Caves at Irvine Park

Photo courtesy of the Orange County Archives

An anonymous OCThen reader seems to recall exploring some caves at Irvine Park in the 1950s and 60s...

"I grew up in Santa Ana in the 1950's - 60's. I remember so many of these great memories posted. It really brings me back! I'm wondering if anyone remembers the Caves at Irvine Park? My parents took my sister and I most weekends and we would crawl around and explore these fantastic caves. Also at the park were holes in the ground where tarantula's lived. Sometimes people would pour oil (believe it or not) down the holes in order for them to come up. Then would trap them in cages, and I guess sell them."

I've never heard of them.

There is the "Robber's Cave" at Aliso Woods Canyon, but that's much further south.

Can anyone else add to this?

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Puppeteer at Knott's Berry Farm

Anonymous asks about a puppeteer who worked at Knott's Berry Farm in the 1960s, and wonders if anyone has more information on him...

We would drive from the valley (Covina) in the 60's to have the fried chicken dinner and pie. At that time the only rides were the train and stage wagon. But what I remember most was the Puppeteer. I know he was an immigrant from Eastern Europe, and he put on a great show. Can't find any information on him.

I was able to find some references to puppet shows at Knott's in the 1960s in the comments of other posts here on OCThen...

Anonymous, March 30, 2007...

I have a memory, I think, of old Punch and Judy puppet shows being put on, and wonder if anybody can corroborate that.

Anonymous, May 21, 2008...

Just looked it up. The puppeteer was a man named Tony Kameny and the puppets were definitely Steiff.

Anonymous, May 8, 2009...

I mostly remember watching the puppetier, he was from Poland or someplace, but we would sit there for hours.

Anonymous, April 5, 2010...

I also fondly remember the many performers and acts such as the puppet show held in the old circus wagon at the front of the park! The puppeteer was Tony Kemeny, an orphaned immigrant from Hungary that had been stricken and paralyzed with polio as a child and spent most of his life as a prisoner of war in Nazi and Communist camps until he escaped and later made his way to the US. He became quite famous and his life story is documented in an inspiring book entitled “A Puppet No More”. Google on his name for full details.

Angela, May 1, 2010...

Our family friend Tony put on puppet shows there.

Ahh, the value of such great comments and commenters!

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George Key Ranch, Placentia

Anonymous recalls running through George Key Ranch in Placentia while it was still owned by him...

Mr. Key's garden, Placentia early 1960's. I recall getting "caught" while running around in his large garden with it's massive trees and little dirt trails leading in many different directions. He was very nice to us, telling us we could play in his garden, but that we needed to stay on the dirt trails. Placentia was just starting to build new tract homes nearby. I found a website about the house and gardens. It's now part of the O.C.Parks Dpt. at 625 N. Bastanchury Rd.

There's a lot more to read about George Key Ranch here..
http://www.goodtime.net/pla/lcpla019.htm

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Which Park Had This Aluminum Slide?

OCThen reader "Billy" writes about a long aluminum slide he remembers as a kid, but can't remember where the park was. He wants to take his kids there...

Hello, Steve
Stumbled across your site. Wow! I was born in Garden Grove and lived in Buena Park and Fullerton till '77. I always returned and visited often for I had the best memories living here. My late great mother use to take us to all sorts of parks, beaches, shows and events all the time. Loved being out and about!!

Recently I moved back and I remembered a special park my mother use to take us to. It was in the hills somewhere with a very long aluminum slide (at least it was long when I was 3 or 4 years old) and it was embedded into the ground. The slide started on top of a grassy area. As you slid down, you could not see the area you started from and eventually ended up in a sandy playground with a 15ft long (I think) horizontal ending. I remember it being a long ride. Still to this day I remember it fondly. I remember riding with my mother, brother and sister. My dad does not remember this park for he worked long hours. I have been driving all over OC and can not find this place. I have children of my own and would LOVE to have them relive the memories I once did and ride the slide again for my mom....

