ffi*ter @"unty $ffiilistorical fficietyN.ws9W,lletin

Vol. XXXIII No. 4 Yuba City, California October,1992

A SENSE OF PLACE

Photograph: Elsie Allen (Pomo) at home with her family collection, 19Bl

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OFFTCEFTS OF- TIIE SOC-IryBrock Bowen, President Constance Cary, Secretarytinda Leone, V5-ce President Li-nda Leone, Treasurer

D-FTECTOFISBrock Bowen

Constance CaryCassius Epperson

Celia EttIDewey GrueningBruce Harter

Linda Leone

Eve1yn QuiggRona1d Ross

Randolph Schnabel

Sharyl Simmons

Edgar StantonElaine Tarke

The News Bulletin i-s published quarterly by the Society inYuba City, California. The annual membership dues includesreceiving the News Bulletin and the Museumrs lttuse News. At theApril L987 Annual Dinner Meeting it was voted to change the By-Iawsto combine the memberships of the Society and the Museum.

The 1992 d.ues are payable as of January 1 , t992.Student (under 18)/Senior Citizen/Library . $10.00Individual $l-5.00organizations/Clubs $25.00Family $30.00Business/Sponsor $100.00Corporate/Benefactor $t-,000.00

PFINTEO BY RIVEB CtrY PFINTING 5€3 2nd STREET in YUBA CrTY €16) 75*217

PR.ES:IDEb{T ' S IIIESSAGE

Brock Bowen, the President of the Historical Society, thinksthat going off to fight forest fires relieves him of his duty ofwriting a letter to the membership. I guess he's right.

The end of 1gg2 and the beginning of 1993 has a specialmeaning for the Historical Society - Museum membership. Yes, it'stirne to pay your dues and renew your membership. As you willnotice, the rates for 1993 rernain the same as the 1-992 rates. TheHistorical Society's share of the membership dues enables us to payour bills and publish the bulletin. You, in turn, receive the MuseNews, the Historical Society News BuIletin, a 1-OZ discount on itemspurchased in the Museum frstorerr and (perhaps most importantfy) theknowledge that you are helping to preserve the history of SutterCounty. P1ease renew your membership and encourage your friendsand family to join as welI.

In addition to a request for you to share inforrnation(articles, stories, photos, etc. ) with the membership, the Board ofDirectors would like some ideas for programs. fs there aparticular event or person you are interested in hearing about? Doyou know of the a speaker who would be of interest to themembership? Please contact us with suggestions.

Linda LeoneVice President

PUITS RATTLESNAKE FROI{ HOI-E I{ITII EI{F{fY SIIEI,L

Yuba City, Au9. 22--To have a large rattlesnake sink itspoisonous fangs deep into a paper shotgun shell that was being usedto pour poi-son into squirrel holes and to have the reptile onlymiss your hand by a very sma11 margin, is not an experiene desiredby many people but is exactly what happened to Will Sherer of YubaCity Saturday afternoon near the Boyer place in this county.Shearer is employed by the California Midland railroad compnay andwas at work Saturday afternoon pouring poison into squirrel ho1es,using a shotgun shell as a meausure. He was in the act of ernptyinga shell full of poison into a hole when, without warning, theretile sank its deadly fangs into the shel1, barely rnissingShearer's hand. On the impulse of the moment Shearer drew back hishand still keeping hold of the shelI so tightly that the fangs ofthe became wedged in the paper and the reptile was pulled out frornthe hole at the same tirne. Mr. Shearer then kill-ed the monster,which had nine rattles and a button.OrovilIe Mercury11 August l-91-1

Itrhe Directort s R.etr>ortBy Jacqueline Lowe

If you come into the Museum and the air feels like December-you're not wrong, thatts Christmas you're sensing. BecauseMuseums are always looking forward at least three months (ourexhibit schedule is arread! booked through mid 1-995! ), j-t doesn'tseem strange at al1 that Christmas preparations are alreadyunderway. If you haventt participated in a Museum Christmas, nol^tis your chance to do so. There are two ornament workshops, onein october and one in November, and everyone is welcorne to joinin the creating. On December L2, Museurn Decoration Day, a1lhands are needed to get the Museum into its best Christmas dressi-n time f or the fund raising event, rrTrees and Traditions, AChristmas Galart on December l-4th. This year's trTrees andTraditionsrt decor is Victorian Rose, a delight for the eyes andnose. Be sure to check out the four raffle prizes that will begiven ahray that evening. Four artists (Laura Jane Coats, JudyHalI, Luisa Leger and Bev Speckert) have donated their work tomake these prizes truly outstanding. You don't need to bepresent to win, but you do have to corne by and purchase a ticketor two to be in the running.

