Tea with the Spreckels

Enjoy an afternoon with special guests Lillie and John D. Spreckels. The Spreckels were two of Coronado, and San Diego's, most powerful residents in the late 19th and early 20th century. With fine music, historical tidbits, and light refreshments, this event will bring a bit of Coronado's past into our today.

Debbie Mathis Watts and Tom Dolan will don customs as Lillie and John as they portray this legendary couple whose leadership in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries brought unprecedented prosperity to San Diego and Coronado.

Debbie, as Lillie, will perform during the tea historical monologues, punctuated with piano-vocal renditions of classical piano performances just like John and Lillie Spreckels could have presented in their music room in their Coronado home on Glorietta Bay. Lillie was the wife of a powerful man but did not live in John’s shadow. Lillie an accomplished singer from the garden state of New Jersey originally, she brought her flower growing skills, first to Hawaii, where Queen Liliokalani shared some of her flower secrets and then settling in Coronado with her husband, John.

Debbie's book, “John and Lillie Spreckels: Diaries, Desserts, and San Diego Dreams,” includes fictionalized diary entries that reveal John and Lillie’s deep love for each other, with stories from their seafaring adventures along the West Coast.  The Spreckels contributions to the San Diego region include the railway, the Hotel Del Coronado, The Spreckels Library, and The Spreckels Theatre. Because much of the couples fortune was made from the sugar-refining business, Debbie decided to add a recipe section that includes some of the desserts Lillie may have prepared for her beloved husband and children. This book will be available for purchase at the event.

Reservations are required. Reserve your space below for this one of a kind event.