Cool Web Site!
Billy

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A Park With a "Dragon Slide"

Norkio remembers a park that had a "dragon slide", and wonders what the name of the park was...

I have wonderful memories of a park that I never really knew the name of. We called it Dragon Park because it had the Dragon Slide! It was a long cement slide that wound its way down the side of a hill and the bottom was the dragon's mouth. Along side the slide were well tended bushes, and behind the bushes were the "secret" trails we would use to sneak up on our friends. We often took a picnic and played there all day. This was during the 70s although I have no idea where in OC this park is. I would love to know the name of it since it was such a magical place for kids!

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Model Airplanes at Carbon Canyon Park

Anonymous writes about flying model airplanes at Carbon Canyon Regional Park...

Does anyone remember flying control-line (U-Control) model airplanes at Carbon Canyon Regional Park? For a few years after we moved to OC in 1976 my husband was involved in the hobby with some guys he worked with. My baby son and I usually tagged along on their outings. The planes were fast and had noisy gas engines, so they needed a big open area away from homes.

We went to Carbon Canyon today for the first time since his flying days, and we couldn't find anyplace there that looked as though it could have ever accommodated such an activity. So we were wondering if anyone else's flying memories were better than ours.

The park actually had 2 or 3 large concrete "donuts" specifically made for the sport.

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The Plunge at Hart Park

Anonymous asks if anyone can provide memories of going to the Plunge at Hart Park in Orange...

Does anyone remember the plunge at Hart park and the May festival they used to have there?

OC History Roundup has an article on Hart Park and the Plunge...
http://ochistorical.blogspot.com/2008/01/w-o-hart-park-orange.html

Daralee has a photo of the Plunge on her Flickr photoset of Old Town Orange...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dwwp/3376880161/

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Weber Bread Bakery in Santa Ana

Austin Cooper, an OCThen reader, submits his memories of growing up in Santa Ana (sounds like the northern end of town) from the 1950s through the 1970s, and then mentions how everything changed when he moved back ten years later...

Does any one remember the Weber Bread Bakery on North Main Street in Santa Ana? It was about two blocks north of the Santiago Creek bridge and just south of what is now the Main Place Mall. The aroma coming from the bakery was always in the air for blocks and blocks around this building. What a wonderful memory it was in the mid- to late-60s to peer through the large plate glass windows of this bakery while standing on the sidewalk and watching the bakers hard at work.

Other memories include a Santa Ana Ana Dog and Cat Hospital, also on North Main Street, located across the street from Weber Bread Bakery, where we would take the family cats and dogs for their annual shots, etc.

There was also a park in the area called Santiago Park, where bike riding and hiking were great fun.

Two other memories include the English Motel, also on North Main Street in Santa Ana, just north of the bridge that went over the 5 Freeway and the tall Bekins Moving and Storage Building across the street from the the English Motel. There was also a motorcycle dealership there, too.

I lived in Santa ana from 59-76, and then my family moved to Texas; howevver, I returned to Orange County (McDonnell Douglas in Huntington Beach) in 86 and established residence in Santa Ana very near the Bower's Museum on Main Street. Upon returning to Santa Ana in 86, and living there through 99, the bakery, veterinarian's office, and motorcycle dealership were all gone. The old mall, where Bullock's was, had been gutted and converted to the Main Place Mall, with an entirely new appearance and feel that I thought was kind of sad.

Anyone having memories or these landmarks, please post a reply. Thanks.

Austin Cooper
Decatur, Alabama

That motorcycle dealership he recalls, I believe, was Irv Seaver BMW, which has since moved (or more correctly, moved back) to Orange. Seaver has published a history of his dealership on his site, noting all the places it was located, and previous ownerships. (link)

And what of that "old mall" that used to be where Main Place now sits? The OC Archives has a photo of "Fashion Square" on its Flickr site (link)

I remember seeing Fashion Square, but never ventured in there, since we lived closer to South Coast Plaza.

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Old Van Clubs of Irvine Park

OCThen reader "TimS" who grew up in Santa Ana submits some memories of hanging out in Irvine Park during the 1970s with the van clubs, and wants to know if anyone else has similar memories...