One final event of the Christmas season is Open House onTuesday, December 22nd. From 1-:00 to 2:00 that afternoon, JohnCarter wi-1l entertain with his live1y guitar music and singing.John is a favorite of ared children who enjoy singing along withhis assortment of si11y songs. At 2zOO we will celebrate thel-loth birthday of Gertrude, the china doll. Gertrude was givento Oba Algeo of Wheatland on Christmas Day, l-882. Everyone isinvited to bring their best doII friend and partake of birthdaycake

If you are mostly an treasy chair observerrr of Christmas thisyear, w€ have just the thing for you. The latest Museumpublication, rrTrees and Traditions: Six Years of ChristrnasCreations at the Community Memorial Museumfr will- be availablefor purchase at the Museum Gift Store. Organized by year, eachChristmas theme is briefly described and discussed withinstructions and patterns given for each of the ornaments madefor the tree over the past six years--over 80 ornaments in all!You can use this as a motivator to start creating some of yourown Christmas ornaments, or simply enjoy reading it and not lift.a finger. A11 proeeeds from the sale of the book go toward theMuseum's educational programs, So you can't go wrong with thispurchase.

In what ever way you choose to celebrate the holiday season,we hope that you make the museum a part of your holidaytraditions.

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Ef>r1roR_ 'We received some feedback

from t,he membership concerningthe format, etc. of thebulletin and would like tohave more. We know people arereading articles because acouple of people pointed outthat there was sonethingmissing from the piece onvoter registration in the lastissue. We are printing theentire text in this bulletin.

For some reason, therewas a problem with thedelivery of some of the JuIybulletins. ff you did notreceive that issue, pleasecontact us.

Since everyone who is 100years old or older didn't rushto contact us, the plannedarticle has taken a differentturn. Everyone is a part oftrhistory. rr Therefore, hre arecontacting people, 80 andover, to learn about their1ives, memories, families,etc. We will concentrateprimarily on native SutterCounty residents; however, w€will also be talking to peoplewho have moved here from otherareas. Due to the time of theyear, w€ are concentrating onholiday traditions in thisissue.

The January issue willhiqhlight nfirsts.tr Werecei-ved some response to ourrequest for information, butwe can use more help. Do youknow of a rtfirsttr event youtdlike to share? For instance,who flew or owned the firstairplane here? Tf you wouldlike to share your memories wewill be appreciate the input.The January i-ssue will alsofeature an article on theKimerer family's arrival in

T4ESSAGESutter County.

Future i-ssues wiIlcontain information concerningFreda Ehmann, Brown School andinterviews with Sutter Countyresidents.

We would like to do anissue dedicated toentertainment in SutterCounty. We need he1p. Do anyof you have any information onTom Godfrey who lived inSutter City and was anaerial ist/trapeze perforrner?What kinds of publicentertainment do you remember?Baseball? Football? Dances?Oktoberfest? Magic LanternShows?

We would like topicsuggestions, information,research papers, diaries,leLters, names of people whoare willing to be interviewed,and names of people who arewilling to write a piece forthe bulletin. We want (andneed) your help to keep thisbulletin interesting. This issomething that we can do, asmembers, to preserve thehistory of the area and it isa responsibility that we allshare. ff you have an itemfor us, you can drop it off atthe Museum or send it to theHistorical Society (P. O. BoxL004, Yuba City, CA 95992).If you would like to talk tous about an idea, give us acall (Linda--673-272L orSharyl--674-7741.) . We'relooking forward to hearingfrom you.

Linda LeoneSharyl Simmons

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CONTRTBTITTONS TOAND TRUST

THE BUTLDTNGFT'ND

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memory of Lila AdamsMrs. Myrtle Newcomb

memory of Wesley Bead1eCaroline Ringler

memory of Gladys BrizeeM/M Len RichertBridge CIub

memory of Frieda DedeckerNorman and Loade1 Piner

memory of Nellie EIIisBob & Katie Bryant

memory of Barbara Sue hpeyCaroline Ringler

memory of Barbara A. FillmoreThe Robert Schmidl Family

memory of Howard (Pete) GordonBlanche Davis

memory of Dorottry HeierBob & Cathrine Bryant

memory of Jan HelderRichard & Elaine Tarke

memory of Rulry HooperHarold & Evelyn Quigg

memory of Glenna KayDale & Alma BurtisDavid & Karen GilbertLinda Leone

memory of Herbert C. LytkenMargery G. Edmonds

memory of Olive t{cCarthyMrs. Myrtle Newcomb

memory of Steve rChipn l{cNa1lyJack & Helen Heenan

memory of I'lildred ttaslanBob & Katie Bryant

memory of ltardel l,leyersBob & Katie BryantBetty & Louie SchmidlRosemary MosesLouis & Betty TarkeM/M Roger ChandlerNorman & Loadel PinerThe Robert Schnidl FamilyCynthia StuckmeyerRichard & Elaine TarkeBurwell & Loretta UllreyMerle & Alice RusseIICathy PangleWanda RankinJoe & Eleanor McCarron

memory of Jack ReillyM/M Herbert Edmonds

memory of C. Sharkey RooneyMargery G. Edmonds

memory of Dan Stevenson Jr.Barry & Donna McMasterSandra FonleyJudith BarrRandy & Shirley Schnabel

memory of Haskell tlardFidelity National Title

Insurance Company

memory of Clrarles (Roy) WeJ-chJin & Alberta Gilpatrick

memory of Estelle llelchNorman & Loadel PinerVl/M J. F. DeatonYl/Vi F. H. Brockman

memory of Elinor Newcoub l{ittMrs. Myrtle Newcomb

memory of Lorene lloodHarry & Bernice Wilson

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In Honor of Helen & Pat Burke's 50th Wedding AnniversaryDick & Cuba Scriven

Honor of Randy & ShirleY Schnabel'sHelen BrierIYDr. /Mrs. Garland StrouP

Honor of Anna Tarke's 95th BirthdayRoberta McCoYMarcella HardyElizapeth PhilliPs

SOth Birthdays

In Honor of lVinnie Weis' 1-0oth BirthdayLinda Leone

Sports critics have been around for a long tj-me. . .

