History a life-long passion for columnist

Fredricks, 77, writes a weekly history column for the Daily Journal giving him a chance to discover the history of areas he has never been. A dream of Fredrick’s had always been to research the Portola Valley and the opportunity arose in writing the stories for the Journal, he said.

"I have always been interested in what was happening around me. I am an observer; I have always felt like I was on the outside looking in,” said Fredricks of his lifelong love of history.

In the 1980s, Fredricks found 35 mm film of old photographs of the Bay Area taken between 1910 and 1975 by Fred Beltramo, a local businessman, and developed the film in his home photo lab. He turns the photos into slides for various projects. The photos were a complete mystery; none of the people or places were identified. Fredricks began the long journey of searching for clues to the history of the area through these photos. He researched these photos using local resources such as libraries, background records, and even going door to door asking for information. These photos became a big part of his recent work — including slide presentations, books, a calendar and the recent DVD project.

"I wanted to know why people did what they did,” said Fredricks.

Today, the photos are displayed at libraries and businesses all over the Peninsula. The prints, some of which currently hang in the corridor at San Bruno City Hall, bring one back to a time of small farmhouses scattered miles away from one another.

 It’s about seeing changes over time, Fredricks said of the photographs.

 Currently the collection of photos amounts to over 10,000 slides. It was a long process for Fredricks, but one that was definitely worth the time and energy.  All the slides were scanned onto his computer and he made DVDs featuring more than half of the collection.

 Over the years, Fredricks has done 50 to 100 different presentations for several local service groups including the local Lions and Rotary clubs.

"Usually they (the organization) ask me to do a 10- to 15-minute presentation, but I could talk for hours; I always end up coming back,” said Fredricks.

The early history of the area parallels that of the Midwest, where Fredricks spent his childhood. Fredricks was born in Sioux Falls, S.D. during the great depression of the 1930s. He came from a family of 10, supported by his father on $20 a week.

"I wasn’t sure how my father put dinner on the table sometimes; if you weren’t at the table on time you didn’t get any food,” said Fredricks. He recalls having one pair of shoes for an entire year growing up.

Reading a history book is only a piece, you have to know that a lot of what happened never was written down, Fredricks explained.

"I want the people to see the history. People get turned off by history because it has been taught so poorly. If you present it right, it can be interesting,” he said. "I love to see the big picture, history has so many facets, I am continually amazed by things that some might consider dull.”

 Fredricks has also helped produce The First National Bank of California’s heritage calendar for the past 15 years. The limited edition calendar features photos from Fredricks’ collection. He researched the photos, found out when they were taken, what the buildings were, and the history of the families in them.

"Kids have so many distractions these days with their TVs, computers, the Internet and their iPods — they aren’t observing the world around them,” he said. "It’s a shame how much they are missing.”