Controversial personality-San Bruno’s Willie Maurer

His driving the bakery wagon door to door, and throughout the streets in San Bruno familiarized him with the homes, housewives and city well enough for him to comprehend the problems of each.

Maurer was elected to San Bruno City Council in 1926 and he served continuously until his retirement in 1964, despite three recall attempts. While a councilmember, Maurer was also in the real estate and insurance business. His office was a payment station for electricity and water bills; during the Depression years Maurer was known to pay water bills for supporters of his who were in financial difficulty.  He was extremely trustworthy, honest and made many friends for his generous deeds such as paying bills of those temporarily short of cash.

“Hard Hat” Willy may be best remembered by San Brunans for his monthly newspaper, Who’s Who, which carried the slogan: “Hew to the line, let the chips fall where they may.” The publication first appeared as a pamphlet in 1921. In an announcement in the four-page, four-column tabloid’s 1925 edition, editor and publisher Maurer described it as “a political organ, rather than a news journal” in which he intended to “comment on topics of general interest without mincing words, calling a spade a spade.” The content and style of his May 1925, edition established Maurer view of himself as a political watchdog and implied a strong adversarial position to the established newspaper, the San Bruno Herald.

Maurer was instrumental in defeating the proposed annexation of the then unincorporated Linda Mar (now Pacifica) and the unincorporated Country Club Estates (by California Golf Club in South San Francisco) in the 1950s.

One of the major accomplishments he claimed was that he had saved the city of San Bruno from financial ruin by his delinquent lot sale plan. He was also instrumental in refinancing the city street improvement bond assessment bearing 7% to longer-term bonds at 4%. He also claimed credit for buying, for $7,000) the land for a new City Hall building. The fund, which he established for the city, enabled the city to build a new City Hall in 1953 without bonds. He infuriated many people by insinuating that hotels and motels served only whores so he blocked any new buildings that would be used as a hotel or motel. He was very adamant in vocalizing his opposition to other people’s opinions. Due to his somewhat different opinions of council members and citizens, he was sued many times.

Maurer remained a bachelor, and lived most of his 46 years in San Bruno at W. 342 Angus Ave. Early in his residency in the city Maurer lived in a wooden floor, 12-foot by 15-foot tent on his property, next to the N.D. Hall on Angus, ostensibly for medical reasons. The tent did not have running water or toilet facilities so he used his friend’s facilities at N.D. Hall next door. The tent and the lack of sanitary facilities is infuriated many people in the community as they thought the councilmen should exhibit higher standards. He had the house at 342 West Angus built in the 1950s after much pressure to do so by his council members and other city officials.

Arguably one of the San Bruno’s most colorful characters, Maurer suffered the first of three strokes late in 1960 and died on Feb. 16, 1961.

Rediscovering the Peninsula runs every weekend. It is compiled through our archives created by Jim Clifford and the late Darold Fredricks.