May 13, 1973 was a historic day for Lassen Community College. A formal dedication ceremony was held for the new campus. At 12:30, it began with the Grand Lodge Officers of the California Free and Accepted Masons with the cornerstone laying ceremony. A time capsule was included to mark the event for posterity. It was then followed by a barbecue. At three p.m. the formal dedication program began at the Sports Center with College President Robert Theiler, as the initial speaker. Theiler was followed by an assortment of dignitaries giving their blessings for the monumental occasion.
Since it is Saturday of the Memorial Day weekend, I am busy making the rounds of the local cemeteries. Today’s photograph is an interesting scene depicting one log loads was taken in 1949. It was part of the Purdy Brothers Logging operations. In 1977, while working with my Dad, at that time, L&M Logging, there was a rare opportunity to harvest a massive sugar pine near Swains Hole. While it was ordeal to put that log on the trailer bunk, that was only half the battle. It turned out, while Dad drove the logging truck to the mill, it was so over weight, that along the way he experienced four blown out tires. Upon arriving at Coin Lumber they were not amused that the size of the log, since over the years the sawmill machinery had been modified for smaller logs.
Tim
Later today, is a subscriber exclusive who will receive an anecdote story involving Philip Hall, the Lassen Museum and today’s photograph.
Lef to Right: Olive Murrer, Sally Finefrock and Hilda Bennett at the Lassen College 70th anniversary.. Thank you Linda Kennedy
While Lassen College has been celebrating its centennial this month, this evening will mark its 98th commencent. The college’s centennial gradation and its commencement will occur in 2027. Of note, my Aunt Olive Farwell Murrer was a member of the College Class of 1927. Her sister, Hilda Farwell Bennett a member of the College Class of 1928.
On a personal note, I served on the Lassen College Board Trustees for ten years. Graduation was a special and joyful occasion. As trustee its a wonderful moment, not just to the student’s hard work paying off, but as trustee with the hard work behind scenes made its extremely worthwhile.
In 1960, the Nevada State Museum published Francis Riddell’s “Honey Lake Paiute Ethnography” as Anthropological Papers No. 4. It was widely popular and was soon out of print.
In 1977, the Nevada State Museum Board of Trustees contacted Riddell about a reprint. Riddell agreed, but wanted to revise his original work with a chapter on the general prehistory of the region. Also, Riddell suggested that the volume be expanded to include another paper “Ethnographic Notes on the Honey Lake Maidu” by Williams S. Evans, Jr. The trustees agreed. The Honey Lake Maidu ethnographic notes were enhanced by notes, photographs and genealogies collected by Riddell and incorporated in this book. As Donald Tuohy, the editor wrote: “The melding of scholarship and talent has led to the production of this excellent volume.”
I could not agree more. It is your A-Z guide. It will require a bit sleuthing to locate an out or print copy, and it will not be cheap either. By the way, it was published as the Nevada State Museum Occasional Papers No. 3.
The average resident may not be aware of Susanville’s unique geographical settings. The Susan River is the natural dividing line of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade. It should be noted, that there is a slop over of Sierra and Cascade. This was confirmed by U.S.G.S. as Gallatin Peak, near the south east shore of Eagle Lake, is of granite composition, a typical Sierra trait.
The same is true of Cascade, the Modoc Plateau. and Great Basin. Secret Valley is a prime example as it is intermingled with characteristics of those three geological regions. Of course, lest we forget the Skedaddle Mountains are located on the western edge of the Great Basin For those that reside here we are fortunate enough to experience this unique and diverse topography.
The Bonham Ranch was an important stage stop of the lower Smoke Creek Desert starting in the 1880s. The abandoned ranch has seen better days, as the photograph suggest. I just happen to take this picture on an impromptu stop of the last BLM desert tours in 2004. See related story Edward Laird.
Alpine Hotel was a dormitory for the employees of the Lassen Lumber & Box Company and later served as a dormitory for Lassen College’s early forestry students.
Once upon a time, Lassen College had a very popular forestry program. This was back in the day, with three large lumber mills in Susanville, another one in Westwood, along with the Lassen National Forest provided a lot of job opportunities. It was because of these factors that there was need for some vocational training in this field, and especially for the community. Continue reading Lassen College’s Forestry Program→
In today’s hipster vernacular the “in” word is repurposed. In days of yore before we became a disposal society not much was discarded. When Lassen County was in the midst of building a new courthouse in 1916-17, the county deemed the old courthouse as surplus property.
In November 1916, the county advertised for bids for the sale of the old courthouse in anticipation of moving into the new facility. Plenty of people inspected the building. The county did not know when the building would be available. In January 1917, the county received two bids for the structure, but they were rejected. The county decided to hold an auction, in fact two.
The Methodist Church bell, 2017 Courtesy of Martin Balding
The first one held was on April 11, 1917. It included the bell from the old courthouse that used to call court into session. It was purchased by Rev. J.H. Westervelt of the Methodist Church. The church was destroyed in a 1915 fire, and they needed a replacement bell.
The installation of the bell was chronicled in the Lassen Advocate of October 19, 1917: “The bell purchased last spring for the Methodist Church was placed in the tower of the edifice last week and for the first time in many a day ‘the sound of the church-going bell’ of this the oldest church in town, brought against its hearers the indescribable feeling of Sabbath peace and quiet that means so much to village life the world over.”
It should be noted, the bell is still used to this day to call the faithful to worship. I can attest that the bell has a wonderful tone.
Well, the title does seem morbid, I can and will explain. However, for me, with Memorial Day approaching it is cemetery season. As I take cue from late radio host Paul Harvey, I going parley the rest of the story. This a two-fold approach. There will be an on line article, with follow up story that will be sent only to subscribers. After all, not only do I know where the bodies are buried, but the stories behind them.
The inaugural story will debut on May 24. It will depict a 1949 logging photograph. The follow up story that will be sent subscribers, about how that photograph relates to Philip Hall and his tenure as a Lassen Museum volunteer, though the vernacular has upgraded to docent. The next installment is titled the Dark Side of Susanville’s Eastman’s Studios. Stay tuned.
A most unusual phenomenon that can be found throughout the region and no longer just in Lassen County. The original shoe tree was located at Mud Flat, along Highway 395. In the 1930s, Jud Foster, of the California Highway Department, planted numerous cottonwood trees across Mud Flat. It was hoped that these trees would absorb and stabilize the roadbed so that it would not become so muddy. Only one tree survived and it grew to maturity. In 1979, when the highway was widened, officials considered removing the tree, but later reconsidered. Instead, the highway department made an impromptu turn out next to the tree. This turn out along a desolate stretch of road, where there are no trees, became a popular stop for travelers. Shortly thereafter, someone tossed a pair of shoes onto a tree limb. Slowly, through time, more and more shoes were found dangling from the tree. In the early hours of May 14, 1994, an unknown person(s) cut down the tree.
