A collection of photos related to Mill Valley.

Mill Valley rests in the shadow of Mount Tamalpais, the tallest peak of the Coast Range. Ancient redwood groves cloaking the mountain's flanks and nearby canyons attracted a pioneer sawmill that gave the town its name. As the timber industry was replaced by dairies, Mill Valley became a destination for those drawn to beauty: hikers, campers, naturalists, artists, writers, and dreamers who gave the town its early bohemian atmosphere. Tamalpais Scenic Railway once ran the "crookedest railroad in the world" to the summit, where passengers exulted in the taste of salty ocean winds, rolling fog, and stunning vistas of the inner bay and ocean shores. Pres. Theodore Roosevelt reserved some of the area's majestic trees, now national parkland webbed with 200 miles of scenic trails, and named them Muir Woods for naturalist John Muir.

Since the 1800s, Mill Valley has attracted spirited freethinkers, entrepreneurs, nature lovers, rabble-rousers, and more than a few rock stars. Early Mill Valley booster Sidney Cushing encouraged tourism with a train up Mount Tamalpais called "the Crookedest Railroad in the World." Laura White, more concerned with protecting Mill Valley's natural beauty than attracting more people, brought the town its "Outdoor Art Club" and a tradition of conservationism. Vera Schultz broke the glass ceiling of local politics in 1946, and in 1973, 10-year-old Jenny Fulle's letter to President Nixon changed the future of America's female athletes. When an elementary school teacher named Rita Abrams wrote a song about why she loved Mill Valley, it became a national hit; so did a song about the heart of rock and roll, written by local boy Huey Lewis, who had attended that same school. The stories of Mill Valley's legendary locals--whether from 1890 or 1980--are sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes inspiring, often humorous, and always fascinating.

Leather bound book of historical photographs of Mill Valley, California, with quotations on opposing pages.

A collection of stories about growing up in Mill Valley, California during the 1950s and 60s. The author was born in New York into a politically blacklisted family who travelled west to California during the McCarthy era. Subjects covered include sci-fi/horror movies, MAD magazine, Uncle Scrooge comic books, rock 'n roll records, Davy Crockett TV shows, Elvis Presley, the Kennedy assassination, Dragnet, the Beatles arriving in the USA and many more.