Peirano Market

Last updated
Peirano Market
Peirano market 1.jpg
Peirano Market in 2014
Location204 East Main Street, Ventura, California
Coordinates 34°16′50″N119°17′51″W / 34.28063°N 119.29757°W / 34.28063; -119.29757
Built1877

The Peirano Market, also known as Peirano's Grocery and Peirano Store, is a historic building in Ventura, California. Located across the street from the Mission San Buenaventura, the red brick structure was built in 1877 and has ornamental relief brickwork and a mansard, Spanish revival tile roof. [1]

Contents

The building housed a general merchandise store and later, a grocery store operated by the Peirano family for more than 100 years from the 1880s to the 1980s. The building was designated in 1978 as City of Ventura Historic Landmark No. 32. In 1991, archaeological remains of the San Buenaventura Mission Lavanderia were discovered beneath the building and were designated as Ventura Historic Landmark No. 85. The building is also a contributing property within the Mission San Buenaventura Historic District.

The Peirano Market building was acquired in 1987 by the San Buenaventura Redevelopment Agency and was unoccupied for more than 10 years. From August 1998 until January 2016, the building housed Jonathan's at Peirano's and later Peirano's Restaurant and the Red Room. The building has been vacant since January 2016 but is scheduled to re-open in 2018 as Peirano's Market & Delicatessen. [2]

Construction and early uses

Construction and operation by Gandolfo

In 1877, J. J. Mahoney constructed the building for Blackburn and Brooks. [1] [3] Mahoney was a prominent Ventura builder during the 1870s; his other works are believed to include the Emmanuel Franz House and the Schiappapietra house. [4]

Alex Gandolfo, an Italian immigrant, was the first tenant of the building. [5] [6] Gandolfo operated a general merchandise and grocery store in the building. An announcement in the Ventura Signal noted that Gandolfo moved into the store in December 1877. Gandolfo was part of a wave of Italian immigration to Ventura in the 1870s that also included the Lagomarsino, Faio, Shiappapietra, and Ferro families. [7]

Nick Peirano Sr.

The Nicola Peirano residence built in 1897 Peirano House.jpg
The Nicola Peirano residence built in 1897

In the early 1880s, Nicola "Nick Sr." Peirano (1862-1937), a nephew of Alex Gandolfo, [8] immigrated from Genoa, Italy. [7] [9] [10] Nick worked in Gandolfo's store, slept in a loft at the site, and took over the business in approximately 1888 when Gandolfo left Ventura. [7] In its early years, the store sold everything from groceries to farm implements, wine, liquor, cigars, hardware, bailing wire, shotgun shells, and black powder. [11] [7] [1]

Nick Sr. was married in 1897 to Clara Raffetto, also an Italian immigrant. They had six children, Elvira, Cecilia, Victor, Lester, Elvinia, and Nicholas (Nick Jr.) [12] They raised their family in the Queen Anne style Peirano residence at 107 South Figueroa Street, built for Peirano in 1897 and located one block south of the store. [7]

The Peirano brothers

In 1931, Nick Jr. (1907-1994) [13] and Victor (1903-1965) [14] took over the business. Under their management, the store moved away from general merchandise and hardware sales and specialized in groceries, [15] [11] adding a home delivery service. [7] Over the years, the Peirano brothers further specialized in Italian groceries, including many varieties of pasta, salami, aged cheeses, semolina flower, Petri cigars, olives, hard beans, and imported canned goods. [16] [9] Customers reportedly drove from three counties to purchase Italian groceries at the store. [16]

Nick Sr. died in 1937, and Victor continued to live in the Peirano residence on Figueroa Street with his mother. [15] The Peirano family owned the residence until 1978. [17] Nick Jr. married Ruby Bounds and moved to a home in Oak View. [11] [18]

In 1965, Victor Peirano died, [14] and Nick Jr. continued to operate the business on his own. [7] [16]

One of the last old-time grocery stores

The Peirano Market suffered as supermarkets opened and the city's population moved east, but Nick Jr. decided to stay put. He recalled: "That was what was so unique about our store. We didn't change." [11] The business remained popular for its old-fashioned feel, including wallpaper dating to the turn of the 20th century, original sugar-pine flooring, gunny sacks full of fava beans and other staple foods, and a glass case with various pastas. The store was decorated with old cans and bottles, a vintage mail saddlebag behind the meat counter, an antique grandfather's clock received by Nick Sr. in 1904 as a premium for buying five cases of tobacco, a large kerosene lamp with brass shade hanging from the ceiling, a Model T lantern from the store's first delivery truck, and an old fire nozzle. [11] [15] [16] [19] [20] A 1973 story on the market opened: "Nostalgia and Italian delicacies are featured at the corner of Main and Figueroa streets in downtown Ventura." [18]

