Actually, I had something ready to go , but due to some unforeseen circumstances I had to pull it for a later date.
In a conversation on Sunday about the Purdy Brothers logging episode and the one log load. I happen to witness my Dad’s last one log load. It was a huge sugar pine located near Poison Lake, i.e. Swains Hole. For those who knew my father, lets just say this was a very colorful episode. One party that was not pleased was the Sierra Pacific’s mill in Susanville. They no longer had the sawing capacity to handle such a large log and had to dynamite it in to two pieces.
Swains Hole, October 22, 2019
Tim
P.S. – A piece of evidence was found many years later in Dawson Arnold’s basement!
A century ago, sending a postcard was a quick, convenient way to send someone a note, whether to let know relatives they made it to their destination safely, etc. Something akin to today’s email. What made a lot of postcards of the past were the image could be quite unique. When one had their film developed, they could have their images printed on postcard size stock, ready to send. The above photograph is a perfect example. It was not a professional postcard, just a picture someone took to send to their friend.
Reno Rodeo, 1926
The above professional postcard of the Reno Rodeo, is a family treasure of sorts. It was sent in April 1926 by my grandfather, Ira Purdy, to his wife, Margaret in Sacramento. Ira wrote, “leaving Reno for Susanville to look for work.” When Ira arrived in Susanville, he found employment as a mechanic for Doyle-Hunsinger Ford dealership and where they spent the rest of their lives. It was one of the few paper trails they left.
Frank Phelps at Soda Springs with a one log load, 1949—Leroy Purdy
In 1948, James and Leroy Purdy formed Purdy Brothers Logging Company. During their early years of operation they did extensive logging around theTruckee region. Since today, marks my father’s birthday (Leroy) I just waned to share two pictures taken in 1949 while they were logging at Soda Springs. After all, one does not see that many photographs of one log loads!
Bailey Creek at the popular picnic area of yore, October 8, 2020
Bailey Creek is located on the north flank of Fredonyer Mountain and flows out into the Madeline Plains. It was originally known as Bayley Creek, for George H. Bayley, a stockman of the Likely region of Modoc County. For a number of decades it was the location of the Old Timers Picnic, which consisted mainly of past and present residents of the Madeline Plains.
In 1899, George Bayley constructed a reservoir upstream. That was original intention for the visit there last fall, but a new locked gate prevented us from going there. It just so happens the reservoir along with 280 acres is for sale.
George Wingfield (1876-1959) for whom Wingfield Road is named for, was very prominent in the affairs of Nevada. He made his fortune in the early 1900s in the Goldfield, Nevada mines. By 1907 he had an estimated worth of $25 million. What distinguish Wingfield from his counterparts who met with incredible wealth from Nevada mines, is Wingfield remained in Nevada and made considerable investments in the state. He was also a formidable power player in Nevada politics. Wingfield also established a banking empire in Nevada, though he would nearly loose everything in the Great Depression. Wingfield would make a second comeback with the Getchell mine near Winnemucca.
In 1910, Wingfield purchased the Clint DeForest property at the base of Diamond Mountain for a summer home. It is known today as Mountain Meadows Ranch. It was an elaborate estate complete with a wildlife preserve. What is interesting when one considers the amount of money spent developing the property, and enormous cost of yearly maintenance, he did not spend that much time there. In 1923, Wingfield sold the property to the Lassen Lumber & Box Company.
This particular photograph for some reason I have a fondness for. The right foreground is the Arnold Planing Mill that was destroyed by fire in 1914. Further down the road to the left is Sacred Heart Church, built in 1892. The church was moved in 1909 to the corner of Nevada and Union Streets. When the church was built there was some local criticism about the location, especially, though not seen in this picture, but to the far right was Chinatown. It is interesting to note, when the church was moved, it was located in Susanville’s original town of the 1870s.
The Great Western Power Company encountered numerous problems with the construction of their dam that would create Lake Almanor. The first dam they started to construct they were forced to abandon. A new dam site was selected and by the summer of 1913 work was fully underway. However, due to financial constraints, the dam’s height was greatly reduced, which meant the new reservoir would only be half the size.
On Christmas Eve, 1913, Mother Nature intervened. An estimated five feet of snow had fallen at Big Meadows, the location of the new reservoir. In January a warm rainstorm struck the region. The snow quickly melted and the reservoir began filling up prematurely. This caught the Baccala family, whose ranch was located along Bailey Creek, off guard. Their place flooded, stranding nearly a hundred head of cattle, and an automobile, among other personal effects. Further down, towards present Prattville, was Great Western Power’s headquarters, Nevis, which was was the former Meadow View Hotel. The surrounding area flooded, creating an island. Relief came somewhat in the form of snow. Did it ever snow! Some areas of Big Meadows reported nearly twenty-feet by mid-February.
As tax times is now in full swing, I just discovered that I have a large inventory of Untold Stories. To be quite honest, it is because of this inventory and the previous books, that I saw the writing on the wall. The message was clear, the demand for local history books had dwindled to the extent that on the last two books, I never even recovered cost. Thus, with this title, it became the last book I published.
Anyhow, to learn more about the book and purchase it at a bargain price see books.
Proximity of the Pearson Massacre Site—-Larry Plaster
Thomas Pearson and John Sutherland were dairy farmers at Red Rock, located north of Reno. In 1867 they took up a claim on the east side of Honey Lake, then known as Lower Hot Springs (Amedee). It seemed like an ideal location for their purposes since snowfall was minimal during the winter months.
In the middle of April 1868 Pearson and Sutherland were eager to return to their old home at Red Rock. The relationship with the Indians had become quite tense. During the winter two Indians had been killed near their place and during March, their neighbor J.L. Crow of Upper Hot Springs (Wendel) had horses driven away by the Indians. Then there was an entirely unrelated issue caused from an unusually wet winter. The waters of Honey Lake were rising so rapidly they feared their cabin would soon be inudated.
On the morning of April 17, 1868 John Sutherland and Henry Bereman herded the livestock towards Red Rock. Pearson, in the meantime, went to the Hamilton Ranch (Fleming Unit, Fish &Game), seven miles away to obtain some assistance. Pearson’s wife, Maria, and daughter, Hattie, remained at the cabin to finish packing. Pearson succeeded in a borrowing a man, Samuel Cooper, and a wagon to assist in the move.
It was in the afternoon that Pearson and Cooper had the wagons loaded and proceeded on their journey. The ground the wagons were traveling upon was soft and moist. They had barely gone a mile before one of the wagons became stuck. It was then the Pearson family and Samuel Cooper were massacred by the Indians.
John Wollenburg, an employee of the Hamilton Ranch, had been in the vicinity herding sheep. Wollenburg was alerted by gun shots and the women screaming. He rushed to his tent only to discover his guns had been stolen. The Indians had spotted Wollenburg and began to pursue him, but Wollenburg was fortunate enough to have a good distance from the Indians and escaped by running eight miles to the Sharp ranch to get help.
When Wollenburg arrived at the Sharp ranch only, Mrs. Lurana Sharp was there. She rushed to the neighbors seeking assistance. A group of men were assembled and went to investigate what Wollenburg had stated. It was evening when they arrived at Wollenburg’s tent, where they found Cooper’s body. With night fall approaching, men fearful of an attack, returned to their homes. The next morning, they set out again and found the bodies of the Pearson family. They brought the victims to Susanville where Samuel Cooper was buried. The remains of the Pearson family were shipped to Sacramento for burial by their relatives.
