About the Morion �r
�. � 5 •
►Ol
c `';
`E
r
•
A� r''
At the corner of Torre and Ro- The Life of the Morion ROOTS: A GOODBYE
drigues avenues stands a 20-foot- : The morion sculpture was purchased by Gail Fretwell-Hugger
tall silent sentry to Cupertino's past. : by the City in 1971 and placed on a
Schoolchildren and their parents : three-legged base in the Civic Cen- : I n thinking about what to write about
walk by the sculpture every day on ter Plaza, where it sat for over a de- : for this last column, several things
the way to class, while bicyclists and cade. came to mind.
drivers pass by on their way to work,
City Hall, or the library. In 1987, as a 25th anniversary gift, the First of all, "Roots" became a part of
City created a replica of the sculp- : the Scene many years ago through
Some don't notice the large rust-fin- : ture and presented it to its Sister City : the efforts of Cupertino old-timer
ished helmet as they go about their : Toyokawa,Japan,where it still stands. : Henrietta Marcotte,one of the found-
daily routines, especially during the (Fun Fact: There was a brief debate ers of the Cupertino Historical Society
fall when it blends in seamlessly with among Councilmembers on wheth- : and Museum.
the red- and orange-colored leaves : er the City would gift a replica of the
of the trees that surround it. But those statue or give the original statue to its : She had phenomenal recall for peo-
who do look up usually have the Sister City.) ple, places, dates, sites, events, and
same question: What is that? the earliest history of Cupertino. She
One year later the sculpture was relo- : also helped with the "Traveling Trunk"
The sculpture is a stylized version of : cated to the side of the old Cuperti- : and regaled schoolchildren in our
a morion (pronounced mohr-ee-on) no Library on Torre Avenue. district with tales of the old days in
which is a Spanish conquistadores : Cupertino as she shared farm, home,
helmet. And it's been Cupertino's : When the building was demolished to : and school artifacts with them.
symbol since the 1970s. make way for a new library and com-
munity hall, the sculpture was dis- : When Henrietta's eyes began to tire
Why a Spanish Helmet? mantled, refurbished, and then finally : in her older years, she called me one
The area now known as Cupertino : moved to the corner of Torre and Ro- : day and asked me to come to visit
was claimed by the Spanish in 1776 : drigues avenues when the new Civic her at her home. When I got there,
by explorer Juan Bautista de Anza. : Center was completed in 2004. she had historical articles and older
That name is familiar to every Cuper- : Cupertino Scenes spread out on her
tino resident who uses De Anza Bou- : Learn More About Cupertino History large table. She handed one to me
levard, which cuts through the heart : Tucked away in a cozy corner of the and commanded, "Here! You are
of the City between Prospect Road Quinlan Community Center is the going to write 'Roots' now!"
to the south and Homestead Road to Cupertino History Museum. The mu-
the north. seum is open between Wednesday : One did not say"no"to Henrietta and
and Saturday from 10 a.m. and 4 p.m that is how I started doing "Roots" in
Fast forward 200 years when the City : (depending on volunteer availabili- : September of 1996. My first story was
Council in the 1970s had a decision ty). Admission is free. about the Louis Portal House, which
to make on artwork for an upgraded once stood between present-day
Civic Plaza. The room is filled with historical docu- : Blaney Avenue and Wolfe Road.
ments and artifacts, rotating exhibits,
According to local history, the Coun- : and a gift shop—where you can pur- : Other contributors to "Roots" includ-
cil had to select either the morion chase Cupertino history books, book- : ed Diane Zeigler Ikeda and Yvonne
sculpture—at a cost of approximate- : marks, T-shirts, and even a "historical Holt. They were both long-time Mon-
ly$10,000—or a statue of Juan Bautis- : scenes" blanket. to Vista residents.
to de Anza on a horse for an amount
anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000. The museum is run by the Cupertino : The early Cupertino Scenes were un-
Historical Society with a purpose of : der the editorial supervision of Cuper-
The Council decided to be prudent : creating a passion for the past. The tino's leading lights - Dan O'Keefe,
with the taxpayers' dollars and went : Historical Society has collected more James Jackson, and Reed Sparks- all
with the cheaper option. Thus, the than 3,000 artifacts that span more served on the City Council and wrote
morion became the City of Cuperti- : than 100 years of Cupertino history. the news for the Scene, often adding
no's official symbol. humorous comments.
Visit the museum's website at
Interestingly, it's believed that de www.cupertinohistoricalsociety.com I'll miss writing "Roots" and hearing
Anza himself never wore a morion. : or check it our in person at the Quin- : from its readers. God bless you all
Instead, he most likely wore a plain, Ian Community Center, located at : and may you enjoy all the good rain
black, wide-brimmed hat which 10185 N. Stelling Road. we've been receiving. Come visit the
was more comfortable to wear and Cupertino Museum at Quinlan Cen-
helped protect his face and neck : The Cupertino Historical Society, Gail : ter and we'll show you lots more in-
from the elements as he trail blazed Fretwell-Hugger, and Donna Austin formation about Cupertino's "Roots"!
through California. contributed to this article.
Page 7