In 1978, the City of Ventura designated the shop and the Peirano residence (one block south of the shop) as Ventura Historic Landmark Nos. 32 and 33. [21] Nick Jr. had not sought the designation and noted: "I didn't want it to begin with. Now I can't sell the store without giving them 180 days notice. It's just more red tape." [22] The Ventura County Star-Free Press described Nick Jr. himself as "a kind of walking, talking historical landmark in Ventura." [22]

In July 1986, Nick Jr. retired and closed the store. [23] [9]

Government acquisition and archaeological study

Purchase by Redevelopment Agency and installation of murals

In 1986, the City of Ventura commissioned Linda Lorr (later known as Linda Taylor), an art teacher at Nordhoff High School, to paint large-scale murals in the style of late 19th century advertisements on the building's west-facing exterior wall. [24] [25] [26] Nick Jr. recalled that, in his father's day, the wall was freshly painted every year or so with new advertising, accounting for "the layer-cake of colors" revealed by Lorr's preparation of the wall for her murals. [24] Lorr's murals of advertisements for Ghirardelli chocolate and Borax remain on the west-facing wall.

In 1987, after several months of discussions, the San Buenaventura Redevelopment Agency purchased the building with $83,500 of the agency's funds and a $100,000 grant from the California Office of Historic Preservation. [27] [28] [29] The City and Redevelopment Agency solicited proposals from prospective purchasers or tenants, but its efforts were initially stymied by the cost of earthquake reinforcement work. [1]

Archaeological excavation and assessment

In 1991, the Redevelopment Agency retained archaeologist Roberta Greenwood of Greenwood and Associates to conduct an archaeological excavation and assessment beneath the Peirano's store and the adjacent Wilson Studio building. After digging a trench below the structures, Greenwood and her colleagues discovered remains of the San Buenaventura Mission Lavanderia. [1] [30] The Lavanderia, since designated as Ventura Historic Landmark No. 85, [21] was a place where Mission Chumash washed clothes and directed water to the nearby gardens. [7] The Lavanderia consisted of a central tank for holding water, buttresses on the sides of the tank, and a complex of drains, gutters, and aqueducts for carrying water to and from the laundry facility. [31] The archaeologists also discovered an abundance of artifacts, including Euroamerican and Mexican ceramics, bottles and glassware, ammunition, and Chinese artifacts, including opium pipes and paraphernalia. [32] In her report, Greenwood stated: "It would be difficult overstate the quantity and diversity of the materials observed." [33] The only Native American artifacts discovered were two fragments of stone bowls. [34]

The discovery of the Lavanderia and other artifacts underneath the building raised questions as to the relative historical importance of the Lavanderia and the Peirano Market and further complicated the City's redevelopment efforts. [7] [35]

Subsequent development and use

Lengthy vacancy

In 1993, Ventura Realty Co. proposed razing the building, contending that seismic retrofitting would be too expensive. [36] A local artist, Richard Peterson, began a "Save Peirano's" campaign and advanced an alternative plan to convert the building into a museum, art gallery, gift shop, coffee house, deli, and tourist center. [37] Neither proposal came to fruition, and a debate continued as to whether the City should invest substantial funds to retrofit and renovate the building or permit it to be razed as part of a redevelopment effort. The building remained vacant for more than a decade, and concerns grew as the City's homeless population began sneaking into the building at night. [38] These concerns were exacerbated in August 1996 when a fire broke out in an upstairs storage area. The fire was labeled "suspicious" by the fire department. [39]

Restaurant uses

In 1997, KL Associates of Oxnard purchased the building and spent $720,000 to refurbish it, including seismic work. The exterior of the buildings was preserved and restored, but the interior was not preserved, with the exception of the original wood flooring. The Lavanderia was not part of the new development and was, instead, reinforced with steel beams and buried in sand for preservation. [27]

In August 1998, after sitting idle for more than 10 years, a Mediterranean restaurant, Jonathan's at Peirano's (operated by Jonathan and Sharon Enabnit), opened at the site. [27] In 2011, ownership was transferred to Sanaa Dugan who operated the site as Peirano's Restaurant and the Red Room. Dugan sold the building in October 2015, and the restaurant closed in January 2016. [40]

