Preserving a city’s soul: Patricia Cullinan

Shall we start at the beginning?

I was born 68 years ago in Vallejo where my parents had a ranch. I had a farming childhood – animals, grain, crops and so on. I went to Dominican College in Marin and traveled home every night.

Was yours a farming family?

Well, my grandmother actually was a friend of Luther Burbank, and he planted the farm for an aunt of mine who lived on the west side of Santa Rosa. Prunes, apples, peaches. My mother’s parents came from Italy and had a store here in Sonoma before the turn-of-the-century. I was raised by an extended Italian farming family. At heart I’m a farmer.

And your father’s side?

Hmmm…my father – who was born in 1899 – had to leave Ireland in disguise. He was a member of the IRA and branded a trouble-maker by the authorities. He went to Mexico for a while but ended up, in of all places, Borneo, working for Shell. This was in the 1920s. In time, Japan moved in on Borneo and he took off again, this time for Canada, and somehow ended up in Weed, California. He met my mother at a Catholic function in San Francisco and after they married moved to the ranch on 37 where they farmed. In 1949 we moved to Sonoma. The cousins I have in Ireland, by the way, are all farmers.

And your childhood…good memories?

Sonoma was a great place to grow up. My best friend was a descendent of Jack London, Anne Shepard. We rode horses, swam in the Lake and caught snakes. It was a good life. I used to pedal my bike to Glen Ellen along Hwy 12 with little traffic to worry about.

You have quite a garden here.

This was my late mother’s house and now it’s mine, kind of a little farm here on Denmark Street. I’ve got peaches, a small vineyard, six – maybe nine – kinds of figs; apples, pears, berries, persimmon, quince, pineapple guava, mulberries, plums, olives.

I get the picture…what do you do with all of it!

I do canning, press olives. Some fruits get dried. Have you ever had a dried persimmon? You really must.

And flower gardens, too.

I love my relationship with the world of plants. My life’s work has been landscape design. I’m actually a general engineer contractor licensed to build anything. Building 100,000 gallon water tanks, that sort of thing for government, was part of how I earned my living for thirty years. So I did that, and now I still design gardens. After all these years I’ve actually acquired some knowledge.

You’re also active in preserving Sonoma’s history, right?

I’m currently President of the Sonoma Valley Historical Society. The Society began in 1937 and the Depot Park Museum for example, is one of our projects. This area is rich with important history. We produce exhibits, locator maps and guides and are actively involved in the preservation of artifacts, documents and images so that they can be protected and shared with future generations. These things provide Sonoma Valley’s story, its narrative about people, culture and why they matter.

What interests you most about Sonoma’s history?

As I grew up here I was astounded by Sonoma’s sense of authenticity. It had a genuine, lived-in quality mixed into great buildings and interesting architecture. Old places matter, they ground us in memories that can be touched. It’s the opposite of Disneyland. It’s genuine and has real character. Only by understanding the history of that character can its values be preserved, its soul.

You seem quite passionate about this.

It’s my home. I am who I am because of this place.

Interviewed by Larry Barnett