Category Archives: History

Hiking, History, History of Nevada County, Nevada County Information, Nevada County Parks, Pictures of Nevada County, Recreation, State Parks

Bridgeport Historic Ranch and Famous Covered Bridge, Nevada County, CA

Bridge Port Bridge closed until repairs are completed. Photo by John J. ODell
Bridge Port Bridge closed until repairs are completed. Photo by John J. ODell

By Judy Pinegar

Feb 26, 2017 –

          It was a beautiful sunny/cloudy day in Nevada County. Having a bit of cabin fever due to all the rain, John and I set out for Bridgeport with Hershey, our beautiful, black, half Labrador dog.

            Stopping first on the other side of the Yuba River, the sign said the walking trail(s) were closed, although we could see some people and sometimes dogs on the trail(s). But we had to pay the parking fee ($5.00), so we returned across the Yuba River to the main Park Site and Visitor Center. After paying (honor system) we proceeded to get a brochure and wander around the central area. The National and State registered Historic Landmark is the actual Bridgeport Covered Bridge, built in 1862 by David L Wood and the Virginia Turnpike Co. It was closed to walkers, or anyone, but restoration is expected. It is 229 feet long, making it the longest single span covered bridge in the entire United States!

            Then on to the “family beach” now mostly covered by water as the river is very high this year!  Several old pieces of mining equipment are around.  We then visited the old garden spot, the visitors center, the gas station ($0.12 per gallon!), and then the Barn which contained a large collection of various carriages, and farming vehicles. The Visitor Center was quite interesting, containing some preserved wildlife from the area that Hershey did NOT like at all! (Think panicked barking, a wild animal is on the loose!)  Also displayed were pictures of how high the river actually has risen in this area, way higher than this year for sure!!

            Then we took the easy Visitors Center Trail, past Kneebone Cemetery, Kentucky Creek (that trail was flooded), and back to the main area. There were a few confusing signs about “where” and “where not” you could take your dog, but overall it was a nice day. However it was really getting cold, so we left for home, hoping to come back with more time to walk (lots of trails) an a little better weather!!

            All and all, I recommend it as a really fantastic place to visit. See you on the trail! (Just look for Hershey)

For information South River State Park
Call (530) 432-2546

Boating - Sailing, Fishing, History, Recreation, Winerys

Bill Wells Tour of the Delta

httpv://youtu.be/P_GLn8SKwGA

Join some Delta rats for a short tour of the fabulous California Delta.  Bill Wells the Executive Director of the California Delta Chambers & Visitor’s Bureau gives a tour of Georgiana Slough and Walnut Grove, Mark Wilson a professional fishing consultant gives some tips for fishing in the Rio Vista area, and finally visit the Old Sugar Mill in Clarksburg  to learn the history of the area and see an interview with John Carvalho of Carvalho Family Winery.  You can’t learn much about the Delta in a half hour but this should give you an idea of the fun and excitement awaits you in the region.

Author:  Bill Wells
Executive Director of the California Delta
Chamber & Visitor’s Bureau

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History

San Francisco Four Days Before the Earthwake of 1906

httpv://youtu.be/ozXvAIOtifE

Having just got back from San Francisco, it’s amazing how time has changed the city and the way we live. I thought this film would really illustrate the major changes that’s happened in slightly over a hundred years.

This film was “lost” for many years. It was the first 35mm film ever that has come to light. It was taken by camera mounted on the front of a cable car as it`s traveling down the street. You feel as if your re al ly there, standing at the front looking down the street, amazing piece of historic film.

The number of automobiles is staggering for 1906. Absolutely amazing! The clock tower at the end of Market Street at the Embarcadero wharf is still there. … How many “street cleaning” people were employed to pick up after the horses? Talk about going green!

This film, originally thought to be from 1905 until David Kiehn with the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum figured out exactly when it was shot. From New York trade papers announcing the film showing to the wet streets from recent heavy rainfall & shadows indicating time of year & actual weather and conditions on historical record, even when the cars were registered (he even knows who owned them and when the plates were issued!).. It was filmed only four days before the Great California Earthquake of April 18th 1906 and shipped by train to NY for processing. Amazing, but true!

