The camp was located near the cottonwood trees seen in the distance. It is located on private property and is now fenced off.
During the 1860s, the United States Military had a major presence in the region.
On November 9, 1862, Nevada Territorial Governor James W. Nye wrote to Brigadier General George Wright, Commander of the Department of the Pacific, and requested a Company of troops to protects the emigrants from the Indians along the Honey Lake-Humboldt Road. On November 14, 1862, the troops were dispatched. On December 15, 1862, Second Lt. Henry W. Williams arrived at Smoke Creek with twenty-five men and forty days of rations. On March 28, 1864, First Lt. Oscar Jewett, then in command, received orders from Fort Churchill to abandon the camp and to remove all valuable property from the camp as was possible. Continue reading Camp Smoke Creek→
In the fall of 1912, Benjamin H. Leavitt proposed the town on his original ranch. Leavitt wrote to his granddaughter, Edith Elledge, of his intentions: “I am going to cut the old ranch up into small tracts and sell it off in ten and twenty acre tracts . . . I am also building a road down from Rice’s Canyon, you know that is directly north of the town of Leavitt, to connect with all the northern trade clear out to Big Valley. The R.R. Co. have agreed to put their stock yards there. I have given them the land for the stock yards. I am also going to extend the road through the ranch to intercept the Janesville Road near Billey Indian. All the merchants of Janesville have agreed to order their good shipped to Leavitt which will make it one of the largest shipping points on the Fernley & Lassen.”
In addition, Leavitt offered railroad officials land if they would construct their roundhouse there. That proposition did not occur as Susanville’s business community convinced the railroad to locate that operation in their town. “The City” consisted of only the store, a few dwellings, and several large corrals that held livestock for shipment on the railroad.
Yet, years later, one could say a city of sorts of was built just north of Leavitt, the home of the California Conservation Center and High Desert State prisons.
Collapse of the Said Valley Dam, May 8, 1938. Courtesy of Betty Barry Deal
In September 1885, James W. Shanklin constructed the first reservoir for irrigation and stock purposes at his ranch in Grasshopper Valley. That dam was 25 feet high and 300 feet across. Over the years it had numerous owners. In 1934, it was purchased by George Heath, who became the owner of this reservoir as well as one on nearby Slate Creek. As early as 1929, the State Department of Water Resources stated neither dam was in compliance and requested that spillways be constructed for each reservoir. The winter of 1937-38 was one of the wettest on record for the 20th century and, in Susanville, 33.68 inches of precipitation was measured. On May 8, 1938, the dam at Said Valley breached and caused considerable flood damage. On August 24, 1939, Heath sued Percy L. Castro for $50,000 in damages that were caused by dam failures. It was Heath’s contention that, since Castro leased the reservoirs and his Grasshopper Ranch, it was his duty to install the spillways that the Department of Resources requested. However, during the Department of Water Resources investigation, it was noted that even if the proper spillway had been installed at Said Valley, it would still have failed because of defects in the dam’s original foundation. The court ruled in favor of Castro and stated it was Heath’s responsibility and ordered Heath to pay Castro’s court costs. The dam was rebuilt, albeit on a smaller scale.
Something a little bit different. On the third Saturday of June, the Lassen High Alumni Association holds it all alumni picnic in Susanville. Alumni come far and near to attend this event, some 400+. For me its always been fun, and I can conduct a lot of historical research in one afternoon. For your reading enjoyment, I provide you with the Alumni’s April newsletter, which has a lot of interesting reading material. Clink on the link below to open the PDF file.
In August 2013, I led a Westwood Cemetery tour as part of that community’s centennial celebration. The graves that were highlighted, provided a different aspect to Westwood and the Red River Lumber Company.
