Sales Family Collection

Florendo Macadangdang Sales was born in the municipality of Bacarra, in the Ilocos Norte province of the Philippines in 1910. In 1929, Florendo immigrated to the United States. After arriving, he traveled to the Salinas Valley where he planned to work as a migrant agricultural laborer. However, Florendo decided to instead pursue a career as a barber. While working as a barber in Watsonville during the 1930s, Florendo met Dora Esther Tomlinson, a white woman who grew up migrating with her family to find work throughout the United States. Dora was born in 1926 in Silver City, New Mexico. During World War II, Florendo enlisted in the US Navy and was stationed in Seattle, Washington. Dora joined Florendo in Washington and they got married. The exact date of their wedding is unidentified.

After the war, Florendo and Dora returned to Watsonville to raise a family. They had ten children—Thomas, Vicky, Florendo “Fred” Jr., Alex, Richard, Sharlene, Adrian, Dana, Bebeng, and Rosario. Eventually, Florendo purchased a small farm where the family grew berries, zucchinis, and tomatoes as well as raised livestock. Dora and the Sales children worked on the farm. Dora also had jobs in the canneries located in Watsonville.

Florendo continued to work as a barber until the 1980s. Throughout his career, Florendo owned and operated three subsequent barber shops in Watsonville. His first shop was on Riverside Road; the second was a jointly-owned shop with several other Filipino barbers; and the third was on a piece of property Florendo bought on Main Street in downtown Watsonville. Florendo’s third barbershop, as well as many other Filipino and minority-owned businesses in downtown Watsonville, were destroyed during an urban redevelopment campaign carried out by the city of Watsonville during the 1980s.

Florendo passed away in 1989. Dora currently lives in Sacramento.

The Sales Family Collection was contributed to Watsonville is in the Heart in 2021 by Florendo and Dora Sales' son, Dana Sales. The collection contains nine items: family photographs; magazine and newspaper clippings; and an oral history interview with Dana. In the interview, he reflects on his experiences growing up in Watsonville. He also speaks about the urban development that occurred in Watsonville during the 1980s and destroyed many of the Filipino-owned businesses.

Dana Sales