Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
MENDOCINO HOTEL
AND GARDEN SUITES
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Both the town and county of Mendocino derive their names from Cape Mendocino, which lies more
than 100 miles to the north, in the next county. The cape was given its name by Juan Rodriquez Ca-
brillo, a sixteenth-century Spanish explorer. He discovered the peninsula in 1542 while on a voyage
up the Pacific Coast and named it in honor of Don Antonio de Mendoza, the first viceroy of New
Spain (Mexico), because the viceroy funded the expedition.
The Pomo Indians who were native to the area were of little concern to the Spaniards, who
were out to discover the world and colonize whatever lands they found. Spanish settlers soon ar-
rived in the area, but it was 300 years before the Gold Rush brought non-Spanish settlements into
the county.
The flood of settlers hoping to get rich in 1849 forced California to organize itself. Twenty-
seven counties were created in 1850 by the state legislature, including Mendocino. The county was
first administered by the government of Sonoma County until 1859, because it was so small. When
the government was finally established in 1859 in nearby Ukiah, it was quickly decided that the
coastal site of Mendocino would be more appropriate, and the county seat moved the following year.
Logging of redwoods promised to make the town prosperous.
The life of a logger was dangerous. Add to this the Wild West nature of California with its
wide-open lands, teeming with people desperate to find gold, and you get a mixture of society that
was somewhat unpredictable. They all worked hard and played hard. Saloons, pool halls, and com-
fort houses were common in this logging town, which soon boasted a population of 20,000.
To counter this cultural depravity, settlers from the Northeast who had brought their wives and
children with them began to build homes and a sense of stability. The architecture of the town today
still resembles that of many New England villages.
The Mendocino Hotel was originally opened as The Temperance House in 1878. It was con-
sidered at the time to be “the one bastion of good Christian morals in a town of loggers.” But as
the redwood logging industry faded, then stopped completely decades later, people began to move
away. The population eventually declined to about 1,000.
The original structure of the hotel remains and encompasses 26 overnight accommodations, the
lobby, the lobby bar, the dining room, the kitchen, and a balcony that overlooks the Pacific Ocean and