Hi All.

I have spent most of my 49 years living in OC, and have really enjoyed some of these comments.

I was wondering if anybody remembers anything about the van clubs that used to have weekend night, or caravans, way in the back of Irvine Park back in the early to mid 70's?

I was sort of a wild wander as a kid (bad home life...), and at 12 or 13, I tagged along with someone, who owned a really tricked out Ford Econoline van, to a Van rally that I recall was way in the back of Irvine Park. It seemed to be a long ways out there, but as an adult, now it doesn't seem like Irvine park extends as far as I remember traveling. Do any of you remember this? The guy who let me tag along with him and his girlfriend was a long haired guy with the first name of Randy, and, at that time, worked at the gas station on the corner of Main and St. Gertrude Plc.

And then he goes on to talk about dealing with gangs and tough guys in the schools of Santa Ana...

I also wanted to comment to those who have posted about violence in OC HSs. I went to Saddleback and Mountain View HSs in the mid to latter half of the 70s, and there was some violence from blacks and Mexicans, and sometimes even the sportos. Having long blonde hair, and a smart mouth, I got my ass kicked more than once before I finally learned how to stare guys down and act like a bad ass so people would leave me alone. That didn't always work though because with the mexicans it was always a gang of at least 3 or 4 to 1, so you always ended up on the losing end. I can clearly remember being 14 and walking down Warner Ave from McFadden Jr High, and how I flipped off the 4 low riders who had just said something foul to me about being white and having blonde hair, and how these guys flipped a U turn in the middle of Warner and came after me. I ended up being thrown into a rose bush after they caught me, tore my books in half and pounded on me for a while.

Anyway, I took ROP at Valley HS, and had trouble with the blacks hanging out in the parking lot every time I went on the campus from the greenville entrance, and knew white guys from SA HS who were always fighting with Mexicans, so I always viewed both of those schools as being much worse than Saddleback, or even Mountain view, which was a continuation school. Nobody was ever shot at that time, but some guys got knifed, or seriously pounded on. However, there was one guy at saddleback that I will never forget. He was dark skinned, but I couldn't be sure if he was mexican or samoan. But he used to hang out with an entourage of mexican semi-toughs. This guy clearly knew martial arts at that time, and used to wear some strange flamboyant clothes, like a cape. I later realized he wore the loose baggy pants so he could kick really high. Anyway, I witnessed this kooky guy start, and finish, several fights with big guys that usually got left alone.

A lot of us hung out at Memorial Park, and saw first hand that we had a lot of Mexican gangs rising up including the Delhi boys, F-Troop, Shades of Brown, and others from north Santa Ana. Some of these guys were pretty hard core, in my view, and I think were early Mexican mafia.

What a childhood that was! That's why I joined the navy at 17, and got out of dodge as quickly as I could.

TimS from Woodland Plc, Santa Ana.

Click on "Post a Comment" below if you have anything to share...

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Escape Country, Robinson Ranch

Escape Country was the name of an outdoor recreation area at the eastern end of Rancho Santa Margarita, where Robinson Ranch now sits.

It was mostly a place where folks went to ride their dirt bikes and off-road vehicles, but it was also popular for sky diving, fishing, hang gliding. People camped out, partied all night long, and even live bands played there. I never went there, and don't really know much of it. But here at OCThen, we get a number of e-mails and comments about it.

There's also quite a few comments regarding Escape Country on my previous article about Saddleback Park, another motocross area.

Anyways, here are few comments we've fetched regarding Escape Country...

i remeber escape country, it was in the area that is now rancho santa margarita, u had to go thru trabuco cyn to get too it x a creek and up the hill, the hill is still there, but this would have taken u too escape country.