EXHIBITION THE POOREST EVER SEEN ON LOCAL GROI]NDS THTS YEAR--SHAKE UP TEAM

My what a massacre. will somebody please call help? Talkabout baseball. Forget it quick. Rotten, yes and then some.Yesterday's exhibition was enough Lo give the fans heartfailure. Town Iot, Y€s, and then Some. TaIk about a stench,Some of those errors had enough odor to make a tannery looksick. An they talk about a record. where, when and why? Itwas awful. What the White Sox know about baseball can be sizedup in one word--nothing.

Bring on the Eureka Boys, club for we want to see.a game,not a wil-d west show. ttanager Tyler is going to make somechanges. It would have been better for the future of the gamein this city if he had stated that he had fired the whole team.The fieldeis had a bad case of frigid extremities. Theyreminded one of living pictures. They had the uniforms but notthe motions of ball plaYers.

Uniforms don't count when you cantt catch the ball and nowis the time to do something. Ty1er says he has signed Koch.Good, that helps some. He is going to shake up the infield.Let us suggest that he take the outfield as escorts for thedischarged players. Better have a vacant garden than that bunchof grass pullers...Oroville Mercury5 June 191-l-

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trA. Serrse of Pl- a.ce tt

By Jacqueline Lowe

ttA Sense of Place: The Ethnographic Photography of Scott M.Pattersonrr is an exhibit comprised of sixty-eight eloquent blackand white photographs on loan from the Grace Hudson Museum ofUkiah and the Mendocino County Museum of Willits. The images inthe exhibit are of contemporary Native Arnericans in the abundantnatural setting of Catifornia's North Coast. They are powerfulreminders of the vitality and richness of a cultural traditionthousands of years old that too many Californians today believeno longer exists.

The photographs in rrA Sense of Placerr vrere chosen for theirconceptual focus on the Russian River drainage system as rrthecenter.rt Images of traditional beadmaking, food gathering,basketry production, resource-rich microenvironments, andcompassionate portraits of today's Native American elders formthe heart of the exhibit. While the focus of the exhibit is onthe Pomo of llendocino, Sonoma and Lake Counties, there is a linkto Sutter County and the Maidu Indians who once make their liveshere. rntertribal trading objects that are clearly coastal inorigin, such as clam she11 disk beads, rnade their way into theCentral Val1ey and became part of the local culture. Whenviewing the exhibit, Museurn vi-sitors are invited to remember thatthe ltaidu culture today is as alive as the Pomo culture depictedin these photographs; this was clearly evidenced by the Museum'sexhibit this past sunmer: rrHonee Tooweydom: Heart Praying."

While rrA Sense of Placerr celebrates the Native Americancultures of California's North Coast, it is also a tribute to thevision of the creator of its many memorable images. ScottPatterson !,ras an anthropologist and photographer who died in anautomobile accident in July of l-986, dt the tragically early ageof 33. Nevertheless, Patterson left behind a legacy of thousandsof black and white and color photographs taken over a span ofmore than a decade in the North Coast region.

rrA Sense of Placeil will be at the Museum through Novernber29, 1992. A selection of the photographs in the exhibition havebeen reproduced in a handsome portfolio publication by the show'ssponsoring museums. The publication will be on sale at theMuseum through the run of this exhibit.

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HOI{ORARY UEI,TBERS

At this month's Historical Society board meeting, mentionwas made of the past practice of presenting honorary memberships.It was first established in L969 and was discontinued when theMuseum and Historical Society merged. We decided that thisshould once again be done. ft's easy to belong to this specialgroup of people. A11 you have to have done is be born in SutterCounty, California 90 or more years ago. You do not have to be acurrent resident of this county. Upon completion of aninformation form, you will become an Honorary Member of both theSutter County Historical Society and the Comrnunity MemorialMuseum.

If you are eligible or know someone who is eligible, pleasecall either Linda (673-2721-) or Sharyl (674-774L). ff we aren'thome, please leave a message. We will call you back and mail youthe form to complete. It's really simple. In the Januarybul1etin, w€ will run a list of current [Honorary Members.rf

I,IARY AARON I'tUSEUli REOPEI{S FOR SPECIAL Ef,/EIIT

The doors of the Mary Aaron Museum have been closed due toextensive repairs which are still underway. on Saturday,December 5th, the doors will be open from l-0:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.to celebrate a trVictorian Christmas.rr Luisa Leger, a Marysvilleartist specializing in water colors, wi-Il present a one-hlomanshow. Many of Ms. Leger's paintings are of loca1 buildings.

