Trail TalkThe Newsletter of the California Nevada Chapter

Number 64 Summer 2004

OREGON-CALIFORNIA TRAILS ASSOCIATION

PRESERVATION NEWS:SUMMER 2004

By Leslie R. Fryman

Progress on Humboldt Title Transfer – NationalEnvironmental Policy Act (NEPA) documentation iscurrently in preparation for this large land exchangebetween the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) andPershing County Water Conservation District, the Stateof Nevada, and Pershing and Lander Counties.

Without a successful intervention and solution fromOCTA and its colleagues in Nevada, the title transferwill remove more than 40 miles of the CA Trail fromfederal management, leaving it open for developmentby energy, mining, and other interests. OCTA is cor-responding with Patrick Welch, Archaeologist for theBOR in Sacramento, regarding mapping and NationalRegister documentation of trail segments in the ex-change areas, and possible ways to mitigate the seri-ous impacts of the exchange on the trail and its associ-ated resources. OCTA plans to push for a deed cov-enant requiring land recipients to set aside the trailcorridor for long-term preservation as well as for pub-lic access and interpretation.

Please contact me if you are interested in review-ing and commenting on the draft EIS; I am collectingan email list of members to notify the moment the docu-ment is made available to the public.

Emigrant Campsite Becomes Caltrans Borrow Pit– A historically-known emigrant camping area at HatCreek on the Noble's Trail (about 4 miles west of Poi-son Lake) has been destroyed without mapping or ar-chaeological study.

OCTA member Richard Silva and Lassen NationalForest District Archaeologist Doni Smith were recently

(See Preservation, p.12)

Leslie Fryman point-mapping wagon staplewhile Ellen and Ford Osborn look on. Photo by Tom Fee.

ARCHAEOLOGIST'S EXPANDEXCAVATIONS — DONNER

FAMILY CAMPBy Leslie R. Fryman

The tragic story of the Donner Party and what itendured during the winter of 1846-47 is one of themost widely known and talked about events in west-ern history. Its small collection of primary accountsand reminiscences by survivors has been followed bya maelstrom of folklore and conjecture, as well as manyvaried efforts at scholarly research and illuminationof historical facts. In the 21st century, technologicalimprovements in archaeological method can be ap-plied to help differentiate fact from fiction, and revealpreviously unknown details of the events that tookplace during that ill-fated winter in the Sierra Nevada.

The Alder Creek meadow is known by tradition asthe campsites of George and Jacob Donner and theirfamilies. George Donner, his wife Tamsen and five

(See Donner, p. 8)

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGEEDITORIAL STAFFManaging Editor - Mary MuellerEditor - Virginia HammernessAsst. Editor - Patricia LoomisDesktop Publ. - Norine KimmyIllustrator - Jack CloughMembership

Database - Patty Knight

Chapter Membership & Duesto: Patty Knight

PO BOX 1277Carson City, NV 89702-1277

Trail Talk, is published quarterlyby the California-Nevada Chap-ter of OCTA for its members.Published at 1765 Hicks Ave.,San Jose, CA 95125.

Chapter Board Officers:Jim Allison, PresidentBob Iverson. Vice Pres.Zeke Sicotte, TreasurerLeslie Fryman, Preservation

Directors:Curtis GrantVirginia HammernessSteve KnightKathy LewinBill Webster, Past Pres.

Summertime and the tomatoesare starting to come, now in onesand twos but soon in large numbers.This is what makes this valley heatbearable! Of course, we can getaway to cooler climates, such as thesections of emigrant trail whichabound in western Nevada and east-ern California.

This was our pleasure on theweekend of June 26th and 27thwhen we went out on the 40 MileDesert and Truckee River Route ofthe California Trail under the ableguidance of Tom Dougherty andChuck Dodd.

Although the group was small— Bill and Shann Rupp, TomRodgers, Joyce Everett, and I, wewere treated to a very well plannedand executed tour that was evenmore comprehensive than thatwhich we did as volunteer tour busguides for the Reno convention in2002.

Thank you Tom for the wonder-ful experience. If you ever think thatyou've seen everything I suggestthat you sign up for a current tourand be pleasantly surprised at what

new adventures are in store. Get-ting to tour the regional trails is oneof the best experiences available toour Chapter members. Treat your-self to a great time — sign up!

Of course, the annual conven-tion in Vancouver WA is about uponus with its tours, scholarly presen-tations, and the opportunity to meetold friends and new, and experiencethat great feeling that comes withsharing the camaraderie of our com-mon passion.