No wonder there had to be laws created to regulate driving habits. This is insane. Good thing they couldn’t go very fast. Cross walks had ‘nt been invented yet !

This is a fascinating movie. A camera on the front of a street car 104 years ago. I watched it a couple of times. Look at the hats the ladies were wearing and the long dresses. Some of the cars had the steering wheels on the right side, I wonder when they standardized on the left? Sure was still a lot of horse drawn vehicles in use. Mass transit looked like the way to get around. Looks like everybody had the right of way.

Perhaps the oldest “home movie” that you will ever see!

 

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Entertainment, History, Travel

Sheep Ranch, California

Image 1 of 9

Pioneer Hotel

By Judy J. Pinegar

Sheep Ranch was named after a sheep ranch (imagine that!). The official post office stamp did at one time read “Sheep Ranch” (Zip: 95250). One of the very few “free-range” areas in California, there are about a hundred freely roaming sheep throughout the town today. Sheep Ranch is located in the center of Calaveras County, about 16 miles east of San Andreas and eight miles north of Murphys.

The Pioneer Hotel is one of the main buildings still standing from that era. In 1967 three couples from Marin County discovered the old Pioneer Hotel and purchased it for $27,000. Over the years it was restored to its original look. The couples took turns using the hotel to entertain their personal friends, associates and family during different times of the year. John and I are friends with one of the families so we were invited to share a weekend there with them on August 17-19, 2012. The above pictures were taken by John O’Dell.

Sheep Ranch has a surprisingly colorful history. The town was surrounded by sheep corrals, and in 1860 gold ore was discovered in the corrals where the sheep were kept at night. Soon Sheep Ranch was a bustling gold mining town. Gold discovered at the Sheep Ranch Mine occurred at the 300 foot level in an extremely, rich, unusual black quartz. Before the turn of the century there were five flourishing gold mines and one had a ten-stamp mill. The town also supported 15 saloons.”

The main mine in town was known as the Hearst mine. George Hearst, who with partners bought the mine in 1897, was the father of William Randolph Hearst. The mine operated under various company names until shut down by the government in 1942. The Sheep Ranch mine was the largest source of gold in the district and the largest mine of the Sierras.

At one time the town of Sheep Ranch held two churches, one Catholic and the other Protestant. The local red school house, which still stands as a private home, employed two teachers until 1907 when the enrollment dwindled to 30 pupils taught by one teacher. The Eagle Hotel and the Pioneer Hotel were the two prominent local establishments, but only the Pioneer Hotel still stands.

Much of the movie feature “Honkytonk Man” was filmed in and around Calaveras County. Exterior scenes include Main Street, Mountain Ranch; Main Street, Sheep Ranch; and the Pioneer Hotel in Sheep Ranch. Extras were locally hired and many of the town’s residents are seen in the movie. During the filming, Clint Eastwood was very friendly and hospitable, taking time to chat and visit with many local residents.

The population of Sheep Ranch is 32 people, with sheep well out-numbering humans! There are currently no active businesses in Sheep Ranch, with the nearest facilities being located in Mountain Ranch to the west, and in Avery to the east. In January 2008, the postal service contractor in town relocated, resulting in the town having its ZIP code archived (i.e., made “not usable”) by the U.S. Postal Service. Locals can still use the town name, but must use the ZIP code for nearby Mountain Ranch (95246).

Judy J. Pinegar is a writer and her articles have appeared in many publications.

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Entertainment, History

Vacation to Angels Camp, June 10-13, 2012, Part 2

Visit to Columbia State Park

 

 

By Judy J. Pinegar

On Tuesday John and I, and my family visited Colombia State Historic Park, a living, restored gold rush town. The concessions and businesses in the park close on Thanksgiving and Christmas days, but they are open for every other holiday, weather permitting.

