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Published by

EScHScHOLYZIA PARLOR No. 112NATIVE DAUGHTERS OF THE GOLDEN WEST

ETNA, CALIFORNIA

-S

EtnaCradled in the midst of verdant mountains,With farm lands creeping close with grain and hayLies Etna, home of pioneering people,Enriched by all the folks who passed this wayFrom those who used the grain to make their flourTo those who mined and logged with might and power.

Pack trains early crawled the mountain passesTaking food stuffs and supplies to Sawyer's Bar,Later many changes came to our Scott ValleyBrought about by 'lectric lines and motor car.Still Etna sits serene in all her beautyDevoted to a love of life and duty.

Sturdy churches, filled with faith and armed with wisdom,Give this town the moral quality it needs;Strangers passing through this little valleyFind people busy doing kindly deeds;Completing many tasks they have begun,Happy in the work that they have done.

Mrs. Winfred Wolford

I

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Etna:From Mule Train to 'Copter

A cpictoiial £l(istoy of &na

EDITOR ASSOCIATE EDITOR

LOREITA M. CAMPBELL DORJCE E YOUNG

EDITORS' NOTEIt has been our aim to preserve the many old pictures which describe Etna's past

and to portray its growth in the present. Our book, of course, can depict only a smallportion of this pastor even the present; but it is our hope that it will stimulate othersto collect and preserve these treasures of the past which are so rapidly disappearing.

Our sources of information include: Wells' History of Siskiyou County, variousissues of the Siskiyou County Historical Society Yearbook, clippings from county andlocal newspapers, and information gained by conversations with older residents of Etna.

We wish to thank everyone who helped us in the preparation of this book. Especial-ly, we wish to thank Mrs. Bernita Tickner for the many hours she spent in typing themajor part of the book, and also we thank Mrs. Beverly Berryhill and Mrs. Gloria Snappfor typing assistance. Our special thanks to Mrs. Stell Fisher for the cover.

Published by

ESCHSCHOLTZIA PARLOR No. 112NATIVE DAUGHTERS OF THE GOLDEN WEST

AUGUST 1, 1965

Photo Courtesy BU &nith

Dedication

The members of Eschscholtzia ParlorNo. 112, Native Daughters of theGolden West affectionately dedicate thisbook to the two living Charter Membersof our Parlor:

MRS. MARY DENNY PARKER

and

MRS. EMMA WAGNER HERZOG

/

Table of Contentspage

'ETNA" (Poem)by Mrs. Winfred Wolford -- _..Front Fly Leaf

TITLE PAGE

DEDICATION ii

FROM THE MULE TRAIN TO 'COPTER_ I

SCOTT VALLEY - 7STEPHEN MEEK (Poem)___ 8

BRIEF HISTORY OF EARLY SCOTT VALLEY 9

THE CRYSTAL CREEK METHODIST CHURCH AND COMMUNITY 11

INDEPENDENCE ROCK, AN OLD LANDMARKMrs. Fred Smith for Etna Woman's Club, 1921 13

AETNA MILLS (OLD ETNA) 14

ETNABEFORE THE WHITE MANBased on an Interviewwith 'Old Man Ruffy" by Lawrence Buchner

HISTORY OF ETNA 18

THE FIRE OF 1896From Contemporary Newspapers Owned by Clifford Stephens._26

ETNA'S CHINATOWN 27

PICTURESOLD AND NEW

ETNA UNION ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 34

ETNA UNION HIGH SCHOOL 38

THE CHURCHES OF ETNA 42

ETNA FRATERNAL ORGANIZATIONS 47

MAFLESDEN HALLby Miss Jean MapIesden._ -

MUSIC AND CELEBRATIONS OF THE PAST -

BASEBALL IN ETNAby Mrs. Bernita Tickner 58

HORSE RACINGby Mrs. Grace Balfrey 61

FARMING NEAR ETNAby Miss Dorice Young_____ 62

THE STORM 'OF STORMS

THE ETNA FREE LIBRARY

ETNAAROIJND TURN OF THE CENTURY (Picture) Pull-Out Sheet

FINIS (Poem) Inside Back Cover

Ui.

MULE TRAIN AT ELLERS' CORRALLadies Maria Eller, Essie Eller; Girl: Amy Eller Derham; Hubert Eller and dog. Left to right: Elza Eller,Indian Mac, Bert Bradley, Aaron Eller, Bob Neilon. Picture Courtesy Eller Family

iv.

Photo Courtesy W. SmithMULES ON TRAIL UNDER ROCKY POINT

MULES ON SNOWSHOES Photo Courtesy W. SmithJohn Ahigren, Bill Smith

Photo Courtesy W. SmithMULES ON TOP OF TUNNEL ON SALMON MOUNTAIN

From the Mule Train to 'CopterInstead of wagon trains, the mode of

transportation in the mountainous area tothe south and west of Etna was by walkingor by mule train. The trade with the Sal-mon mining country had to be carried overmany mountain ranges and deep ravines.The trails were narrow and often steep, re-quiring sure-footedness by both man andbeast.

When the profitable trade which hadbeen built up by the citizens of Aetna Millswas shifted to Rough and Ready in 1862,the mill there supplied the flour and thestores assumed the task of supplying otherneeded commodities.

A new road, which crossed Scott Riverthrough Horn Lane, connected Etna direct-ly with the Callahan sources of supplies. Asa result the number of mule trains increased.

Among those who had large pack trainswere the following: Charles Baird, JamesAbel, Henry Peters, Elza and Aaron Eller,Marcus Isaacs, John and Harry Grant, Her-bert Finley, Mrs. Martha Smith, Mrs. Neilonand the Bennett and Miller train with 50

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animals was the largest. All of these trainshad their headquarters in Rough and Ready.More than 200 mules were used to carry600,000 pounds of all types of merchandiseannually.

The mail was also carried over the moun-tains by pack trains. In winter snowshoeswere used on the animals while the mailcarriers used skis. When the pack trainswere unable to cross the mountains, mencarried the mail packs, weighing eightypounds, on their backs.

In 1877 a mail carrier named CharlesHooker died from exposure and exhaustionwhile he was carrying the mail down thesouthern side of the mountain.

Shortly after 1900, Mr. Ed Harris wasengaged in carrying the mail. On a returntrip to Etna he and his two helpers, JohnPeters and a man named Jenkins, approach-ed the dangerous Rocky Point on SalmonMountain. Mr. Harris warned the othersthat the snow pack looked about ready toslide. He suggested that they take a longer,safer route around the Point; however,

Peters and Jenkins decided to cross thePoint but Mr. Harris took the longer route.The other rwo had just started to cross whenan avalanche of snow covered them. Oneman was found later wrapped around a rreeand the other at the bottom of the canyon.

Many brave men have risked their livescarrying the mail including Jim McNeil,

YREKA STAGE-JAMES WALKER DRIVING

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Bill and Ralph Smith, John Ahigren, andCharles Snapp.

Gradually roads were built to Callahanand over Scott Mountain. An added ad-vantage was the completion of a road fromCallahan to Gazelle when the railroad wasextended northward to Oregon. A road hadalso been built to Yreka in the sixties.

