A CAGenWeb Project 

Sonoma County Genealogy

The Town of

Rohnert Park

  • Genealogy
  • History of Rohnert Park
  • The Town Today
  • Places of Interest
  • People of Interest
  • Maps
  • Photos
Table of Contents

Rohnert Park is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located approximately 50 miles (80 km) north of San Francisco. The population at the 2020 United States Census was 44,390. It is an early planned city and is the sister city of Hashimoto in Japan. Sonoma State University, part of the California State University system, is located nearby. [1]



Genealogy


GenealogyOnline: About the Town Rohnert Park . . . Link

Surnames: Apfel, Goldstone, Kline, Kreun, Radich, Ratcliffe, Rathbun, Rostov, Servaas, Thompson


LDS genealogy.com: Rohnert Park . . . Link


Roadside Thoughts: Rohnert Park California . . . Link


Sonoma County Genealogical Society . . . Link




History of Rohnert Park


Originally home of the Coast Miwok native people, the Mexican government granted Rancho Cotate to Captain Juan Castaneda in July 1844 for his military services in the region. The grant encompassed present-day Penngrove, Cotati and Rohnert Park. "Cotate Rancho is a part of the Vallejo Township which is the plain between Sonoma Mountain and Petaluma Creek San Pablo Bay, and an east and west line dividing the tract from Santa Rosa Township." In 1849, Dr. Thomas S. Page, of Cotati, bought Rancho Cotate. Over time, the property was broken up and sold off piecemeal to incoming settlers.  [1]


The town of Rohnert Park was named after the Rohnert family, which owned the Rohnert Seed Farm. In 1929, a successful businessman, Waldo Emerson Rohnert (1869–1933), a native of Detroit, Michigan, purchased a large ranch in the area and minimized flooding in the fields with a crude drainage system. He died shortly thereafter. His son, Fred Rohnert, a graduate of Stanford Law School, took over the ranch and developed a seed growing business, the Rohnert Seed Farm, which became a major horticultural success for the county.  [1]


In 1956, only four adults resided within the district boundaries. In 1956 and 1957, with the U.S. Route 101 Freeway recently completed at the Cotati bypass, Rohnert Park began to be laid out and built as a planned city. In a summer election in 1962, Rohnert Park was incorporated, comprising 1,325 acres (536 ha), housing an estimated 2,775 persons. It was the first town to incorporate in Sonoma County since 1905. The neighboring town of Cotati, California, voted to incorporate the following year.  [1] 


Rohnert Park
The town named for Waldo Emerson Rohnert was built on flat adobe land once known as the Waldo Rohnert Park Seed Farm. In November, 1957, the Paul Golis family and the "Tuckey" Moran family moved into the first completed homes in Rohnert Park. When the city was incorperated in 1962 it consisted of 1,325 acres, housing an estimated 2,775 persons; the fourth largest City in Sonoma County. The same year the John Reed School was the first to open its doors.  . . . [Archived Website. Link]



"History- Aug. 30, 1962 State proclaims City of Rohnert Park official" [Article] . . . Link


History of Rohnert Park [Chamber of Commerce, look for link] . . . Link


History of Rohnert Park [City Page PDF] . . . Link


Historical Society . . . Link . . . Official City Page


LocalWiki: Brief History of Rohnert Park . . . Link


Native American Tribes & the Indian History in Rohnert Park, California . . . Link


Rohnert Park's Past in Pictures . . . Link


Rohnert Seed Farm between Cotati and Santa Rosa, California, July 15, 1955 [Aerial view] . . . Link



Check Sonoma Historian (SCHS) for articles about the towns. . . . Link




The Town Today


American Towns . . . Link


LocalWiki: Rohnert Park . . . Link


Rohnert Park Today [Niche] (has a map of location). . . Link


Rohnert Park Chamber of Commerce . . . Link


Sonoma County Life Opens Up: Rohnert Park . . . Link . . . 48 Hours in . . . 


