Log landing at Coyote Flat, August 21, 1953. Courtesy of Hank Martinez
It was not long ago when this was a common term issued by the forest service when in the summer months fire risk was high. What it entailed was the suspension of any activities that could spark a fire. First foremost, it applied to logging operations and equally important firewood cutters. On days declared hoot owl went into effect at 1:00 p.m. all such activity was curtailed. If you were a wood cutter while you were no longer able to use your chain saw, you could still have plenty time to load up the wood one had cut. Ditto, for log landings, if there were trucks present, they could be loaded, but all other operations were suspended.
The Emerson Hotel located at Main & Lassen Streets, the current site of the Hotel Mt. Lassen.
Susanville native, Charles “Charlie” Emerson was born on August 5, 1868. He was one of the rags to riches story. A year after his birth, his father deserted his family. Slowly, but surely the budding entrepreneur ventured in the business world, and was doing quite well.
In 1900, Emerson announced he was going to build the town’s premiere commercial establishment—a three story brick hotel. Completed in 1901, it became the town’s social hub. In 1913, the hotel’s neighbor to the west, the Blue Goose Saloon caught fire. It should be noted the Blue Goose had the town’s first neon sign, which shorted out and caused the fire. The hotel received minimal damage. Emerson purchased the burned out lot, and built an annex to his hotel. There is an issue about the annex, but that will have to wait for another day.
The Emerson Hotel ruins. Courtesy of Vivian Hansen
Back to Emerson’s birthday. Shortly after midnight on August 5, 1915, a fire was discovered in Emerson’s warehouse on Cottage Street, adjacent to the Methodist Church. The fire spread rapidly due to west winds, sending embers across the alley and igniting the Emerson Hotel, located on the corner of Main and South Lassen Streets. Two adjacent buildings facing on Lassen Street–the Hyer Hotel and the Methodist Church–also caught on fire. When it was realized that it was futile to try and save the buildings, all efforts were focused on keeping it contained. The losses were staggering, estimated at over $250,000. Emerson never fully recovered.
Years later, Emerson’s daughter Mae Ables, recalled the tragic event: “I was home for summer vacation from college when the hotel burned on my father’s birthday and stood with his arm around me in the middle of the street and watched it go with all our worldly possessions and Dad’s business records of years destroyed.”
The annual chore of cleaning the slough. Left to Right: George Hartson, Curtis Winslow, Colin Whitehead, Mr. Zumwalt, Will Hartson, John Theodore, Will Spoon. Courtesy of John H. Theodore
So much for hindsight, I should have scheduled this the day after last week’s post about Ward Lake Reservoir, since the topics are related. Once Susan River flows past Standish, it starts breaking into various sloughs before it reaches Honey Lake. Some of these sloughs are natural, and some man made.
The Hartson Slough is man made, named after Charles Hartson. In 1881, Hartson filed on 160 acres of sagebrush land near Honey Lake, in the Tule District. However, Hartson needed more water to not only reclaim this parcel but to expand. In 1889, Hartson worked as the construction superintendent of the Ward Lakes Reservoir. Hartson made a deal with the Balls Canyon Reservoir Company, the company behind the project, that, for a portion of his services, they would give him a share of water rights. This gave Hartson the water he sought to reclaim his land. He built the slough to convey the water to his ranch. By 1901, Hartson owned 1,500 acres of land, half of which was planted in alfalfa. In that same year, Hartson & Sons ranch was one of the first in Lassen County to incorporate. In 1910, Charles Hartson retired and moved to Susanville. He turned the ranch over to his son, Frank Hartson.
A view of the old Hartson Ranch.
It should be noted that a portion of the Hartson Ranch, is a part of the Dakin Unit, of the Honey Lake Wildlife Refuge. Hartson’s daughter, Elsie was married to Pete Dakin.
The Hayden Hill School District operated from 1878 to 1925. When it was established, the mining town was at its peak and would enjoy prosperous times for the next several years.
A lot of details of the school are sketchy. Since there was no town plat title research is a real challenge. It does not appear the school district owned the property where the school house was situated on. When the school was built is a matter debate, unlike most rural schools, those school houses were funded by local bond measures. The Hayden Hill School was built without the aid of public funds. In addition, it was one of three rural Lassen County schoolhouses that was a two-story structure. The two other schools were Lake (near Janesville) and Long Valley (Doyle). In all three cases, the second floor was used as a community hall.
Hayden Hill School, 1918. B. Dorsey Collection
When school closed in 1925, due to a lack of students, it was apparent that the mining community was not going experience one more revival. In 1931, the Lassen County Board of Supervisors sold the abandoned school building on June 1, to Fred Bunselmeier and Lloyd Walsh for an undisclosed amount.