Robert Stinson was born in Quincy in 1882, and followed in his father’s footsteps as a commercial photographer. It was a tough trade to operate a business in a rural region. So like many others it became necessary to be itinerate traveling from community to community for business. In 1913, Red River hired Stinson as their company photographer, who at the time was located in Red Bluff. Stinson’s main job was to make a complete photographic inventory of all the buildings being constructed in the town, as well as the sawmill plant. A portion of this collection exists in the T.B. Walker papers housed with the Minnesota Historical Society. Stinson just happened to be at the right place at the right time, when Lassen Peak set off a series of volcanic eruptions beginning in 1914. Unfortunately, for Stinson and other photographers such as P.J. Thompson, are overshadowed by that B.F. Loomis, but that is another story, for another time. Stinson stay at Westwood was brief and left Red River in 1915 to be replaced Otto Kratzer. On a final note, Red River always had an in-house photographer, though they also hired others for commercial work.
The Nevada-California-Oregon Railroad (NCO) did a great deal for the development of eastern Lassen County. As a result, a number of communities sprang up, some a mere outpost and others a bit more substantial. However, like the railroad, many in time would fade into oblivion.
In 1899, the (NCO) established a station in Secret Valley. Those residents thought it would become a major shipping point on the NCO, like its recent predecessor, Amedee, but that did not occur. This did not prevent James Sellick from constructing a two-story hotel at the Karlo Station that summer. The station was named for the DeCarlow Brothers—Alonzo Metardus (1868-1949), Charles William, and Walter Henry (1859-1949). Charles W. DeCarlow was the first member of the trio to arrive in Secret Valley when, in 1889, he and H.F. Buhrmeister purchased 200 acres from D.C. Hyer for $2,400. When the station was established in August 1899, there was confusion as to how to spell it. The locals spelled it Carlo, but the railroad clearly indicated it was K-A-R-L-O. The Lassen Advocate noted: “The management of that road seems to have a liking for short names and odd spellings following in the wake of the Postal Department in this respect.” It is interesting to note the next station the railroad established was named Termo.
Survey crew to enlarge the Buggytown ditch near Johnstonville, 1889. Courtesy of Betty Barry Deal
Originally known as Batcheldor & Adams ditch which portions were constructed in 1858. It later became known as Buggytown ditch, for the area just west of Leavitt Lake in the 1870s. It was so named as one of the first settlers possessed a buggy when such luxuries were rare on the frontier. The ditch/canal is what feeds into Leavitt Lake.
The springs were originally referred to as Lower Hot Springs. In the 1880s they were also known as Brubeck Springs, for the owner of the property, L.W. Brubeck. The name was changed to Amedee with the establishment of the town. A unique feature of the springs was a geyser. In 1854, Lt. E.G. Beckwith, during his exploration of a transcontinental railroad route visited the hot springs and noted that the geyser consisted of a column of water twenty inches in diameter. The geyser was quite an attraction when the town was established. Amos Lane, bartender and inventor, devised a clock to measure spurts of the geyser that rose and fell at intervals of 38 seconds. At times the geyser would shoot as high as eight feet. The geyser ceased to exist in May 1893, as the ground around the springs cracked and allowed the steam to escape.
The hot springs became a focal point in the town of Amedee. The springs were heralded for their curative properties and the first public bathhouse opened in 1892. In 1900, Arthur Holland appeared on the scene to transform Amedee into a health resort. Holland dubbed his enterprise the “Karlsbad of America,” a bold attempt to associate it with the famed Czech resort. Holland’s venture never materialized in the grandeur he desired and he abandoned the project within a years’ time. The bathhouses, like the town, slowly deteriorated into oblivion.
Amedee Bath House courtesy of Tom Armstrong
In 1984, Matti Ripatti and California Hydro Systems recognized the geothermal potential of the springs. They applied to the Lassen County Planning Department for a permit to construct a geothermal plant there. The permit was granted and in 1988 the power plant was constructed.
Susan River Canyon, looking towards Pigeon Cliffs, 1899
Can anyone enlighten me how Pigeon Cliffs, located in the Susan River Canyon, just west of Susanville received its name? A good portion of my childhood during the 1960s was spent exploring the Susan River Canyon. In all my years, I never seen any pigeons there. Some of the rock debris below the cliffs came from when Highway 36 was being constructed into Susanville in 1921, and the contractor pushed the rocks over the cliffs to make the current roadway.