Karen Burrow, Director of the lilary Aaron Museum, previouslybras employed at the Community Memorial Museum and is the personresponsible for the recent wedding dress exhibit here.

flre Sutter County FarmerI July L892 - page 1-

The registration of voters, as generally understood, willbegin on the 30th of July and close on the 22nd of October. Theperson registering will have to give a fu11 and particulardescription of hirnself. His height, complexion, color of eyes,and the description of scars, or any other marks and theirlocation much be given. Besides preventing a man from votingunder a name that does not belong to him, the description can beused by the officers to apprehend hin should he run ahray fromhome. --Biggs Argus

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JOHAhUI{ A -by Stephen

On the morning ofFebruary 15, 1-803, JohannAugust Sutter was born in thevillage of Kandern inGermany's Margravate of Baden,thirteen miles north of Basel,Switzerland. His father,Johann Jakob Sutter , Jr. , wasthe manager of the hanlet,spaper nil1. His mother,Christine Wilhelmina Stober,bras a pastor's daughter fromGrenzach, just up the RhineRiver.

As Johann Sutter grelr up,he had several jobs. He spentmost of his time was as agrocery clerk and he held thatposition when he met MissAnnette Dubeld of Burg'dorf.On October 24, 1"826, at theage of 23, Johann AugustSutter and Annette Dube1d weremarried and a day later theyhad a son, Johann AugustSutter, Jr.

Sutter worked hard tomake a success of himself inBurg'dorf. He bought a houseon the main street with thehetp of his nother-in-law andhe qave up clerking. The upperstory of the house became ahome for him and his growingfanilyi the ground floor hedevoted to a dry-goods anddrapery shop of his own:Johann August Sutter &Cornpany.

The dry-goods businessdid not do very well andSutter was soon forced to geta part-tirne job. He chose amilitary career, volunteeringfor the Reserve Corps of theCanton of Berne in 1828. OnMarch 1-6, l-831-, Sutteradvanced to the rank of First

SI-TTTER.C. PerryUnder-Lieutenant of the 2ndCenter Company. Shortly afterthat, Johann August Sutter &Company went bust.

Sutter swore that hewould never see the inside ofa debtor's cell. Secretly, heput together a little cash andon May 8th or 9th of 1834, heabandoned his wife and fivechildren along with a debtamounting to 5l-,183 SwissFrancs and left for thePromised Land of rtAmericatr.

The news of the debtor'sflight spread quickly.Sutter's creditors secured awarrant for his arrest on Junet2 , l_834.Sutter landed in New Yorkin JuIy of l-834 and set outinnediately for the West,determined to put as muchdistance as possible betweenhinself and the Swissauthorities whom he knew wereclose behind. Sutter flatlystated that his object innigrating to America was tobecorne a farmer -- so the 31-year old fugitive skipped outof town and headed West.Sutter lived and worked inseveral states over the nextfew years, taking odd jobs andeven doing a little farming.On August 2L, 1-838, heformally declared before theproper authorities hisintentions to become a citizenof the United States. On thedocument, he gave his correctbirthplace (Baden), but didnot specify the town. He alsofalsified his d9€, giving itas 45 when he was only 35years old, perhaps to throw alittle dust on his already

cold trai1.Sutter eventually arrived

in California, then part ofMexico. Sutter made campwhere the Sacramento andAmerican Rivers meet and didwhat he had done for all thoseyears as a boy -- he started atrading post and became aclerk once more.

In Monter€y, GovernorJuan Bautista Alvarado praisedSutter for his greataccomplishments with theIndians and the settlers inthe area and granted himpermission to farm elevenleagues of wilderness in theCentral Valley. Sutter htasalso promised Mexicancitizenship in one year. Thus$ras founded, oil August 13,l-839, the colony of NewHelvetia. A year later Sutterbecame a naturalized MexicanCitizen and was appointedjudge and governmentrepresentative for the InlandTerritory, a position hebelieved gave him rfpower oflife and death over allsubjectsrr.

During 1840, Sutter hadIndian laborers build aneighteen foot high walI ofbaked adobe bricks. The walIwas two-and-a-half feet thickand it was virtually cannon-proof. The compound which itenclosed was 32O feet long onthe north and south, 160 feetlong on the west, and l-40 feetlong on the east. From thefirst it was known asrrsutter's Forttr. At times,Sutter had as many as 1,OOOIndians working on thecompound. Inside they builthis headquarters (rCasaGranderr a large three-roomstructure) as well as abakery, a mi11, a blanket

factory, and variousworkshops. The fndians workedthe fields and tended theIivestock for Sutter.Sutter's Fort becarne thestopping-off place forsettlers in the area.

On June 18, 1841-, Sutterreceived the land grantentitling him to ownership ofNew Helvetia as promised.Governor Alvarado gave Suttereleven square leagues of therich Sacramento VaIley, notcounting overflow lands withinthe general bounds of thegrant. The New Helvetiapatent was bordered on thenorth by three eroded remnantsof volcanic cones, the TresPicos (today called the SutterButtes) on latitude 39" 40'451t. The Sacramento Riverbounded the grant on the west,the Feather River was theeastern boundary, and the lineof latitude 38" 49' l-2rr rnrasthe boundary on the south.

The year l-84L was a bigyear for Sutter; not only didhe acquire New Helvetia, but aRussian company offered tosell Fort Ross on the Pacificcoast to hin. Sutter.was topay $30,000. for Fort Ross.The terms were $21000. cashdown, three installments inproduce (chiefly wheat), andthe fourth and final paymentin cash. Sutter agreed to pay$5,OOO. in wheat for the firsttwo years and $L0,000. inwheat the third year. Paymentwas guaranteed by nortgaginghis New Helvetia property.

