Picture from the Past
Mortuaries and ambulance service ran from Los Gatos
By John S. Baggerly
Following funerals at the turn of the century, men would wear a black armband over their right bicep, and women would dress in black for the proper length of time as signs of mourning.
One newspaper clipping about a local funeral, submitted by Sharon Brunner Turzo, was worded thus: "On May 27, 1908, at 10 a.m., a funeral service was held at 172 San Jose Avenue in Los Gatos, residence of the deceased. Preparation was under the direction of the C.S. Topping Undertaking Parlors."
Funeral services in the home were somewhat like an Irish wake, during which time family and friends came to view the corpse and to share food, drink and fond memories. Turzo's father, Rex Brunner, eventually became owner of the firm that, after the Toppings, was run by Edwin H. Melvin, a retired U.S. Army colonel. Melvin and his wife, Daisy, purchased two lots on the corner of W. Main Street and Tait Avenue, where the mortuary was located.
Early in the 1920s, Melvin started an ambulance service from which Brunner's West Valley Ambulance Service developed. In 1924, the mortuary was built, and Melvin became particularly proud of his Chandler Limousine Hearse, shown above.
A.E. Falch, owner of the Los Gatos Mail News, devoted an entire eight-column, eight-page spread to the Melvin Chapel's grand opening with a front page photo of chapel and a 5-inch bust photograph of the owner. Seven inside pages were filled with congratulatory advertisements by local businesses.
The hacienda-style building at the northwest corner of W. Main Street and Tait Avenue was described as looking more like a home than a place of business. To those who have traveled to Mexico and other countries, it called to mind the beautiful dwellings of the gentry of those countries.
Melvin operated the mortuary until his death in 1957. His widow then sold the mortuary and ambulance service to a group of local businessmen, with banker Paul Curtis managing the day-to-day operation of the business. Rex and Nita Brunner bought the business in June 1963. That year the Brunners also purchased the ambulance service owned by the estate of George Place, whose funeral home is now the site of the Chart House restaurant on N. Santa Cruz Avenue.
In 1972, two cars were added to the Brunners' round-the-clock ambulance service. Since 1979, however, county- or privately run ambulances have taken over that duty in the area.
The Brunners saw many changes during their tenure. Hotel Lyndon was torn down and replaced by Lyndon Plaza, and the post office was constructed due south of the Town Plaza Park, now used during the summer for Music in the Plaza.
Nita Brunner managed the mortuary office with assistance from her daughters, Sharon Turzo, Marlene Handley and Cindy Bellew. The mortuary received a face-lift in 1965. Today, the building is a private residence. The Brunners also owned a beach home in Aptos, which was the site of reunions and intra-family golf tournaments. Now a widower, Rex Brunner says he sometimes bumps into Los Gatos friends while walking in Aptos.
Sharon and her husband, Armand, are both retired from IBM.
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Los Gatos, California Since 1881
