The American Legion building also known as the Veterans Memorial Hall marks its cenentinial today. The $30,000 strucuture was designed by local architect Ralph Taylor. The contractor was T.J. Rees of Fallon, Nevada who was in Susanville constructing the Hotel Mt. Lassen.
The dedication was a spectacular event. The local American Legion Post, Thomas Tucker Post 204 was hosting the California American Legion Convention. A truly amazing feat that drew 2,700 visitors to Susanville.
Tim
Seasoned residents will remember this as the old Spalding Drug Building. In its later years it was known as The Bootery. It was destroyed by fire on January 5, 2005. In the spring of that year the building’s remnants was bulldozed.
Since that time it has remained a vacant lot. From time to time there has been discussions as to what to do with it, but that has been the extent of it.
Tim
On August 12, 1912, Jules Alexander, Ike Knoch, J.A. Pardeeand J.E. Pardee formed the Lassen Townsite Company aka Greater Susanville.* With the arrival of the railroad boom times lied ahead. This was no ordinary subdivision, but the town’s largest ever since. It encompassed an area four times of the original incorporated city limits. The subdivision included all the territory east of Richmond Road and south of Susan River to Johnstonville Road, near present Eagle Post Office, and for a southern boundary, the agricultural lands of Sierra StreetThe Lassen Townsite kept the price of their lots at $100 each, with a minimal down payment and am easy installment plan. Asan extra incentive for buyers, they would not responsible for their property taxes until they had paid for their lots.
An added bonus for Lassen Townsite they prevented speculators from developing d tlwnsite along the railroad corridor that would be detrimental to the Susanville business district. Some examples are Standish and Litchfiled Bieber and NuBieber. I hope in further installments to scan images the company’s brochure.
Tim
*It should be noted these gentlemen a year prior attempted to rename Susanville to Lassen.
In 1919, the Fruit GrowersSupply Company purchased the Long Ranch just north of Susanville for a sawmill site. Things dramatically changed and Fruit Growers considered using it a winter horse pasture and dairy. Ultimately, the property was leased to Frank O’Kelly who founded Lassen Dairy. The property is now Susanville Ranch Park.
While I do not know the complete history of Lassen Dairy,, while searching through Fruit Growers archives I did find this memo dated: December12, 1934:
“For some time there had been considered a revision of the lease under which the Lassen ranch is operated by Frank O’Kelly. Due to reduced income from dairy products he has been unable to meet the annual $2400.00 annual rental and the Company accepted for 1933, $1800.00 which at least offset taxes and expenses. The Operating Committee had approved the Manager’s recommendation, that rental charged for 1934 be $1600.00, and that a new lease be made with Mr. O’Kelly for five years at an annual rate of $1600.00, such rental to be increased to $1800.00 annually should the retail .price of milk advance to 10 cents a quart.”
Tim
On the 100 block of Susanville’s South Lassen Street are two buildings well over a century old that are distinctive of each other, but had common owner, George McDow.
In 1911, McDow next to his residence had an office constructed to house the Lassen Abstract Company, the first land title office in Lassen County. Lassen Abstract operated for nearly fifty years, whose owners at the end where Art Anderson and George Pancera with Electa Lazard who managed the operations.
In 1935 Carlos Lucero purchased the McDow residence and remodeled it into a mortuary which is still used as such, though it has undergone numerous ownerships.
Tim
On April 16 1921, there was dedication ceremony for Fruit Growers Supply Company mill. While the sawmill was placed into operation everything at least from the public perspective was full steam ahead. However, a facility that initially hired 1500 men to operate it would require a lot of work for every component to function. Case in point, and the reason for the mill existence was the box factory not placed interoperation until earlyJune., but was not fully at capacity until September. On brighter note, on June 1, 1921 shipped its first railroad car of lumber. The accounting department must have been pleased that with several million dollars expedpenditures to acquire the timber and built the mll, revenue was finally generated.
Tim
After a decade of Father Moran’s since 1939 announcement for a new church it became a reality.
In the spring of 1948, it was announced that work would begin that year for the new church–the plans modified for a Spanish-American architecture style building. The new church would be three times the size of the current one.
In the summer of 1948 the old church was advertised for sale, but there were no takers. It was decided to dismantle it as quickly as possible so construction would begin. However, delays were encountered and groundbreaking did not occur until September 3, 1948. On Sunday, July 9, 1949 the first Mass held in the new church, though there was work still to be done. On May 21, 1950, the new Sacred Heart Church was dedicated by the Most Reverend Robert J. Armstrong, Bishop of the Sacramento Diocese.
The 1950s were challenging times for the Fruit Growers Supply Company., especially with its sawmills. They were faced with dwindling timber supply and equally important the conversion from wooden box to cardboard. There was no need for three mills, each required costly upgrades.
The Fruit Growers’ Board of Directors had an Operating Committee. One their tasks was an annual inspection of the mills and the company’s timber resources. In the fall of 1954, when the Committee arrived at Westwood the hot topic as to wether to keep Susanville or Westwood open. It was the consensus one would have to close.
Westwood had an upper edge with recently installed Craveneer plant. The Committee withheld their decision until they returned Los Angeles, but it was apparent that Susanville would close.
After serious consideration it was decided to close Westwood and to build a Craveneer plant in Burney. It was noted Susanville still had sufficient timber resources, so it was spared. In 1955, Sunkist, the parent company of Fruit Growers announced complete conversion to cardboard and the wooden box as a shipping container was relegated to the past. It is interesting to note, that Fruit Growers considered converting the Susanville mill into paper/pulp plant to manufacture cardboard boxes.
The Maryland Hotel is a thing of the past. The Maryland was located at 135 South Lassen Street. Its name rather misleading, not quite a hotel, but not quite a boarding house either. However, during its tenure it served the community well. When the lumber mills were the predominate industry in Susanville, a large number of single men, either worked in the mills or in the woods. It should be noted the lumber companies sought to hire married men with families, as it was deemed they were more stable, unlike single men who went from one operation to another seeking the proverbial greener pastures.
The Maryland catered to single men. Uptown Susanville was different then. Within two blocks of the Maryland there were four coffee shops/cafes-Mt. Lassen, Pioneer, Grand and State. Next to the State was a laundromat. There were grocery stores, too-Purity, Red & White and Safeway. In 1983, the property was acquired by the nearby mortuary and it was demolished to make additional parking.
Susanville has an ambilavent attitude when observing the nation’s birthday. Did these two seperate early day observances set the stage?
In 1868 it was noted: “Susanville had a very dull Fourth. No preparations were made for celebrating the day and the only patriotic demonstrations that we had were generated by the young boys in town. It was a very orderly, as well as very quiet Fourth, and in this respect might be considered something of a success.”
How things quickly change and in 1871 the Sage Brush newspaper reported,: “The Glorious Fourth is the occasion of unrestrained indulgence of intoxicating liquors, and all the disgraceful scenes that naturally result there from. Some creatures in human shape inbruted and stupefied with whiskey, reeled about the street shocking the ears of all decent people with their frightful profanity and obscenity. Others who passed this stage only to reach another even more repulsive, sat about in barroom chairs limp and foul , unresisting prey to every blue bottle. Or with black and swollen faces turned up to the burning sun and reeking in their filth , they laid about the streets the most sorrowful, the most humiliating spectacle being could contemplate.”
Tim