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Waverly Park in Mountain View in Santa Clara County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)
 

Blue and Gold Kennel Club

 
 
Blue and Gold Kennel Club Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, May 28, 2020
1. Blue and Gold Kennel Club Marker
Inscription. This eighteen room farmhouse was built by Nicholas Kristmas in 1924. By 1928, it had entered into an era of local infamy during which it was known alternatively by the names Blue and Gold Kennel Club, Whitehall Distillery, and Burton's Gold Medal Distillery.
The house featured two bars in the basement, one for ordinary patrons and a second which featured a ballroom for elite clientele. Secret passageways and peep holes allowed curious onlookers to spy on the salacious activities that went on behind closed doors. A casino occupying the third floor had an armed gunman stationed on a platform by the window, watching for police. Alcohol was distilled in the carriage house behind the main house. Drinks were served in the speakeasy and at its greyhound race track, where dog racing scores were broadcast to bookies across the country through an extensive system of antennae.
The speakeasy was shut down in 1933 when authorities arrested then owner George Tex White, an alleged gangster from Chicago, for running an illegal gambling establishment. White sold the property in 1935, only to buy it back again two years latter. This disreputable era finally came to an end in 1938 when a shooting occurred on the property, causing federal authorities to seize the property and put it up for auction. It has since become a private residence.
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Erected 2018 by E Clampus Vitus, Mountain Charlie Chapter No. 1850 with Irwin and Gilda S. Wunderman.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & CommerceLaw Enforcement. In addition, it is included in the E Clampus Vitus series list.
 
Location. 37° 22.185′ N, 122° 4.281′ W. Marker is in Mountain View, California, in Santa Clara County. It is in Waverly Park. Marker is at the intersection of Eunice Avenue and Porterfield Court on Eunice Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 655 Eunice Avenue, Mountain View CA 94040, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Site of Witness Tree (approx. half a mile away); William Wright Ranch (approx. 1.2 miles away); Historic Loyola Corners (approx. 1.4 miles away); Briggs-Stelling Mansion (approx. 1.7 miles away); The Mountain View Train Depot (approx. 1.8 miles away); City of Mountain View Adobe Building (approx. 1.8 miles away); Collins-Scott Winery (approx. 2.1 miles away); F.E. Cornell’s Country Store (approx. 2.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mountain View.
 
Also see . . .  . The 7,200-square-foot, 18-room house, originally built in 1928 by
Blue and Gold Kennel Club Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Barry Swackhamer, May 28, 2020
2. Blue and Gold Kennel Club Marker
The 'farmhouse' is in the background.
Nicholas Kristmas, has gone through few owners. According to Wunderman, the house was allegedly run by mobsters during the early 1930s as the Blue and Gold Kennel Club, a dog-racing front for the bordello and speak-easy, before it was sold to George White and became Burton's Gold Medal Distillery in 1933.
(Submitted on May 29, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.) 
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 29, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 560 times since then and 42 times this year. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on May 29, 2020, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California.

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Mar. 28, 2024