No, it isn’t named for a certain coffeeshop chain. Starbuck Street first appeared on a 1949 tract between Painter and Laurel. Even though they weren’t related to any of the tract’s owners, the Starbuck family was quite prominent during Whittier’s first century, so I don’t think this street’s name was pulled out of thin air. Alva Starbuck (1860-1940) was the first of the Starbucks to put down Whittier roots. (They all descended from Edward Starbuck, a 17th century Englishman who sailed to Nantucket and joined the Quakers.) A native of Indiana, Alva came to Whittier the very year it was founded – 1887 – and established himself as the town’s first druggist. Various siblings and cousins later arrived, raising various kids and grandkids, so it’s hard to pinpoint a namesake. But there is evidence that, from 1915 until 1925, Alva owned part of Solomon Stamy’s former ranch and grew fruit there. Since Stamy Road isn’t too far away from Starbuck Street’s first section, the most plausible theory is that this street was carved out of Alva’s old lemon grove.
Find it on the map:
