USA > California > Lassen County > Illustrated history of Plumas, Lassen & Sierra counties, with California from 1513 to 1850 > Part 46
USA > California > Plumas County > Illustrated history of Plumas, Lassen & Sierra counties, with California from 1513 to 1850 > Part 46
USA > California > Sierra County > Illustrated history of Plumas, Lassen & Sierra counties, with California from 1513 to 1850 > Part 46
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73
In 1862 the union party commenced the publication of the Quincy Union, under the manage- ment of Leonard & Powers. In the spring of 1864 these gentlemen were superseded by the Plumas Printing Company, composed of certain members of the union party, who continued the publication under the editorial management of John R. Buckbee. Later, W. W. Kellogg became the editor, and in 1866 gained possession of the whole paper. From that time it became independent in politics. In 1868 Mr. Kellogg removed with his paper to. La Porte, where it appeared as an independent sheet until the fire of 1869, which devastated that place. The material was so badly damaged that it was unfit for further use, and the Union appeared no more.
In the fall of 1866, after the change in the Union management, a few of the members of the union party purchased material and commenced to issue the Plumas National. It was edited and managed by H. L. Gear and others until the fall of 1869, when it fell into the hands of L. C. Charles and William E. Ward. In January, 1871, Charles sold his interest in the paper to Mr. Ward, who has been the editor and publisher of the National to the present time. The paper is a spicy local sheet, not failing, however, to express its opinions on all national questions in a forcible manner. It pursues an independent, though by no means a neutral, course, and, if anything, leans towards the republican side. The National is now in its sixteenth volume, and has won a place for itself among the leading interior journals of the state, gained by the ability and energy of its editor. His "Jab-jab " column is spicy and entertaining. Neat job work is done at the office in Quincy.
The Greenville Bulletin, a four-page, five-column weekly, was started in the town of Greenville in September, 1880, by Edward A. Weed, and is now in a thriving condition. It is a very readable publication, and devoted to the interests of Greenville and Indian valley. It is now in its second volume, and promises to continue its successful career for many years.
The gentlemen who have wielded the editorial pen and snapped the shears in Plumas county
RESIDENCE OF A. D. CHURCH. - SIERRA VALLEY, SIERRA CO.,CAL. --
313
have been scattered far and wide, and some of them have bidden a final adieu to mundane affairs, and gone where there is no unpaid subscription list, and where the call for copy shall sound in their ears no more forever. The pioneer of all, John K. Lovejoy, removed to Carson City and edited the Silver Age in that place, and later the Pi Ute, at Washoe City, in which he failed of success. He died a few years ago. He had an immense capacity for whisky, was a great talker, and a blackguard of the worst stripe, indulging to the extreme in billingsgate through the columns of his paper. He was known far and wide in Washoe as Old Pi Ute Lovejoy. His partner in Quincy, Ned McElwain, returned to his family in Illinois, and has been lost sight of by the people here. John C. Lewis was engaged in the newspaper business in Nevada for many years after leaving this county, meeting with but little success. His last paper was the Reno Crescent. He is now practicing medicine in Reno. Jim McNabb removed from Quincy to Petaluma, became inter- ested in a paper there, and was elected to represent Sonoma county in the senate. When T. B. Shannon was appointed collector of the port of San Francisco, McNabb became a deputy, which position he held until that office was remodeled by the administration. John S. Ward removed to Honey lake, and took an active part in the organization of a county government there. [See Lassen county history.] Silas Caulkins was engaged in the express business with George Morley for a time. He went to Washoe, and still resides in Nevada. He had the honor of being orator at the celebration in American valley July 4, 1852. Atlas Fredonyer turned out bad. [See elsewhere in this volume.] Tom Bail went to Idaho, where he afterwards committed suicide by cutting his throat. Lewis Curtz has been lost sight of. . Mat. Lynch went to Downieville and managed a paper there, then went to Mendocino and ran the Democrat until he fell a victim to his intemperate habits. Buckbee, Kellogg, and Gear all bore prominent parts in the history of Plumas, and their biographies will be found on another page. William E. Ward is still with us, and ready to answer for himself.
SCHOOLS AND EDUCATION.
