Isolated several miles west of downtown San Francisco, Ocean Beach became a popular recreational destination for early city dwellers during the period of prosperity and vice that extended from the Gold Rush to the 1906 Earthquake. The earliest development in this area included roadhouses, saloons, brothels, and hotels, as well as recreational facilities like the magnificent Sutro Baths and the Fleishhacker Pool. As a circumstance of the remote location, a self-sufficient bohemian culture evolved, exemplified by Carville-by-the-Sea— an enclave of re-purposed abandoned horse-drawn rail cars (and later cable cars). At the time, the journey from downtown required traversing undeveloped sand dunes and was often an all-day or weekend affair. The cars at Carville were converted into clubhouses and cabana-like resting stops for visitors at Ocean Beach. Groups like the Lady Falcons Bicycle Club established their headquarters at Carville, and the Annex was a popular coffee saloon run by Colonel Charles Dailey (the so-called “founder” of Carville). One can only imagine what a fun and wild place Carville was in the mid-19th century. By the early 1900s, more permanent residents moved to the area and the newly formed neighborhood improvement club started a campaign to “clean up” Carville. Most of the cars were burned or abandoned in the early 1900s, but a few remain and have become integrated into the neighborhood fabric as subtle reminders of the creative and fascinating early history of the neighborhood.
Great Highway and Carville ca. 1903. Photo from www.streetcar.org
The Carville-by-the-Sea spray was created to conjure the spirit of the bohemian pioneers who established this community at Ocean Beach at the turn of the 19th century. The blend features mugwort, a mystical herb that allows us to access our ancestors through our dreams and protects us from harm during this channeling process. Peppermint and palmarosa essential oils and lavender tincture lift the spirit and provide high points to the scent. Gem essences of jade, carnelian and moss agate provide healing, vitality and grounding energy to the spray.
Ingredients: Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), peppermint (Mentha piperita) and palmarosa (Cymbopogon martinii) essential oils; lavender (Lavandula spp.) and mugwort tinctures; and jade, carnelian and moss agate essences in a distilled water and brandy solution.
Use: Spritz around a room to clear and freshen the air and to ignite sensory memory through scent.
2 oz spray bottle. Limited edition!