It's a time to recharge our com-mitments to furthering the goals ofthe organization, particularly thepreservation of the trails. There ismuch to be done. Come and hearabout the progress made and chal-lenges to come. There's ample op-portunity. I like to call it an "op-portunity rich environment" to beinvolved and make a difference.Whether you attend the conventionor not, please don't lose sight of ourprimary commitment. Watch thewebsite and Trail Talk for preser-vation issues.

Hope to see you in Vancouver!Jim Allison, President

Page 2

THE TRUCKEE RIVER ROUTE OUTINGBy Bill & Shann Rupp

Photo taken from top of hill that avoided two Truckee River crossings.

Who? Tom Dougherty led the eager, trail thirsty,and ready-to-learn group, ably assisted, as needed, byChuck Dodd. There is always something to learn andadd to your storehouse of knowledge, so even thoughthe trail was familiar to most of us, this visit resultedin adding to what we already knew.

When andWhere? This two-day trip convenedJune 26, 2004 at 7:30 a.m. at the well-known rest stopat the junction of Rte. 95 and I-80, just west ofLovelock, NV.

What? The goal was to follow the Truckee Routefrom just west of the Carson/Truckee Fork to the over-whelming and spectacular Devil's Peak, just east ofEmigrant Gap.

How? Using CB radios and the guidebook pre-pared for the Reno Convention, we were privy to ap-propriate diary quotes and maps of sites we were tosee.

Since we started on the eastern side of the Hum-boldt Bar, we were able to experience the crossing ofthe Bar, the 40-Mile Desert – which included the hum-mocks, the White Plains, tufa rock, the Boiling Spring,the dreaded soft sands, and the Fernley Swales. Thisbrought us to lunch time. A scout was sent out to find

a suitable spot with shade. Accidentally, a delightfulsite was found at the Veterans' Cemetery – almost ad-jacent to the trail and complete with modern facilities,i.e. – restrooms.

White Plains of the 40-Mile Desert.

While following the Truckee River after lunch,Tom acquainted us with the 27 difficult crossings ofthe river. A fact new to some of us is that the odd

(See Truckee, page 6)Page 3

OCTA PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE IN1846 REPLICATED WAGON CONSTRUCTION

By Frank Tortorich

After seven long years and lots of hard workwe now have an 1846 replicated pioneer wagon atSutter's Fort. It arrived on July 7. There is a lot ofexcitement around the Fort.

My thanks is extended to so many OCTApeople who in one way or another helped advise andguide me in the technical aspects which made this aspecial wagon. Dick Davis and his wagon research,along with his article published in the OJ, were a vitalpart of this project.

If you have a chance to go to Sacramento pleasestop at Sutter's Fort and know that OCTA was part of

Two views of 1846 wagon.

this effort. A grant of $20,000 and lots of people work-ing together made the wagon a reality. An article onthe conception of the wagon in Letcher, SD will befeatured in an upcoming issue.

To see the Fort in full living history and enjoyFrank Tortorich, as a Park Interpreter Specialist, hostthe Fort's summer program – History Live! – joinSutter's Fort in an all-day celebration on August 21,2004. For more details call Frank 209.296.7242 oremail him at <wagonwheel@volcano.net>.

DIARY QUOTES:

These are two astute observations from a lady who seemed to have good insight to understand-ing people. – Shann Rupp

• After an extremely hard rain one night, Harriet Ward wrote: "The next morn the firstobject which presented itself was my husband fishing for his boots with his whip, & I thought ofthe times when his slippers chanced to be removed a few inches from the place where he leftthem the previous morn, & concluded he would be as patient as Job himself by the time hearrived in California." Harriet Sherrill Ward — 1853

• When a false alarm of an Indian attack was over, Harriet wrote: - "...I hardly think weever suffer quite as much when any thing of this kind really happens as we do in the anticipa-tion."

Page 4

SIGNS AND PLAQUES"Farewell 0 verse, Along the road, How sad to see, You're out of mode."

By Mary Mueller

Are you young enough to remember the BurmaShave signs when you traveled on two lane highwaysacross the country in the `50s's and old enough to seetheir demise as cars got faster and super highways gotbuilt to accommodate them? They were fun to readand helped to pass the time on long road trips.

A new kind of sign has emerged in the past fewyears which identifies the Oregon and California Trailon an "Auto Tour" metal post provided by the Na-tional Park Service. These will be seen throughout thelength of Interstate 80 from the Nevada state line,across Utah, and into Wyoming. More recently thesigns have appeared in California which identify theroute of the Juan Bautista De Anza National HistoricTrail. Some OCTA members may have seen these signson Bay Area on Highways 101, 85 and 280.