    Anonymous, Jan 11, 2009

hey i remember escape country. i use to race motocross there in the 70s. 71 i think i was like 14 then and my mom was one of the parks safty police..remember that monkey by the office. it was a nutcase. lmao... Bruce Priddy

    Bruce Priddy, Nov 22, 2008

Ahh Escape Country...I drove up Robinson Ranch Rd. and parked my truck in the neighborhood that occupies the old riding area.There's a small utility building next to the street and you park there and walk down a trail and suddenly you're on the back side of the old riding areas. If you keep walking, you end up at the downhill that leads to the old pond. It was cool to sit there looking at the old trails and have flash-backs of the good ole days.I miss that place and those times.

    Ted Mercer, Capo Beach, Sep 26, 2008

There are many that I can recall but some of the names have become a little obscure.

I met Jim Robinson at Escape Country in August '73 and he offered me a job. It was fun and I met some really great people. I used to "drag" the motocross circuit between races on Saturdays and Sundays with the D9 CAT. I wonder what happened to Ron Hoppie who ran the races and bike rental with Dick.

The bush fire that was at Escape Country remains quite clear in my mind and especially being rescued by Bill, the house framer, on the back of his bike after the CAT and I got cut off. I was sad to find out that the ranch was no more when I visited in '89.Such days as those will never be seen again. Thank you Orange County and Escape Country.

    Terry McGrath, Jun 24, 2008

To 'anonymous' from Feb. 4th posting . . . I sure do remember Escape Country!!! That's where I first learned to Hangglide! It was a primo area to learn (and make mistakes!). Fond, fond, fond memories indeed!!!

    Anonymous, Apr 21, 2008

I also remember Escape Country. We used to drive there along those windy roads every Sunday in the summer beacuse they had live bands play in the afternoon and everyone would party. I think that area is now Dove Canyon and Robinson Ranch are of Santa Margarita.

    Anonymous, Apr 2, 2008

Does anyone remember a place called "Escape Country"? It was off Santiago Canyon, between Irvine Lake and Cooks Corner. We used to go there in the 70's to watch motorcross. There was also hang gliding, fishing and sky diving. Anyone remember?

    Anonymous, Feb 4, 2008

If you remember Escape Country, please "post a comment" below...

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Intoxicating Smell of Orange Blossoms

Nancy submits her memories of growing up in Orange, Santa Ana, and Garden Grove in the 1950s, and mentions how each spring, the orange groves went into bloom, and that she never wanted exhale...

I arrived in OC in 1950. My grandfather owned the Florist Shop on Glassel in Orange. There was a house attached where we all lived until mom and dad bought their own house, in then unincorporated Santa Ana, near Harbor and 17th Streets.

I remember the two markets (one open air) on that corner.

I loved shopping Friday nights. The only place to go was downtown Santa Ana to Wards, Penny's, Sears, and that store on a corner to get my Girl Scout uniform. The name is on the tip of my tougue. No malls then!

We played in the Santa Ana River bed when mom was not looking.

My first school was New Hope Elementary. Someone here mentioned that school. We lived there for five years. Then in Garden Grove near Chapman and Brookhurst, I went to Nelson, Faye Lane, Lampson Intermediate, GGHS and Santa Ana Jr College. We lived near the Pink Spot. I loved that place. Maybe that contributed to high colesterol but it was worth it. Ignorance was bliss then.

I went to the Garden Grove First Methodist Church at Main and Stanford. It was a wonderful building then. I loved it. They replaced it with a BIG concrete stucture. I loved the market next to it.

We did most of our grocery shopping at the Safeway on Main street. I would save my money til I could get a book at the toy store near there. Thank goodness Historic Main Street still has some of the same charm.

Also the Orange Circle area. I remember playing at Hart Park, and on hot days in the little wading pool with the pretty fountain little ones could crawl into. We went to the Methodist Church in Orange and I had Sunday School in the little red brick building that is still there. When I Googled "Images" I found pictures of many of these great historical places.

The Garden Grove Plaza was not there yet. Just orange groves. I could almost pick the oranges from my bedroom window. The smell in the spring was intoxicating. You never wanted to exhale. Do you remember when Jan and Dean, the popular men's duo, performed at The Plaza? The screaming girls? It was probably about 1958 or 59. I lived there until marriage and we moved back to Santa Ana near Bristol and 17th. Then back to Orange near Main and Chapman and Garden Grove near G. G. Blvd and Brookhurst. Lots of Strawberry Festivals and parades.

