USA > California > Lassen County > Fairfield's pioneer history of Lassen County, California to 1870 > Part 15
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Gordier brought considerable money, nuggets, etc., to this valley from the mines of California, and it was always supposed that some of it was buried near his cabin. But it is not known that any one found any of it until November, 1877, and then Miss Mary L. Dunn, afterwards Mrs. S. L. Frazier, picked up a nugget near where the Frenchman's cabin stood. She sold it to A. G. Moon for $240, and he took it to the States where it was made into jewelry. The next day Miss Dunn, George Boyd, Thomas M. Barham, and perhaps T. J. Mulroney found several smaller nuggets which were all worth something like $25. If any more nuggets have been found there since then, the finder did not take the public into his confidence.
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THE YEAR 1858
THE BLACK ROCK MINING EXCITEMENT
A little after the first of July, 1858, James Allen Hardin and a party of men arrived in Honey Lake valley from Peta- luma, California. They were going to the Black Rock range of mountains, which was mentioned in the description of the Lassen Trail, in search of a ledge of carbonate of lead and silver that Hardin had discovered while crossing the plains in 1849. The party went on to Black Rock, and although they didn't find the ledge, they started a mining excitement that raged with more or less fury for the next ten or twelve years. From this time on frequent mention will be made of Black Rock, but the whole story of this excitement will be told in the chapter for the year 1867.
THE FRASER RIVER MINING EXCITEMENT
In 1858 gold was discovered on the Fraser river in British Columbia. The news spread rapidly, and when it reached Honey Lake some of the Never Sweats felt their blood warm up with the old time fever. In July, 1858, William H. Clark, Thomas Eaton, Ben. Ward, Jonathan Scott, R. J. Scott, Mat. and John Craft, C. C. Walden, L. N. Breed, "Zack" Taylor, William More- head, John H. Ferry, and James Fuller started for the new mines. In the course of more or less time Clark, Breed, Walden, Taylor, Eaton, Ward, and Fuller came back to the valley, none of them having accumulated very great riches. R. J. Scott was killed on the road by Mat. Craft. It has been impossible to find out what became of the others.
PURSUIT OF HORSE THIEVES
William H. Clark relates the following: Some time during the year 1858 six horses were stolen from the settlers around the Clark ranch. Two of them belonged to George Lathrop and he and Peter Lassen raised a party in the upper end of the valley and went in pursuit of the thieves. They followed them over the mountain to the west, and some time in the night found them in a flat on what is now known as Clark's creek, and below where Clark once had a dairy. Lassen told the men they would wait until it was light enough to see the sights of their guns and then they would take in the whole bunch of thieves. So they sur- rounded their camp and waited, and when it was light enough to see to shoot they fired on the sleeping men. They never hit a
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man and the thieves jumped out of bed and ran for their lives. In those days of single-barreled, muzzle-loading rifles there was no chance for another shot with their guns, and if they fired their pistols it didn't do any good, and the men got safely away. The Honey Lakers found all of their horses and saddles and returned home with them.
Shortly after this two men came into Indian valley with nothing on but their under-clothes, and said they had been sur- prised in the night by the Indians and had to get away as fast as they could, leaving everything behind them. Perhaps they did think it was Indians, for there is nothing on record to show that they stopped long enough to look things over very carefully.
THE FIRST FLAG IN THE VALLEY
Mrs. Isaac Coulthurst says that in 1858 a man named Charles Kingman, who was Richard Thompson's son-in-law, got the women who lived in the neighborhood of the Streshly place to make a flag-the first one in the valley-and she put the first stitches into it. The other women who worked on it were Mrs. J. P. Ford, Mrs. W. C. Kingsbury, and Mrs. Streshly. (Accord- ing to later information Kingman was not here until 1859 .- F.) W. P. HALL'S FIRST VISIT TO HONEY LAKE VALLEY
In October, 1858, S. R. Hall was taken sick at the ranch of Dow and Hatch and he wrote to his brother, Wright P. Hall, to come to him. Mr. Hall left Howland Flat on the 15th of De- cember. When he reached the Presby place in Light's canyon it began to snow and kept it up for several days. Expressman Williams, who was carrying the mail and small articles from Quincy to Honey Lake, was there, too, and he and Hall stayed there until the storm was over and then started out on snow- shoes. When they got a little this side of the summit it snowed so hard that they could go no further. They stayed there two days under the shelter of a big rock and had nothing to eat but one can of sardines. The second night it clearcd up, but the next morning the valley was covered with fog and they had to guess at their course. They struck out, however, down the side of the mountain and about one o'clock in the afternoon reached the Lanigar ranch on Gold Run. He gave the travelers some bread and milk and Hall said it was the best meal he ever ate in his life. They then went on to the Dow and Hatch ranch and found the sick man better.