Photo Courtesy W. Smith Photo Courtesy W. SmithCARRYING MAIL IN WINTER OVER SALMON MT. DAD NAYLOR AND SAWYERS BAR STAGE

GAZELLE STAGE

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It was not until 1891 that a road wascompleted over Salmon Mountain. Eventhen the mule trains were still used becauseit was cheaper to convey merchandise bymule train than by stage and freight trains.

About 1910 a new mode of travel ap-peared in Etnathe automobile! Gradu-ally the motor driven vehicles replaced thehorse and buggy, the horse drawn stages,and even the freight trains.

In 1918 the Bennett Company boughttwo Republic trucks and later five "White"trucks to carry mail, freight, and passengers.The mule trains were sold to regions whichwere still remote; some even as far away asAlaska.

With the advent of motor driven ve-hicles, demand was strong for better roads.Since then the County and State have con-stantly strived to improve the roads in spiteof the severe winter weather which is com-mon in this country,

The latest road improvements have beenthe modern federal road which extendsfrom Cecilville to Etna where it connectswith the new state highway from Yreka toEtna. For this fine road the communityowes thanks to Senator Randolph Collierthrough whose efforts the new state high-way was made possible. As a special gesture

Photo Courtesy E. YoungSHOE TROUBLE?

Mail and passengers now traveled onstages to connect with the newly completedrailroad. Travel was now much more con-venient and faster. In addition to the stages,were the long freight trains, especially toGazelle. Many an Etnanite can rememberthe pleasant jingle-jangle of the freight trainbells as the trains traveled slowly over thecountry side. Some of the stores had theirown freight reams which made trips once ortwice a week.

Horse and buggy hitching posts becamea customary sight along the streets of Etna.In fact, one of these posts is still standingin front of the John Campbell home inEtna, which was once a bakery and millinerystore.

Photo Courtesy E. W. HerzogFREIGHT TRAIN LEAVING ETNA TO GO OVER SALMON MOUNTAIN

Main Street - Wilsey Saloon - Miller Hardware (Later Eller) - Diggles Drug (Later Balfrey) - Hadcock Hotel

Photo Courtesy W. SmithBENNETT MULE TEAM AND STAGE ON TOP OF SALMON MOUNTAIN

S

HAULING HAY OVER SALMON MOUNTAIN

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BENNETT STAGES, 1918Left to right Ralph Smith, George Samon, Clarence Barlet, Carl Lewis, Bill Smith, Bill Quigley

of gratitude the highway entrance to Ernahas been named Collier Way.

Another advance in modern transpofta-don and travel is the recently constructedAetna Helicopters base which was built onthe Bill Mathews' farm about one mile ourof Etna near the new highway to Yreka.

About ten years ago, a young helicopterpilot named Robert Trimble came to this

Photo Courtesy L. DexterSTAGES LEAVING ETNA MILLS POST OFFICE AT 600 A.M

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valley. This young man persuaded Mr.Mathews and Mr. Erling Hjertager to es-tablish this helicopter base.

With the experience of Bob Trirnble thehelicopters quickly assumed an importantrole in patrolling the mountains for signs offire, for rescuing people who were injuredin the mountains, and even flying criticallyill people to the city for medical care.

The progress of this new business wasinterrupted by the death of Bob Trimblewhich was caused by an accident while hewas flying over the Kidder Creek area.

Following the tragic death of Mr.Trimble, Mr. Erling Hjertager's son, Harold,has carried on and expanded the helicopteractivities. Today the helicopters are usedto install steel towers for power lines indangerous mountain terrain and even tostring power lines and telephone lines acrosscanyons. Seeding crops and spraying areaids to the farmers. In addition, during theLast summer when forest fires were so des-tructive in Southern California, Aetna Heli-

-Photo Courtesy .1. TrimbleHELICOPTER

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-Photo Courtesy J. TrimbleHELICOPTER HANGAR

copters spent several months in that areafighting fires.

During the flood of 1964 a helicopterbase was set up on Mathews Creek near theForks of Salmon. With their four 'copters,they distributed 10,000 pounds of food andsupplies to the flood damaged area andhungry people from the Forks of Salmonto Sawyers Bar. In addition to this theyflew more than 230 hours over Siskiyou andparts of Humboldt counties, bringing reliefto those stricken areas.

From this account it is easy to under-stand why transportation has played such avital role in Etna's history.

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Jr;.Photo Courtesy J. Trirnble

HELICOPTER ON FIRE DUTY

Reproduced from Siskiyou County Panama-Pacific International Exposition SouvenirSCOTT VALLEY, SHOWN HERE FROM A POINT NEAR ETNA, HAS 150,000 ACRES LIKE THIS.

IT IS DRAINED AND IRRIGATED BY SCOTT RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES.

Scott ValleyWhen Captain Bradford R. Alden arrived

at Fort Jones in 1852 to take command, hewas deeply impressed with the beauty ofScott Valley. He wrote: "It is a shut-invalley surrounded by mountains of snow - - -

Scott Valley is as - - - beautiful, healthy val-ley as there is in the world. You cannotimagine a purer air. The valley is aboutthree or four miles wide, tho' south of usit widens in one beautiful place to eight orten. The solid mountains rise like a rimwith indented lines, two to four thousandfeet above us and are yet tipped with snow.It is all natural-looking, healthy and beau-tiful."w

Another description of Scott Valley waswritten by Harold French in a brochure onSiskiyou County, which was written for thePanama-Pacific International Exposition in1915:

"It would be an exaggeration to proclaimScott Valley on a parity with the mountainparadise of Yosemite and Switzerland. But

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the truth is that its scenic beauty and gran-deur bears a striking similarity to both ofthese world-renowned regions. Situated atan everage elevation of half-a-mile abovethe Pacific, extending forty miles in a nor-therly direction and spreading to a dozenmiles in width, its five thousand residentslook up to lofty ranges a mile and more inthe air. The walls of the Salmon Moun-tains on the west and the Scott Mountainson the south and east are scarcely less abruptand striking in their profiles than the portalsof Yosemite and the craggy horns of theAlps. Magnificent forests half conceal theircontours, and in the shadowy canyons cas-cading torrents bound joyously to serve theneeds of the miner and rancher.

"Geologic forces fashioned this valley forthe delight of man. Glaciers deepened agiant groove, dammed up the lower outletof Scott River with debris, then receded,leaving a long Alpine lake. Ground sluic-ing streams spread the sediments in deeplayers until the prehistoric lake became a

Oh, where are you going, oldStephen Meek?

Now what do you see as the landscapeyou scan:

Oh tell us, Stephen, what is it you seekAs slowly through the marshes you span?

Now hear the slush - slush of the oarAnd see the flight of marsh birds as

they gleamAnd o'er the horizon quickly soar,

Leaving silence to reign supreme.

beautiful meadow carpeted with nutritiousgrasses.

After the miner came the fattening herdsof stock that made this valley more valuableeach year. Grain fields flourished in broad,billowing waves, miles in length. Fabulouscrops of the cereals and alfalfa are producedfrom its cultivated areas.

Stephen Meek

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Then shaking his head, the old manexclaimed,

"My work in this valley at last is done;The beaver have gone from these marshes

drained.The trapper must go, for the farmer

has come."

For many a year pld Stephen has lainIn the beautiful cemetery beyond our townStill, the wandering marsh birds

search in vain,For reedy nests, now fields of ripening grain.