Peirano Market undergoing renovation, April 2018 Peirano Store (Ventura, CA).jpg
Peirano Market undergoing renovation, April 2018

In 2022, the building reopened as Peirano's Market & Delicatessen.. [41] [42]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mission San Buenaventura</span> 18th-century Spanish mission in California

Mission San Buenaventura, formally known as the Mission Basilica of San Buenaventura, is a Catholic parish and basilica in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The parish church in the city of Ventura, California, United States, is a Spanish mission founded by the Order of Friars Minor. Founded on March 31, 1782, it was the ninth Spanish mission established in Alta California and the last to be established by the head of the Franciscan missions in California, Junípero Serra. Designated a California Historical Landmark, the mission is one of many locally designated landmarks in downtown Ventura.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ventura, California</span> City in California, United States

Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura, is a city in and the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States. The population was 110,763 at the 2020 census. Ventura is a popular tourist destination, owing to its historic landmarks, beaches, and resorts.

Montalvo was an unincorporated village in Ventura County, California, founded in approximately 1887. It was incorporated into the city of Ventura, California, in 2012. Montalvo is located in the southern portion of the city of Ventura, on the northern bank of the Santa Clara River. It is bounded by Victoria Avenue to the west, Ralston Street to the north, Johnson Drive to the east, and the Ventura Freeway to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ventura County Courthouse</span> Historic building in Ventura, California used as City Hall

The Ventura County Courthouse, known since 1974 as Ventura City Hall, is a historic building in Ventura, California. It is located on a hill at the top of California Street, overlooking the city's downtown district with views of the Santa Barbara Channel and Channel Islands. It was the first building in the City of Ventura to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has also received historic designations at the state, county and city levels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rancho Camulos</span> Historic ranch near Santa Paula, California

Rancho Camulos, now known as Rancho Camulos Museum, is a ranch located in the Santa Clara River Valley 2.2 miles (3.5 km) east of Piru, California and just north of the Santa Clara River, in Ventura County, California. It was the home of Ygnacio del Valle, a Californio alcalde of the Pueblo de Los Angeles in the 19th century and later elected member of the California State Assembly. The ranch was known as the Home of Ramona because it was widely believed to have been the setting of the popular 1884 novel Ramona by Helen Hunt Jackson. The novel helped to raise awareness about the Californio lifestyle and romanticized "the mission and rancho era of California history."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wagon Wheel, Oxnard, California</span> Neighborhood in Oxnard, California, United States

Wagon Wheel is a densely populated, planned neighborhood of Oxnard, California at the intersection of U.S. Route 101 and Oxnard Boulevard. The neighborhood was originally developed as an office, motel, and restaurant complex named Wagon Wheel Junction with a convenient roadside location near the historic community of El Rio. The site in Ventura County became a popular stop for travelers between Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, particularly during its heyday in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The entire site was demolished in 2011 to begin the development of the community with 1,500 residential units.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Buenaventura Mission Aqueduct</span> United States historic place

The San Buenaventura Mission Aqueduct was a seven-mile long, stone and mortar aqueduct built in the late 18th and/or early 19th century to transport water from the Ventura River to the Mission San Buenaventura in Ventura, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital</span> United States historic place

Elizabeth Bard Memorial Hospital, now known as The Elizabeth Bard Memorial Building, is a historic building in downtown Ventura, California. Built in 1901, it is a Mission Revival structure featuring covered terraces and a covered porch with a three-story bell tower at the southeast corner. The building was listed as Ventura Historic Landmark No. 19 in 1976 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feraud General Merchandise Store</span> United States historic place

Feraud General Merchandise Store, also known as 1903 Building, was built in 1903 in Ventura, California. Jules Feraud opened the Feraud Bakery and Grocery Store and the bakery stayed in the family until 1944. The brick building is a rare intact example of turn-of-the-century commercial architecture during Second Land Boom after the tracks of the Southern Pacific Railroad arrived in Ventura. The City Council of Ventura designated the building Historic Landmark Number 35 by resolution on July 17, 1978. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.