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THE YEAR 1858
CONDITIONS AT THE CLOSE OF 1858
Conditions did not differ greatly from what they were at the close of the preceding year. More settlers had come into the valley, but they were still few in number and they were pestered by horse thieves and Indians who stole their stock and annoyed them in other ways. The land was taken up a little more closely and was considered more valuable, there were more improve- ments, and people were in somewhat better shape to live, but their manner of living was still rather primitive. They raised more grain than they did the year before, but it all had to be thrashed with a flail, and there was no gristmill nearer than Taylorville. Thos. J. Mulroney said that some time during the summer he brought a sack of flour from there to the valley on his back. In the fall William Bankhead and Ralph Neisham, so S. J. Hill says, took a small load of wheat to Genoa and had it ground. Grinding wheat in a coffee-mill was still practiced in case of a pinch.
Some freight was hauled into the valley with teams this year, but almost everything was still brought in with pack trains. S. R. Hall says that during the winter of 1858-9 "Kentuck" Thomas had a pack train of twenty-five Indians that brought groceries into the valley from Taylorville. They did good work, but it was necessary to watch them all the time, for if an Indian's load consisted of anything that was edible, he would eat it if he had a chance. One boy sixteen years old could pack a load that weighed a hundred pounds.
A good many families were now living in the valley and they began to think about the education of their children. F. and S. say that "in 1858 Malcom Scott opened a private school in a small building that stood on the south side of Cottage street, about midway between Gay and Lassen streets." It is probable that during the summer they got their mail as they did the previous year. In November, 1858, the "Plumas Argus" said the people of Honey Lake valley and vicinity were very anxious to have a mail route from Salt Lake City to Marysville via Honey Lake valley and Quincy. The trip could be made in eight days and all that was needed to make a good road was a little work between Honey Lake valley and Quincy. There is nothing to show that the route was established. Frank Davis brought some mail into the valley this year, but perhaps made no regular trips.
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HISTORY OF LASSEN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
Jonathan (Bully) Williams was bringing in the mail from Quincy in December and may have carried it all winter. This fall Hines and Tutt commenced to bring mail into the valley from the Clear Creek post-office in Shasta county. This post- office was below where Redding is now, and Judge Bell was the postmaster. He let them take a United States mail sack and they got the Honey Lake people to have their mail come that way. Tutt brought it to Butte creek, probably near the Cinder Cone, and from there Hines brought it into the valley, sometimes going as far down as Bankhead's. Of course this and what Williams did were private enterprises. They charged from 25 cents to 75 cents, depending upon the season of the year, for bringing a letter or a paper and people were glad to get their mail at any price.
The "Plumas Argus" said in November, 1858, "The entire Plumas assessment for 1858 was $1072926, of which sum $76777 is assessed on property lying in Honey Lake valley. This valley has a population of two hundred and fifty."
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CHAPTER V
1859. SETTLEMENT
N JANUARY W. P. and S. R. Hall located a section of land seven miles below Susanville, the one first claimed by Dow and Hatch, April 3, 1857. Their witness was J. W. Pool. In a short time Tutt and Walden recorded their relinquishment of the land. A few days after making this location W. P. Hall left the valley and did not return for almost a year and a half. This piece of land was in what was known for a long time as the Fuller ranch. One or more of the Fuller Brothers located it early this spring and sold it to George Fox Kelley in 1866. Some of the Fullers were still selling goods in Toadtown this month, and it is said that both they and Ed. Powers sold goods their this summer, but not the next year.
Neale and Brother took an irregular tract lying east of their last claim and on the south side of the river. This must have given them a claim to the land on the south side of the river for three or four miles. Malcom S. Scott claimed, "for hay, grass, and other purposes," 160 acres in a little valley located one fourth of a mile north of a point in the Shasta road three and one fourth miles west of Susanville. He also claimed the waters that flow through the valley to Pyute creek. His witness was Cyrus Smith. Wm. H. Crane and his partners relinquished the claim they made the previous October in favor of Armstrong; Mary Jane Coulthurst relocated the south half of the section taken by Henry Gordier in May, 1857; John Tucker and J. H. Anderson took a tract beginning at Coulthurst's southeast corner, it being half a mile wide from east to west and four miles long ; Isaac Coulthurst relinquished the north half of his ranch.
