VIGNETTE > Town Hall

When Mill Valley was incorporated as a town in 1900, official meetings were held in Grethel’s Hall on the second floor above the Eastland Bakery at 18 Miller Avenue.  In October 1903, the town offices relocated to the newly built Masonic Hall at the foot of Corte Madera Avenue. In 1902, the Town purchased property across the street from Masonic Hall. The site, a redwood grove, had once been a campground for workers who graded Mill Valley’s first streets and built the Mountain Railway.  In 1908, fire department volunteers built a two-story wood structure there and painted it yellow. Downstairs was a stable for two fire horses and space for carts and wagons. Upstairs were firemen’s quarters and Mill Valley’s first Town Hall.   When the city fathers had a meeting the stench there was intolerable. Eventually, the horses were gone, but the less than ideal conditions prevailed. Beginning in 1904 The Outdoor Art Club had collected books and opened its library 3 days a week. In 1908, OAC turned over 750 volumes to the town library housed in the firehouse. In 1935, the Firehouse/Town hall was torn down to allow construction of a new city hall and fire station on the site.