 2519 Q, photo December 2020  The Sacramento Bee, October 17, 1907 Transcription of October, 1907 advertisement in The Sacramento Bee, describing the newly built home at 2519 Q Street. Ready to Live in Another Beautiful Bungalow $400 CASH Makes It Yours Each Bungalow we build has its Own Characteristics- We never duplicate. The Bungalow shown above, which is now practically finished, is absolutely unique- it stands alone in a class by itself. Its location is on "Q" Street, between 25th and 26th on a high, graded lot, with cement walk down, not only in front but all around the house. Entering from the broad and generous porch, there is a large reception hall and parlor, with lattice windows and round cornered ceilings. To the right, thro' folding doors is the dining and living-room with its massive built-in sideboard and china closet. Opening from this is the kitchen with its goodly array of shelves and cupboards, its white porcelain sink and drain-board, its hot water heater and all the little modern conveniences which the good housewife loves so well. From a hallway which bisects the house there are two large bedrooms- in one of which is a board, cozy window-seat and quaint, old-fashioned English windows. This window seat is arranged as a clothes-press and there are ample closets in both rooms besides. The bathroom is a model of sanitary convenience and has medicine closet, porcelain tub and washstand. Electric lights are all thro' the house, and gas is piped for cooking. Then there is this- no, the adman has taken too much space already, and he can't do it justice anyway if he took a whole page in The Bee. The keys, the price (which is absurdly low) and a hundred and one interesting details are all in our office. Come in and see us about it, always remembering, "it's first come, first served," and that this unique Bungalow will go "like winking."  The Sacramento Bee, September 24th, 1910 The Wright & Kimbrough Bungalow at 2519 Q was first advertised for sale in October, 1907. By August, 1908, the bungalow was available for rent. We're not (yet?) sure who first rented it, but it is likely that the home did not sit vacant for 2 years. In September, 1910 the home was purchased by Edward K. Carnes from the Voorhies Investment Company. The Voorhies Investment Company keeps coming up when it comes to Wright & Kimbrough's real estate developments. Why is that? The Voorhies Investment Company provided the capital and the real estate firm of Wright & Kimbrough marketed the bungalow row properties, but Charles E. Wright and Howard Kimbrough were primary forces behind both of these companies. Perhaps there were other partners, but it's not immediately clear who they were. Certainly, Voorhies Investment Company was very closely related to Wright & Kimbrough, and had overlapping ownership interests. Wright's son, William C. Wright, was a salesman for Wright & Kimbrough who later served as President of the Voorhies Investment Company and as one of the Directors of Wright & Kimbrough. When Howard Kimbrough and Charles E. Wright retired from their active roles in the firm in 1912, they left the financial management in the hands of Charles' son William, while A. R. Gallaway took over as sales manager. According to the January 6, 1912 edition of the Sacramento Star, a banquet was given a the the Hotel Sacramento on January 5th to celebrate the firm's success over the past year, and the change of management moving forward. Notably, one of the residents of our Bungalow Block, C. G. Snow of 2531 Q Street, who was a salesman for Wright & Kimbrough at the time, attended the banquet.