Just why Sutter hras soeager to possess Fort Rossstill puzzles Californiahistorians. It was nobargain. Sutter understoodthat he was buying only thestock, buildings and equipnent

- not the land. He plungedinto great debt from which henever realIy extricatedhimself. What did he get?About 1-,7OO coIiIS, calves andoxen, l-rOOO horses and rnules,and 2,000 sheep were added tohis herds. He also receivedmany tools, plows, carts,corrals, a tann€ry, a dairY, abathhouse, kayaks, a fishingboat, and a canoe.

A11 Sutter had to do nowwas move Fort Ross to NewHelvetia and pay the bi1ls.This was easier said thandone. To accomplish thistask, Sutter hired a young,20-year-old teacher named JohnBidwell who would become oneof his best friends and aloyal employee.Sutter decided to movernost of his newly acquiredassets to an area of NewHelvetia in the far north bYTres Picos. This was an areaof rich land, suitable forfarming, near the confluenceof the Yuba and Feather Riversin the shade of old cottonwoodtrees. Sutter called thisarea ttHock Farmrr which isGerman for rrHigh Farmfr. JohnBidwell was transferred fromFort Ross to manage Hock Farmand build rrsutterts GreatestDreamfr.

The next few years wouldbe a great challenge forSutter. He started sellingparts of New Helvetia nearSutter's Fort to paY for theFort Ross blunder. BY the endof L845, Sutter had turned badluck into good and the rrwheatkingrf of California was rnasterof 4,000 head of cattle, 1- r 5oomares, 2OO tame horses andmules, 31000 sheep, and manyhogs on his virtuallywinterless ranges of New

Helvetia. Things l^rere goingvery well for Sutter now.Sutter's Fort was the tradingpost in the west for newsettlers and Hock Farm lrras abeautiful working farmsupplying goods for Sutter'sFort. In January 1846, Suttergave himself just two years toget hinself clear of all debt.This was in no sense wishfulthinking. By continualfrenetic activity, he was atlast closing in on his goal tobe debt free. Then a calvaryclash on the Texas/Mexicoborder, So far away fromSutter's world of NewHelvetia, led to a declarationof war on Mexico by the U.S.Congress on May l-3, 1845.

A hrar requires a vastamount of rnilitary personneland supplies on both sides.New Helvetia had all thesupplies on hand -- food,clothing, horses, etc. Sutterhad it all.

For once, Sutter foundhinself in the strange role ofcreditor instead of debtor.The problem was that thegovernment did not pay. itsdebts pronptly either. IfSutter could get paid, hewould be out of debt. ByJanuary 1-848, most of Sutter'ssupplies and livestock hteregone.

On January 28 , l-848, JohnSutter was at the fortwondering how he would rebuildNew Helvetia and get back towhere he was before the warwhen to his surprise JohnMarshall, dil employee who wasrunning Sutter's saw mill onthe American River nearColoma, arrived at the fort.Marshall wanted to talk toSutter in private. They went

1_O

to the casa Grande and lockedthe door. Marshall said thaton January 24Lh, he wascleaning the racewaY at thesaw rnill and found some dultyellow grains rtl think itis gold.tr After severaltests, Sutter and Marshallwere both convinced it wasindeed gold and theY shouldkeep this find very quiet.

Well, someone told --within six months thepopulation of the New Helvetiaarea went from l-,600 PeoPle to16,OoO people. Now thingswent from bad to worse.People were stealing Sutter'slivestock, grain, suPPlies,and squatting on his land.New Helvetia was being carriedaway one piece at a time. A11Sutter could do was watch.

The Mexican-American Warended. On FebruarY 2, l-848the Treaty of GuadaluPe-Hidalgo was signed. Suttercould not know what thesigning of this treatY woulddo to New Helvetia. One ofthe conditions would be thatthe United States would PaYMexico $15,000,000. for all ofCalifornia and New Mexico(which included present daYArizona) and declare a knownborder between the twocountries. When the UnitedStates bought California, theYdid not recognize all previousgrants or agree with old knownboundaries set by Mexico.John Sutter knew the proPertYboundaries of New Helvetiavery well; the United StatesGovernment did not.

The year l-849 was not agood year for Sutter as rr49ertrsettlers were pouring into thearea by the hundreds andthousands and they all had thesame idea: GOLD! Sutter found

hinself without workers to runNew Helvetia and it went toruin. He started sellinglarge portions of New Helvetiafor ridiculously low pricesand in the fall of 1-849 hesold Sutter's Fort for $7r000.Now that the fort was gone,Sutter moved north to HockFarm where he was sure hecould live in peace.

In early l-850, Sutter wasso lonely and depressed overhis losses that he sent forhis wife and children. Hethought that he would livelike a king at Hock Farm withhis farnily. This was not tobe. The Gold Rush was biggerthan ever and there ltas noplace to hide. In l-850,Sutter was signing deeds andselling property day andnight. The property was beingsold so fast that Sutter foundhimself selling the sameproperty to different people.To keep Hock Farm clear, itwas deeded to his wife, AnnaSutter. Hock Farm was now cutdown to only an area near theFeather River, six miles longand four miles wide.