At the time the county was organized, in the spring of 1854, no school had yet been taught within its limits. But few children were to be found among the throng of miners that then formed the population. The early emigrants were chiefly single men, or men who had left their families at home, expecting to return to them with a golden reward for their toil and privation. A few families came in 1852, and each year thereafter, and here and there through the mines, and espe- cially in the valleys, were to be seen children. Nevertheless, so scattered were these families that the maintenance of a school was impossible. Those were pioneer times, when labor was the order of the day, and every boy old enough to work was expected to do something, and had no time to spend at school. Even after schools were opened, they were chiefly attended by little children, a scholar over fourteen years of age being a rarity.
The court of sessions took occasion to divide the county into districts, on the ninth of June, 1854, though there was yet no school in the county. Three districts were created, embracing about the following territory : The townships (as now defined) of Seneca and Mineral were District No. 1; Beckwourth, Quartz, and Goodwin were District No. 2; and Indian and Plumas were District No. 3. A school was opened that fall in the town of Elizabethtown, lying in the third district, and was taught by W. K. Logan, at a monthly salary of $100. At that time Elizabethtown, or Betsy- burg, was the largest and most flourishing town in the county. Its days were palmy, though brief. In the highly figurative language of one of the early settlers, they " propped the doors open with $800
34
314
gold chunks, and the children used nuggets for playthings." A number of families had settled here, and there were children enough to maintain a school. The first superintendent of common schools was Dr. I. N. Hartzell, who made a report for the school year ending October 31, 1855. By this, it appears that while there were 75 children in Distriet No. 3, or Elizabethtown, between the ages of four and eighteen, but 29 of them were able to attend the school at all, and that the average attendance was but 16. This was due to the fact that many of the children lived in Indian or American valleys, too far away to avail themselves of the school privilege; while others were old enough to make their services valuable in other directions. It was a primary school. District No. 1, or Mineral, was reported with 18 children, so scattered that a school was not practicable. The other district was not mentioned at all.
The year 1856 saw the glory of Elizabethtown fade away, and Quincy came to the front as the leading town of the district. On the seventh of October, 1856, the board of supervisors changed the formation of school districts materially. All the county north of the north fork of Feather river was made District No. 1; all lying between the north and middle forks was District No. 2; and all south of the middle fork was District No. 3. School having been discontinued at Eliza- bethtown for more than a year, and Quincy having increased its juvenile population to such an extent that educational facilities were desired, a school was opened there in the summer of 1857. The teacher was Mrs. Sophie Sawyer, wife of Woodbury D. Sawyer, then an attorney of Quincy, and now practicing his profession in San Francisco. Her report is headed as follows: "Report of the Public School in First District in the Town of Quincy, from June 1st to Oct. 5th, 1857." Signed, " Sophie Sawyer, Teacher." This document shows that the number of scholars was 18; average age, 83 years; oldest, 13 years; youngest, 4 years ; visitors during the term, E. T. Hogan, J. F. Ray, and W. D. Sawyer. The only text-book mentioned was McGuffey's Reader.
But a short time after the school was opened in Quincy, the settlers in the eastern end of American valley decided to have a school in their midst for the education of their children, the school at Quincy being too remote for their accommodation. A subscription was therefore started, and the sum of $375 was raised, chiefly in amounts of $25. One gentleman donated a "load of lumber," and the parties who hauled it managed to get a "load" which was sufficient to build the house. This was the first school-house erected in Plumas county, and stands about two miles from Quincy. An engraving of the building is given on the title-page. A meeting was held in the house July 2, 1857, and S. A. Ballou was engaged as teacher, at a salary of $60 per month. Nineteen children attended the school that summer. Agreeable to the wishes of the people who had built this pioneer school-house, the board of supervisors set them off into a separate district July 7, 1857, making all that portion of District No. 2 lying east of Quincy into District No. 4. This is now known as Pioneer district. It is related of this school that at one time two applications were being considered for the position of teacher, one of them from a "Dutchman" and the other from a lady, and that one of the trustees insisted upon employing the former because he would take his pay in cabbage, turnips, etc. At another time a youth was asked by the teacher on the first day of the term if he had brought any text-books with him. " Yes'm," said he, as he produced from under his desk "The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth."