L.M.0'There are 150,000 acres of arable land

in Scott Valley, of which only ten per centare under irrigation." (2)

(T)Fort Jones issue the The Siskiyou Pioneer1959, pp. 17-18.

(2)Harold French, Siskiyou County Sou-venir Edition 1915, page 31.

Brief History of Early Scott ValleySo far as is known today, the first white

men to Visit Scott Valley were the HudsonBay trappers who were making inroadsinto Northern California by following theSacramento and Klamath Rivers. One ofthese trappers was Thomas McKay whowon the friendship of the Indians by alwaysbeing fair in his dealings with them. Laterwhen the miners arrived the Indians askedif they were Maki men. If they said theywere, the Indians treated them in a friendlymanneruntil the miners demonstrated bytheir actions that they possessed few of thevirtues of the early trappers.

In 1836 Stephen Meek joined a McKaytrapping party which crossed the KlamathRiver and traveled through the mountainsto Yreka Creek. Then the party followedthe Greenhorn and McAdams Creeks toScott Valley. Scott River, which they calledBeaver River and the valley Beaver Valley,proved to be very rich in beaver and otherfur-bearing animals. They remained manyweeks trapping both forks of the river andleft the valley with 1800 pelts.

Stephen Meek remarked afterwards, "Itis the richest place for beaver I have everseen. The whole valley was all one greatswamp caused by beaver dams' StephenMeek returned many times to trap in thevalley and eventually established his head-quarters at the Josiah Doll ranch.

One of the main trails to Oregon beganat Fort Reading and wormed its waythrough the mountains, crossed Scott Moun-tain, continued north along Scott River onthe east side to Wheelock's Post (FortJones); it then followed Cherry Creek orMcAdams Creek northward to Deadwood,and thence to Thompson's Dry Diggings(Yreka). This trail was favored by theminers because it was shorter than the Sac-ramento River trail; also it connected withthe Scott Bar trail.

Another trail which was important to theEtna area branched off the main trail nearthe Ohio House, the stopping place for thoseheaded for the Salmon Mountains. This

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trail crossed Scott River near where Young'sdam is today, and then continued westwardthrough the foothills to Aetna Mills (OldEtna). From Aetna Mills it crossed theSalmon Mountains to the many mines inthat area. Incidentally, the Ohio Housebecame the McBride home from 1853 to1959.

With the discovery of gold (1851-1852)at Scott Bar and Thompson's Dry Diggings,travel through Scott Valley was greatly in-creased by the miners who drifted restlesslyfrom one gold discovery to another.

Trouble with the Indians in NorthernCalifornia and Southern Oregon led thegovernment to establish a number of mili-tary posts along the main routes of travel.One other was Fort Jones which was es-tablished in 1852 in northeastern ScottValley because the location was favorablefor the pasturing of horses near the fort.The Scott Valley Indians caused litlle troubleafter a treaty was signed by Chief Johnand the commander of the fort. However,the presence of the military unit probablyaided the early settlers in the valley. Jn1858 the fort was discontinued by thegovernment.

Many of the would-be miners were reallyfarmers at heart. The excellent soil of thevalley proved more attractive to them thanthe scattered gold mines. Word was sent torelatives and friends in the East and soonwhole families were arriving in the valley.In 1854 a road was completed to Yreka anda toll road was built over Scott Mountain(1854-59).

Since this book deals mainly with Etnaand the surrounding area, only a few ofthose who settled here in the 1850's and1860's can be mentioned.

In 1851 Pool and Wicks settled on theland where Augustus Meamber lived later.On this land horses and mules were pas-tured for the miners at Scott Bar for ahandsome price.

On the east side of the valley in 1851,Rich and Holt settled on land which was

later purchased by P. A. Hartstrand andAsa White. According to some records,Erwin and Sarah Elmore settled in 1845 on320 acres of land not far from the Whiteand Heartstrand holdings. Elmore sold partaf his land to James Biernbaum (now theYoung ranch) and the balance to Edmundand Elizabeth Bagby. Three years later thisland was purchased by Frank J. Horn, Sr.,and has been the home of the Horn familysince then. The land bought by Biernbaumchanged hands several times before it waspurchased by Enos Young in 1893; thisfarm still belongs to the Young family.

The John Smith and Felty farms nearEtna were also settled at an early date.

In the center of the valley George F.Smith settled on a farm about two milesfrom Etna in partnership with George Cornand James Stevens. Before long the partner-ship was ended when George Smith boughtthe interests of the others; since then theproperty has remained in the Smith family.

Another early settler in this area was A.B. Swain who homesteaded the land northof the Smith farm. This place was operatedfrom 1858 to 1874 by Ingnace Wagnerwho purchased the present Wagner farmfrom Morgan, another early settler in the

area. The Wagner farm was settled first byColonel Charles Drew and his brother.

Charles Hovenden in 1858 settled onwhat is now the Bryan farm. Later Hoven-den bought land from Jeremiah Davidsonwhich is now the Hovenden home.

In 1854 Frederich Holzhauser and hisfamily arrived at the Nantzell-Baxter farmwhere they spent their first winter in a logcabin. The following year the Holzhausershomesteaded the farm which remained thefamily home until it was sold recently.

In 1852 a large tract of land was home-steaded by John McKee. This holding waslater subdivided into several farms includingthose of Peter Smith, Rev. D. H. Lowry,0. V. Green, and John and Stafford Wilson.After several ventures in the valley, Jere-miah Davidson and his family settled on afarm near the Lowry farm.

These early settlers paved the way for theestablishment of the Crystal Creek Com-munity, and Aetna Mills, and Rough andReady whose development will be discussedin subsequent accounts.

Note: Information taken from Wells His-tory of Siskiyou County, Siskiyou CountyHistorical Yearbok, Fort Jones Edition.

Photo Courtesy Isaac SoveyFOURTH OF JULY CELEBRATION IN ETNA 1905

Fire DepartmentPicture taken in front of Denny Bar Store. Left to right Isaac Sovey, Harry Stephens,John Grant, Silas Kastoff, Boyd Naylor, Martin Messner, Bill Sovey, Jim Allison, Jim Mosrey, Ed Harris.Abe Bar on porch.

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In the spring of 1854 the Rev. EbenezerArnold, newly appointed Superintendent ofthe Northern California Methodist Churches,filed on a homestead of 160 acres at PineGrove (later called Crystal Creek) and de-cided to make Scott Valley his headquarters.As soon as he had settled his family in atent house on his property, he began hold-ing services in seventeen Scott Valley com-munities including: Fort Jones MilitaryPost, Deadwood, Indian Creek, South Fork,Penny Diggings, Johnson's Mills, Etna Mills,Rough and Ready Mills, Quigleys, StarRanch, Godfreys, Oro Fino, and FrenchCreek.

On one of his rounds he was thrownfrom his mule and nearly frozen in the icywaters of a swamp before he could reachshelter. He slept that night in the thrivingtown of Deadwod in a hotel room with amurderer!

The Crystal Creek Methodist Church wasorganized by Rev. Arnold in July 1854,with eleven members. A small log churchwhich was built at the end of HolzhauserLane, as it is now called, became the firstProtestant church in Scott Valley with Rev.D. H. Lowry as the first minister.

The little church grew rapidly for peoplecame from miles around to attend churchservices, weddings, funerals, and other spe-

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cia! events. It was always filled to capacityand, it is said, that each family had a specialtree in the grove where the horses were tiedduring services.