On September 9, l-850,California became the thirty-first state of the UnitedStates and with thi-s came anew claim on New Helvetia.Sutter engaged in a lega1battle with the United StatesGovernment over property linesthat made New Helvetia nuchsmaller than it was in thebeginning. over the next fewyears, Sutter lost it aII.

A11 that was left bY l-855was Hock Farrn. That is whereSutter tived until June 2L,l-865 when a fire destroyed hisgrand house and all hispossessions. In December of1865, Sutter moved to

11

Washington, D.C. where hecontinued his fight againstthe United States Government.His pleas, however, fell ondeaf ears and Sutter gave uPhope. Sutter's last- Parcel,Hock Farrn, ttthe garden sPot ofCaliforniarr, was sold on March20, 1868. Sutter Plunged intoa deep depression. Late inthe afternoon of June 18, l-880at the Pennsylvania Hotel inLitiz, Pennsylvania, therrFather of Californiafr died.

Ed. Note: StePhen PerrYspoke to the HistoricalSociety Meeting in JanuarY ofL992 on this same toPic. Hewas kind enough to write uP aversion of the Presentation hemade last winter forpublication in our bu1letin.He also provided us with theledger excerpts, pictures, andother items of interest on thefollowing pages.

In i-876 when Captain Sutter was dictating his reminiscencesto the historian H-. H. Bancroft, h€ i-ncluded the followingpassage:

frln March of 1849 I moved to ny Hock-Farm which had beenlaid out in L842. Bidwell had built a fine rnansion for me thereand had prepared everything for the reception.of nY family,whose arrival from Switzerland I ldas expecting just then.

My livestock continued to be decreased by kill.ing andstealiig. It soon turned out that transferring the animals toHock-Fairn had not improved the situation and numerous horseswere stolen and entire manadas of mares $rere driven to Oregon.

...My large stock of hogs was likewise an easy prey for therobbers. One day a man by the name of Otvens from Missouriproposed to me that f let hin kill all the cattle which had3triyea beyond the Buttes. I aqreed to this suggestion with theundeistanaing that f should rec-eive half of the profits. T knewthat people irom Marysville would kill of these cattle anyway.Mr. Owenl started his work by slaughtering a fine Durham co$twhich had cost me three hundred dollars, and I had to chase himahray.

During the great flood of L849, the cattle had to takerefuge on the island and knolls between the Buttes and the mouthof the Feather River. Here my vaqueros could not guard then alland people from the surrounding towns approached by boat andkilled hundreds of animals...rr[we quote this passage from sutter's own story, p. 224-226, bYErwin G. Gudde, l-936 . l

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HOI-IDAYSby Linda Leone

As we begin to prepare for the holidays, our minds tend todrift back to holidays past. Our heritage, place of residence,and age tend to influence the way in which we celebrate. Ourheritage and religious affiliations also determine which holidayswe observe.

Yon Kippur (the Day of Atonement is the most solemn day ofthe Jewish year) and Columbus Day (the celebration of ChristopherColurnbus landing in the Americas in 1492) will have come and gonebefore you receive this, so we will begin the discussion ofholidays with Halloween.

HALLOUTEEN

Our rrHalloweenrr hasevolved from a Celticcelebration held on october31st. They believed the soulsof the dead rdere allowed toreturn to their homes and allthe witches, tro11s, demons,hobgoblins, etc. were allowedto roarn the earth on thisnight. In Eng1and, largebonfires were kept burning andmen with pitchforks frolickedaround the fire to keep evilspirits away. As peoplebecame less superstitious, thenight became one of partiesfor young people who dressedup in costumes and playedgames. The parties eventuallyevolved into children dressedin costume going door-to-doorrrTrick or Treatingtt for candy.The past few years, moreschools and churches have beenorganizing parties for thechildren on this night.

There have always beenthose kids who were moreinLerested in the |tTrickfr thanthe rrTreat. tr Shirley (Mclean)Burtis rernembers, rrsome peopledumped over the outhouses. rl

Her husband, Newell rrHoagierlBurtis said that there wasn't

much to do in Sycamore (ColusaCounty) where he grew up; rrlfwe turned any toilets over,they'd be our own.rr lla(Mclean) Brown didn't rememberanything drastic aboutHalloween. Cassius Eppersonsaid he didn't go trick ortreating and was alwayslooking for someone strongenough to turn over theouthouses. Marian (Channon)McElroy remembers: rfI used tohear tales when I was youngabout the pranks the young menof the town would play. Theywould put buggies, you know,horse and buggies, that typeof buggies, up on top ofbuildings and tip over the oldouthouses and all this sort ofthing. They did it in a bigrrray in those days. tt

Of the few people I spokewith, only John Breeding, Sr.of Live Oak adrnitted to anyHalloween pranks (naybebecause it wasn't done in thisarea): tt(We) went to Saratogaschool (in Santa Clara County)and they had a great big holethat they were going to bury atank for fuel and we rol1ed anold wagon i-nto it and wetook -- a whole bunch of uspulIed up a slide in the

f_9

school yard and took it downin front of the what-do-You-ca}l it and put a sign on it'business is slidin'. . . .Andthey took gates off PeoPle'shouses and pulled them uP ontelephone poles and thingslike that, You know.rt Johnalso admitted to being thelook-out while his brother,Lester, filled business doorkeyholes with plaster.