From a school census population in 1854 of 93 children, and a school fund of $141.93, the educational status of Plumas county has increased to a school fund, in 1880, of $16,014.46, and a census population of 984 children, or an average of $16.27 for the education of each child. The facilities for the education of children in Plumas county are of a high order, and a good common- school education, sufficient for the needs of a good American citizen, can be obtained in these
315
mountain schools by all who desire it. There is one in particular, the Pioneer district before al- luded to, that has no superior in the state for effective work, and among other ungraded schools has no equal. This is due to the care and intelligence of its teacher, George E. Houghton, and the excellent management of the trustees, J. W. Thompson, D. R. Cate, and J. H. Yeates, aided by the liberality of the residents of the district. The school has been under the control of these gentle- men for the past four years, and now exhibits the results of an intelligent and systematic course of training. For six months the regular public school is maintained, and then for four months a private school is continued by the subscriptions of the parents. It is called a private school, although just as free to every scholar as during the six months of public term. Pens, ink, paper, etc., of the first quality are supplied to the children free of cost and without distinction of persons. Latin, French, the sciences, higher mathematics, literature, etc., are taught in a systematic manner, and in this way the school approaches the efficiency of a graded school. The primary grades are also carefully taught. Business principles and forms are taught, and the children have arrived at a stage of perfection seldom attained in a business college. The teacher has no fixed rules of gov- ernment, but expects the scholars to behave themselves, and not abuse the privileges granted them. They are at liberty to converse with each other on the subjects they are studying, to move from place to place, and to retire from the room at will, and they make only a proper use of these priv- ileges. These things are only possible where both teacher and pupils are thoroughly in earnest, and enter with heart and soul into the work before them. It is a model school, and deserves the closest attention of the educators of the county.
CHURCHES OF PLUMAS COUNTY.
BY REV. L. EWING.
The first church organization effected in Plumas county was at Nelson Point, as early as 1854. The names of these first religious pioneers have been lost to history, except that of J. C. Gentry, the leader in that organization, Brother Gentry now lives at Taylorville, a sturdy, pious, local preacher in the Methodist Episcopal church. Since that organization the Methodists have held the field, with now and then some assistance from other denominations, who have all long since aban- doned the work, and given it up to their more persistent co-workers.
The first regularly appointed pastor to Plumas county came from the California conference, the Rev. Philetus Grove. He received his appointment in 1858. He resided at Quincy, and had charge of nearly the whole county. His faithful wife still resides in Quincy. Rev. P. Grove has long since gone to rest, but the influence of his faithful labors and life still live to bless the world. He was a hardy specimen of the Methodist itinerants, who in those days truly sacrificed " their all " for the cause. He organized a church at Quincy, with but four members, all of whom have long since died or moved away. In 1860 Rev. W. Willmot was pastor for the work in Plumas. In 1861 all of Plumas county north of Nelson creek was, by order of the general conference, in- cluded in the Nevada conference just then organized. La Porte, Quincy, and Indian valley have been regularly supplied with earnest preachers of the gospel. The names of the pastors, down to the year 1875, being Revs. P. Grove, W. Willmot, J. B. Fisher, E. L. Dickinson, E. Padison, Collin Anderson, G. B. Hinkle, W. J. White, and John H. Spes. Since 1875, La Porte has de- pended for religious services upon the pastors of various churches in adjoining counties, it not being deemed wise to settle a pastor there. Rev. F. M. Willis was sent to Indian valley in 1875,
316
and Rev. A. P. White to Quincy as pastor in charge, and presiding elder of the district. In this year Rev. F. M. Willis built a church at Taylorville, and Rev. A. P. White one at Quincy; the first in the county having been built at La Porte, by a preacher whose name is lost to history. W. J. White built the second church at Greenville. These brethren were aided by the citizens of their respective charges with true California liberality. The names of J. C. Gentry, Edwin Taylor, John Weldon, John Cadle, and others, were, as lay members, connected with these churches. Rev. Willis was followed at Indian valley by Rev. T. S. Uren, and Rev. White by Rev. N. G. Luke, the present presiding elder of the district. Rev. L. Ewing succeeded Rev. T. S. Uren at Indian valley in 1878, remaining in charge for three years, and then receiving the appointment at Quincy, where he is now in charge. Rev. O. L. Barstow is in charge at Indian valley ..