One of my husbands favorite pizzas came from Teddy's Pizza next to the bowling alley when he was about 13. He has never found a place he likes just as well. He liked to ride with his friends on their bikes to Irvine park. I loved to hike in the hiils there. How about Chis and Pitts BQ on Garden Grove Blvd. and Pricilla Bakery? They are both gone now. We would celebrate special occations with a cake that had custard filling and smooth chocolate icing on a yellow cake. Yum!!

My husband and I also danced at Harmony Park in Anaheim and The Rendevous in high school.

I could go on and on. Knotts Berry Farm when there was no entrance fee. Also Disneyland, Haven Pond in Garden Grove and the Bison Ranch in the hills on the way to the beach. I miss many of the friends we have lost contact with. Memories are good though.

Yup, that's why OCThen continues on, because of the memories...

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Saddleback Park

Saddleback Park was an area used for motocross, and in its hey day, was one of the most famous destinations for MX riders across the Southern California. It was the first park in the USA designated specifically for MX.

In 1967, it's main track was designed by Joel Robert and Roger DeCoster, two famous MX racers at the time. Saddleback Park hosted many regional, national, and international motocross racing events.

But in 1984 the park shut down. The park was plagued by lawsuits. There were supposedly disputes between the park operator and the landowner (Irvine Company). There had been rumors that the park would reopen, but it never happened because of the liability. The 241 toll road now runs through the park, though some dirtbikes and motocross riders still manage to make use of its tracks even today.

I went through some comments and e-mails submitted by OCThen readers over the years, and found some mention of Saddleback Park. I've posted them here as comments. If you have some memories or facts to share of Saddleback Park, please click on "Post a Comment" below.

If you have photos of Saddleback Park, send them to me via the "Contact Us" link o the side, and I'll post them here.

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Anaheim in the 1960's and 70's

An anonymous OCThen reader living in Australia sent us some memories of his growing up in Anaheim during the 1960's and 70's...

I was born in "The Valley" in '56 but my parents moved to Anaheim in '57. Our neighborhood was one of the new housing tracts built on a former orange grove bordered by Ball, Western, Orange and Knott.

I was a "charter student" at Twila Reid Elementary; Kindergarten the first year it opened to the 6th grade. The current site of Twila Reid Park was strawberry fields and we were chased by the owner on a Honda 50 when we'd trespass to pick berries.

Our brand spanking new neigborhood had no grass nor trees. I remember playing in numerous vacant fields and also remember Anaheim General Hospital and Cypress College being built. Ball Road had few sidewalks and Cypress had many cows.

On the way back from Huntington, in our gas-guzzling, seatbeltless Plymouth Suburban wagon full of sunscreenless kids, my mother would stop at the drive-thru Reliance Dairy on Beach Blvd to buy half gallon glass containers of milk and bright red fruit punch.

As a young teenager, I took guitar lessons at Kay Kaylie Music in Buena Park Mall from Frank Krajerbrink guitarist from early '70s OC band "Utopia". Anybody remember "Wigouts"? (I still play by the way).

I have lived in Sydney, Australia for 30 years now and have fond memories of my childhood in an emerging modern Orange County. Sydney has many of the good aspects of Southern California that has made it easy for me to settle here.

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Memories of Gary Zaremba

Gary Zaremba, another OCThen.com visitor, shares his many memories of growing up in Orange County. Among them, the El Toro Marine Base, Cook's Corner, the Hells Angels, and the schools he went to...

Thanks for this web site, Steve! I wasn't born here but my family and I arrived in Orange County in the summer of 1958 when I was almost 7. There were orange groves and eucalyptus trees everywhere and most cities were "islands" between one orange grove or ranch to another. My dad was stationed at El Toro Marine base, becoming the Manager of the Staff NCO club. He used to book entertainment acts for Friday and Saturday nights. I remember my dad getting us a signed copy of a photo from Tex Ritter (John Ritter's dad) after he performed there one night.

