Columns

Macadam refers to a road-surfacing material and a method of construction. Developed in 1820, it’s named after inventor John McAdam. His method and material was a major breakthrough improving on Roman stone and cobble construction. McAdam’s invention relied on small angular rocks compacted by traffic to create a self-locking stable and relatively smooth surface. This and other Fun Facts in the latest Snapshot.

"There are experiences, people and places that can either be good for you or bad for you. Which way they tilt at any particular time may depend on your mood or their mood or forces beyond your immediate control. An example for me is social media..." says Rob Brezny, noted astrologer.

What a year this has been for the library—it seems like we have been planning and preparing for the Building Modernization Project for so many years, and yet the final few months in the lead-up to our temporary move to the Healdsburg Community Center were positively exhausting...

Wishing everyone Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas and a joyous New Year—grateful for our blessings lest we take what we have for granted rather than count them each day. Here's some holiday movies that always make for a seasonal uplift.

The City Council’s informal decision on Dec. 16 to adopt a five-district, selected mayor format for city government in the redistricting process drew immediate reactions from several community members, who felt the decision was made unnecessarily quickly and short-circuited public discussion of the options. Here are a few of their comments:

Forty sacks of parcel mail, all tightly packed, received Monday at the local post office, forms the record Christmas mail ever received in Healdsburg, according to Postmaster Pearson in a story from the Healdsburg Tribune 100 years ago this week...

Julia Child was 6 feet 2 inches tall. During World War II, she joined the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), precursor to the CIA. She worked directly for General William J. “Wild Bill” Donovan in top-secret research and records. In the OSS, she created a shark repellent from kitchen ingredients to deter unintended detonations of undersea mines. She later became a chef.

100 years ago December 11, 1924 'SHOPPERS FOR CHRISTMAS FILL LOCAL STORES' A journey to the various stores in Healdsburg shows a very complete line of all kinds of articles which are suitable for Christmas presents. The merchants of this city report Christmas buying in full swing....

How much has Fitch Mountain grown in the last twenty-odd years? If some old timer can tell us that, we’ll have the correct measurement of the little mound that overlooks Healdsburg like a somnabulent sentinel.

Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the U.S., and on the second Monday of October in Canada. In the U.S., the date of Thanksgiving varied by state until it was proclaimed a federal holiday on the last Thursday of November by Abraham Lincoln in 1863.