If you would like to see the Auto Tour signs on theCalifornia emigrant trails, I would ask you to becomeproactive and inform the Chapter Board and the Chap-ter Preservation Officer to support this project. To signall the emigrant trails in California will take years, butnow is the time to get started. I hope this project wouldalso include OCTA NovaColor plaques on a few ofthe more notable historic spots where the history canbe read and parking is available. What an exciting cal-endar of activities to be published in Trail Talk invit-ing members on a work trip where they will never haveto leave the highway.

The chapter has dedicated six OCTA plaques inCalifornia and four in Nevada since 1990, but manyof these are not available to the public without 4-wheeldrive vehicles or by walking. Others may be acces-sible but require permission to view the plaque. Torefresh your memory the plaques locations are listedbelow.

California- Nancy Kelsey grave, near New Cuyuma- Nancy Allen grave, on the Nobles Trail- Alford graves, Bruff's Camp, Lassen Trail- Rhoads Pioneer Family, Lemoore- Grove Cook and Williams-Patterson graves,

Evergreen Cemetery, Santa Cruz

Nevada- Pioneer graves (unnamed), Gravelly Ford, Beowawe- Soda Lake, near Ragtown, Fallon- Susan Coon grave, Applegate Trail, near Ryepatch- Hardin Canyon, Lassen Murder, Black Rock Desert

Plaque projectswere started in this chapterwhen annual spring meet-ings were scheduled inplaces such as Alturas andWinnemucca. The latterwas scheduled for a mem-bership meeting with a ban-quet and two days for fieldtrips. The members traveledby car caravans to GravellyFord where a plaque wasdedicated and a pole fencewas erected to protect the

three unnamed graves. On the last day, the caravanwent west from Winnemucca and left I-80 at Junco totravel on the Applegate Trail to the Susan Coon site atAntelope Springs. Descendants of Susan Coon werein attendance for the dedication. Theses plaques weresuggested by Tom Hunt who supervised the projects

Since that time, other plaques have been suggestedby members to mark pioneer graves. Descendants ofone pioneer family asked the chapter to provide aplaque and inscription to be dedicated at their reunionwhere they were restoring the tombstones. OCTAmembers were invited to participate and it was a won-derfuI meeting for all to share. Last year the wife of adescendant and I attended a celebration following therestoration of the Rhoads family cemetery. This pastMarch the chapter dedicated a plaque at the site.

You are being solicited for names of sites for fu-ture dedications of plaques. Please submit your namesand sites to:

Mary Mueller,1112 Silver Oak Ct.,San Jose, CA 95120,

or email: <mary_mueller@sbcglobal.net>.

Page 5

TRUCKEE (from p. 3.)

numbered crossings went fromthe north side to the south side, andthe even numbered crossings werefrom the south to the north.

We proceeded to Lockwoodwhere we were led up a verysteep hill (low, 4-wheel drive re-quired) – another site new tosome of us.

Why? Why would the emi-grants make the effort to climbsuch a steep hill, only to plungedown immediately upon gainingaccess to the top? Because theyavoided two crossings of theriver! It was that worthwhile tothem to try to protect the oxen'shooves, by staying out of the wa-ter as much as possible.

The second day began atDog Valley and we nooned atDonner Park in Truckee. Beau-tiful weather continued as we worked our way west-ward, visiting sites marked with Trails West markers.

The ultimate, the piece de resistance of the tour,the best saved for the last, was seeing the Devil's Peak.This geological formation along the Truckee Route is

on private property and so notcommonly viewed. Our leaderhad obtained permission to passthrough several gates to view lo-cation. We drove for a numberof miles on the private road, sur-rounded by thick vegetation.Suddenly, we came to a clear-ing and found ourselves in theshadow, so to speak, of this im-pressive giant.

The importance of cultivat-ing landowners where trail seg-ments exist and respecting theirrules pays big dividends towardour goal of preserving and pro-tecting trails.

"We nooned...to the left ofthe road & clost to the foot of ahigh rocky peak on the south,which I called Pinnacle Rock(some call it the Devils Peak).A fine spring rises here at its

foot." – Augustus Ripley Burbank, Sep 13, 1849.Thus ended the tour, one which led us to many

lesser-seen sites and afforded us lots of rich informa-tion to add to our storehouse of knowledge on the Truc-kee Route. Thanks Tom !

Mystery Rocks

Devil's Peak on the Truckee Route

Page 6

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR COED PROJECT

OCTA's Census of Overland Emigrant Documents (COED) project is once again very active,with a dedicated committee working to bring hundreds of exciting emigrant documents into theresearch program we started over 15 years ago. The Emigrant Names CD disk for sale fromOCTA and based on over 2200 survey entries already in the COED database has been verysuccessful. With over 1000 new surveys of documents ready to be added, an updated version ofEmigrant Names is planned within the next year.