In February Milton Craig claimed 320 acres west of C. Ar- nold's claim (now Cotts). Probably this was a little over a mile south of Susanville. Coulthurst relocated the north part of his ranch and relinquished his wife's claim to the Gordier land in favor of Smith J. Hill who had bought out the heirs of Gordier. James M. Armstrong took a claim bounded on the east by Cor- nelison, on the south by John Williams, and on the north by the foothills.
In March W. C. Kingsbury sold to Peter Lassen all his interest
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in the old Lassen ranch south of Susanville, and in payment received a deed to the west half of the ranch taken by R. J. Scott, May 10, 1856. His witness was Sarah E. Kingsbury and the deed was recorded the 21st of March by HI. Crane.
In April Thurston Thomas claimed a tract south of the old Lassen ranch; James Williams filed on the waters of a stream that ran through the ranch of Mr. Thomas and emptied into Lassen's field on the south side. Recorded by F. Yager; Daniel Dawson took a claim north of the Conkey ranch and his witness was L. Vary.
Early this spring Frank Drake, perhaps in partnership with his brother-in-law, Orlando Streshly, started a store at the latter's ranch three and a half miles south of Susanville. Their building, put up that spring, was two logs in length and a story and a half high and stood on the north side of the road. They used part of the lower story for the store and the rest of it for a hotel, and the upper story was used to sleep in. It was also used for a dance hall when they wanted to dance, and that was very often in those days. About this time Streshly named the place Rich- mond in honor of Richmond, Va.
In May Dr. P. Chamberlain came to the valley with his family and located a place on the lake five miles southeast of Bankhead's. He practiced medicine in this valley for many years. His son, M. P. Chamberlain, followed the same profession here later on.
In June George Lathrop and Thos. J. Harvey located two sec- tions of land running east and west on the lower end of Susan river, but they may have been on the land before this. They built their cabin on the slough farthest to the north and at the place where the emigrant road from the Humboldt river first came near it. At first known as the Lathrop place, and after- wards as the Shaffer place, it was for ten or twelve years a noted station on this road. Since then it has been owned by French and Litch, Kelley and Winehel, and now, 1915, it is known as the Mapes place. Joseph Kitts and Wm. D. Snyder of Honey Lake valley, Territory of Utah, claimed 1200 acres in Smoke Creek valley; I. Roop claimed all the water of Susan river from the Devil's Corral down to his mill for the purpose of rafting sawlogs; Thomas H. Bryant, W. W. Johnson, John Bryant, D. A. Sackett, G. Tilford, A. Brown, T. H. Sitton, J. A. Harden (probably it was Hardin), E. L. N. King, and
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THE YEAR 1859
Quigley located two tracts of land "lying in Long Valley, Ne- vada Territory," the first tract being a mile above the crossing of "Buckley's Creek" and the other the one that Lassen sur- veyed the previous July for Hiram S. Sewell, John Benon, Eathen Wright, and Aron Wright, exact location uncertain. As J. A. Hardin was one of the locators they may all have come from the vicinity of Petaluma.
The first day of June there was born to Richard D. and Mary E. Bass a son, John Edward. On the 13th of June Smith J. Hill and Susan Bankhead were married by Squire Stark at the home of the bride. This was the second wedding in the valley. Some time this summer Edward (Ned) Mulroney brought his Wife and his little son, John P., onto his ranch near Richmond. Some time this year a son, Matthew, was born to Anthony and Amanda Gray.
In July Sylvester R. Ford claimed a section east of Weather- low and north of Vary. This land was just north of Susanville. From this time on until November Weatherlow was deputy re- corder. J. H. Lewis recorded a claim made by him for the Honey Lake Silver Mining Company to nine square miles of land at the lower end of Mud Meadows. This was west of the north end of the Black Rock range of mountains.
The sale of Lassen's real estate took place in July and Thomas H. Fairchilds, who was the partner of Fred A. Washburn in a mine at Rich Bar, came to the valley to buy some of it. He bought, as he supposed, the Lassen ranch south of Susanville, but after the sale he was told that he had bought the place where Milford now stands. Lassen had built a cabin about a quarter of a mile up the creek from where the main street of the town is now and near a spring, and Fairchilds and Washburn, who had also come to the valley, took possession of their ranch and moved into the cabin. David Titherington bought the ranch south of Susanville for a little over $600 and soon afterwards John S. Ward came in as his partner.