This church has, true to its earliest zeal, pushed its ministers to the front in the county. And since 1854 it has steadily grown in strength; but the ever-shifting, changing character of the Cali- fornia miner is not to be depended upon for permanent membership in churches. Hence, no church has at any one time numbered over 75 members. There are now about 175 members in the three circuits or stations in the county, with some living on the outskirts who are seldom permitted to hear the gospel. There are in the county, at present, seven Sunday-schools, in which about 400 scholars are taught the word of God. The singing by these children and the church choirs is of a very high order, and would be only expected, of older and more thoroughly cultivated fields. The church property consists of church buildings and parsonages; of churches there are three, with a seating capacity of 700; parsonages, three ; probable value of churches and parsonages, $10,000.
INDUSTRIES OF THE COUNTY.
The industries of the county are twofold, and to a certain degree interdependent, the one to a large measure supporting the other, and in its turn made cheaper and more profitable by the pres- ence of the other. Until the agriculture of the mountains had reached such a stage as to supply the food required in the mines, the price of provisions was so high that many claims which can now be worked with profit could not then be made to pay. The home market is not extensive enough to consume all the agricultural produce, especially the product of the dairies, and thousands of pounds of butter are annually sent down to the valley and to San Francisco. Two flour-mills, one at Greenville and one at Taylorville, consume a large portion of the wheat produced in Indian and American valleys, and supply the people with an excellent quality of flour.
The first attempts at agriculture in American, Indian, Mohawk, Sierra, and other valleys have been spoken of in the history of those localities, and need not to be repeated. Summed up, they show that in 1851 and 1852 considerable vegetables were raised by the few scattered settlers who had made locations upon these fertile valley lands. In 1853 a number of them put in small crops of wheat and barley, and the grain that was harvested was used the next season by themselves and others in sowing a much larger acreage of cereals. An unfortunate frost occurred in August, 1854, doing considerable damage to the grain crops, and the consequence was that not nearly so large a quantity of grain was put in the succeeding season as would otherwise have been the case; in fact, it took several years to restore the confidence of the farmers in the certainty of a wheat erop. As soon as the fact was fully realized that wheat, oats, and barley would make prolific crops in these high mountain valleys, the farmers launched out upon the cultivation of their ranches, and have grown rich and prosperous.
BLUE LEAD DRIFT AND HYDRAULIC MINE.
A
BOSTON MINE.
THE THOMAS AND REED HYDRAULIC CLAIMS, POORMAN'S CREEK, GOODWIN TOWNSHIP, PLUMAS CO. CAL.
ECLIPSE MINE .
1
.
317
The assessor's report for the year 1855 shows the following statistics of agriculture in Plumas county: Bushels of wheat, 5,765; barley, 854; oats, 1,015; corn, 5; potatoes, 2,530; tons of hay, 1,500; pounds of butter, 2,000; horses, mules, and asses, 506; cattle, 715; swine, 1,000; lands claimed, 14,604 acres. In comparison with these, the statistics of the year 1881 will show the won- derful progress made; acres assessed, 205,277 ; acres inclosed, 60,000; acres cultivated, 6,500; wheat, acres, 1,600, bushels, 30,000; barley, acres, 250, bushels, 7,500; oats, acres, 30,000, bushels, 60,000; rye, acres, 200, bushels, 6,000 ; pease, onions, and beans, acres, 65, bushels, 2,650 ; potatoes, acres, 150, bushels, 4,000 ; hay, acres, 20,000, tons, 15,000; butter, 200,000 Ibs .; cheese, 10,000 Ibs .; wool, 30,000 1bs. ; honey, 3,000 Ibs .; beer, 15,000 gallons; apple-trees, 6,000; pear-trees, 500; plum-trees, 500; peach-trees, 2,000 ; quince-trees, 50; grist-mills, 2; flour, 3,000 bbls .; saw-mills, 11; lumber, 6,000,000 feet; shingles, 1,000,000. The horses and mules number about 2,000; cattle, 10,000; sheep, 6,000; swine, 1,000.
It will be readily seen from the above figures that dairying is the leading feature of agriculture in this county. There are several valleys that are fit only for grazing and haying, such as Big Meadows, Red Clover, Last Chance, and a few others; while even in other sections where grain is raised to a considerable extent the farmers are nearly all largely engaged in the dairying business. The probabilities are that in placing the number of pounds of butter at 200,000, the assessor has underestimated that product at least one-third. The excellent roads that penetrate the county in all directions enable the farmers to transport their product to market at a trifling cost. The agri- cultural resources are by no means taxed to their fullest capacity, and there is no reason to suppose that the greatly increased population which the rapid development of the mines will surely bring within the next few years will not be as fully and cheaply sustained by the product of Plumas county farms as are the people of to-day.