As an aside, the Hotel Sacramento was designed by California's First State Architect, George Clinton Sellon and his partner Charles Hemmings, built in 1909, with over $600,000 invested in the construction. The building was demolished in 1956 for a Woolworth's store, and more recently has hosted a number of failed restaurants, including a Bennigan's and a Boiling Crab. Sacramento's K Street struggles to this day to return to its glorious heyday, when it served as the center of Sacramento's retail and social scene. In 1908, The Sacramento Bee published a full page spread advertising the opening of the new hotel. We're sure that the retirement party for Wright & Kimbrough in 1912 was a dashing affair.  A full page in the Sacramento Bee, Tuesday, September 14, 1909, advertising the new Hotel Sacramento  Postcard Photo Courtesy the Center for Sacramento History, Sacramento Room of the Sacramento Public Library Back to our Bungalow Block, when the bungalow at 2519 Q didn't sell right away in 1907, Wright & Kimbrough probably let one of their salesmen stay in it, or rented it out to someone else, with the title being held by the Voorhies Investment Company until they had a buyer. The first buyer of 2519 Q was, as it happens, a bug man. The Bug Man and His Wife Edward Carnes, the buyer of this particular bungalow, located pretty much in the middle of our bungalow block, was an Entomologist for the State Commission of Horticulture. Carnes started out as the Quarantine Inspector in San Francisco, traveling from his home town of Ottumwa, Iowa to California in 1901, As Quarantine Inspector, he was in charge of inspecting the ships that came into the San Francisco Harbor for invasive pests that might harm the fruit industry in California. There, he worked with California State Horticulture Commission Agent George Compere, who traveled the world collecting rare bugs that the men studied with the intent of eradicating other bugs and protecting California's valuable crops. He also worked with Ellwood Cooper, the First California State Horticulture Commissioner and a pioneer of the method of bugs eating other bugs that he called "parasitology."  By 1910, Carnes had made multiple tours of the California, battling the white citrus fly, and administering exams for County Horticulture Commissioners under the new 1909 law that required this process. Neither was an easy task, and Carnes received push back from farmers who did not want to decapitate their trees for pest eradication, or didn't see the necessity, and from county officials who didn't see the benefit of a state-appointed commissioner who must prove themselves by passing an exam about insect pests and diseases. The farmers in Marysville, for example, believed that they were unfairly targeted when asked to decapitate their trees. This June 12, 1907 article from the Marysville Evening Democrat illustrates the Marysville community's dismay. The outraged headline reads "BEAUTIFUL ORANGE TREES TO BE DECAPITATED" and goes on to say that "Nearly Every Home in Town Will Be Disfigured"  June 12, 1907 Marysville Evening Democrat The eradication of the white fly was not a universally popular movement, and it put Edward Carnes, as the entomologist making recommendations, in a bad light with some farmers. When Secretary of the State Horticulture Board John Isaacs resigned in July, 1908, he publicly announced that it was over friction between himself and the newly appointed state horticulturist, J. W. Jeffrey of Los Angeles. Jeffrey snapped back with a response in which he explained that there was no friction, but that Isaacs had agreed to resign so that Jeffrey could appoint a secretary himself. However, we think that there WAS friction, and it had something to do with our bug man, Edward K. Carnes.  July 21, 1908 The San Bernardino County Sun In July, 1908, J. W. Jeffrey presumably spared Edward K. Carnes, our Entomologist from an ousting proposed by John Isaacs. Some people were not too happy with Carnes after he made his destructive tour of California's citrus orchards, insisting that farmers destroy trees to eradicate the white fruit fly. John Isaacs was in the incensed camp, perhaps due to his own perceived "ousting" from the Board. He did not let it lie. In September 1908, Isaacs came out with an outrageous claim, that the state-mandated destruction of the Northern area orchards was a plot by the Southern fruit growers to injure the Northern Citrus Belt. Furthermore, that Edward Carnes had even PLANTED the fly on the Marysville orchards in order to facilitate the destruction of those orchards under the premise of eradicating the pest.