VHTERAN'S DAY

Veteran's DaY, formerlYknown as Armistice DaY, iscelebrated on the l-l-th ofNovember every Year to honorAmerican servicemen, Past andpresent. Woodrow Wilsonproclaimed this daY a holidaYto cornmemorate the end ofWorld War I. In Years Past,there btere big Parades held tocelebrate this holidaY.

TTIA}TKSGIVTNG

We all know the story ofthe first Thanksgiving and themeal shared by the Pilgrirnsand the Indians. The roots ofthe holiday stem from Englishharvest festivals. PresidentLincoln declared this anational holiday in 1853 atthe height of the Civil War.

Through the Years the waYof celebrating has not changedmuch. The daY has centered ona meal enjoyed bY fanilY andfriends. Cassius EPPersonsays they rr . . . too of ten atetoo much and sat around therest of the day holding theirstomachs. I' ShirleY Burtisremernbers Thanksgiving beingspent at her Mcleangrandparents' home where theYhad turkey, dressing, mashedpotatoes, and aPPle Pie. She

also remembers that the tablewas set with a tableclothsince it was a sPecialoccasion; tablecloths notbeing an item used foreveryday meals. MarianMcEIroy said, ttW€ alwaYs hadsome of the relatives i-n and,you know, w€'d have thetraditional turkeY dinnerThanksqiving and Christmas. rl

The November 29, 1895issue of the Sutter CountYFarmer carried the followingitems related to theThanksgiving observance :rrThe bank, Post officeand county offices observedholiday hours YesterdaY. rl

rrThere htere specialThanksgiving exercises at theYuba City school WednesdaY.rlrfThere were appropriateThanksgiving services at thechurches in various Parts ofthe countY YesterdaY. rr

HANT]KKAH

Hanukkah i-s a holidaYcelebrated by Jews inremembrance of the miracle ofa small amount of sanctifiedoi1 lighting the eternal lightin the Temple for eight daYs.The celebration, also known asthe Festival of Lights, lastsfor eight days (the number ofcups on the Menorah and thenumber of daYs it takes toprepare fresh consecratedoit). This i-s a very gayholiday with good food and anexchange of gifts. Childrenare given sma1l squarespinning tops which haveHebrew letters on the side.The letters are NGHS whichstands for rrNes Godol HoYoShomtt ( rrA great miraclehappened there. fr ) This is a

20

very sinplified explanation ofthis very important Jewishholiday.

ETIRISTI{AS

Christnas has become atwc*part holiday, thereligious and the secular.The underlying ttfeelingft runsthrough both -- that ofkindness and sharing.

The ancient Romansobserved the winter solsticewith a festival dedicated tothe god of agriculture,Saturn. It was called theSaturnalia. Gifts wereexchanged and there was greatfun for all.

In the fourth centurY,Emperor Constantine decreedChristianity to be the faithof the Roman Empire. Thecelebration held in Decemberwas called the Mass of Christ,or Christ Mass. Tradition hasset December 25th as thebirthday of Christ. Manyearly Christians refused tocelebrate Christmas Daybecause of the previousSaturnalia celebration.

The Puritans in NewEngland not only did notcelebrate Christmas, but ithras against the law to do so.Anyone caught celebrating andfeasting or not working onthat day was fined. Today thereligious aspect of Christmasis celebrated by Christiansaround the world.

Santa Claus, ES we knowhim, entered the picturefairly recently. He has hiscounterpart in most countriesaround the world. The conceptis based on St. Nicho1as,archbishop of Myra (now knownas KaIe, a seaport in Turkey),who was both kindhearted and

generous. Clement Moore'sdescription of Santa Claus inhis 1-822 poem, "A Visit fromSt. Nicholasfr, established theAmerican impression of SantaClaus. This poem was thebasis for Thomas Nasttssketches of Santa Claus. Hisfirst sketch appeared inHarper's Week1y nehrspaper onJanuary 3, 1863. His sketcheswere the first visualrepresentation of Santa as hreknow him today. (Nast was apolitical cartoonist who,among other things, institutedthe use of the donkey andelephant as political partysymbols. ) Santa has changedover the years, but is asloved by children today as hewas 1-70 years agto.

When asked aboutchildhood Christmases,everyone I spoke withmentioned the Christmas treesillurninated by lit candles.Cassius mentioned the bucketof qrater that was kept by thetree in case the candlescaught something on fire.ilrs. McElroy in describing thetrees said, tt...f can rememberthe Christmas tree over in mycousin's house, welI, maybeour house too, where they hadused candles on the trees andthey had to be very careful,of course. That was beforethe electric liqht bulbs hrereput on Christmas trees. I canremember those candles. Theyhad a little clip-kind of athing, a little metal thingwith a little round place toset this candle in -- out oftin. rr

Estelle Lyden, a residentof Yuba County, was born andraised in Augusta, Georgia.She remembers a different kindof fire lit Christmas. When

2L

she hras a girl, the traditionwas to celebrate by settingoff fire works on ChristmasDay. The neighbors across thestreet received a large box offireworks from relatives andset thern off for theneighborhood to enjoy. Sheremembers the explosives asbeing larger and more powerfulthan today's fireworks,measuring up to five inchesand, 'rprobably able to blowsomeonets hand off .rl

Santa Claus was a part ofChristmas in Sutter County inthe early part of thiscentury. Mrs. McEIroy didn'trecall seeing anyone dressedIike Santa C1aus coming to thehouse when she was a chiId,but rr . . .I believed in SantaClaus until f was about five;I got wi-se pretty f ast. rlShirley Burtis remembershammering a nail into themantle and hanging herstocking from it and thatSanta came down the chirnney.She remembers giving some ofthe neighbors presents,usually books. IIa Brownremembers staying home atChristmas and that Santaalways came. She said shereceived a lot of toys andalways liked everything shegot.

