City of the 1910s, '20s defined much of the author's later work.
William Saroyan was born 100 years ago into a Fresno poised on the brink of dramatic change.
Downtown was transformed during his adolescence as a skyline took shape along Fulton Street. Fashion, travel and electricity all swept past vestiges of the 19th century into a faster, more modern lifestyle.
But change can't be fast enough for the young and restless.
In today's installment of "Follow," the previously unpublished novella by Saroyan that appears in The Bee this month, protagonist Aram Diranian prepares to leave his hometown for the first time.
Saroyan describes his mood: "He felt as happy as a bird about to fly from its cage."
The author, like his character, couldn't wait to get out of Fresno, heading for San Francisco in 1926.
Click here to experience an online tour of the famed Fresno native's life, including:
- "Follow," a previously unpublished novella
- Audio clips from the author
- A Saroyan timeline
- An interactive map of Fresno in Saroyan's day
- Numerous historical photos
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Yet so much of Saroyan's writing, like "Follow," was defined by his upbringing here.
In "The Human Comedy," for example, Ithaca -- where the character Homer Macauley delivers telegrams, as did Saroyan -- is clearly a stand-in for Fresno.
The short stories found in "My Name Is Aram" and other Saroyan books are steeped in the author's observations of life in Fresno in the early decades of the 20th century.
Readers of Saroyan cannot help but wonder: What was it like to live in Fresno, circa 1920? Would we recognize the city today?
Not likely.
Fresno's population was barely more than 45,000, less than a tenth of what it is today. Think Madera.
The city, roughly 10 square miles, grew similarly. (It's now nearly 100.) Foreshadowing decades of sprawl, there already were a couple of suburbs beyond downtown. But there was little to see north of Olive Avenue or east of Cedar Avenue.
Between 1915 and 1925, as Saroyan grew into a young man, change was constant. World War I ended, bringing home soldiers and an influx of worldly experiences that their service had imprinted upon them. Prohibition began, inspiring residents to manufacture wine and beer at home. The suffrage movement gave women the right to vote alongside men.
Locally, a construction boom gave rise to many of the buildings that still stand today along Fulton Street. Most were in place by 1928.
Few artifacts illustrate the difference between Fresno today and 80 years ago better than the photographs of Claude C. "Pop" Laval, whose career captured life in the city throughout the first half of the 20th century.
Through Laval's lens, we can glimpse at the way Fresno worked, played, celebrated, traveled and studied -- lived, really -- in the late 1910s and early '20s.
With the help of the Pop Laval Foundation, which is busy restoring and archiving his 100,000 photos, we've constructed a detailed look at the way things were.
Readers can find some of Laval's photos, along with recollections from 101-year-old, lifelong Fresno resident Art Rustigan, at www.fresnobee.com/saroyan.
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Photo page of Saroyan's Fresno 1