J. W. Jeffrey came to the bug man's defense, again.   September 7, 1908 Oroville Daily Register "The statement that Mr. Carnes went to Southern California at the beginning of the Marysville trouble to arouse political activities is defective in one or two points. Carnes would not know politics if his head was in the sack. He puts in more hours of hard work per day for the State than any other man ever connected with this office. A man cannot do politics and his duty at the same time, and I never knew him to neglect a duty. " -J.W. Jeffrey statement in Oroville Daily Register, September 1908  November 13, 1910 The San Francisco Call Sticking with the State despite some bad blood in this 1908 transition, Carnes next big project was the installation of the State Insectary and construction of the building in Sacramento. San Francisco had lobbied to be the location of the State Insectary, but Sacramento was deemed the better location, being more central to agricultural production in the state. Also, the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco made Sacramento seem a safer choice to house the State's Bug Collection. The State Insectary still stands in Capitol Park, just East and North of California's Capitol Building. The marble tablet referenced in the article below is also still there. Ellwood Cooper, whose name appears on the tablet, was the first State Horticulture Commissioner, from 1885-1907. Cooper was one of the pioneers of "parasitology", and believed that "every insect pest has an insect enemy, and where they exist together, the insect pests are kept in such condition that there is no danger of loss" Carnes was one of the entomologists that Cooper employed to collect, identify, and research insects for the purpose of protecting the State's crops. They discovered through their research that the introduction of the ladybird beetle (we just call them "ladybugs") to a crop infested with plant lice or scale would wipe out the unwanted pests without damaging the harvest. Ellwood Cooper had begun this work in San Francisco, but much of the original insect collection was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. The remnants of the insect collection were scooped up and taken to Sacramento, where our Entomologist, Edward Carnes, was instrumental in the establishment of the State Insectary. The State Insectary provided a means for the California State Horticulture Commission to collect these insects, store them, and distribute them as needed to farms throughout the state. Prior to the widespread use of insecticides, this pest management technique allowed California to establish many crops that would not have otherwise survived.  California's State Insectary, October 2020  1907 Ellwood Cooper Plaque, October 2020 The Insectary building was designed by California's first state architect, George Clinton Sellon. Sellon was born in Sacramento, raised in San Francisco, and trained in Chicago. Sellon was first hired to restore and repair state buildings in San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake, and was subsequently appointed State Architect by Governor Gillett in 1907, at a salary of $4,000 per year, equivalent to about $110,00 in 2020 purchasing power. One doesn't really discuss California architecture in the early 20th century without Sellon coming up. Even as the State Architect, Sellon continued to take on private sector projects, which caused some consternation among certain circles at the time, but left Sellon with a legacy of both public-use buildings and private homes. The design for the Insectary building incorporated Arts & Crafts and Prairie School elements. The building was constructed at a cost of $8,000, was only the second such institution in the world, and was subsequently visited by entomologists from the governments of France, Spain, South Africa, Japan, and Formosa. More about the State Insectary building and its significance can be discovered in the research of Lyn Hooper. Ms. Hooper is an Architect with the State of California. Her Survey of the California State Insectary was completed in 2018 as part of her coursework with the Savannah College of Art and Design. We've linked it below, as it is full of interesting details. Lyn Hooper's 2018 Survey of the California State Insectary  Doorway to the Insectary Building, October 2020  The California State Insectary, McCurry Foto Co. c. 1908
 The San Francisco Call, November 1st, 1910 By the time Edward K. Carnes purchased the home on Q street in late 1910, he was a well-established bug man for the State of California. The San Francisco Call ran an entire page feature on the Insectary in the Sunday, November 13, 1910 edition. Carnes moved into the Q Street Bungalow that Fall, with the new title of Superintendent of the State Insectary.   Edward Carnes in the 1912 Sacramento City Directory The Carnes became friendly with their Bungalow Row neighbors, with Mrs. (Kathryn) Carnes often playing bridge or having tea with the other ladies of the neighborhood. In February, 1911, Mrs. Carnes hosted a Lady Washington tea at the bungalow, which was evidently a pretty popular thing in 1911, when there were whole clubs devoted to Lady Washington.
In September, 1911, the Carnes visited Honolulu, and stayed for 6 weeks, as Mr. Carnes thoroughly investigated the Mediterranean fruit-fly infestation on the Hawaiian Islands. He was sent by State Horticulture Commissioner J.W. Jeffrey, and after he returned with his findings, was reportedly almost canned by incoming Commissioner A. J. Cook, who was accused of playing favorites and appointing recent Pomona College Graduates to positions that had previously been held by "capable men". In April 1912, the popular Chief Deputy Quarantine Officer, O. E. Bremner, who was in charge of the San Francisco Quarantine Station, was dismissed due to his alleged refusal to go along with Cook's schemes. It was rumored that Carnes was next on the chopping board, but the uproar was so great, and the support in his favor so strong, that Carnes retained his position at the Insectary, once again escaping a politically-motivated ousting. However, he ended up resigning his position with the State at the end of 1912, possibly due to his differences with Cook.