The camp meetings, which were held inthe church, drew large crowds of people whobrought their tents along so that they wouldnot miss any of the meetings which wereheld three times a day and often lasted forweeks.

In 1867 a new church was built on prop-erty donated by L. S. Wilson and the oldchurch was used by the Good TemplarsLodge until it burned a year later.

When other churches were organized innearby communities, the Crystal CreekChurch lost membership rapidly and in1905 the remaining members decided tojoin the Greenview Methodist Church.

Another center of interest in the CrystalCreek Community was the school which wasorganized in 1859. The following descrip-tion of the school is taken from the YrekaJournal in 1879: 'Crystal Creek can boastof having one of the best country schoolsof the county, being beautiful without andneat within. It has a commodious hall onthe second story which is used for publicgatherings. Mrs. Oman, recently a graduateof San Jose Normal School, has fiftypupils."

Photo Courtesy E. Wendell -Newspaper Clipping Courtesy E. WendellCRYSTAL CREEK CHURCH INTERIOR OF CHURCH

The Crystal Creek Methodist Churchand Community

Many social events took place in theupper story of the school and people camefrom great distances to attend these events.In 1881 a Lyceum was organized which of-fered a variety of literary and cultural en-tertai nment including plays, lectures, debatesand literary readings. Musical talent wasnot lacking for the community had a bandand an orchestra which were conducted byJ. Milton Smith Sr., who served as post-master and operated a blacksmith shop forthe convenience of the local people.

Another early resident was Henry Corywho had a general store to supply localneeds. Mr. Corys eldest daughter marriedJames Walker; the Walker family was es-pecially active in promoting the church andcultural life of the community.

One of the principal occupations wasdairy farming; this in turn led to the pro-duction of butter and cheese for which thecommunity became well known. The near-by towns and the mining areas provided aready market for the Crystal Creek farmers.

Space does not permit the listing of allthe residents of Crystal Creek, but theWilson families, the Smiths, the Walkers,the Shelleys, the 0. V. Greens, and theWetmores not only contributed to the localcommunity life but eventually spread theirinfluence to the nearby town of Etna Mills.

Photo Courtesy Susie SmithTHE SECOND STORY OF THE CRYSTAL CREEK SCHOOL

This served as a community center and social hail for the people of western Scott Valley.

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Photo Courtesy E. Wer,dell

WALKER SISTERS

Etta, Elizabeth, Clara, Bertha

Like many other early communities, Cry-stal Creek began to decline around the turnof the century. As the younger generationreached adulthood, they moved to nearbytowns or to the more distant cities. Theparents also moved to towns where theirneeds could be served more conveniently.As a result, the community faded away andlittle remains today tc remind one of thehappy, busy people who once lived there.

Independence Rock, an Old Landmark

Photo Courtesy Mrs. C. C. Wendell

INDEPENDENCE ROCK

'The Key to Scott Valley" was the namegiven by the early settlers to IndependenceRock, sometimes called Crystal Creek Rock.This rock, which is between one hundredand one hundred fifty feet high, is almostperpendicular with small caves breakingthe surface here and there. Independence

Rock is situated about two and a halfmiles from Etna near the home of Mrs.Margaret Bigharn.

An interesting story is told concerningthe name of the rock: An enterprisinggenius, as the story goes, built a flight ofsteps from the upper side to the top. Herehe erected a flag pole, raised the Stars andStripes, and named the rock IndependenceRock. He planned to hold a Fourth ofJuly celebration at the base and charge asmall fee to those who wished to see thesplendid view of the valley from the sum-mit; however, the idea did not seem tocreate much enthusiasm and therefore wasabandoned. Since the flag pole had beenfastened firmly to the solitary tree whichgrew in a crevice on the top, it stood therefor many years with the flag floating proud-ly until it was worn to threads by the wind,

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The flag was visible for many miles andserved as inspiration to the passersby,

There was another interesting story con-cerning the Rock: A man by the name ofWright made his home in one of the largecaves on the west side of the rock. Duringthe day he worked at splitting logs ormaking shingles. At night he returned tohis home in the cave. In one corner theman had built a fireplace, which furnishedlight and warmth and also cooked his food.The difficulty with his improvised fireplacewas that there was no flue. Consequentlyhis face and clothing were so saturatedwith smoke that he resembled a side ofbacon,

Independence Rock became a favoritesite for community picnics as early as June1864 when a noted lawyer, the HonorableA. P. Van Dizer, was the speaker of theday. The picnic became an annual eventfor forty-nine years with the exception ofthree years when the desire for a change ofsetting shifted the picnic elsewhere. Peoplecame from all over the county to renewold friendships.

Large baskets of delicious food coveredthe long picnic table. The women re-ar-ranged the food while the rest of the crowdenjoyed games or listened to patriotic pro-grams. It was the custom to leave the left-over food on the table to be consumed byIndians who had gathered for their partin the festivities.

The popularity of these gatherings di-minished with advent of the automobilewhich made it possible for people to travelfarther for entertainment. The last of thesepicnics was held in June 1913.

EDIToR's NOTE: The above story was takenfrom a newspaper clipping written by Mr.Fred Smith for the Etna Woman's Club,May 4, 1921. The clipping was found byMrs. Elizabeth Wendell in the back pagesof her grandmother's journal.

Photo Courtesy E. H. Herzog"THE OLD SLEEPER PLACE"

The residence of Charles Baird since 1862, 'Old' Etna Mills, Siskiyou Co., California.

Aetna Mills (Old Etna)While the eager miners were searching

for gold at Thompson's Dry Diggings andScott Bar, many others came by ship toHumboldt Bay and then made the longtrip inland following the Kiamath River tothe mouth of Salmon River. They con-tinued the long, dangerous journey follow-ing the Salmon River to Bestville and Saw-yers Bar where gold had been found inmany places.

Other miners came through the moun-tains from Trinity Center to the headwatersof the Salmon River while others made alonger trek over Scott Mountain to theheadwaters of the Scott Rivet and thenfollowed the early trails to the Ohio House.From there they crossed Scott River nearwhat is now Young's dam and traveled westthrough the hills to Salmon Mountainwhich they crossed to Sawyers Bar orBestville.

Supplies for the iru nets came mainly

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from Humboldt Bay. This route was longand dangerous and, in winter, often impas-sable. As a result prices were extremelyhigh. A closer source of supplies wasbadly needed.

In response to this need, Captain CharlesMcDermit, Charles Moore, William andDr. Davidson built a flour mill in 1854 onEtna Creek near the foot of Salmon Moun-tain. This mill, which is said to be thefirst in Northern California, was namedAetna Mill by Mrs. D. H. Lowry, the wifeof the minister of the Crystal Creek Church.Grain for the mill was produced on theDavidson Brothers' farm and as the demandincreased, by other valley farmers.

The mill owners were able to sell theirflour at a profit for $10.00 per cwt., where-as, the flour which was brought in from thecoast was $34.00 per cwt. As soon as thetrail was improved over Salmon Mountain,several pack trains made regular trips to

Sawyers Bar, carrying flour and othernecessities.

In 1854 Jeremiah Davidson and Wil-liam Miller built a distillery on what is stillknown as Whiskey Creek. The distillerywas operated by Ensign Smith who wassubsequently call e d 'Whiskey Smith'.Often the mules going to the Salmon coun-try were loaded with a sack of flour on oneside and a keg of whiskey on the other.

