When we left off last week, Footprints on the Mendocino Coast had John Simpson Ross hurrying to finish his house in Caspar before his family arrived from Canada. In mid-June of 1870, before the house was completely ready, Jane Ross and the three children (William, John, and Lizzie) and her aged parents, Ann and Robert Ralston, disembarked from the Cora down in Caspar Cove. Members of [...]
Sandra Hahn reading her opening speech. June 29, 1966 - A Peace Fair opened at the Mendocino Coast Gallery located on the northwest corner of Main and Lansing streets. Running thru July 4th, the theme of the fair was "Peace and War,” and its purpose was to explore the critical issues involved in the search for peace during the Vietnam War era. Sandra Hahn [...]
Looking northeast towards the Eugene Brown House, located at 45120 Main Street, Mendocino, c. 1973. (Gift of Beth Stebbins) Albert Maxwell constructed this two-story home for Eugene Brown in 1878. At that time, Eugene owned and operated the mercantile store just to the west. Eugene and his mother were living in Pine Grove, but his mother wanted to live in town. Eugene Brown died [...]
Last week in the Mendocino Community Library I was sorting through donated books and found a publication called Footprints on the Mendocino Coast with a drawing of a strangely familiar house on its cover. I recognized the house almost immediately and opened the book to learn more. Published in 1970 by the Mendocino County Historical Society, the book is the Reverend John Simpson Ross’ account of [...]
Joe Nichols' Poolroom in Skating Rink Hall in Mendocino, c. 1910. Between 1909 and 1918, Joseph H. Nichols operated a poolroom, concession stand, and moving-picture theatre in the building located on the southwest corner of Ukiah and Lansing Streets. Skating Rink Hall was built by William H. Kelley in 1887 to serve as a dance hall and recreation center. Kelley’s daughter, Daisy MacCallum, remodeled [...]
Studio portrait of Thomas Doyle, dressed as a cowboy/sheriff with a background of horse saddles, ropes and spurs. (Studio: Chas. McMillan, Vallejo, California) June 21, 1919 - Thomas Doyle, sawyer at the Mendocino Lumber Company mill, caught a 32-pound codfish “in a crab net off the boom-sticks at the mill. Tom thought he had netted a submarine or a trunk of buried treasure when [...]
(Gift of Dorothy Carvalho) Silver workman's key-wind pocket watch, manufactured by the American Watch Company between 1890 and 1910 and owned by Antone Carvalho. Watch has a leather strap with key, two bottom hinges to open face, and top strap loop, white face with black roman numerals and a "seconds" dial, on face. Inscription on watch says "Am Watch Co., Waltham.” This was a [...]
Piccolotti Children Fishing at Boyle's Camp, c. 1928. The children are standing on what appears to be a wharf or bridge with a wooden railing, and are holding up several strings of small fish they have presumably caught from Big River. A fishing pole is held upright by one child. The youngest are wearing overalls, and some are barefoot. Pete Piccolotti, his wife Rosa, [...]
Every profession has its own lingo, its way of talking about its work. The timber business jargon is especially colorful, though it differs somewhat from region to region. Take the words logger and lumberjack: on the North Coast, we had loggers in the woods, but in Minnesota, lumberjacks cut trees. Large pots of Arbuckle are visible on the tables of this timber cookhouse in the [...]
Main Street looking east, c. 1934. Main Street in Mendocino looking east, c. 1934. Bishop's General Store can be seen at the far left. The next building to its right is the Remedy Store with its distinctive round sign in front on the street. The buildings on the right, on the south side of Main Street, were owned by the Union Lumber Company, later [...]