Today, marks the beginning of meteorological spring. If you have lived around these parts for very long, winter and spring are very unpredictable.
This past winter was of no exception. It was a very rainy November and December, followed a by cold, dry January. The first half of February was a weird. Take for instance, February 6. The forecast, high elevation snow. In Susanville, by 8 a.m. it was snowing ever so lightly. By noon, it was still snowing. However, at the same time, it was not only raining in Truckee, but on Donner Summit. By late afternoon, it was still snowing in Susanville, but snow conditions to our north got worse. By 4 p.m. Interstate 5 was closed at Yreka due to snow, while it was still raining on Donner!
Yesterday, it was spring like in Susanville and the temperature broke 60F, the first time since early November. Today, the forecast is a repeat, and then a stormy pattern resumes. Appreciate the good weather wherever you live.
Amedee, January, 1916 courtesy of Marie Herring Gould
Awhile ago, we explored the topic of recipe of desert boomtown, i.e. Amedee.Boomtowns are fascinating creatures, no two are alike. While Amedee’s heyday peaked in 1892. its downward spiral was slow. The country’s financial panic of 1893 was front and center. The regional reclamation projects had over extended credit and were forced into bankruptcy. Along the same lines, the nations railroads over expanded, and in 1893, and new railroad construction in the mid-1890s was kept to a minimum.
There was silver lining for Amedee about the railroad’s doldrums. The NCO Railway had no financial means to extend its line beyond Amedee, thus, the town had a major draw of the railroad’s terminus. In 1899, that came to an end as NCO extended its line north to the Madeline Plains. At Amedee’s height it had a population to between 300 to 400. In 1900 the population dwindled to 49. In 1905 the Amedee School closed for a lack of students. There was a hope on on the horizon, and Amedee would go through a revival.
The wooden marker for Jesse Cole, Susanville Cemetery, November 1977.
Wooden grave markers were not that common in this region, with exception of Hayden Hill, which all those graves markers were made out of wood and they were destroyed in the town’s great fire of 1910.
Luckily, I photographed the wooden markers in the Susanville. Since then, they have been obliterated altogether. I did have some one volunteer, whose hobby is wood working, to make replacements. Needless to say, that did not come to fruition.
The following is Jesse Cole’s obituary that appeared in Lassen Advocate on 3 March 1898: The Death of Jesse Cole.
“Last Monday night [February 28], between the hours of 10 and 11 o’clock, Jesse Cole, an old resident of this section and a Justice of the Peace of this Township, died suddenly at his residence on Pine Street. He had been afflicted for years with some form of heart disease, and several times during his residence here has been near death’s door. About a month ago he was obliged to call medical counsel and with its help had been practically resume his usual avocations. On the evening of his death he had gone to the post office as his want for the mail, and returning home, complained of feeling cold. Stimulants were administered and he was enabled to get to bed, but alarming symptoms manifested themselves and help was summoned. Before his friends and neighbors could respond the grim visitant Death had entrapped the cold from with its mantle and. borne to other and brighter realms the wearied spirit.
“Jesse Cole was a native of Atchison county, Missouri. He came to California in 1862; located at Milford in this valley and has lived in this State ever since. In 1869 he was married to Miss Martha Smith at Napa and after some years in the lower country, returned to this section. At the last general election he was elected Justice of the Peace, Township No. 1 and the office he discharged to the satisfaction of our people and with the credit to himself. The Superior Court when in session, adjourned Wednesday that attorneys and friends might attend the funeral services at the M.E.Church, where an impressive sermon was preached by Rev. Rosen. The Foresters, of which the deceased was a member, conducted the services and laid the remains of their late brother to rest with solemn rites of that Order. The funeral procession was headed by the Mountain Echo Band and at the grave a beautiful and appropriate selection was rendered by the choir, consisting of Mrs. J. Alexander, Miss Dovie True, Dr. Dozier and A.H. Taylor.
