It is that time to slowly focus on a new year that is quickly approaching. As usual I have put together a 2021 calendar with a wide variety of historic scenes. Among the featured photographs is Fruit Growers Camp C, Lake Almanor, Tunnel No. 2 of the Fernley & Lassen Railroad, Thompson Peak among others. It should be duly noted that this will probably be my last calendar.
One has three options to purchase calendars:
1) Locally, you can purchase them at Margie’s Book Nook.
2) You can purchase direct online by clicking here
3) You can also email me to place your order, and it will be sent with an invoice.
This is from the archives of the Lassen Mail, dated November 1, 1935 which appears there were more tricksters than treaters on the streets of Susanville for Halloween.
And the Old Town Is Turned on End. That great institution the American Boy went hog wild in Susanville last night, with the result that the old town looked tattered and torn this morning.
Halloween the eve of All Saints was celebrated by the youngsters of the community with great gusto. It’s an old American custom, and it certainly was carried out unrestraindly here.
Gates, fences, automobiles and outhouses stood the brunt of the holiday pranksters. Many a car owner who foolishly left his machine on a public street awoke this morning to find all four tires as flat as a bride’s first cake, and valve caps gone to the land of missing auto parts.
Streets, even the highways were strewn with debris of all sorts, including logs, paper boxes, city garbage cans, milk cans, tree branches and a dead cat or two.
The usual stunt of marking store and automobile windows with soap and tallow was indulged in freely, and plenty of tick-tacking developed throughout the residential sections before the witching hour of midnight.
Yes, it was a large night for the youth of the town, but it won’t occur again for another whole year and so—-why worry?
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Pacific Coast Bear Club at Grizzly Valley, Plumas County,,1907. Courtesy of Ted Johnson
In 1917, California reclassified the black bear as fur-bearers, from which they were formerly game animals. The designation prohibited the hunting of bears. This, however, did not prevent the killing of bears if they were deemed predatory.
For local sportsmen this was not good news. The two prime hunting areas were the southeastern area of Eagle Lake and the west slope of the Diamond Mountain Range, such as Last Chance, Murdock Crossing etc.
In time, it was Plumas County officials who sought for a reclassification of the black bear to game animals to restore hunting, the bears being plentiful in that area. They succeeded. On November 1, 1935 bear season opened for a two month period.
Lassen County Courthouse, spring 1917. Courtesy of Elberta M. Fraley
Lassen County turned down an offer to have a free Carnegie Library built. At the August 1916, Lassen County Board of Supervisor’s meeting, Charlotte Cahlan, Attaway McKinsey, Alberta Dozier and Lassen County Librarian Miriam Colcord approached the board. They had been approved funding to build a Carnegie Library, as long as the County would provide a building site. The women requested a lot on the north side of the courthouse, which at that time was under construction. The board informed the women they would take it under advisement, which was the polite way to say no. More then a century later, the board still uses that lingo.
Main Street, Susanville, October 1924—Boyd Benham/Connie Boomer
With Election Day just around the corner, its only fitting to have a local history story. There was a time, and not that long ago, the City of Susanville elections were a stand alone proposition, not consolidated with Lassen County Elections.
The 1924 the City had 604 eligible voters for the upcoming City Council, with three seats up for election. Only 80 went to the polls. A rather dismal figure to say the least. It got worse. In 1930, only eighteen voters cast their vote in that City Council Election. Those poll workers had a very long and enduring day. If there was a bright side to that election, it only took one minute and three seconds to canvass the election!
My personalized “Burning Man” sculpture in my leg.
There is no doubt that 2020 has presented many challenges. For me, it was on October 27, 2019 that was a preview of the year ahead. It was on that date that I experienced my “fall from grace” and broke my leg. Before there was the “shelter in place,” scenario, I had three months practice at it, before I finally I was able to navigate on my own. Onward ho, for better things to come!
This post was a long time in the making. Research during a pandemic, along with the courthouse renovation project, just added challenging layers.
While this is not complete as I would like, but it is a start. Who knows, some one might see this, who has first hand knowledge. During the 1950s kitchsy roadside motels were quite the rage. The particular one is Janesville is still somewhat of a mystery. According to the Assessor’s Office, there was never a permit issued, nor were they ever completed. All I remember was in the 1970s Clyde Knox owned the structures.
If anyone has additional information, that would shed more light on this, I would like to hear from you.
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A sagebrush specimen, Tanner Ranch, Honey Lake Valley, July 14, 2020.
Since we reside on the western edge of what is some times referred to as the Sagebrush Ocean, the mighty sagebrush is a dominant feature of the Intermountain West. Of course when that region was being settled in the late 1800s there were always individuals who experimented with the plant to see what it could be use.
Of course, in the 1870s, Susanville pharmacist, Dr. R.F. Moody developed his successful patent medicine, Sagebrush Liniment It did not contain a single ounce of any kind of sagebrush extract, it was in essence fortified alcohol.
In 1916, what appeared to be a promising break through use for sagebrush was announced. Inn theory it was thought that sagebrush produced an oil that could be used in ore reduction. It fizzled and soon to be forgotten.
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Now, this something different, since I am approaching this topic in reverse. For starters, Bennett & Layton (actually when established it was Bennett & Cardinal) was a regional powerhouse of a creamery located at 75 South Gay Street, Susanville. The two-story concrete building is still there. This was a full fledged creamery that even produced its own line of ice cream.
However, the nation’s great depression of the 1930s took a toll on Bennett & Layton, like so many other enterprises. To protect their vital interest in September 1935 several Honey Lake Valley ranchers negotiated a lease with Bennett & Layton to use its cooling and sterilization section of the plant to properly prepare milk for local consumption. This group of dairymen consisted of: J.H. McClelland, Mardis Barry, L.E. DeForest, Masten Ramsey, Lester Clark, Fred Hall, J.H. Elledge and McKay & Lowe.
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Susanville’s The Big Store as it appeared in 1916. In front of the store, is their exclusive delivery car. Photograph courtesy of the Worley family
With the advent of online shopping with free delivery, and with the conditions caused by Covid-19 and surge of online grocery shopping, in pre-internet times, such services were available in Susanville. In 1915, Fehr & Worley’s Big Store, located at 722 Main Street (the current home of Margie’s Book Nook) implemented free grocery delivery. Telephone the store, and place your order, simple as that. Over the years, other stores, followed suit. The last to do so was Hill’s Market at 629 Main Street, in the early 1970s.
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