This is where OCTA members come in. We are looking for both former surveyors and newvolunteers. Would you like to join this enthusiastic team by helping with obtaining and survey-ing documents? We need volunteers to comb local resources such as public and universitylibraries and historical societies. In addition, help is needed to discover private sources forcopies of emigrant diaries, letters, and news accounts. The most exciting and rewarding of all isfinding previously unknown original diaries of the Western Migration!

We are especially in need of volunteers for particular areas to obtain copies of documents and/or to survey the documents. The particular areas are the Newberry Library in Chicago, theIllinois State Historical Library in Springfield, the Indiana State Library in Indianapolis, theIowa State Historical Society in Iowa City, the Iowa State Historical Library in Des Moines,and Yale's Beinecke Library at New Haven, CT.

We have a new COED Instruction Manual for Surveyors with new survey forms and terrificmaps. The committee has volunteers to act as mentors, ready to help you fill out surveys fromoriginal emigrant writings.

Join our ranks of OCTA folks who are challenged by working with historic documents, and bydoing so, add to the COED database for research and making available to all the rich heritageof the Emigrant experience.

Contact: Shann Rupp at <syr50@sonnet.com> or mail to her atPO Box 753, Jamestown, CA 95327Or Sallie Riehl at salliek@comcast.net

Page 7

Archaeological fieldwork at the Alder Creek sitebegan in the late 1980s with Dr. Don Hardesty and Dr.Susan Lindstrom's research, which consisted of exca-

Page 8

♦ Donner (from p. 1.)

children were thought to have inhabited one shelteraround the base of a large tree in the meadow, whileJacob, his wife Eliza and seven children occupied asecond shelter a short distance apart from the GeorgeDonner family. Several unmarried men who servedas teamsters to the Donner families also may have con-structed a third shelter nearby. The Donner's sheltersresembled tents and were built of branches and wagonboards covered with canvas, blankets, and hides. Thetwo family groups built constant fires for warmth,cooking, and light — collecting sufficient firewood andkeeping a fire lit in wet, snowy conditions was a con-stant problem for the stranded families. After a couple

Donner tree. Photo by Norine Kimmy

of months, finding enough food to stay alive became amuch bigger problem. Before the last of four reliefparties arrived in April of 1847, seven people arethought to have died at the Alder Creek camp of expo-sure and/or starvation, including George Donner who,injured and cared for by his wife Tamsen, was the lastknown person to die at Alder Creek. After his death,Tamsen Donner left Alder Creek and moved to thecamp at Donner Lake, but died before the rescue partyreached her camp. Jacob Donner's two youngest chil-dren, Samuel and Lewis, died at the Alder Creek camp,as did both their parents and teamsters Reinhard, Smithand Shoemaker. Eight of the Donner children survived,while two others perished while crossing the SierraNevada with the relief parties.

vating around the base of the "George Donner Tree"and also placing approximately 261 x1-meter test unitsin an open meadow across a small creek to the south-west. No historic archaeological remains were foundat the base of the tree, but many bone fragments andtiny pieces of emigrant-era artifacts were recoveredfrom the units in the open meadow. While forensicstudies and intensive analyses of the bone recoveredfrom the 1989-1990 excavations were not done at thattime, the results of the excavation were reported indetail in Hardesty's Archaeology of the Donner Party(1997).

In 2003, the Alder Creek site was revisited, thistime by Dr Julie Schablitsky of the University of Or-egon/Museum of Natural History and Dr. Kelly Dixonof the University of Montana, in order to retrieve ad-ditional data using a variety of new technologies suchas ground penetrating radar, and forensic analyses suchas those applied in modern crime investigations. BothDixon and Schablitsky are historical archaeologistswho specialize in the extraction of genetic materialfrom archaeological materials. The 2003 season wasfunded by the Discovery Channel which filmed por-tions of the excavation and analysis to augment anepisode of "Unsolved History" featuring a dramatizedversion of Donner Party history — the episode aired onthe Discovery Channel October 8, 2003. Only a coupleexcavation units were opened during the short 2003field season, continuing off the west end of the openmeadow where Hardesty and Lindstrom had exploredin 1990. Typically, though, on the last day the teamfound the ashy evidence of a fire hearth buried nearby,and knew they had to return again the following year.

Drs. Susan Lindstrom andKelly Dixon compare noteson 1990 and 2004 excava-tions. Photo from Dr. KellyDixon ' s field photos

Over the winter Dixon and Schablitsky accumu-lated sufficient funds through grants and sponsorshipsto support a second field season, and with the volun-teer help of local colleagues, a 2-week excavation wasplanned for July 2004. To get a "feel" for the site,several key members of the research team also plannedto be onsite and participate in the fieldwork: Dr. Sh-annon Novak, forensic anthropologist from Idaho StateUniversity (Pocatello); Dr. Richard Scott, physicalanthropologist from the University of Nevada (Reno);and Dr. Guy Tasa, human osteologist with the Univer-sity of Oregon/Museum of Natural History (Eugene).