“A wife and son remain to mourn the loss of kind and indulgent husband and father, and to receive the hearty sympathies of this community.”
One of three communities in Big Valley, Bieber of the trio is in Lassen County, the two others,, Adin and Lookout, are in Modoc County. In the 1870s, Adin’s growth was a result of the Hayden Hill gold mines to its south.
Bieber’s store invoice.
Bieber was originally known as Chalk Ford because of the chalky nature of the ground. The solid ground at this location on the Pit River made it the easiest place to cross. In May 1873, Theodore Pleisch claimed 160 acres and built a cabin there. In 1874, development began slowly and the town’s first two houses were built by Anton & William Gerig. In 1876, Max Posner opened the Josephenson General Store, that town’s first store. In 1877, Nathan Bieber (1858-1922) arrived there to manage the Josephson General Store, owned by his uncle, Max Posner. Bieber had a natural talent as a merchant and made the store a success. Lafayette S. Barnes, editor of the Adin Hawkeye dubbed Bieber the “young prince merchant.” On November 17, 1877, Bieber purchased Pleisch’s property, where the town had slowly developed, for $600. The town continued to grow and on May 6, 1881, its first newspaper, the Mountain Tribune, made its debut—an effort to elevate the area from a mere frontier settlement to that of a town. However, the 1880 census tallied only 43 residents. In 1884, the town plat of Bieber was surveyed and recorded.
Remants of one of vats for drying salt at Buffalo Meadows, January 1980
I only visited the Buffalo Salt Works once that is located in the Smoke Creek Desert. That was in 1980. One of vats used to drying salt was fascinating. The salt had disfigured the wooden foundations creating an unusual landscape. My question is has any one gone to the site in the last twenty years and if so, what remnants still exist?
More remnants of the Buffalo Salt Works, January 1980
In 1951, Lassen Lumber & Box Company (Lassen Lumber) began to liquidate its holdings. On November 3, 1952, its neighbor, Fruit Growers purchased Lassen Lumber for $1,425,00. On the surface it was puzzling why Fruit Growers would purchase another mill. After all, the need for box shook was in decline with the conversion to cardboard boxes. But Lassen Lumber had one item Fruit Growers needed–water rights. If at some time in the future Fruit Growers decided to convert and manufacture cardboard at Susanville, the purchase of Lassen Lumber would give it the necessary water supply.
On February 8, 1953 the last of the decked logs at Lassen Lumber had been processed, and Fruit Growers closed the mill. It was then sold to Goff Machinery Company of Stockton, California, which immediately dismantled it. On March 11, 1953, Fruit Growers sold thirty acres that contained the box factory to the T&M Sash & Door Factory, operated by A.L. Lucero and Walter Wirth for $125,000. The box factory building was destroyed by fire on April 3, 1966. Today, the property is occupied by Lassen Auto Body on Alexander Avenue.
Chicken yard and coop, Tanner Ranch, Honey Lake Valley, April 1974
In the fall of 1927, A.N. Bennett of Bennett & Cardinal, owners of the area’s largest creamery, and a distributor of eggs. Bennett stated for many years, Lassen County produced enough of eggs to meet local demand. That changed in 1922, with the increase of population, but the local egg production had not. In 1922, $140,000 was spent to import eggs into Lassen County. The Lassen County Farm Bureau stepped in, and while local production still did not meet local demand, only $80,000 was spent yearly to import eggs. The farm bureau estimated 20,000 chickens were required to meet local demand. The organization advocated 200 chickens per farm.
This caught my eye of a 1935 illustration with an automobile and an airplane on Honey Lake. I have many tales, when the lake is dry, that certain car enthusiast had roamed on the dry lake bed. Like a mirage, it is not really that dry. There places that appears to dry on the surface. there are soft spots, and many a poor soul has encountered them, got really stuck and stranded on the supposedly dry lake bed.
