocks are large coniferous trees that can reach heights of 200 feet in the northwest mountains of Idaho and Montana. They are noted for flat needles and tiny cones borne at the tip of the branches. For those that are interested, the Mountain Hemlock makes an outstanding Bonsai specimen.

GREVILLEA

Don’t bother looking for this avenue. It cannot be found – at least under this name. Sometime before the 1930s, Grevillea Avenue was renamed Sunnymead Boulevard, due to its position in bisecting the center of the growing town of Sunnymead. Grevillea is an Australian group of evergreen shrubs and small trees that actually can be grown in this area. Most are less than 20’ tall, except Grevillea robusta, better known as the Silk Oak, which can reach heights of nearly 100 feet.

FIR

This large family of coniferous trees, make popular Christmas Trees. Firs are properly in the genus Abies, and are erect, conical-shaped trees reaching heights of up to 300 feet.

EUCALYPTUS

These Australian natives have been extensively planted throughout Southern California, and do very well in our area. They are a fast-growing evergreen tree with a rather pungent odor. Some species can reach heights of 200 feet.

DRACAEA

This avenue was probably misspelled from the original DRACAENA, which are small strap-leaved, palm-like trees from Africa. They are quite popular as houseplants, and have long sword-shaped leaves on a central, non-branching trunk. They can be grown outdoors, but are generally grown in containers on covered patios. Some varieties can reach heights of almost 20’.

COTTONWOOD

Cottonwoods are in the poplar family, and consist of a large family of trees that include the poplar, and aspen. They are found naturally along watercourses thoughout the West, and can grow to heights of 180’. During blooming season, they can be quite messy.

BAY

There are numerous types of BAY trees/bushes. The Sweet Bay (Laurus nobilis) is a slow-growing small tree whose leaves are used in cooking. Another is the California Laurel/California Bay (Umbellulria californica), which can grow as tall as 75’ and spread 100’ wide. It lives mostly in Northern California mountain and coastal regions.

ALESSANDRO Blvd

This central Avenue, from which the other avenues range, was not named with any botanical features in mind, but after the town of Alessandro, which was located at its west end (near City Hall). It stretched to the town of Moreno. The town was named after Alessandro, the hero in Helen Hunt Jackson’s novel Ramona.

BRODIAEA

These Western, corm-based (like gladiolas), strap-leaved meadow flowers are mostly blue, and are fairly large. This family of 1-2’ high plants plant bloom in the spring and early summer.

CACTUS

EVERYONE knows what cactus is, so no explanation is needed on this one!

DELPHINIUM

These tall (up to 6’), showy annuals or perennials have tall spikes of flowers in white, pink, lavender, and other blue-purple shades and make popular rear orders in flower gardens.

ESCHSCHOLZIA

Good luck finding this street today! The ever-present California Poppy is the base for this street name. Its bright orange flowers grace California hillsides, and flatlands in the Spring, especially after a wet winter. Since this name is nearly unpronounceable, it was changed to John F Kennedy Drive, sometime after the former president was assassinated.

FILAREE

These are a small ½ wide spring-blooming fern-leafed wildflower (read – WEED) that flourishes in warm southwestern areas under 7000’. It is also known as Heron-bill, and has red ground-level creeping stems, and the as the tiny, sword-shaped fruits dry, the seed pods twist into a spiral and have a tendency to stick in clothing and animal fur. Filaree is a member of the Geranium family and was introduced to the US by early settlers.

GENTIAN

Gentians are a family of small annual and perennial bushes with brilliant, blue tubular flowers up to 2 inches long. They don’t grow well warm areas, but some varieties are cultivated in gardens.

HIBISCUS

This large 5-lobed flowering perennial bush can grow as high as 30 feet, but is generally much smaller. They grow well in warm areas, including Hawaii. Hibiscus is flowers range from yellows to white through pink, to red.

IRIS

The most popularly known variety of Iris is the early spring-blooming deep bluish-purple Bearded Iris, which is quite common in modern gardens. It is a strap-leaved plant that grows from sweet potato-like tubers. The leaf clusters stand about 12-18” tall, and the strong stocks of flowers will rise 2’ and have as many as 4-6 flowers on them. They are one of my personal favorite garden plants.

JUSSIAEA

This is a tough one. This family name for a large group of plants such as evening primrose and fuchsias is not commonly used anymore, and the street has followed the plant name into obscurity. Now the family is mostly known as Onagraceae. These are mostly shrubs, herbs and small trees cultivated as ornamentals. This is also one of the avenues that is pretty much lost to history. Its alignment would be about where Red Maple crosses Perris Blvd.

KRAMERIA

These small desert shrubs have grey-green leaves and small pinkish flowers. They live in rocky or flat areas in the Anza Borrego Desert are as well as other places. The family has many species all over the world, but these California ones add a colorful display to the desert in bloom.

LUPIN

These tall flowering annuals are well-known as a wildflower mix with California poppies (Eschscholzia sp.) and their lavender to purple blooms contrast with the poppy’s bright orange. Habitat is similar, and almost anyone in California has seen these beautiful flowers along the highways and byways..

MARIPOSA

Mariposa Lilies (Calochortus species) are a spring-blooming California native bulb with large colorful flowers ranging from white through purple.

NANDINA & OLEANDER

These two Avenues were neither shown on the original plat, but do follow the logical sequencing.

Hope you enjoyed this foray into the naming of some of the main streets in town. REMEMBER… “The past belongs to the future, but only the present can preserve it.”

For a short history of Moreno Valley, check out my City of Moreno Valley historical outline.

Also, check out the Facebook page for folks interested in the history of Moreno Valley.

Visit the City of Moreno Valley’s AWARD-WINNING Website!

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FIRST POSTED: January 31, 2014

LAST UPDATED: April 07, 2014

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