Having solidified his reputation as a bug man in the agricultural field, Carnes left the State employ at the end of 1912. Before Carnes resigned, there was a movement amongst fruit growers and county horticulture officials to appoint Edward Carnes the "Chief Quarantine Officer for the Pacific Coast" under the supervision of the US Dept. of Agriculture, "rendering it free from the influence of State politics, as was the case under past administrations." A September 12, 1912 article in The Sacramento Bee described the "fruit men" behind the over 100 petitions that were sent to Washington on Carnes behalf. Evidently the petitions were not successful, since Carnes took a job with the Natomas Consolidated in 1913. The Natomas Consolidated was a mining company that was working on turning some mining interests into agricultural interests. Carnes, with his solid scientific background in pest management, was tasked with managing the experimental orchards. Later in 1913, he and Kathryn moved Eastward to Nimbus, in order to be closer to his new position with the Natomas Consolidated Company. They rented out their Q Street Home, and later sold it.  Headline from The San Francisco Call, February 15th, 1913
When the Carnes moved to Nimbus, Dr. George Foster, who had a practice near 10th an K streets, moved into the Q Street home, but the Carnes kept their neighbors close. In April, 1914 Mrs. Carnes invited a number of her City neighbors out to the Country Home. Instead of playing cards, they gathered flowers.
Mrs. Leavitt Renschler lived at 2608 Q Street, which was later burned down by frat boys and replaced with a 70's apartment building. Mrs. Walter Renwick lived at 2611 Q Street, which still stands today. Her husband was a bookkeeper for the Standard Oil Company. Mrs. Clyde Tharp should be familiar to us, as she lived just a few doors down from the Carnes Home on Bungalow Row, at 2505 Q Street. Mrs. Charles Battelle (Edith), lived at 1611 26th street, another gorgeous bungalow that still stands today. It is just around the corner from Q street, and within the Bungalow Row Historic District. Mrs. Charles (Cary) T. Wells (Olive) lived right next door from the Carnes Home on Q Street, at 2523 Q Street. Mrs. C. E. Mahoney of 1631 26th Street was the wife of County Supervisor C. E. Mahoney, and their home still stands at the North East corner of 26th and Q. They later sold the home to Newspaper man Herb Caen's parents, which made the home somewhat famous, as Herb wrote about the neighborhood and his experiences growing up here (he was as charmed by the Bungalow Block as any of us). Mrs. Frank McKenzie lived at 2608 P Street Mrs. Milton Browning lived at 1527 27th street and her husband ran a grocery store at 1601 28th. Mrs. Charles E. Weinrich lived on N Street, Mrs William Todd lived at 1617 26th street, one of the first homes built on the bungalow block, which still stands. Mrs. William Dunster lived at 1316 26th Street, and Mrs. Fred Dumont, we're not quite sure about her. Edward Carnes continued with his employment with the Natomas Consolidated from 1913-1916, working with the company to build nurseries and develop irrigated farm sites. He also diversified his interests, expanding from raising insects to raising prize hogs, a few of which are pictured below.  1915 view of Natomas Company lands, From The Center for Sacramento History
It wasn't all good times for the Carnes at Nimbus, however. In September, 1914, two mysterious fires broke out at Nimbus, destroying both the Natoma Winery Building and the house of Edward K. Carnes. The hay in the Winery building was valued at $10,000 while Carnes' house was valued at $3,500. The biggest tragedy, though, was the loss of Carnes' valuable bug collection, which he had taken with him when he resigned from the State Insectary.  Oakland Tribune, September 23rd, 1914  The Sacramento Bee, September 22nd, 1914 Back at Q Street, after Dr. George A. Foster secured a home of his own in Elmhurst, a new Doctor moved into the bungalow at 2519 Q Street. The new Dr. was Horace T. Wells, a dentist practicing at 714 K Street, using the "Painless Parker" method. "Painless" Parker actually had his name legally changed from "Edgar Randolph Parker" in 1915. He would use a cocaine solution to numb patients, but he was also famous for creating a traveling dental circus in 1913, in which he would roll into town with a brass band, contortionists, and dancing women. Wearing a necklace of pulled human teeth, he would use the traveling salesman routine of pretending to pull a tooth painlessly from a plant in the audience, then other townspeople would step up for treatment. Parker would squirt the cocaine mixture into their cavities, but it probably didn't work too well, so he also had a way of tapping his foot on the ground to signal the brass band to play louder, drowning out the patient's screams as the tooth was (not painlessly) extracted. Getting a tooth pulled in this manner, via a