This year's excavation began on the Monday fol-lowing an impromptu July 4th celebration at the re-search team's rented condo in Squaw Valley. Nineshort days later, the excavation units were backfilledand the archaeologists, their equipment, and their on-lookers were gone, allowing the meadow to return toits summer solitude. This year, Tahoe National Forest

Leslie Fryman pauses from trowel work to examineher unit. Robin Kimmy looks on. Photo by Norine Kimmy.

personnel helped regulate the flow of interested visi-tors and media representatives at the Alder Creek siteand as a result, much actual work was accomplished(my aching back and sore trowel thumb can readilyattest to this). Luckily, because I was one of the vol-unteering archaeologists in both 2003 and 2004, spe-cial permission was granted for OCTA to have a 2-day"open house" to visit the site while work was inprogress. Thanks to Carrie Smith, archaeologist forthe Truckee Ranger District of the Tahoe NationalForest and member of the Donner research team, forpermitting OCTA to participate in this event.

Detail of rusted wagon staple emergingfrom the excavation unit. Photo by Tom Fee.

Excavation work in 2004 focused on opening unitssurrounding the one in which firepit ashes and oxi-dized (burnt) soil were found the previous year. Whenthe first OCTA members toured the site on Thursday(July 8), approximately six new units were opened andsmall artifacts, including wagon hardware and bits ofemigrant-era ceramic dinnerware, were slowly beingexposed with brushes, point-mapped, photographed,and removed to be placed into labeled bags. Tom Feeand Ford and Ellen Osborn arrived just as I discov-ered an intact wagon staple in my own unit (the larg-est artifact recovered), which caused considerablymore excitement among OCTA members than amongthe archaeologists! Bob and Adrienne Dietrich alsovisited the site Thursday, a day rich in artifact discov-eries as several lead pellets (birdshot and buckshot)and two button backings (made in London) were alsofound. From nearly every bucket of dirt removed dur-

View of "sore trowrl thumb" at work.Photo by Norine Kimmy

Page 9

ing the excavation, many small fragments of bone wereremoved with forceps, placed into bags, and taken tothe onsite "laboratory" (a tent) where Lab Director LisaRizzoli counted and weighed them.

OCTA members who visited the Alder Creek siteFriday (July 9) were Mary Mueller and Pat Loomis,Curtis Grant and grandson Jacob, Tom and Dee Birch,Dave Hollecker, Norine and Robin Kimmy. No spec-tacular finds were uncovered this day, but a lot of dirtwas moved and many more bone fragments collected.Then, on Sunday, a small thin fire hearth filled withash, charcoal, bone and artifact fragments was uncov-ered just south of the 2003 units. It turned out to bethe first of a series of campfire remains, more or lessconnected over the space of a meter, which may rep-resent what Dr. Lindstrom has referred to as "migrat-ing hearths." These features may have been causedby periodic relocation of small fires (outside or in-

Excavation of a small fire hearth in progress, Julie Schablitskyat right. Photo from Dr. Kelly Dixon's CD of field photos

Ceramic dinnerware fragments exposed in fire hearth.From Dr. Kelly Dixon's field photos.

human. Other implications of this year's fieldwork,however, seem to favor the probability that the archaeo-logical remains in this meadow are indeed associatedwith the Donner campsite.

According to Drs. Dixon and Schablitsky, analy-ses of all the artifacts, including those recovered fromthe Alder Creek site in 1990, will take up to one yearto complete. In time, the research team plans to pub-lish the results of their studies in a series of journalarticles or in a published book. Eventually, all arti-facts from the site will be returned to the Tahoe Na-tional Forest for curation. To ensure that a portion ofthe Alder Creek site is left undisturbed and availablefor future research, the researchers will work with thedata they have retrieved to date and are not planning athird field season. Stay tuned – both project directorswill be updating websites as the results of laboratoryanalyses unfold. (See <http://home.teleport.com/~julschab/julie.html>).

side a shelter) as melting snow and mud made it diffi-cult to stay in one place. Or, it could be speculatedthat together they once formed a single, rectilinear firehearth, possibly used for family cooking outside of acrowded tent.

The hearth features contained quantities of crushedand burned food bone interspersed with early emigrant-era household artifacts, causing great excitementamong the research team members. To what types ofmammals these bones belong will be the primary sub-ject of the forthcoming laboratory analyses, and, as ofyet, it is unknown whether or not any of the bone is

Page 10

Workers shaking ascreen to separatefragments from dirt.The work raises acloud of dust (right).Photo by Norine Kimmy.