We even lived in the military housing on base for a couple of years while I attended 4th and 5th grades. Stanley Cook, the son of the owner of "Cook's Corner" was the pitcher on our little league team. Another pitcher, Dan Peavey, was such a baseball fanatic (he had the best collection of baseball trading cards that I ever saw), that he impressed Joe Dimagio enough that he came to visit us at the El Toro Elementary School in 1962. Our team even took a photo with him that was blown up and mounted in our school cafeteria. I wish I knew what happened to it.

The smog was much worse and the traffic was about the same as it is today. I remember hardly being able to breathe from all of the "yellow" air that passed through our lungs all day while attending school. On summer weekends, we used to go to "Tin Can Beach" - where Bolsa Chica Beach is today. The beach got its name from all of the rusted tin cans that lined the road. We had to walk through thin, sandy lanes that were formed by foot traffic in order to get to the beach. Of course, this was in the days of pop tops, so you really had to watch out where you walked or you'd get one stuck in your feet.

We moved around a lot in those days, living in Orange (near the Circle), Tustin and then El Toro before finally moving to Santa Ana. I remember going to Hart Park a lot while I lived in Orange. There was a hobo used to ride the rails and who lived in the park in the winter months. He "borrowed" wood from a lumberyard that was nearby to fashion his makeshift shack. My friends and I would talk to him about his travels while he cooked his food out of tin cans. Sometimes he would feed the park squirrels and rabbits. I can't imagine my son doing something like that today.

When we moved to Santa Ana, I attended John Adams Elementary, McFadden Jr. High (first graduating class) and Santa Ana Valley High. In my Jr. year, they opened Saddleback High and about 1/2 of the students were transferred to that school becoming the first graduates.

While I was at Valley, Martin Luther King was killed and we had riots on Greenville with cars being burned right near our school.

Special places and people that I remember in Orange County in those days included the Pier at Newport Beach (where I spent many a time after cutting classes at school), Lars the "Greeter" in Laguna and the hippie shacks (where I stayed with friends) above the old bookstore, "Farenheit 451", crashing beach parties along the boardwalk in Newport on summer nights, the "Nutburger" restaurant on Fairview and Warner in Santa Ana, "The Zoo" drive in restaurant at the corner of MacArthur and PCH where the waitresses served you fast food on rollerskates, the long winding, country road from El Toro all the way to Cooks Corner, Lion Country Safari and "Bubbles" the hippopotamus who escaped and submerged in one of the ponds on Laguna Canyon Road.

How may people remember Victor Hugo's restaurant in Laguna before it became Las Brisas? How many people remember the "head shops" in Laguna where meditation and pot smoking were common events? How about the Hara Krishnas who used to dance and play tamborines on the main streets in Laguna? How about the annual events when the Hell's Angels would ride into Newport and park hundreds of their choppers effectively blocking off Newport and Balboa Blvds. near the pier? I remember the police securing many "paddy wagons" just for this occasion. Eventually, the Hell's Angels didn't return but it was exciting while they were there.

Does anyone remember the town that disappeared between Placentia and Anaheim along the railroad tracks - ATWOOD? My grandfather had a used furniture store there. How about the Tustin Marine LTA (lighter than air) base with the very large blimps that were housed in the blimp hangers before they were replaced by helicopters?

I attended several pop festivals and especially remember the Newport Pop Festival at the O.C. Fairgrounds where Country Joe & The Fish and Jefferson Airplane played. I also went to another 3 day festival at Devonshire Downs in San Fernando Valley (you name the 60's rock group, they were all there!) and one in Palm Springs during the summer of 1968 that became an all out riot with police helicopters dropping tear gas on the crowd. In fact, a curfew was established for several years after that where minors had to be accompanied by adults to enter into Palm Springs.

Well, that's about enough to cover for now. Maybe I'll add some other things when I remember them.

Thanks Gary!

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