Youth Center added to National Register

The Sonora Youth Center was built in the 1940s, part of a community effort supported by the National Youth Administration. Union Democrat file photo, copyright 2009

The designation makes the nearly 70-year-old building eligible for tax credits and federal funds, and offers some protections from demolition.
 

Most importantly, it recognizes the historical significance of the building, according to Sharon Marovich, chairwoman of the Tuolumne Heritage Committee, which nominated the building for placement on the National Register last year.

The distinctive architecture of the log building, located on South Barretta Street, and its role in the social life of generations of Tuolumne County youth were among the criteria that led to the listing, Marovich said.

The Sonora Youth Center was built between 1940 and 1943 through a community effort that involved the donation of materials, funds and labor, according to Marovich. The National Youth Administration, a New Deal Program that put needy young people to work on public projects, paid the salaries of some of the young adults who helped build it, Marovich added.

The last fact also contributed to the building’s placement on the National Register, as, according to Marovich, it means the structure “is tied to an important era in American history.”

Over its 66 years of existence, the center has provided a meeting place for Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and various other youth organizations. Though it is now used, in part, by the county as a storage area, the building is still used by various civic groups, Marovich said.

The log building was the brainchild of late Sonora High School Principal Vernon Dunlavy, according to Marovich. He set up a meeting in February of 1940 — inviting Boy and Girl Scouts leaders, civil and business group leaders, veterans groups, the U.S. Forest Service and county officials — where a brainstorming session on how to provide a place for youth groups to use commenced.

Marovich noted that a designation by the National Register of Historic Places does not limit what a private landowner can do to a piece of property unless said property is located within an historic district enacted by local ordinance.