Dr. Baldwin Lamson, long time member ofOCTA, died July 2 of heart failure at the Universityof California Davis medical facility at age 88.

At UCLA he was professor Emeritus of pa-thology and laboratory medicine at the School ofMedicine and first director of Hospitals and Clinicsat UCLA. Baldwin had a diverse career ranging fromgeology, medicine, hospital administration, and fi-nance management.

He graduated from UC Berkeley in 1938, andfor three years he worked overseas as a geologistfor Standard Oil Co. of California.

Upon his return he developed an interest inmedicine and received his degree from the Univer-sity of Rochester, N.Y.

He served as a Navy medical officer duringWorld War II, and from 1951 held many importantpositions at UCLA until his retirement in 1980.

Baldwin was a pioneer in adapting computer

technology to medical information systems, bring-ing UCLA's medical laboratories and managementinformation systems into the computer age.

He and Ormie, his wife of 61 years, joined OCTAin 1986 and attended the organization's 3rd conven-tion in Carson City, participating in the post-con-vention trip on the Applegate Trail and Black RockDesert.

For more than 15 years Baldwin and Ormie at-tended all the OCTA conventions, many symposiumsand field trips with the California-Nevada Chapter.

They followed the Bradshaw and Mojave Roads,as well as the Spanish and Anza Trails. Baldwinwrote an article on the Anza Trail for Trail Talk.

In the early 1990s, Baldwin helped revise the by-laws for the CA-NV Chapter of OCTA.

Baldwin and Ormie and their four children spentmany summers hiking and backpacking in the Si-erra, including Donner Summit.

Page 11

♦ PRESERVATION (from p. 1.)mapping and recording the trail in this area and wereplanning on making an inspection of the camp site,which is on private land, but were taken by surprisewhen it was found suddenly demolished in prepara-tion for lease to Caltrans as a rock/soil borrow opera-tion.

Lassen County permitted this project when the en-vironmental review process failed to identify any im-pacts to cultural resources, or any cultural resourcesfor that matter. The developer, Hat Creek Construc-tion Company, dutifully hired local archaeologicalconsultant Peter M. Jenson to survey the private prop-erty for archaeological sites and historic resources, butthe contractor found nothing, and never acknowledgedthe trail route through the area even though a TrailsWest marker is located directly adjacent to the prop-erty.

Worse, by the time of the public hearing, the prop-erty owner had already bulldozed and leveled his landin anticipation of the development. Although there isnothing much to be done about this loss of an impor-tant Nobles Trail landmark and a possible archaeologi-cal site, a letter (and trail map) was sent to LassenCounty planners requesting that they please contactOCTA before permitting projects in proximity to theNoble's and Lassen trails.

the Carson Trail is located on the Eldorado NationalForest, discontinuous with a large segment on timbercompany property and a few small segments on pri-vate property. Once a nomination is accepted, addi-tional segments of the trail can be listed by amend-ment. Go, Frank! !

Storage Locker Construction in Trail Area nearHobo Hot Springs, Carson City – Last month OCTAwas notified that the Bureau of Indian Affairs is pro-posing to construct additional storage locker facilitieson reservation land below the south end of Indian Hill.

The lockers will be built along Hobo Hot SpringsRoad, east of the springs and near Highway 395. DonBuck's mapping efforts at this location categorize thetrail as Class 5, having been disturbed by previous de-velopment or possibly covered by the built-up gradeof the road to the springs, so no objection to the projectis planned at this time. Thanks to Susan Lynn, Execu-tive Director of Public Resources Associates in Reno,for alerting us to the project.

Eldorado National Forest and OCTA To SubmitNational Register Nomination for Carson EmigrantTrail – Frank Tortorich reports that he will volunteer(as a dedicated OCTA member and also a USFS vol-unteer) to update the existing application forms forplacing the Carson Trail on the National Register ofHistoric Places, in order that Eldorado NF HeritageResources Officer Denise McLemore will approvetheir submittal to the California State Historic Preser-vation Officer (SHPO) for review, and ultimately tothe Keeper of the Register for listing.

The Eldorado NF first contracted for identifica-tion and evaluation of the trail under its managementin 1981-82; again in 1989-90; and for a third time in1996-97 which also included its nomination to theRegister. However, the Forest has never submitted anyof this documentation to the SHPO for review or con-currence; consequently, the historical status of theCarson Trail remains essentially unknown and is notpart of the public record. Approximately 45 miles of

ACTIVITIES CALENDAR 2004For information on trips contact the leader. TO RESERVE SPACE: mail a check to the leader for $5 perperson payable to OCTA, CA/NV CHAPTER. As a requirement of our insurance carrier, you will have to signa waiver either on the day of the activity or beforehand. Please consult your leader.

