In 2017 when I conducted the Lassen County Courthouse Centennial Cemetery Tour I wanted to include the grave of Lassen County Clerk Maud Tombs. I was prudent in the grave selection, because I had no idea what the attendance would be. If it was large, which it was, I wanted the selected graves easily accessible and eliminate as much possible potential hazardous features such as grave copings. Maud’s unfortunately did not fit into the easy accessible category.
Maud Edna Long was born on May 2, 1875, in Susanville, the eldest of ten children of John and Margaret Long. By the time she was born, her family already had an influence in the region’s history. The town of Longville in Humbug Valley, Plumas County, was named for her grandfather, William B. Long back in 1861.
On August 3, 1897, Maud married George L. Tomb. He was a native of New York and came to Susanville in 1890, no doubt influenced by the Pardee family, relatives of his. In 1898, George entered the politcal arena and ran for Lassen County Clerk and won. In 1902, he ran for a second term and was elected. Going for a third term, the voters rejected him and he was replaced by George Bassett. For whatever reasons, in early 1907, George sold his furniture/undertaking business and moved his wife Maud, and two daughters, Nadene and Gladys to Red Bluff. It did not take long for Maud to discover her husband’s dark side, a gambling problem. Before 1907 concluded Maud left him and returned to Susanville with their two daughters. Upon her return there was a distinct little name change in her last name, an “s” was added and she was now Maud Tombs.
In 1918, Maud decided to run for Lassen County Clerk against the incumbent George Bassett who had defeated her husband. Joining her on the ballot was Robert Kyle of Westwood and Elmer Winchell of Standish. The primary held on August 27 showed it was a race between Bassett with 73 votes and Maud with 66, the other two candidates combined only garnered 25 votes. The general election was a close race, and a problematic one on reaching out to the voters due to the outbreak of the Spanish influenza. Maud won the election with 991 votes with Bassett trailing at 976. Maud would go on to be elected seven more times. In 1951, she was succeeded by her daughter Nadene Wemple who would serve four terms as Lassen County Clerk.
Two final notes. Maud was the first woman elected to a county wide office. Secondly, for over a century a woman has always been elected county clerk.
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