In preparation for an upcoming paranormal investigation at this location I began researching these intriguing old buildings, and felt compelled to share some of my preliminary findings with our PPI Blog readers. I can see this turning into a full blown research project in the near future, because there is no definitive compilation regarding the history of these buildings, and what little information is available is contradictory. I have an affinity with these buildings going back 30 years when I did volunteer work for the Historical Shrine Foundation of San Diego, who, under the leadership of June Reading, relocated these buildings to the Whaley House grounds in Old Town, and secured funding to restore the buildings from the County of San Diego. Therefore, there should be documents in the San Diego County Archives that address the many questions surrounding their origins, and action taken by the County Supervisors should be reflected in their minutes. Additional information may also be available through the San Diego Historical Society because June Reading wrote extensively of her Foundation's work at the Whaley House. But for time being, the following will have to suffice.
I have been unable to find any information about the the building that currently serves as the kitchen for the Creole Cafe, but in the late 1970's through the late 1980's the building was used as a coffee shop. It was called "The Spice of Life", and it was a great place to grab a cup of coffee on a cold winter day while investigating the grounds of the Whaley House Museum. June Reading told me that both buildings were moved to the Whaley House property from another location and restored sometime after the Whaley House was restored and opened to the public in 1960 and the San Diego Bicentennial Celebration of 1969. The buildings were pre-fabs that were shipped around Cape Horn to the west coast in the late 1850's or early 1860's. They were basically "kit" buildings that were ordered from a catalog and assembled on site. This type of false front pre-fab building was very common in Old Town in the late 1800's.
The building which now serves as the dining room of the Creole Cafe was dedicated as the San Diego Drugstore Museum in 1969, and bears a bronze plaque commemorating the occasion. From 1969 through the late 1990's it housed displays assembled by June Reading and the Southern California Pharmaceutical Association. When June passed away in 1998, the Historical Shrine Foundation was disbanded, and responsibility of the buildings was transferred to SOHO. The
Creole Cafe opened for business in 2004.