The San Buenaventura Conservancy for Preservation is an historic preservation organization in Ventura, California also known by its early name of San Buenaventura. It works to recognize and revitalize historic, archeological and cultural resources in the region. The Conservancy is a non-profit 501c3 organization. The group was formed in 2004 after the demolition of the Mayfair Theater, an S. Charles Lee, Streamline Moderne, movie theater in downtown Ventura, California that was razed and replaced with a condominium project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pacific View Mall</span> Shopping mall in California, United States

Pacific View Mall is a regional, enclosed mall located on the West Coast in Ventura, California. It covers a leasable area of almost 1,000,000 sq ft (93,000 m2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dudley House (Ventura, California)</span> Historic house in California, United States

Dudley House in Ventura, California is a historic house museum built in 1891 in a Late Victorian-style. Designed and built by local architect and builder Selwyn Shaw, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Ventura Historic Landmarks and Districts</span>

The City of Ventura Historic Landmarks and Districts consist of buildings, sites, and neighborhoods designated by the City of Ventura, California, as historic landmarks and districts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ortega Adobe</span> Historic site in Ventura, California

Ortega Adobe is a historic adobe house built in 1857 and located on Main Street on the west side of Ventura, California, not far from the mouth of the Ventura River. It was designated in 1974 as the City of Ventura's Historic Landmark No. 2. It is owned by the City and operated as a self-guided historical site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statues of Junípero Serra (Ventura, California)</span> 1936 Federal Art Project in Ventura, California of Junípero Serra

The Father Serra statue in Ventura, California, representing Junípero Serra, the founder of Mission San Buenaventura, was commissioned by Ventura County through the Works Progress Administration as part of the Federal Art Project in 1935. This statue, made of concrete from a clay model by Uno John Palo Kangas, was placed in a prominent location in a public park across the street from the Ventura County Courthouse in 1936. After the Courthouse was repurposed as Ventura City Hall, the statue was designated as City of Ventura Historic Landmark No. 3 in 1974. As deterioration of the concrete statue became a concern, a wood replica was created by local carvers and used to make a bronze cast. The concrete statue was replaced by the bronze cast in 1989. The wood replica was set in the atrium of the city hall for public display.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Serra Cross</span>

The Serra Cross, sometimes also known as the Cross on the Hill or the Grant Park Cross, is a Christian cross on a hill known as "La Loma de la Cruz" in Ventura, California. The site is in Serra Cross Park, a one-acre parcel within the larger Grant Park that overlooks downtown Ventura, the Santa Barbara Channel, and Anacapa and Santa Cruz Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Gertrudis Asistencia</span>

The Santa Gertrudis Asistencia, also known as the Santa Gertrudis Chapel, was an asistencia ("sub-mission") to the Mission San Buenaventura, part of the system of Spanish missions in Las Californias—Alta California. Built at an unknown date between 1792 and 1809, it was located approximately five miles from the main mission, inland and upstream along the Ventura River. The site was buried in 1968 by the construction of California State Route 33. Prior to the freeway's construction, archaeologists excavated and studied the site. A number of foundation stones were moved and used to create the Santa Gertrudis Asistencia Monument which was designated in 1970 as Ventura County Historic Landmark No. 11.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. P. Foster</span>

