November 2019 First Wed. Talk Video – Blithedale: The Cushing’s Place in Mill Valley by Tim Wood

In 1873, Dr. John Cushing, a physician from San Francisco, who was “done to death” with his hectic medical practice, moved with his family onto a homestead at the foot of Mount Tamalpais. He founded Blithedale, a rural resort where he and guests could relax and restore health in a stunning outdoor setting. Over the next four decades, what would become known as The Blithedale Hotel flourished. It attracted fashionable summer guests from around the Bay Area and became one of the most popular resort hotels in Northern Ca. Join Cushing descendent Tim Wood as he tells the story of the Blithedale Hotel and the family whose members played important roles in shaping Marin’s rich heritage.
TIM WOOD was born in San Francisco to a family with deep Marin roots. He is the great-great grandson of John Oscar Eldridge (promoter of the Eldridge Grade) and of Dr. John Cushing (founder of The Blithedale Hotel), both on his mother’s side. Sidney Cushing, founding president of the Mountain Railroad, was his great grandfather. Wood compiled years of research about his family before writing his book Blithedale: The Cushings’ Place in Marin.