The Gold Rush to Columbia, California began on March 27, 1850 by a small party of prospectors. News of the discovery spread and they were soon joined by a flood of miners. Unlike many settlements that have changed with the times, Columbia, California seems to be frozen in the 1800’s, and appears to be the best preserved of California gold rush towns. Columbia State Historic Park offers a blend of museums, displays, town tours, live theater plays, shops, restaurants and attractions.

After a great Mexican lunch, we saw the soap shop, the museum, information center and the working blacksmith shop. We also visited many other stores, enjoyed a few sarsaparillas, listened to some street musicians, and my four year old granddaughter made her very own dipped candle.

As a grand finale we rode a stagecoach through the woods  – where the bad guys tried to take our gold (we didn’t have any thank goodness, because they weren’t willing to pull teeth). It was a wonderful, educational trip.

Judy J. Pinegar is a writer and her articles have appeared in many publications.

 

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Community Events, Entertainment, History

Museums in Auburn : Barnhart Museum, and Gold Country Museum – Mining

museum-sign

Image 1 of 11

By Judy J. Pinegar

Arriving in Auburn on a hot Sunday in July, John and I decided to tour a couple of museums. First was the historic Bernhard Museum just off Auburn Folsom Boulevard near the fairgrounds. The house is over 150 years old, built in 1851 by George Bishop and John Long as the Traveler’s Rest Hotel, one of Auburn’s oldest surviving buildings.

In the Gold Rush, this hotel held teamsters traveling the old Auburn Folsom Road, and miners working in nearby Rich Flat. In 1858 the building was converted to a home for one of the builders, George Bishop. The house and 30 acres were sold in 1864 to Eliza Caruthers, and again in 1868 to the Bernhard family. This family and their descendants lived here for over 100 years. They started planting vineyards, making wine and then built a two story natural rock winery into a hillside in 1874.

Now with only 2+ acres left, the house has become a beautifully restored museum of the Victorian Era (mid 1830’s to 1900). No pictures are allowed inside the museum, but it is truly a sight to see. Also on the grounds is an old wine processing building, displaying wine making and barrel making artifacts, as well as a barn with a hearse, a sleigh, buggies and wagons of days gone by.

The top of the stone winery is now an art gallery, while the bottom still houses and operating winery, Bonitata (more on this later).

Next we visited the Gold Country Museum, housed in a historic Works Progress Administration (WPA) building, on the Auburn fairgrounds itself.  We began by touring a replicated hard rock mine (thanking our lucky stars that we didn’t have to do that job!) Many other mining displays are also on display, as well as a model stamp mill, and an assayer’s office, a miner’s cabin and an old saloon.

After this tour we went back to the Barnhart Museum Parking lot, but walked down to the winery to do a little wine tasting in the Bonitata Boutique Winery (see last picture in the slides).

Judy J. Pinegar is a writer and winemaker, and her articles appear in many publications.

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History, History of Nevada County

The History of Nevada County

By Judy J. Pinegar

The earliest settlement in Nevada County was made in the summer of 1848 at a place called Rose’s Corral which was located between the Anthony House and Bridgeport. Early in the spring of 1849 a group of mountaineers from Oregon known as the Greenwood Company mined for gold at Illinois Bar on the South Yuba River. They were followed by emigrants from Indiana. In the fall of 1849, the Greenwood Company made winter camp at Jefferson, and the Indiana group moved further upstream to Washington. In that same autumn that Captain John Pennington’s party struck rich diggings on Deer Creek and built the first cabin on Gold Run, the site that was to become Nevada City.

Originally a mining camp founded along Deer Creek in 1849, Nevada City rapidly became the largest and wealthiest mining town in California. At one point, Nevada City was the third largest city in California with a population of 10,000. Nevada City’s good fortune allowed miners and settlers to enjoy plush gambling establishments, hotels, saloons, and stores. However, like many big cities that sprang up quickly during the rush for instant wealth, early Nevada City shared a darker side of claim jumping, murder, brothels and opium dens.

