By Larry Clinton, Sausalito Historical Society
COURTESY PHOTO
The remains of the Alan Watts Library
A recent online history vignette from the Mill Valley Historical Society (MVHS) mentioned Alan Watts as one of the noteworthy residents of the bohemian community on the southeast flank of Mount Tam back in the 60s.
Druid Heights was founded in 1954 by carpenter Roger Somers and poet Elsa Gidlow, along with their partners, on five acres of a former chicken ranch. Gidlow gave the acreage the name Druid Heights in honor of two female writers, the revolutionary and teacher of Irish lore, Ella Young (the Druid), and Emily Brontë (author of Wuthering Heights).
“Too anarchic to count as a commune, Druid Heights became what Gidlow jokingly called ‘an unintentional community,’” according to the MVHS. It was a popular retreat and meeting place for the Beat Generation of the 1950s, the hippie movement of the 1960s, and the women's movement of the 1970s. It also became a meeting place for many famous figures ranging from Louis Armstrong to Kenneth Rexroth, Bill Graham, Lily Tomlin, Ram Dass, Dizzy Gillespie, John Handy, Alan Watts, Neil Young, Tom Robbins, Catherine McKinnon, and prostitute activist Margo St. James.
Elsa Gidlow and Alan Watts established The Society for Comparative Philosophy in 1962, to foster studies of humanity's relation to nature and the universe. It was headquartered on the converted ferry boat Vallejo which Watts was sharing with flamboyant painter Jean Varda, with the Heights maintained as a closely guarded secret enjoyed by insiders and invited guests.
Alan Watts moved off the Vallejo to 310 Laverne from 1956 to 1963. Beat generation poet Gary Snyder lived at 370 Montford for a few months in the spring of 1956, and his roommate was Jack Kerouac. Watts and Snyder moved to Druid Heights sometime later. According to an obituary in the Bay Area Reporter, Elsa Gidlow was considered the beloved “sister” of Zen philosopher Watts, and he dedicated his autobiography to her.
The Library of Congress reports that Watts moved into the Mandala House (Casa Rondo) and “commissioned the construction of an open reading room and meeting place for his Society for Comparative Philosophy.” He gave public teachings and wrote six of his seminal books in his library and died there in 1973. After that the Society fell on hard times, but in his name and with the help of a solid board of directors, it revived and continued until Gidlow's death in 1987.
In June, the BBC reported: “Watts, Gidlow, and Somers all died on the property, and all but a few of these buildings now lie abandoned. And as the years take their toll, these structures have become a centre of contention, with preservationists putting increasing pressure on the National Park Service (NPS) to restore them and open the site to visitors.
“In 1977, Druid Heights became part of Muir Woods National Monument and the greater Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA). While the NPS initially indicated it intended to preserve the site, little action was taken and most of the buildings are now dilapidated.
After years of research and documentation by the NPS, in 2018 Druid Heights was determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) at both the local and state level.
Preservationists hope Druid Height’s buildings may soon be protected to help preserve its founders' original vision. That doesn't mean the park service has to open the site to the public, but they do have to preserve it."
Cont.