Newell Burtis said theyhad a Christmas tree sornetimesand remembers school programswhere children recited pieces,but there weren't many plays.

Cassius Epperson rememberschurch programs where you hadto recite poems and gettingthe words mixed up.

The December 27, 1895issue of the Sutter CountyFarmer carried the followingitems related to Christmasobservance:trChristmas was observedby the court offices, bank,and most of the businesshouses. rl

trC. W. Wardts School,Slough, held their Christmasentertainment Wednesdaynight. "frSeveral of theCottonwood pupils have takenpart in the literary programmefor the Christrnas tree, whichis to be held in the MethodistEpiscopal Church at PleasantGrove Christmas Eve. PleasantGrove. Dec 23 l-985. rr

SOURCES:

Joseph Gaer, Holidavs Aroundthe World, Little, Brown andCompany (Boston), 1953.

Sutter County Farmer

Interviews with John Breeding,Sr., I1a Brown, Newell andShirley Burtis, CassiusEpperson, Estelle Lyden, andMarian McElroy.

22

FASHTON NEWS

Have you read about Mrs. Russell? In Boston she has beengiving talks to fashionable ladies in private parlors. Mrs.Hodgson Burnett opened her new house for her and Mrs Russelllectured. So graceful a woman I have never seen. Everywhere she?oes she is the most beautifully dressed woman in the room andher dress made of cheesecloth, five cents a yard. A11 women lookat her with envy.

Thirty of us in tight sleeves, tight belts, heavy draperies,hot bonnet-strings, gloves as tight as our skins, and bootsalmost so, Iistened to Mrs. Russell while she talked to us ondress.

There lrtere not three present who could raise their armsstraight over head or who could stoop to pick up a pin as a childwould. Mrs. Russell in her sixty-five cent crimson cheesecloth,rrras as comfortable as a boy in a bathing suit, 3S beautiful as apicture, and no one could find fault with this dress wherever shemight wear it.frPerhaps in heaven hte sha11 know how to dress like thatrrlsaid a woman whose back ached under her bustle (as most backs do)whose collar chaffed her neck (as all collars will) whose sleevespinned her arms down, and whose corsets, thought not even tied,were tight, as all corsets are, however loosely put on, theweight of skirts dragging them down to where they must fit.

I doubt if a single woman who reads this is altogether happyand comfortable in her clothes; yet, strangely enough, we allhate trdress reforms.rr But when a pretty woman like l{rs. Russellshows us how to get our whole year's wardrobe for the amount wepay for one Paris dress, and discards everything that torturesother women, yet is exquisitely dressed and draped, So every manadmires her and every woman envies her, it seems there arereforms and reformers. Mrs. Russellts dress expresses herknowledge of the laws of harmony in everything.Odd Fellows NewspaperJuly 22, l-886

The debating society of Pleasant Grove is progressing quiterapidly. The question for the last debate was rtResolved thatbloomers are more becoming than ski-rts.rr The negative side won.They will meet again a week from Friday night, the questionbeing, trResolved that i-gnorance and superstition has caused morecrime than poverty.rr AIl are cordially invited.Sutter Countv FarmerNovember I, 1-895

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COI.IING EVENTS

October20 Historical Society Meeting - 7 z3A at the Museum

Speaker: Maggie MoyersTopic: Maidu Travelling Trunk

2I Christmas Ornament Workshop - 1o:00-Noon at the Museum28 The American Experience: The Donner Party

PBS Channel 6 - 9:00 p.m.

November3 Election Day - Don't Forget to Vote

18 Christmas Ornament Workshop - l-O:O0-Noon at the Museum24 Sutter's Fort Living History Day29 ttA Sense of Placett exhibit closes

December3-4 SaIe of Past Museum Christmas Decorations

Museum gift shop5 John Hendrickson - Book & Calendar signi-ngrrArtist's Salerr at Museum - 2: oO-5:00 p.m.

10 Museum Decoration Day - 9:oo a.m.12 Trees & Traditions 5:OO-8:00 p.m. at the Museum22 Christmas Open House & Children's Program -

1:OO-3:0o at the MuseumJohn Carter will entertain with musicGertrude the china doll's 110th birthday party

January l-993l-9 Historical Society Meeting - 7z3O p.m. at the Museum

Speaker: To be announced

SUTTER COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYBOX 1004

YUBA CITY, CALIFORNIA 95992

RETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEED

Nonp rof it OrganizationU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDYuba City, CA 95991

Permit No. 380