By the 1850’s Nevada City’s wealth began to wane, and as miners moved on in search of new claims and stories of gold and riches, a quiet and quaint city emerged. Two fires in 1856 and 1863 raced through Nevada City almost completely wiping out the town. The beautiful architecture that stands today is testament to the will of the people of Nevada City who rebuilt the town completely not once, but twice.

Hydraulic mining, Nevada County, CA, 1866
Hydraulic mining, Nevada County, CA, 1866 Photo courtesy of http://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com

Nevada County was created in 1851 from parts of Yuba County because of the increase in population in the area and the distance to travel to courts which made it necessary to create a new county. The county was named after the mining town of Nevada City, a name derived from the term “Sierra Nevada.” The word nevada in Spanish means “snowy” or “snow-covered.” Nevada City has carried many monikers through its history; Caldwell’s Upper Store, Coyoteville, and Deer Creek Dry Diggings, but Nevada was chosen in the 1850s to give the town a cultured name.

English: Nevada City, CA, USA
Nevada City, CA, USA (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 1851 the newly formed Nevada County copied the name. The State of Nevada used the name 10 years later in 1861. The region came to life in the gold rush of 1849. Many historical sites remain to mark the birth of this important region in California’s formative years. Among them are the Nevada Theater in Nevada City, which operates to this day and once hosted Mark Twain among other historical figures. The gold industry in Nevada County thrived into the post WWII days.

The county had many firsts and historic technological moments. The first long-distance telephone in the world, built in 1877 by the Ridge Telephone Company, connected French Corral with French Lake, 58 miles (93 km) away. It was operated by the Milton Mining Company from a building on this site that had been erected about 1853. The Pelton wheel, designed to power gold mines, still drives hydro-electric generators today. Nevada City and Grass Valley were among the first California towns with electric lights.

World’s First Long-Distance Telephone Line in French Corral, California
Commemorating World’s First Long-Distance Telephone Line.   Monument located in French Corral, California. Picture courtesy of http://www.noehill.com

 

The Olympics, NASA, and virtually every television station around the country utilizes video/broadcasting equipment designed and manufactured by Grass Valley Group, founded in Grass Valley. Electronic medical dosing equipment was first developed and manufactured in Nevada County. The first commercially viable picture-phone was developed in Nevada City. More than fifty high tech and applied tech companies, and more than one thousand hardware and software design and development professionals.

Judy J. Pinegar is a writer and her articles have appeared in many publications.

 

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John J. O’Dell Realtor® GRI
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Camping, Fishing, History, History of Nevada County, Local Writers & Contributors, Nevada County Information

The Town of Washington (originally called Indiana Camp) Nevada County, CA

Photo courtesy of Washington Hotel www.washingtonhotel.net
Photo courtesy of Washington Hotel www.washingtonhotel.net

By Judy J. Pinegar

This little town in Nevada County is located on the banks of the South Fork of the Yuba River. It is located off Highway 20 between Nevada City and Interstate 80. Washington boasts a population on about 200, but that fluctuates seasonally and the town has a lot of tourist traffic in the summer.

Washington was founded in 1849, as were most of the cities in Nevada County; it was all about the Gold Rush!! These particular miners were from Indiana, so the settlement was first named Indiana Camp, but renamed to Washington in 1850. The area produced a large amount of placer gold, after that hard rock and hydraulic mines were established and were also very productive. Many people of Chinese descent worked in the area at these times.

The hotel in the town of Washington started with Hessel B. Buisman who was born in Holland in 1827, he landed in San Francisco in 1850. He originally kept a hotel in the town of Jefferson located near Washington from 1852 to 1857. He then came to Washington building a two story hotel which could accommodate up to 30 guests.

After the Buisman owners passed away, their daughter and her husband Eldridge Worthley kept the hotel for years. The hotel was called “The Worthley” or “Washington Hotel” and sat on the same site as the current hotel today. The hotel stable was across the street.

At 11 PM, August 16th, 1867 The Big Fire broke out in a nearby cabin. It jumped from house to house and destroyed almost every business downtown Washington including the Hotel. The hotel was rebuilt.