August 21 Sutter's Fort- Living History

Join Sutter 's Fort in an all-day living-history celebration. Enjoy Frank interpreting the wagon. 4

For more details call Frank 209.296.7242; email <wagonwheel@volcano.net>.

September 9 -10 Carson Pass Trail Clearing and Tour

This outing will be both fun and work. The first day will be clearing trail from Caples Lake to Kirkwood skiarea. This will be in the wilderness and only hand tools will be allowed. We will work under a volunteeragreement with the Forest Service and they will provide most of the tools. We will be working on a segmentof trail not seen on most of our OCTA tours. Second day will be a hike from Carson Pass to Caples Lakeabout five miles. Some have seen parts of this tour before but we have never led it all the way through. Wewill see some great views both days.

Leaders: Frank & Mary Ann Tortorich, Ford & Ellen Osborn, John & Nancy Rolston, Jim & Carol CarmanContact: Mary Ann Tortorich 209.296.7242 email: <wagonwheel@volcano.net>.

September 25-26 Black Rock Springs, Nevada

Join BLM archaeologists Dave Valentine and Joey Carmasino in recording trail features, prehistoric artifactsand ranching remnants at Black Rock Springs on the Applegate Trail. The group will meet early Saturdaymorning at Black Rock Springs to begin work. Those who are interested in camping may camp at the springson Friday evening. Others may wish to stay at Bruno 's Motel in Gerlach Friday evening. Saturday night willbe dry camping at the site. Bring your own food and lots of water. Don 't forget hats and sunscreen. If inter-ested in participating, please email David Valentine and a copy to Alison Portello no later than September 10th .

Leaders: Dave Valentine and Joey Carmasino

Email: Dave Valentine, <David_Valentine@nv.blm.gov>Send copy: Alison Portello, <portello@dcn.davis.ca.us>Call Alison Portello at 530-756-0842 for further information.

ENTICING EVENTS ELSEWHERE

October 9 Pioneer Day, New Almaden

In historic downtown New Almaden, at the Casa Grande, a replica of a blacksmith's shop will be dedicated,followed by the annual picnic. There is a $5 donation. There will be time to see the museum exhibits and enjoytales by Kitty.

Contact: Kitty Monahan (408) 268-6541

Page 13

BIG TREES OR BIG TREE ROAD?By Mary Ann Tortorich

That question, and a millionothers, was answered during theJuly 19, 20, & 21 tour guided byJim Carman and Frank Tortorichas they led curious Rut-Nutsalong the Big Tree Road. No, nota wagon trail, this was a builtwagon road, and, therefore, des-ignated as a road.

Day One began in Murphys,California, at 10:00 am. JoiningJim and Frank on this day wereCarol Carman, Zeke Sicotte, PaulGrunland, Bill and Shann Rupp,Joyce Everett and Jim Allison.They gathered behind theMurphys' Hotel and the lecturetour began. Guide book in onehand and maps in the other, thisgroup drove east on Highway 4.Jim shared the history, sites, andJim-isms via CB radios.

Nooning at Lake Alpine, thetour concluded Day One at Hermit Valley about 4:00pm. They proceeded to caravan on Highway 4 overEbbetts Pass, along the west fork of the Carson Riveron Highway 89, north to join Highway 88 going westwhere they scattered to campsites at Hope Valley Re-sort (bears at no extra charge) and Faith Valley camp-grounds with some enjoying more creature comfortsat Sorensen's Resort and Kirkwood.

Day Two all gathered at the junction of Highway88 and Blue Lakes Road where they were joined byBruce and Connie Sturm. All then boarded a van drivenby Mary Ann Tortorich and off they went.

At the beginning of the day, there were a few stopswith short walks to see parts of the road and look forthose all important and exciting rust-stained rocks andswales.

Taking advantage of the van as a shuttle, there werethree slightly longer treks: all were downhill, wellmostly. Problem? My, yes! Wildflowers in bloom, lotsof them !

The flower-filled hillsides were just too grand notto stop and we did. I am sure Shann will have a newcollection of note cards featuring these blooms.

Frank did most of the talk-ing this day, with some talk-a-graphical errors and Frank-ismsthat were corrected by Jim or theothers. For some reason, they re-ally like picking on Frank!

Back to "home base" for aclean up and a grand dinner onSorensen's Resort deck amidlovely potted plants. Wine, beer,and oh, yes, the berry cobblerwith ice cream weren't includedin the tour price, but that did notstop this group from partaking ofthe finer joys of the evening.

The party broke by 8:00 pmas all needed to prepare for thebig hike the next day.