In August Joshua H. Lewis and John Frisby located two sections extending two miles eastward from the Lathrop and Harvey ranch; John Tucker relinquished all his claims to other lands in the valley and took 160 acres south of Titherington and another quarter section between him and Richmond and east of the road; T. Powers and W. W. Carpenter claimed a tract eighty rods wide and four miles long in the "lower end of Honey Lake
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valley." Their northwest corner was forty rods "due north of the Big Boiling spring." Charles Nixon and Francis Lanigar claimed a strip eighty rods wide and two miles long extending up Gold Run from their ranch. They also claimed "said Gold Run for Manufacturing and irrigating purposes." Henry Ar- nold claimed one half mile wide and two miles long extending up Granite creek from the desert; Frank Tilford recorded his claim to Spring Canyon near Mud Meadows, said claim having been made the previous January ; Xenophon V. C. Rollins made a location west of Lathrop and Harvey; E. L. N. King took a seetion west of Rollins; Julian Ort located a elaim a little south- west of King; and George Steel a section west of him. Frank Thomas and U. P. Furguson claimed one half mile wide on each side of Susan river and extending two miles up from the upper end of the Adams diteh. This diteh was taken out of the river about a mile and a half below where the Big slough leaves it, ran north of that slough for some distance, and then erossed to the south side of it and ran straight to the lake. This diteh marked the southern boundary of the tract of land claimed by the Adams Brothers. J. W. Doyle located on the north side of the river below Thomas and Furguson.
In September Dr. T. W. Shearer took a claim in Willow Creek valley beginning "at a point on Willow Creek where said creek comes up to the mountain opposite the long point of timber where there is now a foundation for a house." His claim was to run down on both sides of the ereek far enough to take in a sec- tion of land. Morgan W. Shearer claimed a mile and a half of Willow Creek valley beginning at the lower end and extending up the creek, and John W. Shearer, George W. Shearer, L. D. Sanborn, and Wm. W. Hill loeated all the land lying between the two foregoing elaims. It looks as though the Shearer family had "corralled" a goodly share of that valley. J. C. King and J. M. Shearer located Round valley lying south of Willow creek.
Charles T. (Tule) Emerson located a claim north of Susan river and east of Lewis and Frisby. Mr. Emerson says that he and Colburn Brown, his partner, bought out a man named Bagby before this location was made. Colburn Brown took a claim north of the river and west of Lathrop and Harvey. For a good many years this place was known as the "Tule" Emerson raneh. Mr. Emerson says that late that fall he and Brown and J. W.
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THE YEAR 1859
Doyle built a log cabin a little below where the Soldier Bridge was afterwards built and a little shack further to the east. He also says that previous to this there were only two cabins in that neighborhood-one of them belonging to the Adams Brothers and the other to Lathrop and Harvey. Possibly there was one on the John M. Kelley place. About this time John M. Kelley came in with a large band of cattle and made a location on the north side of the Big slough next to the lake. Stephen White came in with him. This land was claimed by the Adams Brothers, but it is not known whether he bought the land from them or "jumped" it. He built a cabin this fall. At this time George Purcell had a claim north of Kelley. Charles E. Sanders claimed an undivided one half of the tract located by Powers and Carpenter the prev- ious August and said that the latter told him to take possession of his half of the claim. F. Thomas and J. W. Sanbanch took two claims on the north side of the river west of Lathrop and Harvey and extending two miles up the river. This covered the location made by Brown. Col. Hardin, J. J. Grinter, F. Alber- ding, C. I. Robinson, E. G. Bangham, E. Lynn, M. Campton, G. Tilford, M. S. Thompson, David Chapman, I. G. Kitts, J. Kitts, A. Painter, Wm. Utt, and James M. Keller claimed a piece of land 4200 feet square on a silver lead. In all proba- bility this was in the Black Rock country.
It has been told that Demming went back into Willow Creek valley this spring and improved his place. This fall Otis N. Johnson and Edwin P. Todd went into the valley with some cattle belonging to Edward Rice and built a cabin in the upper end of it just where the creek comes out of the timber. Before winter set in they left there and went over to Rice's springs.