In the summer of 1931, there were two notable events on the dry Honey Lake bed. On August 23, 1931, Fred McKinley, a pilot and Miss Barbara McGrath, rodeo air queen of Alturas, landed on Honey Lake on a trip to Alturas for the scheduled grand opening celebration of Laird Airport there. McKinley was arrested in Alturas when statements were made while stopped on the lake bed, he attempted assault and rape Miss McGrath. Rumors and stories abound, but McKinley was found not guilty of all charges. The main incident that forced the landing was Miss McGrath’s taking ill from turbulence experienced in the air.
In a related matter of the McGrath incident, law enforcement officials went out on Honey Lake seek evidence of the airplane’s tracks. During their search they discovered a decapitated and armless skeleton. Identification of the body was impossible. It was judged to be a middle-sized man and that the remains had been on the lake bed for at least two years. The skeletal remains, still clothed, contained $22.12, a suitcase, a pocket knife and a corn cob pipe. The remains were interred in the Lassen Cemetery at Susanville, Case closed.
Cover page of the Lucky Land of Lassen pamphlet distributed at the Panama-Pacific Exposition
In January 1914, Lassen County sought a slogan for next year’s Panama-Pacific Exposition to be held in San Francisco. A contest was held in which public was encouraged submit slogans. Some of the entries, were in my opinion, questionable. A notable one was “The Poor Man’s Mecca.” Other entries submitted were: Seek No Further; Just What I want; Look and Long No Longer; and the Land of Milk, Honey, and Apples. The runner up, Lassen, the Last West. The contest ended on February 6, 1914. The winning slogan was the Lucky Land of Lassen. It was not revealed as to who came up with it. It was widely used for over two decades.
1944 distribution map of Antelope in Northeastern California.
Prior to the 1849 California Gold Rush the pronghorn antelope could be spotted throughout most of California, especially in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys. Fencing and agricultural development in those regions forced them of that habitat. By 1920, some thought the antelope were on the verge of extinction with a population of 13,000 in North America. One of the largest concentrations of antelope were located in Lassen and Modoc Counties. .
A herd of antelope near Secret Valley, 1938.
Antelope are noted for their speed. They are latest mammal in the Western Hemisphere. They are also known for their curiosity. In 1944, Donald C. McLean of the California Fish and Game wrote: “On the Madeline Plains east of Ravendale, four antelope does ran along beside the car for about one-half mile at 42 miles an hour, suddenly put on a burst of speed and tossed directly in front, then raced along just ahead of the car for another one-half mile at about the same speed when they crossed over in front again and stopped about 100 yards from the road. These animals were certainly not particularly frightened. In fact, I think it was curiosity and the joy of a race that prompted them to stay the car for such a distance.”
In McClean’s report he noted that there was 4,504 antelope in Lassen County. The largest concentration was in the Skedaddle Mountain country. In Modoc, the count was 1,167. McClean’s report included a detailed account of census methods. The first two paragraphs are rather informative.
“Formerly antelope were estimated or counted by crews of picked men working from horseback or on foot. About six or seven generally made up a crew, working in twos orthrees in most areas. Occasionally, however, all joined to form one crew in places where large numbers of antelope in a limited area had to be counted one time to avoid the possible duplication that might occur if they were not all counted in one day. Because of soft ground and rocky terrain, most of the counting had to be done on foot. In order to count the two counties, Modoc and Lassen, properly each man of a six-man crew had to walk or ride about 600 miles–about 26 days of effort per man.
“The extensive use of the airplane was started in the late winter of 1941-42. This first airplane census was carried under the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act as part of Project California 12-R, “Aerial Survey of Big Game in Northeastern California and in the Owens Valley.” James D. Stokes of the Division of Fish and Game was the observer and. A.L. Reese the pilot during the 1941-42 survey. The 1943 and 1944 censuses were made with regular Division of Fish and Game funds, with D.D. McLean as observer and John Allen as pilot. This method is far superior to the old from the standpoint of speed, accuracy and expense.”