Eugene Preston Foster, commonly known as E. P. Foster, was a rancher, entrepreneur, banker, and philanthropist in Ventura County, California.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Josef Woodard (December 26, 1991). "History and More: Peirano's Grocery store in downtown Ventura stands atop a recent archeological find. What's a city to do?". Los Angeles Times. p. J4 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ MCKINNON, LISA (October 10, 2019). "Cafe Society: Peirano's Market to bring new life, sandwiches to historic Ventura address". Ventura County Star . Retrieved 2019-10-11.
  3. ↑ John M. Foster; Roberta S. Greenwood (October 31, 1991). Bricks, Bottles, and Bamboo: Cultural Resources Below the Peirano-Wilson Building. p. 3 – via The Museum of Ventura County (call number 979.492).
  4. ↑ National Register of Historic Inventory—Nomination Form for the Emmanuel Franz House, 1982.
  5. ↑ Foster and Greenwood p. 3.
  6. ↑ Accounts in the clippings found in the "Peierano Family" biography file at The Museum of Ventura differ as to whether Gandolfo was the proprietor of the business at the outset. According to a 1939 paper in the file, Gandolfo began as a clerk for a man named Beronio.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Cherie Brant (August 20, 1998). "Savoring The Past". The Reporter. pp. 13–15 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  8. ↑ Note: Some clippings in the "Peirano Family" biography file at The Museum of Ventura County state that Nicola Peirano and Alex Ganfolfo were cousins.
  9. 1 2 3 Jesse Katz (November 5, 1987). "When This Market Closes, Its Stock Will Keep Rising". Los Angeles Times. pp. IX1, IX2 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Sources disagree as to the year when Nicola immigrated. Some place it as 1880; others at 1882. The 1900 Census entry for Nicola Peirano states that he immigrated to the United States in 1880.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 "Peirano's: Mainstream on Main Street". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. November 22, 1987. pp. B1, B2 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  12. ↑ 1900, 1910, and 1920 U.S. Census entries for Nicola Peirano.
  13. ↑ "Nick Peirano, longtime grocer in Ventura, dies". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. March 25, 1994 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  14. 1 2 "Victor Peirano Dies; Pioneer Groceryman". unknown. May 18, 1965 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  15. 1 2 3 "Peirano's ... Where Thousands Trod". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. March 6, 1965. p. 10 – via The Museum of Ventura County (article found in "Peirano Family" biography file).
  16. 1 2 3 4 Charles Hillinger (November 26, 1981). "Ventura Grocery Is Haven for Pasta-Loving Italians". Los Angeles Times. pp. 3, 19 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ "Peirano's 'painted lady' Victorian endures". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. October 19, 1992 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  18. 1 2 "In a changing world, it's nice there is a Peirano's . . ". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. July 11, 1973. pp. C1, C4 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  19. ↑ Debra Behr (February 15, 1985). "Peirano's Grocery is also a Ventura historical landmark". Los Angeles Times. pp. Advertising Supplement 8–9 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ↑ "Peirano's place: It has character, culinary curios". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. May 16, 1979. p. B1 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  21. 1 2 "City of San Buenaventura Historic Landmarks & Districts". City of Ventura. May 3, 2016. Retrieved April 8, 2018.
  22. 1 2 "Peirano's: A museum to penny candy". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. May 7, 1978 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  23. ↑ John Krist (August 1, 1986). "Arrivederci, Peirano's Grocery! Glasses raised to passing of Ventura landmark". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. pp. A1, A2 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  24. 1 2 "Old wall getting a makeover: Artist restoring murals outside grocery store". The Ventura Star-Free Press. February 9, 1986 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  25. ↑ "Muralist's historical hues". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. October 14, 1986 – via The Museum of Ventura County.
  26. ↑ "Artist completes 'performance piece'". The Ventura Star-Free Press. September 3, 1987 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  27. 1 2 3 "In the Market for Success: Ventura Hoping for Downtown Renaissance as Restaurant Opens in Historic Peirano's". Los Angeles Times. August 27, 1998. pp. B1, B6 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ↑ "City Council to buy Peirano building". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. July 14, 1987 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  29. ↑ "Ventura gets money to buy, fix oldest building". The Ventura County Star-Free Press. April 28, 1987 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  30. ↑ Foster and Greenwood, Bricks, Bottles, and Bamboo: Cultural Resources Below the Peirano-Wilson Building.
  31. ↑ Foster and Greenwood pp. 14-22.
  32. ↑ Foster and Greenwood pp. 27-43.
  33. ↑ Foster and Greenwood p. 1.
  34. ↑ Foster and Greenwood, p. 42.
  35. ↑ Jeff Claassen (February 7, 1992). "Ventura officials in quandary over historic laundry". The Ventura County Star-Free Press– via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  36. ↑ Peggy Y. Lee (February 3, 1994). "Panel Backs Developer's Bid to Raze Historic Peirano Building". Los Angeles Times. p. B4 – via Newspapers.com.
  37. ↑ "City's old building has savior". Ventura County Star-Free Press. December 1, 1993 – via The Museum of Ventura County (museum biography file for "Peirano Family").
  38. ↑ Jeff McDonald (March 25, 1996). "Historic or History". Los Angeles Times. pp. B1, B9 – via Newspapers.com.
  39. ↑ "Fire Strikes Peirano Market". Los Angeles Times. August 6, 1996. pp. B1, B6 – via Newspapers.com.
  40. ↑ Lisa McKinnon (January 16, 2016). "Cafe Society: New restaurant sought for historic Peirano's building in Ventura". The Ventura County Star.
  41. ↑ "Peirano's Market & Delicatessen Returns in Downtown Ventura". Peirano's Market & Delicatessen. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  42. ↑ Arlene Martinez (October 4, 2016). "Peirano's seeks new life in downtown Ventura". The Ventura County Star.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.