The following is an account of the settlement of Long valley during the year 1859: In July Ambrose, Noah, and Jonathan A. Robinson and a brother-in-law, James Morgan, settled at what has always been known as the "Warm Springs" ranch. Morgan stayed there that winter and then went to Virginia City. These men claimed all the land from the Warm Springs to the Hot Springs ranch. C. M. West, who came in with the Robinsons, settled about three fourths of a mile from where the Plumas Junction is now. Alvaro, Allen, and J. Newton Evans and Robert E. Ross, who crossed the plains this year with eight hundred head of cattle, came into Long valley and bought out "White-
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HISTORY OF LASSEN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA
head" Ross and Kearns and his partner. Alvaro Evans says he paid Kearns $75 for his cabin and claim. Ross's brother, Albert E., crossed the plains with them and stayed in the valley. Jacob MeKissick also crossed the plains this year with a large band of horses and cattle. He bought out a man called "Oregon Jake" who had hauled a little lumber onto a place just north of the Evans ranch. John C. Wright and John White took up the Willow Ranch and that fall or the following winter built a cabin there. They also claimed the land at a spring near the foot of the mountain back of their cabin. This fall George Greeno took a claim in what might be called the extreme northwest corner of the valley, but did not settle there until the next year. James Freeman and his family and John Lowe, Jr. came into Long valley this fall. In 1862 the latter moved to Honey Lake valley. Marshall Bronson and family lived at the Hot Springs ranch during the winter of 1859-60.
This year Eber G. Bangham crossed the plains to Honey Lake valley. In a short time he went back to Granite springs and traded with the emigrants for a while. Probably Robert Johns- ton was his partner in this. Late in the year they bought William Dow's ranch in Toadtown.
This summer Ross Lewers bought a small steam sawmill in Indian valley, brought it here, and put it up on the west branch of what is now known as the Parker creek about a mile and a half above the road. This was the second sawmill in the valley. "Uncle Tim" Darcey was his first engineer, but in a short time Thomas H. Epley took that position and Mat. Lusk and A. M. Vaughan worked in the mill. Part of the frame of that mill is in the barn on the F. L. Parker place one and three fourths miles below Janesville. The mill was run until the next spring and then it was moved to Washoe valley and put up about two miles and three quarters due south of Franktown. Lewers says this was the first steam engine in what was afterwards the state of Nevada, and Epley, who went with him, says he blew the first steam whistle. Lewers sold the most of his lumber to people from Virginia City and got $50 a thousand for common lumber and $75 for clear. He sold some clear dry siding in Gold Hill for $250 a thousand. In the fall of 1860 Lewers went to Ireland and Epley rented the whole outfit for a thousand dollars a month. That was the day of cheerful prices.
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THE YEAR 1859
Rooptown grew a little this year. A. W. Worm put up a building near the northwest corner of Gay and Main streets and opened a store. A. B. Jenison built the first frame house in town. It was on the south side of Main street near Weatherlow. F. and S. say: "It was 16 by 30 feet in size, sided up with planed shakes, and was ornamented with a rustic cornice, making it a fine residence for those pioneer days. In 1859 the first reg- ular saloon was opened on the north side of Main street, midway between Gay and Union, by B. B. Painter and George Mitchell, and was known as the Black Rock." Dr. James W. H. Stettinius, who came into the valley that fall with Col. Lander, taught school in a frame building on the south side of Main street near Gay. The same history says: "In 1859, Clark Rugg & Harper opened a blacksmith shop on the south side of Main street, in a log house near where Smith's hotel now stands." This was between Gay and Union streets.
In October Stephen P. and Willshire Sanders claimed a tract half a mile wide and four miles long above the Emigrant ford on Willow creek; A. C. Hill took a claim east of Susanville be- tween Bear and Cornelison; T. H. Fairchilds located a section south of the Lassen land bought by him and Washburn; J. W. Hodgkins took a claim above the ranches of M. C. Lake and William Fuller, these two ranches being in the little valley claimed by O'Laughlin in 1856; E. L. N. King located a claim in Willow Creek at the mouth of Round valley; this year Miller and Hoffer owned the James Doyle ranch northwest of Milford.
Some time this fall Julius Drake and John Neiswender started a saloon and a bowling alley at Richmond; Streshly opened a blacksmith shop with Tim. Darcey as blacksmith for a while; and Charles Saunders opened a wagon shop. These were all on the south side of the road and started about the same time.
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