traveling circus, performed publicly on the town's square, sounds absolutely horrifying, doesn't it? After Parker's dental circus phase, he came to California and opened about 30 Painless Parker Clinics on the West Coast. Even though Painless Parker's methods weren't perfect (or painless!) he was the first to advertise and open a chain of dental clinics, and he may have been a con man, but he also inspired the industry to implement ethics and good patient care practices. So, Horace T. Wells ran the Sacramento branch of Painless Parker while he lived at the bungalow at 2519 Q with his wife, Amy. On December 17th, 1917, a daughter was born to Horace & Amy at the home, named Amy Eleanor Wells. A few years later, the next renters at 2519 Q, Robert L. Jones and his wife, had a daughter as well, Dorothy Ann Jones, born July 20, 1921. But where were the Carnes by then? Not in Nimbus anymore.  It seems that the Carnes did rebuild their home in Nimbus after the tragic 1914 fire, because they remained there through 1916, and continued to have their Bungalow Row neighbors over for cards and flower-gathering. By 1917, the Carnes were once again on the move. Edward accepted a position with Libby, McNeil & Libby Company, to manage their pineapple productions on Honolulu. Recall that one of Carnes' early assignments with the State of California had been a weeks long study of the Mediterranean fruit fly on the Hawaiian Islands, back in 1911. So, it seems that things came full circle , Edward and Kathryn ended up relocating to beautiful Honolulu. There is a strong Honolulu connection with our Bungalow Row (and California's growing industry), as Gertrude and John Snow, original residents of 2531 Q Street, also ended up living in Honolulu.  The Sacramento Bee, March 24th, 1917 Of course, our Q Street neighbors couldn't let the Carnes leave California without a party. You will see Joseph Light and his wife, who rented 2501 Q Street along with many of the neighbors previously mentioned. It is always heartwarming to us when we look back and see how close our neighbors were when Bungalow Row was just a baby. 
 The Sacramento Bee, February 12th, 1925  2519 Q, looking Eastward on Bungalow Row, October 2020 The Carnes took a six month trip around the world in 1925, possibly funded by the sale of their little bungalow on Q Street and their photo company.  The Honolulu Advertiser, May 23rd, 1925. Perhaps the Carnes rented their home while they traversed the globe.  Honolulu Star-Bulletin, April 20th, 1925 When the Carnes returned to Honolulu, Edward became involved in real estate. He had recently made a large land purchase of apartments and land in Honolulu when he passed away in 1930, at the age of 55.  The Honolulu Advertiser, April 6th, 1930 Kathryne Carnes passed away in San Francisco in 1944. She had left the island in 1941, and was traveling during the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Being unable to return to the Oahu, she stayed in San Francisco until she passed.
 The Honolulu Advertiser, June 17th 1914 The home at 2519 Q Street next sold to Charles W. and Elizabeth Jefferds. He was a shoe salesman, who managed the shoe department at Montgomery Ward Co. and later worked at the Gallan-Kamp shoe store in Petaluma. While Charles and Elizabeth Jefferds lived in Petaluma, at 320 Keller Street, their daughter, Lucille, moved into the bungalow with her husband, Carl F. Quiggle, who was involved in the local rice industry. Lucille was granted a divorce from Carl in 1926 and she remained in the home, while he moved to a home in Curtis Oaks, at 2140 Marshall Way. Lucille worked as a clerk at the Pacific Telephone & Telegraph Company. Lucille lived in the home until 1931, when she married Mark J. Bacon and moved to Ione, Amador County. The Jefferds family kept the home, with various family residing in it. Charles and Elizabeth eventually returned from Petaluma and resided in the bungalow until Charles passed away in 1943. Elizabeth stayed on until at least 1949, when her daughter Lucille's husband Mark, passed away in Ione. Elizabeth may have gone to live with Lucille at that time, because the Charles T. Francis family moved in sometime in 1949.
 Left to Right (West to East) are 2511, 2515, and 2519 Q Street, December 2018 So, now we know a lot about the beautiful bungalow at 2519 Q Street and her residents. We're midway through the block, as we started at the East end of the block, at 2501 Q Street. The names of the local residents are becoming familiar to us, as they appear again and again in articles about tea parties and business dealings. The fabric of the neighborhood is starting to reveal its layers, and we're excited to discover more about the people who made Bungalow Row not just a series of beautifully built homes, but a neighborhood community that we enjoy to this day.  2519 Q Street, September 2020  2519 (and 2511) Q Street, September 2020
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