The little town, which bore the nameof the mill, grew very rapidly. A road wasbuilt connecting the town with the OhioHouse thus making it possible to supplyother needs of the miners. A hotel wasbuilt by the Davidson brothers which waslater operated by Fitzsimmons and Neilon.Other buildings included a sawmill, ablacksmith shop, a machine shop, twostoresone owned by Davidson and theother by Sleeper and Greena furnitureshop owned by McDermit, and the saloons.The new community even had a post officewhich was operated by Sleeper and later byJames H. Taylor.

Among the early families who lived inAetna Mills were the Lanyons, the Morgans,

THE ORIGINAL ETNA MILLS

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the Harry Dawsons, the Davis family, andEnsign Smith whose family consisted of adaughter, Hattie, and a son, Harry.

The prosperity of this little town was cutshoft by a flood during the winter of 1861-2. Whiskey Creek became a raging torrentwhich washed away the distillery and thehome of the Davis family. The house,which contained Mrs. Davis and her foursmall children, was carried down the creekuntil its progress was blocked by a hugeboulder. Much damage was done to homesand property that lay in the course of theflood.

After this disastrous flood most of theresidents moved to the nearby town ofRough and Ready. The post office, whichretained the name of Etna Mills, was movedto Rough and Ready and the early townfaded away.

Although little remains today of thisearly town, people still refer to it as"Old Etna".

NOTE: Material for this account was takenfrom the Etna Edition of the S:skiyouPioneer, 1962.

Etna--Before the White ManHave you ever wondered what the area

which is now Etna was like before theadvent of the white man? i so, you willfind this eye-witness account very inter-esting.

More than forty years ago, Mr. LawrenceBuchner, a lifetime resident of Etna, had aninterview with an old Indian who will heremembered by many as "Old Man Ruffy,"although his christian name is thought tohave been Frank. At the time of the inter-view Mr. Buchner estimated his age to havebeen between 110-115 years, but Ruffyhimself said, "Can't tell by white man'syearIndian moon year different."

Ruffy said that he was a Karok Indianfrom the area of Somes Bar. He had cometo this area when he was a small boy withhis parents and other Indians by way ofthe Salmon Mountains.

Mr. Buchner had learned from othersources that two severe floods, 1805 -

182 7, along the Klamath River had causedthe death of many Indians. In the year1828 a severe earthquake occurred. Al-though Ruffy did not know what the wordearthquake meant, when Mr. Buchner askedhim if the ground shook, he nodded em-phatically and said, "You bet. The groundwent this way and that way. Mountains felldown. Trees fell down, and many bigponds of water (lakes) were formed highup in the mountains. Many Indians werekilled at that time, because Indians in thosedays lived in holes in the ground (cavesand tunnels) and the mountains fell downand buried them."

According to the account given byRuffy, a large part of Scott Valley was cov-ered by water. Beaver damscau.sed thewater to spread out over the valley floor.Along one bank of the old lake, part ofwhich is now Etna, tall grasses and manykinds of wildflowers grew in profusionfrom early spring to late autumn. On thehigher ground were many trees, especiallyseveral kinds of oaks. The foothills andnearby mountains were covered by thickevergreen forests.

16.

-dRUFFY IN COSTUME

In this section of the valley of virginbeauty were many kinds of animals includ-ing, in Ruffy's words: "small deer; lots ofbig dogs (wolves), lots of small dogs(coyotes); lots of big bears with whitefaces; and small bears, both brown andblack. The creeks and river were full ofmany kinds of fish, and there were beaverand many small animals."

Food was plentiful and there was suf-ficient variety to satisfy the simple taste ofthe Indiansmeat, fish, nuts, acorns, ber-ries, wild cherries and plumsall withineasy range.

Problems of clothing and shelter wereeasily solved for there were hides, skins,

and furs in abundance. Willows whichgrew along the banks of streams were use-ful in making tent frames as well as

baskets.The favorable environment probably ac-

counted for the fact that the Indians of theEtna region were, as Ruffy said, goodIndians and did not fight much.'

Unfortunately, this ideal homeland wasnot to be theirs for very long. An Indianlegend of the Klamath tribes had predictedlong ago that after the great floods, men ofwhite skin would appear, and that someday these white men would kill the Indiansor drive them away after they had takenthe best lands.

Ruffy said he was a grown man when hesaw his first white man. This man andothers trapped the beaver and other smallfur-bearing animals, unmolested by the In-dians until they attempted to build cabins.This angered the Indians so much that theydrove the white man away and burned thecabins.

'Later a number of white men returnedand built a long log house (Fort Jones)with many round holes on each side of thebuilding. The white men put guns throughthe holes and killed the Indians, but theydid not come out of their house until theywere sure the Indians had gone.

'Then one day," Ruffy continued, "a BigMan came to the log house. He wore niceclothes and had ribbons on coat and eachside of pants. Big Man took lots of menwith him on horses and go all over thevalley killing Indians. Lots of Indians ranaway and never came back. After the BigMan left the Indians did not fight anymore because they were afraid Big Mancome back. Big Man no good; he kill lotsof Indians."

Ruffy concluded his story by saying,"White Man no good; he take everythingIndian no got nothing and he (whiteman) never paid Indians for land."(1) NOTE ON RUFFY:

On the morning of March 19, 1930Ruffy was found unconscious on the floorof his cabin by his son. There was a largegash on his forehead but the old Indian

17.

died before it could be determined whetherhe had been murdered. He was buried nearthe grave of his wife at the foot of SalmonMountain.

Draped across his coffin was an Ameri-can flag. According to reports Ruffy wasvery close to his Chief who wished to havehis people adopt some of the customs ofthe white man and asked that Ruffy raisethe American flag. He was at once sur-rounded by 200 Indians who tore down theflag and threatened Ruffy's life. The oldChief came to his rescue, warning that theother Indians would be punished by deathif any harm came to Ruffy. It was this flagthat was so cherished by the old Indian thatwas draped across his coffin.

It was also recalled at the time of hisdeath that Ruffy had often expressed hisconcern that the stories and songs of histribe were being lost. When the phono-graph came into use, Ruffy realized thatthis might offer a means to preserve thesongs of his people.

In order to help Ruffy fulfill his dream,Mr. W. J. Balfrey provided the wax cylin-ders for recording the songs. When heasked Ruffy to sing he was surprised at thequick response. Although the old Indianhad passed the century mark, he stood upand sang, so putting his soul into the song,that when he had finished he was almostexhausted, He was overjoyed when heheard his own voice, for then he knew hehad found a way to preserve his nativesongs and stories,

-Siskiyou Times, March 25, 1930(2) NOTE: Mrs. Grace Balfrey, a daugh-ter of the pioneer A. M. Johnson whobought a section of the Pete Smith ranchjust out of Etna, recalls that when she wasa child she remembers playing in an oldfort near Johnson Creek, Inside the fortwas a block house, the upper story ofwhich was larger than the first story. Inthe upper section were many small roundholes large enough to put a gun through.Later it was called the tramp house" be-cause so many itinerants took lodging there.

In the rear of the old fort was a largemound. Here, Mrs. Balfrey said, she andher brothers and sisters found hundreds ofIndian artifacts and arrow heads.

