Category Archives: History

History

Bly Tunnel sealed

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Bly tunnel inlet, July 1924. Courtesy of Wyn Wachhorst

In 1871, Hayden Hill postmaster, A.W. Blair was the first person to conceive the idea to tap Eagle Lake to irrigate the sagebrush lands of Honey Lake Valley.  Nearly fifty years later, it was Leon Bly, who finally succeeded in building a tunnel where others had failed. In 1923, the mile and a half long tunnel, costing $975,000 was completed as far as Bly and the contractors were concerned. However, the contractor only put in a cut of three feet below the surface at the intake, instead of eight feet. From that time on the tunnel was plagued with problems. In 1973, the Bureau of Land Management revoked the right-of-way for the tunnel and deemed it a safety hazard. Using tailings from the tunnel construction, they put a temporary plug to the tunnel. Finally, on November 26, 1986 the BLM hired Western Roads, Inc., to place a permanent concrete plug at the tunnel’s inlet.

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History

Susanville Street Changes

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What the city looked like then.

Yesterday, we examined how the city changed the house numbers. Well, there were a few casualties along the way. Some street names were changed. What was originally Fir Street became Elm Street, to avoid conflict with First Street. What was initially Prattville Road became North Pine Street to the end of the city limit. A segment of River Street became South Gilman Street.

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History

Susanville’s House Numbering System

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Lassen County Abstract building, constructed in 1911.

Susanville’s house numbering system was done in two separate phases. The first began in 1925, when the postal service announced free mail delivery. Prior to this, everyone went to the post office to pick up their mail. Thus, the city had to install street signs, to assist the mail carrier. Continue reading Susanville’s House Numbering System →

History

Christmas Tree Time

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Charles Beckett standing next to a 10 foot silvertip, November, 1976

Well, here it is the day after Thanksgiving and some folks use the holiday weekend to obtain a Christmas tree. A fixture in Susanville for many decades was Beckett’s Christmas trees.  In 1938, Charles Beckett founded the enterprise. Beckett had two locations for growing the trees, one locally on Worley, nee Roop Mountain, just west of Susanville, plus 4,000 acres in Siskiyou County, as well as some leased properties. Beckett stated silvertips were the most popular tree, which referred to as “the Cadillac of Christmas trees.” In the 1970s he sold approximately 40,000 trees annually, with some good years that doubled that figure.

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History

The naming of Drakesbad

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Drakesbad, circa 1930. Courtesy of the Sifford Collection

1914 was a banner year at Drake’s Springs resort in the Warner Valley near Lassen Peak. This, of course, was due to the fact the mountain came to life with volcanic eruptions. Alex Sifford, the innkeeper was overwhelmed by it all. That year, Sifford along with Jules and Rae Alexander incorporated Drakes Springs Company as a vehicle to raise money by selling stock.

For marketing purposes it was decided to rename Drake’s Springs. It was Rae Alexander who came up with a new name. It was the general consenus to retain the Drake name. Mrs. Alexander’s parents were from Germany and the German word for spa and baths is bad. In June 1914 the announcement was made that the new resort would be known as Drakesbad.

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History

World’s First Champion Cowboy

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McKissick’s frieght team near Wendel, November 26, 1906. Courtesy of Katie Penning French

What has nearly become a universal question, is I am asked how I became interested in the area’s history. It was accidental. As a child, I spent a lot of time with my uncle Bob Rea and his best friend, Frank Satica. I was very gullible/naive then and I believed everything told to me. Of course, lots of people had fun with that! One day Frank told me the story of John Best “Buster” McKissick, the World’s First Champion Cowboy who was buried in Secret Valley. For once this sounded way to preposterous to me. Why would someone that famous be buried among the sagebrush and sand?

For once, I questioned this, not be someone’s fool again. So, I started asking around. The tales of McKissick grew larger. I discovered a whole new dimension of the area. When I visited one of McKissick’s relatives, Lena Trumbull, she showed me a photograph of McKissick’s freight team in front of the imposing Amedee Hotel. Well, this place Amedee grabbed my attetionn, from there I learned new tales, such as commercial boating on Honey Lake. Ever since then, one thing had led to another and continues to do so.

As to McKissick’s title, it turned out to be true, dating back to 1876 during the Centennial World’s Fair in Philadelphia. More about McKissick’s exploits in the future.

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History

Golden Eagle Mine Shutdown

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Golden Eagle Mine, 1894. Courtesy of Del & Diane Poole

In days of yore, before Prohibition, it was the County Board of Supervisors who granted liquor licenses. At times it was a contentious issue. In 1907, the County Board granted Ed Driskell’s application to operate a saloon at Hayden Hill. The two largest mine operators there, the Golden Eagle and Lassen Mining Company objected, but the County Board ignored their plea. In retaliation, Golden Eagle, shut down their mine. It should be noted that the Golden Eagle was Lassen County’s largest and most productive mine.

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History

Tree Growing Clubs

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Fruit Growers tree nursery at Susanville, 1928.

In the early 1900s there was a nation wide movement of forming tree growing clubs to sustain a future supply. Of course, certain regions were in more dire need of trees than others. For a brief movement, there was an attempt to organize the farmers of the Honey Lake Valley for an co-operative effort to do the same. It never went anywhere. Continue reading Tree Growing Clubs →

History

What a Wedding Cake

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Sergi Cake
The Sergi-Sacco wedding cake. Courtesy of C. Derek Anderson

On 10:00 a.m. Sunday, November 15, 1936 at Sacred Heart Church, Rose Agnes Sergi and James Sacco were married. The bridesmaids were Louise Saffores, Concha Larrea and Camilla Alosi. The best man was Marion Larrea. After the ceremony a wedding breakfast was held at the Veteran’s Memorial Hall, with 500 guests. The centerpiece at the bride’s table was a magnificent five-foot tall wedding cake, weighing 250 pounds.

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