In 1923, Bank of Lassen County in one their weekly newspaper advertisements contained this. “National Parks as Money Makers. According to the Department of Interior, National Parks are good money makers for the states they are in. Crater Lake Park brought $7,000,000 revenue to Oregon; Yosemite, $5,000,000 to California and Mt. Rainer $1,500,000 to Washington.
”What about Lassen Volcanic Park? If we awake to the possibilities which lie in the park—if we appreciate that such a park in time must bring in considerable revenue, we can more intelligently boost for sufficient appropriations to develop the park.”
When Lassen Park was established in 1916, Congress only approved an annual budget of $5,000. In addition, the park was administered by Yosemite. It was not until 1922, Lassen Park hired its first ranger. It was estimated that it would cost a million dollars to build a highway through the park. What made that problematic were private lands inside the park such as Drakesbad. Any park improvements would increase the value private lands inside the park, making it more difficult for the park to purchase said lands. In 1925, Congress approved $340,000 for initial highway construction. Not enough, but a start.
This is a follow up about yesterday’s post. The person who alerted me about the article in High Country Life was interested in a small county cemetery in Dry Valley, which is sandwiched between the Madeline Plains to the east and Grasshopper Valley to the west. It was an interesting conversation.
Dry Valley Cemetery, August 4, 2016.
In the fall of 2020, my companions made a trek into that region, the goal Bailey Creek Reservoir. Alas, for over a century, the road was now graced with a locked a gate. Onward ho, we go. Next destination Dry Valley and and the south end of Grasshopper Valley. While in the neighborhood, we thought a quick visit to the Dry Valley Cemetery was warranted. Lo, and behold the access road, which the public had traversed for over a century, was graced with a locked gate.
Dry Valley School, 1916. Courtesy of D.M. Durst Collection
Which brings up to this recent article and the inquiry I received. This individual purchased the property surrounding the Dry Valley Cemetery and closed off the road leading to the cemetery. I did inform this person that it is public cemetery and the public has right to access. I provided this person with some history. Near the road intersection to venture to the cemetery was the Dry Valley School. For a brief time the school children would march up the hill the to decorate the graves for Memorial Day. Needless to say, none of this mattered to the owner and the public cemetery is no longer accessible. Just for the record in 1918 P.E. Bowles donated the cemetery to Lassen County.
In the July 2023 issue of this Feather River Publishing publication contains an article about the Susanville Cemetery. There is, of course, a photograph of yours truly conducting the 2017 Lassen County Courthouse Centennial Cemetery Tour. Some of the information in article came directly from my website, which they noted and alas did not publish the correct link. The one erroneous error that gets perpetuated a lot, is that Thomas Tucker, a Maidu, was the first casualty from Lassen County in World War I. Alas, it was Westwood resident Clyde McKea who was the first. It should be noted, I was never consulted about this article. As a matter of fact, I would probably never known about it, but a Sacramento resident while traveling through the region picked up a copy of the magazine. This person after seeing the article, sought me out for some Lassen County cemetery information.
After several posts concerning the Secret Valley CCC camp, a reader wanted to know why Secret was so named. The name was applied to region by the late 1860s.
In 1927, when Frank Heath traveled through the region he wrote: “Wild hay along southwest side of Secret Valley—which so named by a poetical cowboy on account of its many secret springs.” On September 20, 1864, Melissa Turner recorded the first land claim in Secret Valley. On December 6, 1888, the Lassen Advocate published this descriptive account: “Secret Valley lies about twenty-five miles northeast of Susanville and is surrounded on all sides by mountains, covered sparsely by timber, although there is sufficient juniper in the
immediate vicinity to provide fuel for a long time. Lumber is hauled
from this valley. The land, in this valley, is great part sagebrush soil bearing the large, thick brush, by which we of Northern California have learned to distinguish as fertile soil. There is, however, considerable meadow land, largely comprised in the ranches of J. B. McKissick, J.J. Tipton and James Sellick, water altogether with springs, which are quite warm, although the water does not by any means approach the boiling point. Within the enclosure of T. Ashby are seventy-five springs. Mr. Ashby has raised this year about sixty thousand pounds of fine potatoes which grow in Secret to a large size and of a very fine quality.”
On a final note there is a small family cemetery in Secret Valley, and interred there is John Best “Buster” the proclaimed World’s First Champion Cowboy. in 1876.
Construction of Miller’s cut near Susanville 1913. B.R. Zimmerman collection
Daily life got crazy in Susanville when the railroad arrived in 1913. Numerous discussions were held to make the town “dry.” It was the belief of some that if there was a ban on alcohol, that it would rid the town of certain elements. The City was not so keen on the other hand, as it received most of its operating revenue from liquor licenses. Continue reading Those Rowdy Camp Followers→
