Georgia Street is not a particularly long
street (4.1 miles), nor is it a very old street (some parts only a few
decades), but it has thousands of stories to tell. From the ferries that docked
at its foot to the dairy farms that once marked its eastern end, Georgia Street
encompasses a wide array of building styles, commercial activity,
neighbor- hoods, churches, schools, and varied modes of transportation. The
history of Vallejo’s “Main Street” is the subject of the Museum’s newest
exhibit, on display in the Hall of History through September 1st.
Vallejo’s infamous “lower Georgia” was
once the home of saloons, bordellos, and gambling dens – the playground of
sailors on liberty. That gaudy side of our history has been well preserved in
the art of Dorothy Herger and the writing of Brendan Riley. But Georgia Street
is much, much more. It was also Vallejo’s main shopping district, home to
department stores like Sears, J.C. Penney, City of Paris, Levee’s and Crowleys.
Heading further east, today’s “Heritage
District” was the home of prominent citizens and eye-catching Victorian
architecture. Longtime residents will recall driving over “the Hump” at the
railroad tracks. Others will recall that a stretch near the intersection of
Georgia and Tuolumne Streets was once mostly populated by Italian families.
A post-WWII housing boom characterized the
stretch of Georgia Street east of Highway 40 (now Interstate 80) and those
neighbor-hoods continued to expand in more recent years into the east Vallejo
hills. Today, at the easternmost end of Georgia Street, hikers can access the
Bay Area Ridge Trail to gain a sense of what the region looked like before the
growth of our city. Visit our newest exhibit soon to learn more about this
interesting and historic thoroughfare.
Georgia Street is not a particularly long
street (4.1 miles), nor is it a very old street (some parts only a few
decades), but it has thousands of stories to tell. From the ferries that docked
at its foot to the dairy farms that once marked its eastern end, Georgia Street
encompasses a wide array of building styles, commercial activity,
neighbor- hoods, churches, schools, and varied modes of transportation. The
history of Vallejo’s “Main Street” is the subject of the Museum’s newest
exhibit, on display in the Hall of History through September 1st. 
Vallejo’s infamous “lower Georgia” was
once the home of saloons, bordellos, and gambling dens – the playground of
sailors on liberty. That gaudy side of our history has been well preserved in
the art of Dorothy Herger and the writing of Brendan Riley. But Georgia Street
is much, much more. It was also Vallejo’s main shopping district, home to
department stores like Sears, J.C. Penney, City of Paris, Levee’s and Crowleys.
Heading further east, today’s “Heritage
District” was the home of prominent citizens and eye-catching Victorian
architecture. Longtime residents will recall driving over “the Hump” at the
railroad tracks. Others will recall that a stretch near the intersection of
Georgia and Tuolumne Streets was once mostly populated by Italian families.
A post-WWII housing boom characterized the
stretch of Georgia Street east of Highway 40 (now Interstate 80) and those
neighbor-hoods continued to expand in more recent years into the east Vallejo
hills. Today, at the easternmost end of Georgia Street, hikers can access the
Bay Area Ridge Trail to gain a sense of what the region looked like before the
growth of our city. Visit our newest exhibit soon to learn more about this
interesting and historic thoroughfare.