The Delta Building, located at 425 5th St., Marysville is currently planned to hold approximately six market-rate apartment units.

MARYSVILLE, CA (MPG) - It started with a single email from a curious reader. The gaping hole left by the recently demolished Hotel Marysville had put the Delta Building, located at 425 5th St., into plain view.

“I would like to know more about the Matthew's Building (Delta),” wrote Lesley Clarkson. “The Matthews Building is the Art Deco two story with stained glass windows that has been used most lately for craftsmen, musicians and fine carpentry. This building is a perfect size and style for restoration and can be seen when entering Marysville from the south now that she is not overshadowed by the overbearing blight. I’ve heard that she received retrofitting around 2010.”

The task seemed simple enough. A few quick Google searches and a couple phone calls ought to do the trick. On Zillow, the Delta is described as a 6,240-square-foot single-family home with one bedroom and one bathroom. LoopNet pitches it as a vintage loft-style building with a completely open floor plan perfect for “anything you can dream up.”

Current records, however, show that the building has belonged to “Nighi X Pham” since September 2020. Its land use is listed as warehouse-primarily storage with a C-2 zoning, which typically allows for a wide range of retail businesses, services, offices and sometimes light industrial uses.

“It’s currently under renovation and it will become six market-rate apartment units,” said Marysville City Councilman Stuart Gilchrist. “We have planned 132 market-rate units for the downtown area. Unfortunately, with the hotel fire, we lost 68 potential two-bedroom units.”

The Delta, according to Gilchrist, is further along because its constituents have already submitted a full set of plans and permits. Gilchrist said the city is currently awaiting plans or new developers for other similar structures within Marysville.

Molly Bloom, Sutter County Museum's director and curator, peruses through archived business directories to find what the Delta Building in Marysville might have originally been used for.

Having satisfied the current status of the Delta, it was time to delve into its history.

As Clarkson mentioned, it most recently operated as Masterpiece School of Furniture under owner James Bowie. Records were also easy to find on the Matthews Music store, which operated from approximately 1984 to 2011. Then came remnant articles of Eddie’s Lounge, a bar that was known at least in the early 1970s for housing rock bands.

The building was also said to have sheltered a barber shop and a shoeshine stand. The Delta has housed its fair share of prominent Marysville businesses but why was this structure originally built?

Digging a bit deeper, the Delta is shown to have been recorded into the National Historic Registry in 1999. According to those records, the Delta was built in 1923 with the ground floor “originally holding storefronts.”

“I believe there used to be a beauty college and a dance studio as well,” said Sue Moyers, a member of the Yuba County Historic Resources Commission. “An imprint of the old sign can still be seen on the side of the building.”

Having already exhausted Yuba County Libraries online Digital Real, Moyers suggested peaking into the “Ramey Index.” Earl Ramey, a World War 1 veteran and Missouri native, moved to Yuba County after accepting a teaching position at Marysville High School and Yuba College. His 30-year career was marked with extensive research into Marysville’s history which he compiled into a book, “The Beginnings of Marysville.” While volunteering at the Yuba County Library, then operating as the Packard Library, Ramey logged his research notes on approximately 90,000 three-inch-by-five- inch cards. The Rotary Club of Maysville later digitized these records in alphabetical order which can now be accessed online via the Yuba County Library website.

“I’d look there. It might give you a good starting point,” said Moyers.

Here is a stack of books pulled from the archives of Sutter County Museum, used to assist in the research of the Delta Building's origins in Marysville.

The Ramey Index turned up just two cards; one from council minutes in 1935 about the removal of a tree and another from 1928 inferring that this is when the structure was officially named “Delta Building.” The article in reference to this card could not be retrieved. Because the building resides within Marysville City limits, the Yuba County Community Development & Services Agency suggested a trip to the Marysville’s Community Development Department headed by Dan Flores. Here, one of the clerks was able to pull a large yellow file filled with deeds, titles and blueprints but nothing new was exposed past Eddies Bar. Curious by the conversation, Flores emerged from his office but was also unable to recall any facts about the Delta’s origins.

It was time to jet across the bridge to the Sutter County Museum. While Sutter County might be its central focus, the museum holds many artifacts and records that are applicable to Marysville and Yuba County. Its volunteers and staff members are also quite knowledgeable. Walking in the door on Jan. 23, the Territorial Dispatch was greeted by Linda Baker at the front desk. Baker has been touted as one of Yuba-Sutter's greatest volunteers, also serving on local library clubs. She recalled that the Delta used to house a dance studio but couldn't remember much past that.

“If Sharyl Simmons were here, she might be able to tell you more,” said Baker, in reference to one of the museum's former curators. “I'll ask her about it the next time I see her.”

Molly Bloom, the museum's current director and curator, pulled several archived books and business directories. According to these sources, the Delta’s address was listed under Jone W T and Phelan W E as early as 1924. In 1958, it was listed as “Bush Studio Photography.”

“I'm not sure if that helps but it's at least a lead,” said Bloom, who was now equally intrigued.

Remnants of the old “Martin’s Beauty College” sign can still be seen on the east side of the weathered Delta Building in Marysville.

Later that night, Baker contacted the Territorial Dispatch with additional information given to her by a friend, Charlotte Mattocks. Mattocks possessed an article and advertisement from 1936 listed in an area newspaper.

“My father’s first soda fountain was in the Delta Building,” said Mattocks. “The article is currently hanging in my computer room.”

Mattocks’ father, Charles Gross celebrated the opening of Chuck’s Fountain on March 17, 1936. Two years later, another article came out reporting a mix-up in the lease. Gross, who occupied the west end of the Delta, had an exclusive clause that prohibited the owners from permitting any competitive business within the same building. This caused problems for William Harper who had already moved into the east end of the Delta with his family for the purpose of establishing an ice cream factory and soft drink stand. The article stated that the new tenants were “standing on their right” and that no settlement had been reached.

“I have no idea what happened after that. It’s a mystery,” said Mattocks. “‘Delta Building always makes me think of a fraternity.”

Unfortunately, this is where the investigation into the Delta ends. Why it was built, how it received its name and what its original use was intended for remains a bit of a mystery. Considering that it is now 102 years old, it's only natural that a few details have fallen through the cracks. Anyone with knowledge on the Delta is encouraged to contact the Territorial Dispatch by emailing [email protected].