CC SA-BY Our Oakland
The Telegraph Avenue Windmill is a small, windmill-shaped building near the former sites of the Lemmon Herbarium and Idora Park. The address is 5977 Telegraph Ave.
There have been various theories about the origin of the windmill over the years, but according to the owners of Steele's Discount Scuba a couple of doors over, and also according to Gail Lombardi of Oakland's Cultural Heritage Survey:
(a) it was not part of Idora Park
(b) it was not part of a miniature golf course
(c) it was a lemonade or hamburger stand.
According to an SFGate article from 2000, it was constructed in 1932 and the business didn't last long. 2 A classified from 1932 lists "hamburger stand, low rent, cute" at 5979 Telegraph:
1932 3
It was not on the 1911 Sanborn map, but appears on the 1950 one, so is definitely no older than 1911.
1950 Sanborn excerpt
For a time in the 1960s, it was the home of Butch's Record Mill, a (very small) record store owned by Butch Bounds. 1
The Combination 1966-12 1
Links and References
- I is for Idora Park Oakland Daily Photo
- Still Tilting At Windmills Our Oakland
- That Little Windmill The Bold Italic
- Let's Meet...Mister Bounds The Combination magazine December 1966 via Oakland Public Library
- Rumor Mill SFGate.com September 15, 2000
- classified ad Oakland Tribune December 11, 1932
