Compiled by Nick Sestanovich

75 years ago

Earl Warren Next Governor (Nov. 5, 1942)

Earl Warren is the next governor of the State of California by a majority vote of more than 300,000 votes over Culbert L. Olson, incumbent. The race for lieutenant governor gives Frederick Houser the lead by a small majority over Ellis E. Pattersonm incumbent, the final result yet to be determined.
Olson polled 16 more votes than Warren in Benicia, the totals for Olson being 549 against 533 for Warren. The vote for Patterson was 658 and for Houser, 367.
The following tabulation shows the way Benicia voted on other candidates:
Secretary of State— Paul Peek, 556—Frank M. Jordan, 446.
Controller— Harry B. Riley, 884—Anita Whitney, 45.
State Treasurer— Chas. G. Johnson, 898— Kenneth May, 25.
Attorney General— Robert W. Kenny, 611— Wallace Ware, 352.
State Board of Equalization— Richard E. Collins, 752.
Congressman, 3rd District— Joseph B. O’Neil, 804—LeRoy Johnson, 235.
Assembly, 5th District— E.C. Crowley, 885.

50 years ago

Record Set On Bridge (Nov. 2, 1967)

A new high record of 542,152 vehicles crossed the Benicia-Martinez Bridge in August, the State Division of Bay Toll Crossings reported.
This represented a 26.46 percent increase over the total for the same month a year earlier and the second consecutive month in which the span’s vehicular use exceeded half a million passenger cars, trucks and buses.
In July of this year 500,000 was exceeded for the first time, when 524,122 vehicles were counted.
August of this year also saw the record for travel for any single day surpassed. The new mark, 21,642, was recorded Sunday, Aug. 6.
Use of the bridge has increased steadily since the span was opened Sept. 17, 1962 and new records have been common each month since the completion and opening of the Luther E. Gibson Freeway between Cordelia and Benicia.
Observers also have noted that the Benicia-Martinez span has served to ease some of the heavy traffic load on the parallel Carquinez Bridges.
However, the Carquinez spans also established a new high record for any month during August of this year, when 1,583,521 crossings were counted. But the increase over August of 1966 was only 0.21 per cent.

25 years ago

Southampton offers to buy 7 Rose homes (Nov. 1, 1992)

By Sarah Rohrs

Southampton Co. announced Friday it will buy seven Rose Drive homes at fair market value that directly abut Blake Court because of the fear and uncertainty of leftover Braito landfill waste in the area.
Southampton Co. president Michael Olson and Solano County District Attorney Mike Nail issued a jointly prepared statement outlining the proposal.
Olson and Mark Pollock, assistant district attorney for Solano County, negotiated the proposal during the last several months. Rose Drive residents and City of Benicia officials had no direct input into the negotiations and reacted cautiously to the proposal Friday.
Besides the proposal to buy the seven homes, Southampton and Nail also announced the formation of the Rose Drive Outreach program. This program consists of three parts:
* Southampton will offer to buy the seven homes at 874, 875, 878, 880, 884, 886 and 888 Rose Drive.
* Southampton will provide relocation assistance to those homeowners within the footprint area that have to move outside the Bay Area because of a job transfer, but cannot sell their house because of their proximity to Blake Court.
* Southampton will continue to work with government agencies to complete the investigation and will remediate Blake Court as soon as possible within the framework of the investigation conducted by the state Department of Toxic Substance Control.
“We’ve been considering what we could do for some time,” Olson said. “We feel good about it and so does everyone we’ve been talking to. It’s a step…We’re committed to helping out. We’ve wanted to do something for a long time.”
Southampton’s proposal is completely separate from the numerous lawsuits filed against the company. Homeowners who take the offer will not be asked to surrender any rights. .

The full articles of these and other stories are available on microfilm at the Benicia Public Library.

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