History of EtnaAs the Indians sought safety along the

foothills near the present town of Etna,white men began to invade the land alongthe old lake bed. In 1853 a Mr. Bauer andothers built a sawmill on the high bank ofland, extending in a northerly-southerly di-rection, which later became Etna's main

Photo Cnurteay E. W. HerzogROUGH AND READY FLOUR MILL

Elizabeth Taylor McCune, Fannie Hanson,Fred Herzog, Emma Wagner Herzog

street. The mill owners dug a ditch fromwhat is now Etna Creek to furnish waterfor their mill. One of the owners built ahome nearby which was the first house tobe built in what is now Etna.

Two years later (1855) a group of near-by farmers, including Abisha Swain, H. C.Swain, Obediah Baer, George Smith, P. A.Hartstrand, and James Stevens commencedthe erection of a flour mill not far fromthe sawmill. James Stevens christened thenew mill the Rough and Ready Mill; there-fore, the little settlement which grew uparound the mill was given the same name.

Since the mill owners were mainly farm-ers who lived nearby, E. F. Herby andAbisha Swain were the first ones to buildhomes near the mill in 1856. The firstwhite child to be born here was John H.Swain, Oct. 5, 1857.

The same year the Swain brothers builta store on the site near where E. B. Park-er's store now stands. A hotel was builtby H. B. Bixby in 1858. A stable and corralfor the convenience of the patrons of thehotel occupied the space next to it. Gradu-ally the little town began to compete withthe earlier town of Aetna Mills.

ORIGINAL HOTEL IN ETNABUILT IN 1857Photo Courtesy T. Baker

18.

In 186 1-62 a severe flood damaged therival town to such an extent that its resi-dences and businesses were moved to Roughand Ready. Even the post office was movedin 1863, but it retained the name ofAetna Mills. The swampy region west ofthe main street was drained and mappedout in conventional blocks and narrowstreets. This provided home sites for thegrowing population.

The northern part of the present townwas part of the old sawmill grant. Thiswas purchased by Martin Pitman whocombined the old home building with anold school house to make a home for hisfamily. The old home is now owned byone of Mr. Pitman's daughters and herhusband, Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Cummins.

In addition to the sawmill Mr. Pitmanbuilt a marble mill in 1874 which wasoperated by A. C. Adams who owned aledge of marble about a mile from town.The marble mill supplied many of theearly tombstones in the local cemetery.

Next to the Pitman home, Dr. GeorgeFurber erected a long, rambling frame buil-ding in 1869 which was later known as theBeehive". The lower floor was used for

the doctor's office, a drugstore, and amanufacturing establishment w h e r e thedoctos produced h i s famous "MountainBalm" tonic which was made from tar weed.The second story was first used as a Tern-

perance Hall and later as a dance hall.The Furber family lived in a section of thebuilding which was recessed from the mainbuilding.

When the center of business shiftedfrom Aetna Mills to Rough and Ready fol-lowing the floods of 186 1-2, the road toCallahan was changed so that entry intoRough and Ready was made by ChinaHill (now Callahan Street). The impor-tance of this connection with Callahan wasgreatly diminished when a road was builtfrom Yreka to Etna in 1854.

Perhaps the most prosperous business tobe established in Rough and Ready was theKappler Brewery. In 1868 Mr. Charles

Photo Co..rtesy A. Harrr,ondREAR OF KAPPLER BREWERY-1875

'THE BE HIVE, AN OLD LANDMARK, BUILT 1869 Photo Courtesy L Ball

19.

Kappler bought a brewery from P. A.Heartstrand on the east side of Scott Valleyabout three miles from Rough and Ready.In 1872 Mr. Kappler moved the businessto the thriving town of Rough and Ready.Although a fire destroyed the original buil-ding in 1875, Mr. Kappler built a largerbrewery and greatly expanded his business.An electric plant, built on Johnson CreekFalls west of town, provided electricity tooperate a large refrigerating plant. Thissupplied power for the town until watershortage caused Kapplers to obtain electricpower from the California Oregon PowerCompany. Mr. Kappler had four wagonstransporting beer far and near. It is saidthat his business netted a quarter of amillions dollars annually.

In 1865 Joseph Young and Brother, theSwain Brothers, and George Smith pur-chased the machinery of the flour mill inYreka. With this machinery the old flourmill was operated by steam power; how.ever, when the mill was sold to Kist andFrench in 1872, water power was usedagain. Later the old mill became a ware-house. Eventually several enterprises werecarried on including a Chinese restaurant,a meat market, a newspaper printing office,and even the town's first library.

In 1867 Abisha Swain built the MasonicHall. The lower floor was used as the postoffice with Mr. Swain as postmaster. Theold flume for the mill ran in front of thisbuilding. One year the flume overflowedruining several sacks of mail. Consequently,the post office had to be moved to anotherlocation.

A telegraph office was established in1869, and an express office in 1878.

Mr. James A. Diggles erected a framestore building across the street from theEtna Hotel. This street has since beenknown as Diggles Street. In 1880 Alexan-der Parker and Remberance Campbell re-placed the Diggles store with a large brickbuilding which is now operated by Mr.Parkers grandson, E. B Parker. For manyyears, however, this store was known as theDenney Bar Store.

The Etna Hotel changed hands manytimes until it was purchased by HenryTruett and Isaac Baker in 1876. The hotelwas enlarged several times until it eventu-ally had 25 rooms; a dining room, a bar,and several small shops. When Mr. Bakerdied, Mrs. Baker continued to operate thehotel for several years. The bar was underthe management of Fred Herzog duringthis time. As the years passed by, the old

ETNA MAIN STREET IN 1890

20.

ourtes - W. Herzog

hotel deteriorated until in 1935 it finallyburned. Today the modern, concrete storebuilding owned by Mr. and Mrs. RussellFarrington houses the corner grocery ofMinor Cross, the Baifrey Drug Store andthe Etna Fountain and Lunch.

Among other early buildings and busi-nesses on Main Street were the GeorgeBuchner variety store built in 1878, theOtis Wilsey saloon built in the late 70's;the Emil Miller Hardware store, the JamesDiggles Drug Store, the Messner Hotel and

Photo Courtesy A. B. CallowayENOS YOUNG'S BUTCHER SHOP

Fred Young, Henry Young, Enos Young.and Old Butcher Wagon.

JOSEPH STEPHENS' STOREBUILT 1881

21.

bar, the Bryant Building which housed thepost office for which Mr. Bryant was post-master, Bryant's variety store, MartinMarx's law office and saddle shop, andDave Hyde's barber shop. On the corner ofthe block, Main and School Sts., was theNick Schmitt hotel which was a framebuilding. Across the street was a long onestory, frame building which was the EaosYoung butcher shop. The rear of this buil-ding was the Young home.

Across Main St. were the Davis andEvans blacksmith shop, the Henry GeneySaloon (now Corrigans), the Robert Wal-lace blacksmith shop, a cabinet shop startedby Louis Fafa and later owned by JamesAbel (1874). (His shop foreman wasMilton Smith, formerly of Crystal Creek.)

In 1881 Joseph Stephens moved to Etnawhere he bought a general merchandisestore from a Mr. Brown. Mr. Stephens'store was a brick structure. For many yearsMr. Stephens operated a general merchan-dise store until his death in 1926; thebusiness was continued by his son Clifford.Recently the store has become the newhome of the Scott Valley Bank after con-siderable remodeling.

