Laurel Street - Main Street of the City of Good Living

Laurel Street - Main Street of the City of Good Living

Photo: CityofSanCarlos, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)

A stop on San Carlos History Walk, a free self-guided tour.

You have reached the heart of downtown. As homes filled in after 1917, Laurel Street, one block from the depot, became the place to shop, bank and meet. By 1926 the phone company had put up a building in the 500 block, and the street kept growing with the town.

Movies were a big draw. The Trivoli Theater stood at 716 Laurel, and in 1941 the Carlos Theater opened just around the corner on San Carlos Avenue; it closed in 1977. Families bought groceries at Foodville, which opened at 616 Laurel in 1941 and stayed 67 years, and a family clothing store at Laurel and Cherry lasted until the late 1990s. City historical markers recall many of these places.

The businesses have changed, but the scale has not: short blocks, shopfronts on the sidewalk and the train a few steps away. Stroll the street, look up at the older facades above the storefronts, and when you are done, the depot where you began is just a block away.

A note from Scott, who lives in San Carlos: Laurel Street has many fantastic restaurants, many with outdoor dining. There is a plan to make it even nicer with an update to the 600, 700 and 800 blocks.

Getting here: Walk southeast down Laurel Street into the 600 block, toward San Carlos Avenue.

Did you know?: By 1950 San Carlos had 14,371 residents and 89 industries - a long way from the fewer than 50 people of 1895.

Photo op: Stand mid-block in the 600 block and shoot down Laurel Street to catch the line of low shopfronts and street trees.

More on Wikipedia: San Carlos, California

Stops on this tour

  1. San Carlos Depot - The Stone Station That Started a Town
  2. Arguello Site - Lamchin Land and the Rancho of Fleas
  3. Brittan Party House - A Bohemian Hunting Lodge
  4. Elm Street - Victorian Hopes for a Paper Town
  5. City Hall - From Schoolhouse to the City of Good Living
  6. Casa de Flores - A Church for a Growing Town
  7. Terminal Way - Where San Carlos Learned to Fly
  8. Brittan Avenue - Airstrip, Racetrack and Radio Tubes
  9. Museum of San Carlos History - The Firehouse, Rebuilt
  10. Laurel Street - Main Street of the City of Good Living