(The following is rated PG 13 to R) ) According to the Santa Cruz Public Library website "Local History Articles" section, "It has been said that Whiskey Hill is the spot where the residents of the Pajaro Valley went to quench their thirst and this does indeed seem to be the case.
It sprang into existence at the juncture of the Santa Cruz Road (Freedom Boulevard) and the trail up to Green Valley (Green Valley Road) at about the same time that Watsonville began to grow on the banks of the Pajaro River. By 1852, it was already a motley collection of a dozen rude shanties scattered along the road, each one containing a cantina which catered to the vaqueros of the San Andreas and Los Corralitos Ranchos. They featured, not only whiskey and "aguardiente" of the more volatile brew, but also gaming tables and hordes of randy women. The saloons and brothels of Whiskey Hill were said to be among the most wicked and wild in the state.
It was Jose Maria Gutierrez, who for many years ran the meanest little whorehouse at Whiskey Hill. The girls were hard, the gambling tables - rigged, and the fandangos - deadly. Gutierrez, was a native of old Spain, who had arrived at California via Guadalajara, Mexico in 1845. A particularly exciting time at the Gutierrez saloon was on the 16th day of September during the celebration of Mexican Independence Day. This yearly fiesta was usually accompanied by at least one shooting or knifing. In 1872, the victim of a shooting was Garcia Rodriguez, a young bandido from Branciforte.
Another saloon and brothel which enjoyed a lively name at Whiskey Hill was operated by Jim Enemark. It was here that Elsie Twitchell was working just prior to the day that she was stabbed by Benino Soqui during a "domestic" quarrel under the Pajaro bridge in 1893. The incident almost cost Elsie her life and resulted in Soqui spending eight years at San Quentin. After recuperation young Elsie returned to a life of sin at Enemark's.
Whiskey Hill's reputation for booze and lust spread far and wide making it a favorite watering hole for the likes of Joaquin Murrieta (so it is said), Tiburcio Vasquez, and Juan Soto, as well as local "bad boys" Faustino Lorenzana, Jose Rodriguez, and Ignacio Tejada.
In 1877 the citizens decided to change the name of the village to Freedom perhaps in the hope that by adopting a more placid appellation there would be a corresponding change in reputation. If indeed that was a part of their thinking it proved to be singularly unsuccessful, as the fighting, drinking, and sinning continued on into the 20th century."