Long after the excitement of the gold rush, people were still lured to California. Numerous reports published back east extolled the health benefits of the golden state’s climate. In the spring of 1874, Iowa resident Sylvester Daniels ventured to the Honey Lake Valley to visit his sister, Polly Parks, and see if the change in climate might be beneficial to him. Like many in that era, Sylvester kept a journal. His journals were different in the sense, as he kept a record of his experiences so he could send them back to his fifteen-year-old daughter, Viroqua.

On June 3, 1874, Sylvester was not prepared for the cultural shock of Reno, Nevada, when got off the train. He wrote, “Money making is all the rage here. . . This is a terrible place for drinking and gambling to say the least.” A few days later, he wrote the following about his first impression of the Honey Lake Valley, “They can boast all they are a mind to of this country, but it is not here. There is millions of acres of good for nothing far as a man can see, only to hold the world together. It looks to me that here is about as many folks in this valley, as it will support.”

Daniels spent the next thirteen months exploring the region. Once he got past the cultural differences, the area grew on him. As a matter of fact in December 1875, he located to Lake City, Surprise Valley and move his family there. He spent the rest of his life in Surprise Valley, and passed away in 1908. In future posts I will provide more of his observations. As a refresher, I did post one about his experience at Mountain Meadows.

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