A Little Riverside History

I accepted a job subbing for a middle school in Riverside yesterday, one that I had never heard of before. I thought maybe it was just far outside the reaches of the neighborhoods I was used to and had friends from, but turns out it's just new.

Frank Augustus Miller Middle School up in Woodcrest. I got there and was blown away at how nice it was! (At least compared to my crummy middle school, built in 1927 and redesigned in 1973 and did not look good for its age while I was there.) It had mission-style architecture and Riverside raincrosses on the gates (LOVES IT!) It occurred to me that the namesake of the school might be telling, and the name was ringing a bell, but not the right one. I kept thinking of the Wizard of Oz, but knew that couldn't be right. (That was L. Frank Baum, FYI). The school had a minimum day and even though we were done at noon, I had to stay and supervise kids in the library. Inside the library, the wallpapers were visuals/scenes/walls of the Mission Inn. The Mission Inn! It all came screaming back to me that Frank Augustus Miller was the architect of the Mission Inn, the creator of the Riverside raincross, and "one of Riverside's strongest promoters." (Hey, I thought that was me.) I verified this with one of the kids. "Hey! That's the Mission Inn, isn't it?" I asked. He didn't even look up. "Ugh. Yeah." Welp.

The kids were so well behaved in the library that I was bored out of my mind and went on the computer to research Mr. Frank and the Mission Inn. Turns out there's some dark history. Did you know, in 1909, one of the most popular songs of that era, called "A Perfect Day" was penned by Carrie Jacobs-Bond as she watched the sunset over Mt Rubidoux from her 4th floor room at the Mission Inn? (Not to be confused with "Perfect Day" by Lou Reed). Well here's a lesson as to why you should always read to the end:

In Lake Arrowhead in 1929, Jacobs-Bond's only child, Frederick Jacobs Smith, committed suicide with "A Perfect Day" playing on a phonograph. (Wikipedia.)

Can you let that sink in? Can you realize how horrific that is? That is some messed up stuff, and it totally killed my buzz!

This could be why they don't play "A Perfect Day" daily on the carillon at the Mission Inn anymore, but this is purely my own speculation. We need a new Riverside anthem.