The first flour-mill in the county was built by Cate & Judkins in the American valley in 1854. It had one run of stone, and another was added the next year. It was called the Plumas Mills. In 1856 Cate sold his interest to Judkins, who ran it three years, and then sold to Brett & Hartwell, of Marysville. Two years later John F. Hartwell became the owner, and. a few years later the machinery was sold and removed to Sierraville. The building still stands on Mrs. Hartwell's place. The Indian Valley Mills were built in 1856, by Jobe T. Taylor and Robert Smith, at Taylorville, where they still stand in active service. Taylor sold the mills to John W. Thompson, who is ope- rating them by the water power of Genesee creek. This and the Greenville Flour Mills, built a few years ago by Charles H. Lawrence and Isaac Patch, manufacture some 3,000 barrels of a superior quality of flour annually.
Of saw-mills, Plumas county has had many, the demand for lumber to be used in fluming, building, and timbering of mines giving work to a large number of mills. In 1850 and 1851 considerable lumber was whip-sawed for use in constructing wing-dams and flumes, but after that the saw-mills supplied the demand. The first of these was built at Rich bar, middle fork, in the summer of 1851, by J. B. Batchelder. The first in American valley was built in the winter of 1852-53 by D. R. Cate, D. W. Judkins, and J. S. Boyington. In 1855 Cate & Judkins built one in connection with their grist-mill: This is now owned and operated by Mrs. J. F. Hartwell. . Near Quincy, F. Gansner has a large saw-mill that was reconstructed in 1877, and is one of the finest mills in the county. The first mill in Indian valley was built at Taylorville in 1855, by J. T. Taylor and Robert Smith. It is now owned and operated by J. W. Thompson. A mill on Wolf creek, above Greenville, was built by Shaffer Bros., and is now owned by C. H. Lawrence, who also owns one in Big Meadows. The steam mill built by D. R. Cate in Round valley in 1860 was removed to
318
Lassen county. A mill was built near Rich bar, east branch, in 1852, and worked ten years; also one near Mountain House in 1856. A mill was built at Meadow valley by Morris Smith, Richard Jacks, Sarshel C. Brown, and others, composing the Plumas Mill and Ditch Co. Jacks owns and runs it now. There was a mill at Independence bar by J. L. C. Sherwin, and two on Willow creek, one owned by Root & Lewis. A mill was built in Mohawk valley in 1855, by George Woodward and Robert Pennman, now owned by Hill & Bennett. John Sutton and another built a mill near the last one in 1879. McNear built one near McLear's place in 1870, and still owns it. One was built by Otis & Mayne on the stage road several miles west of Beckwourth in 1872. Several mills have been operated at various points during the past thirty years, not enumerated in the above list.
* There are now in the county eleven saw-mills, four operated by steam and seven by water. They are not all running constantly, and some of them not at all. In 1881 they sawed 6,000,000 feet of lumber, and made 1,000,000 shingles. This product is all consumed at home, and the probabilities are that the future will see an increased demand for lumber. The building of a railroad may lead to the manufacture of lumber for shipment, and the heavy growth of desirable timber on the mountains will give employment to them for many years to come.
Mining has been and will continue to be the leading industry of the county. By it was the county first settled and developed. But for mining, Plumas would not now exhibit so advanced a state of agriculture; for without the large home market to foster and support it, that industry could not have been developed to the extent we find it to-day. Mining is, then, the foundation of the county's prosperity, and the frame-work upon which it rests. By its increased development in the future will the county be advanced in material prosperity, and any injury done to it will be a blow struck at the prosperity of the whole county, so intimately connected are all its industries.
It is impossible to estimate the amount of the precious metal that has been taken from the streams and placers of the county : as well try to fix the number of sands upon the seashore. Rivers, creeks, bars, ravines, gulches, flats, and hills have combined with great ledges of quartz to pour a golden stream into the miner's lap, and thence into the pocket of the tradesman and thie farmer. Millions have been spent in the county, while millions more have been taken away by fortunate ones, or sent away by others who remained to seek for more. It has gone to the four corners of the carth. Representatives of nearly every land that passes daily beneath the sun have mined in these mountains, and gold has flowed back to those countries in large quantities. China, especially, has absorbed immense quantities of California gold, not a little of which has been con- tributed by Plumas county.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.