Since I am in early stages of recovery, it is too difficult to plan anything, since I have no idea when I will be home.
In the good news department, in between physical therapy I have drafted out the talk. Topics include, but not limited to Lake Lahontan and the difficulties of mining on Diamond Mountain. They are all inter-related.
On August 1, 1869 the first Mass to be held in Lassen County was at the home of Ned Mulroney near Susanville, with the 27-year-old Father Charles Lynch officiating. Since a circuit priest had to cover a large territory in Northeastern California and Nevada, Mass in many instances was only held once a year when the priest made his rounds.
In the 1880s with a larger Catholic population, and the Diocese territory smaller, Mass was be held in the Lassen County area twice year. There was also a movement to have their own house of worship instead of the courtroom in the Lassen County Courthouse or the hall in the Steward House Hotel.
This changed in the spring of 1892, when William Cain, a non-Catholic, donated a parcel land across the Susan River on Richmond Road, the current site of Poulsen’s Welding. In May construction began, the labor from church volunteers. As Father Thomas Horgan later recalled the driving force for the church came from three families—Bantley, Neuhaus, and Mulroney.
The new church had a seating capacity of 120, quite ample for their being about 100 parishioners. On June 26, 1898 Bishop Thomas Grace dedicated the Susanville church as the Church of the Sacred Heart.
Weather prognosticators are an interesting bunch. Last year was a record crop of acorns, I don’t recall ever seeing so many. Some people took that as a sign that we were in for a heavy-duty winter. We had the opposite, it being fourth driest on record. Continue reading Historic Weather Predictions
Today, it being Saturday and its August, it means it is Farmer’s Market at the Susanville Depot. However, it was not always scene of lively times. On October 12, 1979 the Southern Pacific closed the depot. Continue reading Susanville Depot Closed
Some may remember when I posed a question earlier, who was the most influential person in Lassen County. Well, it is T.B. Walker, founder of the Red River Lumber Company. His impacts are far and wide, and still lingers today. The historic Lassen County Courthouse came to be with Walker’s influence at the ballot box to pass the bond measure. Off tangent for a bit, there are some who think Isaac Roop is the most revered figure Lassen County has ever experienced. If you look at the record, Roop made a killing so to speak as a realtor, selling land that he did not own. Benevolent and generous, I do not think so, he sold—not donated—the courthouse block, and put in a covenant that if no longer used by the county it reverts back to his heirs. Enough said. Continue reading T.B. Walker
Prior to the Fernley & Lassen Railroad’s arrival in 1912, Richmond Road, just across the Susan River was a bucolic dirt road. It consisted primarily the homes of the Cains and Winchesters, with their apple orchards. Though during the 1890s, along the Susan River was the town’s first Catholic Church, its Chinatown and of course the iconic landmark Arnold Planing Mill. Continue reading Susanville – Richmond Road
A little known fact is that Susanville had its own bandstand. It was located at the top of Main Street. It was through the energetic efforts of the Mountain Echo Band. In September 1902, the octagonal bandstand was constructed and even adorned with electrical lights. On September 14, 1902, the bandstand was dedicated by the Mountain Echo Band with their first concert. Two weeks later it was focal point of royal pageant during the county fair. A few years later the Mountain Echo Band disbanded and the bandstand fell into disrepair. By 1906, one observer said the relic had become eyesore on the community. In 1908, it was torn down.
For decades this prominent feature at the west end of Susanville had no name. The locals just referred to it as the “bluff.” By late 1918, it appeared that the Great War, now referred today as World War I, was coming to end. Locally, discussions were held how to honor the men from Lassen County who lost their lives. It was proposed a monument be placed at the bluff and the bluff be named Lookover Loop. This, of course, did not materialize. More about this and other attempts to develop this remarkable landmark will be one of my topics to be addressed at September’s forthcoming tour. Please note, this is a paid subscriber’s only event. It is never to late join in on the fun. Details as to dates and times will be forthcoming to subscribers. Consideration is being given to do two: one mid-week in the evening and the other on a Saturday or Sunday. Those who are either out of the area, or have prior commitments, of course, will receive a paper on the topics discussed.
As a little incentive, the first fifteen subscribers will receive a free copy of Untold Stories.
Also, you do not want to miss out on a special Halloween tour.
A month ago, I mentioned an excursion to Susanville Supermarket, and how that created a post concerning a Living Memorial at the Lassen County Courthouse. Well, not that long after that when I was in Margie’s Book Nook, a customer asked me a question about a building and when it was moved to its current location. The building in question is now located at North Roop and Willow Streets, Susanville. It was originally located at 50 North Gay Street, now the current site of the Bank of America. In 1978, in preparation to build the current bank the Italianate style home was moved to its present location. The home built in the early 1880s has had numerous owners over the years. My great-great-grandparents Ben and Franceska Neuhaus purchased the home in 1902, when they retired from their ranch in Willow Creek Valley. Continue reading On The Move
Due to a variety of issues, such as the Dodge fire, the proposed listing for August has undergone numerous changes. First and foremost, the paid subscribers requests receive priority. As soon as I finish those topics such as Susanville’s Bordellos, the R.J. Scott affair, Susanville Coca Cola Bottling Works and the Secret Valley Paiutes, I will take care of the other requests, such as McClelland Ranch which has been moved from August 21 to September 29. In the meantime, enjoy the surprises.