On April 21st, 1896 another fire started in the kitchen of the Washington Hotel. This fire destroyed the hotel and several buildings nearby. This time, Worthley had taken out fire insurance previous to the fire. The hotel was rebuilt as fast as the weather would allow. The picture shows the new and improved Washington Hotel after being rebuilt in 1896.

Photo courtesy of Washington Hotel www.washingtonhotel.net
Photo courtesy of Washington Hotel www.washingtonhotel.net

The Washington Mining District was always served by operators of small stage lines. This photo shows the company stage of Prescott and Grissel. A daily trip used to leave The National Hotel in Nevada City at 7 AM and arrive in Washington around noon. This was used to rest between trips or take shelter from the weather. Now the drive only takes 25 minutes in your car.

Picture from the Red Ledge Mine in Washington. The gold/quartz veins occur in the sedimentary rocks close to the contact with serpentine. Mariposite is often in association with the serpentine, and in close proximity to the gold. Photo courtesy of http://www.mindat.org/loc-3515.html

The town of Washington currently consists of the Washington Hotel/bar, a restaurant, a grocery store, a one room schoolhouse that has educated students continuously for over 100 years, and two trailer park campgrounds

There are two trailer parks, Gene’s Pine Aire Campground and the River Rest Resort have been in business since the 1960’s with various owners. Campsites are often to capacity, so reservations are advised.

Picture courtesy of River Rest Resort (see above)
Picture courtesy of River Rest Resort (see above)

 


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Judy J. Pinegar is a writer
Her articles have appeared in many magazines and publications
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History

Nevada County History, California

This map shows the incorporated and unincorpor...
Image via Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The earliest settlement in Nevada County was made in the summer of 1848 at a place called Rose’s Corral which was located between the Anthony House and Bridgeport. Early in the spring of 1849 a group of mountaineers from Oregon known as the Greenwood Company mined for gold at Illinois Bar on the South Yuba River. They were followed by emigrants from Indiana. In the fall of 1849, the Greenwood Company made winter camp at Jefferson, and the Indiana group moved further upstream to Washington. It was that same autumn that Captain John Pennington’s party struck rich diggings on Deer Creek and built the first cabin on Gold Run, the site that was to become Nevada City. (Source Ed Tyson)

Originally a mining camp founded along Deer Creek in 1849, Nevada City rapidly became the largest and wealthiest mining town in California. At one point, Nevada City was the third largest city in California with a population of 10,000. Nevada City’s good fortune allowed miners and settlers to enjoy plush gambling establishments, hotels, saloons, and stores. However, like many big cities that sprang up quickly during the rush for instant wealth, early Nevada City shared a darker side of claim jumping, murder, brothels and opium dens.

Continue reading Nevada County History, California →

History

Martin Luther King Biography

President Lyndon Johnson signing Civil Rights Bill as Martin Luther King looks on. Source: Wikimedia Commons
President Lyndon Johnson signing Civil Rights Bill as Martin Luther King looks on. Source: Wikimedia Commons

Martin Luther King, Jr., (January 15, 1929-April 4, 1968) was born Michael Luther King, Jr., but later had his name changed to Martin. His grandfather began the family’s long tenure as pastors of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, serving from 1914 to 1931; his father has served from then until the present, and from 1960 until his death Martin Luther acted as co-pastor. Martin Luther attended segregated public schools in Georgia, graduating from high school at the age of fifteen; he received the B. A. degree in 1948 from Morehouse College, a distinguished Negro institution of Atlanta from which both his father and grandfather had graduated. After three years of theological study at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania where he was elected president of a predominantly white senior class, he was awarded the B.D. in 1951. With a fellowship won at Crozer, he enrolled in graduate studies at Boston University, completing his residence for the doctorate in 1953 and receiving the degree in 1955. In Boston he met and married Coretta Scott, a young woman of uncommon intellectual and artistic attainments. Two sons and two daughters were born into the family.

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