The Etna cemetery is situated a shortdistance west of town. The site was selec-ted in 1866 and it was laid off into lotsand avenues in 1871. Those who selectedthe site had visions of the beautiful ceme-tery which is a reality today.

As the town grew, considerable con-fusion resulted from the fact that the nameof the town and the post office differed.The local people began calling the townEtna Mills, the name of the post office.Also, there was a town named Rough andReady in Nevada County. Consequently,the state legislature changed the name ofthe town to Etna Mills by the Act of 1874.Four years later, by the Act of 1878, thetown was incorporated as a sixth class city.The officers designated by the new citygovernment included five trustees, a re-

corder and ex-officio clerk of the board,treasurer, assessor, and marshal, to be elec-ted annually the first Monday in May. Inthe early 1900's the town government waschanged to the Mayor-Council form ofgovernment. About 1930 the town peti-tioned the legislature to drop the

from its name.One of the problems which has been

constantly before the town government isthat of the water supply. The first watersupply was provided by Mr. Charles Kistwho had bought the land and water rightsto the ditch which came from Etna Creek,in 1865. Mr. Kist built an open ditchwhich ran through the town to the Roughand Ready Mill and the sawmill.

The fire of 1896 brought home to thepeople of Etna the need for a better watersystem. As a result the Etna DevelopmentCompany was formed. Stock was sold for$18 a share with a gross capital stock of$30,000. Mr. Kist was paid $20,000 forhis water right. In May 1896, work wasstarted to improve the ditch and to beginthe pipeline installation. Mr. Kist and hisbrother-in-law, Mr. John Baker, carried onthe work of the company.

In 1923 the town of Etna purchased thewater rights and water supply for $20,000in bonds and $1,000 in cash. One of thehardest problems to solve was that ofmaintaining an adequate water supply in

ETNA ABOUT 1898Photo Courtesy M. Sn,th Famfly

22.

summer. This problem has been partiallysolved by increasing the size of the reservoir.

The creation of a fire department wasstarted in the early part of the 20th century.Two carts with hoses were purchased, oneto be installed on the main streei and theother in the upper part of town near thehigh school. A fire bell was purchased withthe proceeds acquired by a grand ball in theOdd Fellows Hail in 1896.

A town hail was built in the early partof the century by Eugene Davis who usedIndependence Hall in Philadelphia as hismodel. Fire fighting equipment was housedin the lower portion of the building, whilethe upper story was used for a town coun-cil room and library. When more modernequipment was purchased the fire depart-ment was moved to the old Evans' garage,its present location.

A weekly newspaper, The Etna Post, wasstarted in 1881 by Beers Loos. The paperchanged hands many times. Mr. MikeBalfrey moved the printing equipment tothe old flour mill and changed the name toThe Scott Valley Advance. Mr. McCarthyin the 1920's changed the name to TheWestern Sentinel. Mr. Don Avery pub-lished the paper later in the basement of

23.

Photo Courtesy E. W. HerzogMAIN STREET IN ETNA ABOUT 1900

the present town hail. The last editor wasMr. Tony Thomas who moved the printingpress to Yreka. Since then Etna has had nolocal paper.

Money transactions in early Etna wereusually carried on among friends with per-sonal notes which had no legal backing. Inmany cases these notes were never re-

deemed.The first bank in Etna was started by

A. H. Denny in 1898. This bank wasmerged with the Fort Jones bank andnamed the Scott Valley Bank. The Etnabank became a branch with W. T. Young

,ca,-T V.5LL_E'

A MKsn,rr LLEi

Photo Courtesy W. SmithFIRST BANK IN ETNA - W. T. YOUNG

as manager in 1912. The bank has servedthe needs of Etna citizens since that time.

The Siskiyou Telephone Company hadan unusual beginning. The Dannenbrinkbrothers, Henry and August, had mininginterests on the Salmon River known as

GOLD BAR CREAMERY

24.

the "Gold Run Mines." After an attemptto establish a line of their own, they quiet-iy bought shares in a telephone company inFort Jones. Finally, when they had boughtenough shares to control the company, theydirected that a line be built to Forks of

PARROTT FLOUR MILLBUILT 1919 -Photo Cojrfesy M. Parrott

Salmon and to the mine. In 1911 thenewly created Railroad Commission madeexacting demands of all public utilities. Itbecame necessary for August Dannenbrinkto establish an office in Etna where hecould improve the services of the system.With Frank Boedecker as line man, thetelephone system was expanded and im-proved until the business became a profit-able one to which Mr. Dannenbrink de-voted the remainder of his life. Today itis k nown as the Siskiyou TelephoneCompany.

The peak of prosperity seemed to havebeen reached about the turn of the centurywhen many fine new homes were built.

The decline of mining in the Salmonarea was a severe blow to Etna businesslife. The trade with the mines dwindled toghostly proportions and finally faded awayalmost completely. The town was now de-pendent upon the nearby farms for itstrade. With the improvements in trans-portation and modern machinery even thismarket was affected.

New industries were attempted withlittle success. Among these enterprises wasthe Gold Bar Creamery which was built inEtna but eventually discontinued. The Par-rott flour mill was built in 1919 by CharlesB. Parrott and John Johnson. The mill wasoperated until Mr. Parrott's death in 1927producing 'Flavo Flour' and grinding feedfor farmers. The mill was closed by hisson Albert in 1931.

The most successful industry was thesawmill business which was by no meansa new industry in Etna. A sawmill wasbuilt on the outskirts of town which waslater purchased by W. D. Miller. This millstimulated the business interests of thetown. Unfortunately, this mill was des-troyed by fire and never rebuilt.

Even the social structure has changed:the Lyceum, the community celebrations onthe Fourth of July, Decoration Day, theChristmas programs, the masquerade balls,the traveling shows, and the Chautauquashave given way to more modern amuse-ments.

25.

One of the occupations which has helpedto stabilize the economy is logging. Manylogging trucks travel great distances intothe mountains to transport huge logs tomills in Yreka and other sawmill centers.

Another stabilizing influence is the richagricultural area and cattle raising industryof central Scott Valley.

In spite of economic set-backs and socialchanges, Etna is by no means a ghost towntoday. The fine new highway to Yreka,which enters Etna by Collier Way, offers abeautiful panorama of Etna and the sur-rounding mountains. Many tourists visitthe town each year on their way to thescenic Salmon and Scott Mountains. An-other sign of progress is the ever-increasingnumber of new homes and the moderniz-ing of many of the business locations.

Photo Courtesy B. flcknerENTERING ETNA VIA COLLIER WAY

THE TENT "PLAYHOUSE"For many years from 1880 to 1890, a

troup of actors pitched their tents at therear of the old Baker Hotel and gave night-ly performances of highly sensational stageplays.

During the early nineteen hundreds theChautauqua made annual visits to Etnabringing a variety of entertainment includ-ing plays, concerts arid lectures. The Chau-tauqua tents were pitched on the lot nextto the library.

In addition, traveling shows played axMaplesden Hall, often for a week at atime. Mrs. Grace J. Baifrey

The most disastrous fire that the townof Etna has ever experienced occurredMarch 16, 1896. The cry of fire awokethe citizens about 1:30 am, when everyable-bodied person rushed to the businesssection of Main Street where the fire al-ready was consuming the Mani hotel inthe center of town. It was believed thatthe fire had started in one of the old buil-dings in the rear of the hotel.

