Yesteryear Anderson Bakery Memories

ANDERSON BAKERY MEMORIES

By Marilyn Menges

While attending Coronado High School for my Junior and Senior years (1957-1959), I had the wonderful privilege of developing friendships with many classmates whose parents owned a variety of shops and restaurants here in Coronado, such as Kippy’s, The Mexican Village, Anderson’s Bakery, Shell Gas Station, etc. Many of my favorite memories, however, came from knowing the grandchildren of Carl T. Anderson. He was the owner of the well-known bakery at 956 Orange Avenue: The Coronado Home Bakery, later to be known as Anderson’s Bakery.

Can you imagine being born in, Sweden in 1871 and at about the age of 22 moving to another country without knowing a trade or having enough money in your pocket on which to live when you get there? Carl T. Anderson did just that. Sailing aboard the ship ‘Virginia’ from Gothenburg, Sweden and arriving on the shores of America, walking through Ellis Island on Dec. 17, 1894. Upon his arrival in the United States, Carl worked his way across the country to Coronado, where he was able to obtain a job at the Hotel del Coronado as a baker’s assistant, later to become Head Baker and Pastry Chef.

In 1909, after working 11 years at the Hotel del Coronado, Carl left his position to start his own business from his home at 723 F Avenue. He called Coronado Home Bakery c.1911. Photo courtesy of the Coronado Historical Association Collection.

his new establishment the Coronado Home Bakery. He built a home-made brick oven at the rear of his residence. It was fueled by wooden logs and used to bake bread, which in turn he sold to customers in his horse drawn buggy.

Two years later on April 11, 1911, Carl Anderson opened his new store, the Coronado Home Bakery at 956 Orange Ave. The building as it appears today, was set back 25’ from the sidewalk in 1926. Opening the bakery was the first of four remodels.

Carl was married to Carolina Thoren Hedeen, better known as Carrie and also from Sweden, in 1906 at Christ Church, Coronado by the Reverend Spalding. In 1907, their first son Clarence (Clare) T. Anderson was born and in 1909 a second son, Elwin (Bud) T. Anderson was born at 723 F. Avenue.

During their childhood, the Coronado trolley cars rolled down the center or meridian of Orange Avenue transporting tourists from the ferry landing facing San Diego Bay to the Hotel del Coronado. It was the responsibility of the boys to observe how many fingers the motorman operating the trolley held up that day as he passed the store. This indicated to them how many loaves of bread the motorman wanted to purchase that day. Upon leaving the passengers off at the hotel and on his way back to the ferry landing, the motorman then exchanged money (5 cents a loaf) for the bread

Hotel Del Bakery, date unknown. Photo courtesy of the Coronado Historical Association Collection.

given to him by either Clarence or his brother Bud.

When Carl T. Anderson died in 1935, his two sons became proprietors of what the brothers now called the Anderson’s Bakery. Through the knowledge, skills, training, and work ethic given to the brothers by their father, the bakery remained in business for 81 years until it was sold in 1992.

The boys attended Coronado High School (CHS) graduating in 1926 and 1927 respectively. Bud Anderson was a member of the first Coronado High School football team, playing for the first time on Cutler Field in 1926. Sixty-nine years later on Friday, Nov. 17 1995, during a half-time program, Bud Anderson hoisted the last game ball to his grandson, Brian Bourke, (third generation to graduate from CHS) bringing a close to football games played on Cutler Field.

Clarence Anderson married Lillian Margraf from New Rochelle, New York on June 25, 1938. They had three children; David, Grace, and Cheryl. Then on Oct. 26, 1940, Bud Anderson married Elizabeth (Betty) Dunn from Rockland, Mass. Betty had been secretary/governess for the Kennedy family when Joseph Kennedy was ambassador to Great Britain. They had two children; Linda (1941) and Michele (1944).

During their many years as brothers and bakers, Clarence, the cake baker, and Bud, the pie baker, held major leadership roles within the Coronado community. They also dedicated their lives to helping Coronado grow. As a result of their The Anderson brothers, Bud on the left, Clare on the right, in the Coronado newspapers c. 1949. Photo courtesy of the Coronado Historical Association Collection.

leadership roles over 60 years, they were long standing members in the Coronado Rotary, City Council, Chamber of Commerce, Navy League, and Coronado Hospital Board. Clarence Anderson was awarded the prestigious Coronado Chamber of Commerce’s Lewis J. Hardy Jr. Memorial Award. During Clarence’s tenure as mayor, the street lights along Orange Avenue were installed and the water rights to the City of Coronado were secured. In 1994 the Anderson family donated $25,000 to the new Lamb’s Theater to honor the rich Coronado history Carl T. Anderson started when he opened his bakery in 1909.

Today, Carl T. Anderson would be proud to share with you that he had two sons, Clarence and Bud

Aerial photo of Cutler Field c.1940. Photo courtesy of the Coronado Historical Association Collection.

Anderson; five grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and eight greatgreat grandchildren, all of whom live in various parts of the United States. He would also share with you and be proud of the fact that each of his five grandchildren worked in the bakery for 20 cents an hour cleaning cake and/or pie pans just as his sons had done when they were teenagers.

During a conversation with both David Anderson, oldest grandson and Linda Anderson Lewis, oldest granddaughter of Carl T. Anderson, I asked them what their favorite memory was growing up in a family who owned a bakery. David remembered often going to the bakery after school with his closest friend Paul Plumb. Paul loved and frequently ate oatmeal cookies right out of the oven. One day, Paul asked Clare Anderson if he could take the 10 dozen cookies just baked home with him. Clare told Paul he could have the cookies if he ate all 10 dozen at the store. Otherwise, Paul would have to pay for each cookie. David said, Paul’s desire to eat oatmeal cookies dropped. When I asked David his favorite confectionery delight in the bakery, he said, “Everything.”

Linda shared with me that she would often leave Sacred Heart Elementary School with her close friend Martha Spiers during lunchtime to pick up candy at the bakery. Thinking that no one in the bakery was watching, the two would slip in and retrieve their favorite pieces of candy from the enclosed bakery counter. They had forgotten they were wearing the school uniform of Sacred Heart and would be easily recognized and caught. Linda’s favorite dessert was a scoop of Lime sherbet placed in the middle of a caramelized meringue shell with chocolate syrup dripped to perfection on top.

It is a delight to look back on these memories of a Coronado family and beloved shop, and even today, like many of you, I can remember the taste and smell of the bakery.

Family Relationships During Covid-19

by Linda L. Austin

When people discuss our unique era, laments prevail about the tiresomeness of being sequestered, given the distancing from loved ones, the lack of variety in our activities, and the monotony of daily sameness. However, while people may complain, they have shown the resilient spirit typical of Americans in coping with these irritating difficulties. The attitude is “We have no choice, so we’ll create our own entertainment and make the best of what we have, even though the best may be less than what we enjoyed in the past.”

As we sit down to Thanksgiving dinner this year, no matter who is or isn’t at our table, it is hard to miss that the past few months have sometimes resulted in a rearranging of family dynamics.

Daughters and sons check on elderly parents more with frequent calls or visits. Some elderly parents, especially single ones, have moved in with one of their children for closer monitoring. Many have cherished the additional attention their busy, working children have shown.

Husbands and wives experiencing the empty nest and rearranged schedules have sometimes had too much togetherness. They may have adapted by retreating to temporary solitary spaces for periods. However, engaging in in-depth discussions requiring more than a hurried catch-up chat, and spending time together with in-house activities such as puzzles, movies, and home projects can improve a relationship simply by experiencing the connecting togetherness.

Faced with no other options, college students returned home, knowing their new-found cherished