Town Homepage . . . Link . . . Link (County)


Wikipedia Page: Rohnert Park . . . Link


WikiVoyage: Rohnert Park . . . Link




Places of Interest


Sonoma State University . . . Link





People of Interest


Arturo Ibleto – aka Pasta King [2 Oct. 1926 - 2020] . . . Link

"Thumbs up: A post office for the Pasta King" [Article] . . . Link

"Arturo Ibleto, a Bella Life in Sonoma County" [Article] . . . Link

"Art Ibleto, Sonoma County’s Pasta King, dies at 94" [Article] . . . Link

About Pasta King . . . Link


Fred Rohnert  . . . Wikipedia

Waldo's son, Fred Rohnert, a graduate of Stanford Law School, took over the ranch and developed a seed growing business, the Rohnert Seed Farm, which became a major horticultural success for the county.


Jim Robie – pastor, Faith Presbyterian Church . . . Link


Jimmie Payne – Mr. America 1950 [Abt. 1927-2012] . . . Link . .  PDF History

Fitness Pioneer Jimmie Payne Dies at 85 . . Link


Paul Golis [1917-2003] (Pic and Bio) . . . Link

Golis, known as the father of Rohnert Park, was a self-made man, known for his brilliant mind, combative style, eloquence and tenacity. He was part urban visionary and part capitalist who saw a city rising from marginally productive farmland that he and his partner, Maurice Fredericks, bought for $200 an acre in the 1950s.


Rohnert Park Remembers: Favorite Folks . . . Link

People Interviewed: Annie Rasmussen & husband Ron, Armando Flores (Councilman and mayor), Arturo Ibleto (aka Pasta King), Faith and Gordon Adam, Irene Hilsendager, Jim Robie (pastor, Faith Presbyterian Church), Jimmie Payne (Mr. America 1950), Reba Roberts (wife of former mayor Art Roberts), Rev. Samuel T. Tharpe, Tim Danesi, Vern & Val Smith.


Thomas S. Page, Dr. . . . Wikipedia

In 1849, Dr. Thomas S. Page, of Cotati, bought Rancho Cotate. Over time, the property was broken up and sold off piecemeal to incoming settlers.


"Tuckey" Moran . . . Wikipedia

In November, 1957, the Paul Golis family and the "Tuckey" Moran family moved into the first completed homes in Rohnert Park.


Waldo Emmerson Rohnert [1869 - 1933] . . . Link . . . Article 

In January of 1931, [Waldo] Rohnert bought an additional 700 acres from the Cotati Land Company and continued to acquire more acreage as demand for his seeds increased. By 1933, his holdings included 4000 acres of seed land, 1000 acres of orchards, and extensive grazing land for cattle. [The town of Rohnert Park was named after him]



Maps


Map of Rohnert Park, with boundaries [BingMaps] . . . Link


Map of Rohnert Park [MapQuest] . . . Link




Photos


Town, 1955 . . . Link








Citations


[1] Wikipedia contributors. "Rohnert Park, California." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 29 Aug. 2022. Web. Accessed 9 Sep. 2022.  . . . Link


[2] "Historical and Descriptive Sketch Book of Napa, Sonoma, Lake, and Mendocino: Comprising Sketches of Their Topography, Productions, History, Scenery, and Peculiar Attractions", C.A. Menefee, 1873 . . . Link


[3] "Historical and Descriptive Sketch of Sonoma County, California" Robert Allan Thompson. L.H. Everts, 1877 - Sonoma County (Calif.) - 104 pages. [ ??? pp 100-101] . . . Link


[4] "History of Sonoma County: Including Its Geology, Topography, Mountains, Valleys and Streams ...."' United States, Higginson Book Company, 1880. [page ???] . . . Link . . . Text at CAGenWeb


[5] "An Illustrated History of Sonoma County, California: Containing a History of the County of Sonoma from the Earliest Period of Its Occupancy to the Present Time", Lewis Publishing, 1889 . . . Link


"A History of Rohnert Park : from seed to city". DeClercq, John H. 1977