Village of Cordelia Historic District

Village of Cordelia Historic District. . In 1988 the Village of Cordelia Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places with a period of significance of 1870 to 1939. The district extends along Cordelia Road from Interstate 680 to Pittman Road. It also includes Bridgeport Avenue south of the railroad tracks, which still has several classic Victorian-era homes. There were 39 properties in the historic district, including 23 single-family residences, 6 commercial or civic structures, 3 farmsteads, and 7 other buildings. Many of the structures no longer exist.

The report used to establish the historic district states: "Cordelia represents one of the best-preserved villages in California, illustrating in its plan and in its structures the basic character of village life in California in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries."

The path along Cordelia Road was constructed in 2010 by Solano County and the City of Fairfield to showcase the remaining bufldings and the history of Cordelia.

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The Cordelia Wine Company

At one time, Cordelia was the largest wine producer in the United States. The Cordelia Wine Company, established in 1867, was the first winery in Solano County. It shipped out its wine on its own railroad spur, as seen in the photo. Wine was also brought out of Cordelia on ships. At one time, ships were able to sail all the way up to the end of Cordelia Slough (on the north side of Interstate 80). Soil eroding from agricultural land in Suisun Valley and Green Valley eventually caused Cordelia's embarcadero to silt up and become unusable. Some of the original piles from the docks still remain in the Suisun Marsh. The Cordelia Wine Company closed in the 1920s due to prohibition. The wooden structures later burned down, but the stone wine cellar remains. Photo ca. 1880.

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A view looking west down Cordelia Road. The photo captures a portion of the town center and its proximity to the railroad. From left to right. The train depot, Cordelia Meat Market with Glashoffs Dance Hall on the second floor, the post office building which also housed the library and barber shop, and Siebe's General Store. Photo ca. 1900.

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Cordelia Railroad Tunnel

The only tunnel in Solano County is located about a mile east of here. This railroad tunnel was built in 1868 as a part of the transcontinental rallroad and is still in use today. No explosives were used to create the tunnel; instead Chinese rail workers hand dug the tunnel with picks and shovels. Oil painting by Cordelian Daphne Wynne Nixon, 2005.