Edith Kent Conway was born into Little River’s pioneering Kent family on August 5, 1901. She kept a diary, which is part of the Kelley House Museum collection, from January to October of 1938. In reading her brief diary entries, one gets the sense that her life was occupied almost entirely by work. She must have been an amazing cook, turning out cakes and pies, roasting [...]
by Sarah Nathe At the opening of the new exhibit on Mendocino photographers at the Kelley House, “Framing History: Worth a Thousand Words,” a couple visitors wondered why people did not smile in those old photos. Was it because they had bad teeth? Or because it was easier to hold a stone face during the long exposure times required by early cameras? Perhaps it was because [...]
Freelance writer, editor and consultant Vicki Hessel Werkley returns to Mendocino on Sunday, June 11th, as the featured speaker at the Kelley House Museum’s “A Sunday Afternoon With. . .” The topic of that afternoon will be “Taking the Redwoods,” a discussion centered on the life of a fictional woman photographer of 1885 Mendocino, mentored by real life photographer, Ira C. Perry. The book fits in [...]
by Tonia Hurst On June 19, 1911, Jack London, the notorious bad boy of literature, rumbled into Mendocino City driving a four-in-hand stagecoach. A regular visitor to Greenwood (Elk), and to the Vichy Hot Springs near Ukiah, London had canvassed Mendocino County on horseback after the 1906 earthquake. At the height of his prolific career, he was hired by the North of Bay Counties Association to [...]
by Tonia Hurst Every year since 1973, the Kelley House Museum, formerly Mendocino Historical Research, has published a Historical Review dealing with one facet or another of the history of the Mendocino Coast. The most recent release, From Maidens to Mavericks: Mendocino's Women, is in the mail to museum members this week. The next volume in the series, From Byways to Highways, will cover the development [...]