Glamorous mansion hosted California's most lavish parties... now it's a bargain grocery store
A bargain store that sells value pantry items and everyday produce has a surprisingly lavish past.
The spot where a Grocery Outlet now sits was home to one of the most prestigious mansions in Sonoma County, which hosted extravagant parties for the society elite.
Those pushing creaking carts under the store's fluorescent lighting are likely unaware of the historic site, once owned by one of the most powerful men in the area, that lies beneath.
Potato-salesman-turned-beer-baron Joseph T Grace built Grace Mansion, a home still gossiped about in Santa Rosa, near San Francisco, today.
He made his fortune founding Grace Bros Brewing Company in 1897 with his brother Frank Grace, which quickly grew to dominate the local beer supply market. The firm was tough, having survived the Great Depression, and by the 1930s, it became the fourth-largest brewery in California, making Grace millions.
The brilliant investor and respected community figure remains rooted in the community’s identity. Grace Tract, Grace Pavilion and Grace Drive in Santa Rosa are all named in his honor.
Early in his career, Grace decided he would spend a portion of his money building a massive, indestructible mansion, the grandest in town.
In 1907, he purchased the site of a crumbling brick dwelling that had been destroyed in an earthquake the year before, according to local paper The Press Democrat. Grace planned to build an ‘ornament to a new Santa Rosa.’
Beer baron Joseph Grace built an extravagant mansion in Santa Rosa, California, where he hosted elaborate parties for the society elite
From left: Grace and his wife May with friends Ernest Finley and Ruth Finley at dinner in 1941
A Grocery Outlet now sits on the historic site of Grace's mansion, which was razed after 1950
He had the home designed in the Federalist style, installing a grand portico and Corinthian columns that were new to the area at the time.
The interiors were designed for entertaining, with locals labeling the home an ‘entertainment mecca.’
Grace built one room with perfect acoustics for playing music, and another dining room to fit a table to sit dozens. He installed huge brass and crystal chandeliers in every room.
And the scale of his events was epic.
Hundreds of guests, sometimes thousands, would gather in the home and on the grounds for charity benefits, luncheons and elaborate dinners. Grace’s block quickly became busy.
According to the Santa Rosa History Group, one party was particularly legendary.
'The parties! Hundreds attended one swank affair in 1903, with an orchestra on the balcony and San Francisco chefs in the kitchen,' they said.
'Elaborate evening gowns and diamonds glimmering in myriad electric lights, the rooms perfumed from honeysuckle, azaleas, carnations and roses – overall an ostentatious show of wealth by the scion of an old Sonoma County family with enough money to act like aristocrats.'
The house was 'the grandest, most beautiful house' ever built in Santa Rosa, and a century ago, the town had no shortage of such homes.
'Its design was bold in a controversial new style; there were few buildings anywhere on the West Coast that looked like this,' the historians said.
Santa Rosa, 55 miles north of San Francisco, is the main city in California’s wine country
The city is still home to many wealthy residents and has a rich history
Grace made his fortune founding Grace Bros Brewing Company in 1897 with his brother
Grace Mansion was designed in a controversial new style - there were few buildings anywhere on the West Coast that looked like it
Grace Bros Brewing Company quickly grew to dominate the local beer supply market
The grounds of Grace mansion, where gardens contained honeysuckle, azaleas, carnations and roses. At the time, it was an ostentatious show of wealth to have so much land
The former potato salesman's beer business even rode success through the Great Depression
Santa Rosa is a wealthy town that is 'classically sophisticated', says one real estate broker
The area is renowned for its proximity to world-class vineyards
In 1950, Grace sold the mansion to Safeway for $100,000 and it was subsequently razed. Grocery Outlet now occupies the site.
Santa Rosa itself is a wealthy town that is, according to real estate tech site Movoto, 'classically sophisticated and West Coast weird.'
It's the main city in California’s wine country, 55 miles north of San Francisco, and is considered the central base for exploring Sonoma County's vineyards and wineries.
One of the area's claims to fame is that Charles M Schulz, creator of the Peanuts comics, lived the last half of his life in Santa Rosa.
Statues of his characters, such as Snoopy and Charlie Brown, are placed throughout the city. It is also home to the Charles M Schulz-Sonoma County Airport and the Charles M Schulz Museum.