After the fire had burned the Mani hotelit spread to Frank Bradley's barber shopand the law office of Martin Marx; it alsoburned his harness and tool shop in therear of the building. The James Bryanbuilding including the post office and Mr.Bryan's variety store were next in line. Anattempt was made to remove a large safefrom the building but the fire fighters wereforced by the heat to give up at the door.

26.

Photo Courtesy A. CallowayTHIS PORTION OF ETNA WAS DESTROYED BY FIRE-1896

Barber Shop, Post Office, Bryant's Variety Store, Mick Smitt Hotel

The Fire of 1896The safe contained $400 in stamps butthey could not be saved.

The Schmitt saloon and hotel were acomplete loss. David Jones' house next tothe hotel on School Street, which was rent-ed to L. A. Moxley as a candy store alsoburned. Mr. Moxley did get some of hisgoods out, but he suffered a heavy losswith no insurance.

A great effort was made by the firefighters to keep the fire from crossing thestreet. Enos Young's butcher shop wassaved by the bucket brigade. The newKappler home was protected by wet car-pets, blankets, and comforters which werekept wet with a hose from the Kappler'swater tank which in turn was supplied by apower pump in the brewery.

The porch of Stephens' Store was torn(Continued on Page 50)

Etna's ChinatownChina Hill was so called because of the

Chinese settlement which was located atits base. At one time there were at leastsix houses and a store, all huddled veryclose together.

In the period following the mining ex-citement, many Chinese were employed onthe ranches of Scott Valley as cooks be-cause each ranch hired a number of mento carry on the farm work. By hiringChinese cooks the work of the housewiveswas lightened, for these women not onlyhad large families to care for, but alsolarge houses to maintain.

At one time the Federal government re-quired that all Chinese in this country beregistered. As a result, about a hundredChinese came to Etna to be registered.

One evening while the Chinese wereabsorbed in playing fantan, several mis-chievous boys slipped into the room un-noticed. One boy went along the row ofChinamen and tied a loose loop in their

CHINESE NEW YEARI 898Boy on n9ht, Albert Bra4I.y.

27.

ques while another boy followed alongwith a sharp knife and cut the ques in theloop. Great was the consternation andclamor when the boys were discovered.Perhaps a more rapid retreat has never beenmade by escaping small boys.

Boys of the town who seemed to havenothing better to do, often amused them-selves by stoning the roofs of the Chinesehouses. It was great sport to see the inhabi-tants rush from their homes uttering loudinvectives. Yet, at Chinese New Year'stime the Chinamen would distribute largequantities of Chinese candy, nuts, lilies, andbest of all, fire crackers!

One of the most interesting denizens ofChinatown was Chinee Mary' as she wascommonly called. She and her mother "OldSusie" were the only Chinese women in thecommunity, hence they aroused much curl-osity. These women dressed in the orientalfashion, perhaps causing many women to

(Continued on Page 31)

Photo Courtesy Isaac SoveyPICTURE TAKEN IN FRONT OF BLAKE HOTEL

Left to right George Morgan, Peter Blake, Isaac Sovey, Rose Quigley, Lettie Lewis, Polly Blake, (nextthree unknown), Mike Btakc.

28.

Photo Courtesy Isaac SoveyDINING ROOM AND LOBBY O HOTEL BLAKE

Mr. and Mrs. Charles tlolzhauzer, Proprietors, about 1940.

(Above> DENNY BAR STORE - 1902Left, Groceries and Hardware; Right, Dry Goods.

Left to right John Adams, next two drummers,Abe Bar, Jr., unknown, Flora Pitman Tidball,Abe Bar, Sr.

Second FloorFirst High School (1892) andLyceum.

(Right) THE INTERIOR OF DRY GOODS SECTIONOF DENNY BAR STORE

CJerks Abe Bar, Jr., Rose Crandah, MargueriteGeney.

Photos Courtesy Lois Cummins

29.

30.

Photo Courtesy Eller FamilyThe three buildings are the l.O.O.F. Hall Senator Collier's birthplace and the first school building

in Etna.

Photo Courtesy Isaac SoveySPUD BEING TAKEN TO DREDGER NEAR CALLAHAN

Six horses required to pull it. The buildings are Young's Butcher Shop, Shoe Repair Shop, Geney Rome,Bakery and Millinery Shop (now Campbells), and Pitman Stable. Left to right Melvin Naylor, P. p.Strassburg, Isaac Sovey, Chafley Wilcox, Valley Sweet, Marcus Isaac.

ETNA'S CHINATOWN(Continued from Page 27)

blush in embarrassment to see a womanwearing trousers.

"Chinee Mary" had a very kind heart andshe seemed to know that the loud talkingwhich eminated from the Chinese houseswas frightening to small children. Shewould personally conduct such childrensafely beyond the houses.

The large sleeves of "Chinee Mary's"blouse were very convenient on many oc-casions. She had two wire-haired terrierswhich were very skillful in catching chick-ens. She would approach the dogs whenthey had made a "catch," scold them loudly,and bend down presumably to chastise the

NATIVE SONS AND DAUGHTERS ENTERTAINING OLD TIMERS, JUNE 26, 1907 AT OLD SCHOOL HOUSEIN ETNA. Left to right, back row: Mrs. Irene France, Mike Slater, Tom Taylor, Mrs. Heilmuth, Mrs.James Diggles, Mrs. Short, Mrs. Dobinson, Mrs. Hayes, 0. V. Green, Mrs. 0. V. Green, Mrs. NancyPotter, Mrs. McBride, Mr. Thomas Potter, I. B. Reynolds, L. S. Wilson. Seated on steps: Mrs. CarolineHorn, Mrs. M. B. Pitman, Mrs. Campbell, Mrs. Allen, Mrs. Balfrey, Mrs. Taylor, Hiram Wilson, M. F,Barnum. Third row: James O'Connor, Milt Cummings, Ensign Smith, John H. McDaniels, Elias Smith,John Woods, Mrs. Hanson, Mrs. Charles Holzhauser and son August, Mrs. Charles Kappler, Mrs. W. H.Richardson, Mrs. Hiram Wilson, Mrs. Mathewson, Mrs. Hockaday, Mrs. Lincoln, Mrs. Maplesden, Mrs.Payne, Charles Holzliauser, Mrs. Allison, John Messner. Seated in front: Hans Hanson, Mrs. WilliamGeorge, William George, Mrs. Hovendon, Mr. Hovendon, Mr. Meamber, Mrs. Meamber, Mrs. Ficken,Mrs. John Neilon, Mr. John Neilon, Mrs. Griffin. Photo Courtesy Mrs. Lottie Ball

31.

dogs, but the chickens seemed to find theirway into her large sleeves.

In the early part of this century theChinese left the valley. Only a few re-mained as cooks in the hotels, restaurants,and on some of the neighboring ranches.

Thus "Chinee Mary" moved to Yrekawhere she lived until she received wordfrom China that she had inherited greatwealth in her native land. When she de-parted from Yreka it is said that she wasbeautifully dressed in rich Chinese garb.

Today nothing remains to remind thepassers-by of the Chinese settlement. Eventhe name China Hill has been supplantedby Callahan Street.