Day Three the van again be-came a shuttle, collecting tourfolks at Hope Valley camp-ground and Sorensen's Resort.At 9:00 am at Blue Lakes Road

junction others climbed in the van. This day SpencerParker joined the group, while the Sturms had anothercommitment.

Off to the dam at Lower Blue Lake. Now that the15 miles is completely paved the drive was only 20minutes compared to an hour drive before the last 7-miles were paved.

At the dam, they protected their exposed limbs with

Bridge abutment in Faith Valley.

Drywall masonry on Big Tree Road.Photos by Shann Rupp.

Page 1 4

sun-block and bug-repellent. JimCarman gave a short lecture onthe Big Tree Road history and funfacts about all the southern namesin northern California. Ever no-tice the lack of Spanish namesnorth of Sonora?

At 9:40 am, with lunches, lotsof water, knapsacks, backpacks,GPSs, binoculars, and cameras,we were off. Destination HermitValley: a hike of 6-miles onmostly 4-WD dirt road.

Frank and Jim shared thehonors; lecturing and pointingout the differences between thebuilt road and the original surveycrew's travel route.

These three days the grouplearned the history of the area.Fortunately, the more technicalinformation was contained in a

Crossing Deer Creek in Deer Valley. Photo

by Shann Rupp.

tour guide Jim and Frank put to-gether.

Arriving at 2:10 pm at Her-mit Valley, the hikers found theair-conditioned van ready todrive back to the Blue LakesRoad junction. This was the firstOCTA group to cover the com-plete Big Tree Road.

The weather was wonderfulall three days. Those guys reallydid a super job of planning thetour, arranging for dinner, writ-ing the tour guide with their yearsof research evident, and gather-ing the maps. Look for Jim andFrank's joint article in the fall is-sue of the Overland Journal.

For those who missed thetour, you may purchase one of thefew remaining tour guide book-lets ($5.00) from the chapter.

DID YOU KNOW ...

♦ Twenty years ago (August 1984)OCTAns hiked the Barlow Roadover the Cascades as part of theagenda for OCTA's 2nd conven-tion in Oregon City.

It was at this convention OCTA'sofficial logo was adopted.

Seems like a long time go.

♦ Ten years ago, at the Salt LakeCity convention in 1994, a monu-ment was dedicated at DonnerSprings.

OAK HILL DEDICATIONGEORGE DONNER II

By Patricia Loomis

At long last the unmarked grave of George Don-ner II will be marked with a large impressive monu-ment in Oak Hill Memorial Park, San Jose CA.

The event is sponsored by E Clampus Vitus andthe Native Sons of the Golden West and will be heldAugust 15 th at noon in the Pioneer section of the cem-etery.

George, 10-year-old son of Jacob, was one of onlythree members of the family to survive the ordeal inthe Sierra Nevada mountains in the winter of 1846.

George married and fathered eight children. Hedied on his farm in Mendocino County in 1874 at age37. His grave is next to Albert's, his 4-year-old son,which is marked with a small headstone.

Oak Hill Memorial Park is California's oldest secu-lar cemetery and contains the graves of many over-land pioneers including James F. Reed, Joseph Aram,Isaac Branham, John M. Murphy, Moses Shallenberger,William Eddy, John Townsend, Samuel Young, andWilliam McCutchen.

Page 1 5

HAT CREEK AREAARCHEOLOGICAL DIG

Submitted by Orsola Silva

Sam Lockhart left his name on the old MilitaryRoad, a major freight route from Yreka to the Sacra-mento Valley.

This past June a 40-member team was assembledby Dori Smith, archeologist with the Hat Creek RangerDistrict, for a dig at Government Well on the Hat CreekRim.

The group explored the old stone well and otherareas, finding square nails, musket balls, buckles, andshell casings, along with metal fragments in the well.Smith said she hopes to return in October when thewell will be nearly dry.

Among the diggers were OCTAns Richard andOrsola Silva and Keith Arnold who gave some historyof the wagon road first scouted in 1851 by four men,all of whom lost their lives in a skirmish with Pit RiverIndians.

In the 1850s, there was a ferry on the Pit Riverat what is now Pit River Mills, and the California stageline briefly operated stages on the road, Arnold said.

HEADS UP EVERYONE!Submitted by Patty Knight

Genoa, Nevada will be the site of the 2005 sym-posium April 22-24, co-chaired by Kathy Lewin andPatty Knight.

Kathy has made contact with Frank Tortorichand Don Buck plus many others concerning speakers.That is handled. Patty has gotten the town hall inGenoa, arranged for rooms to be blocked out at twohotels and is talking to caterers.

We are arranging with the Genoa Town histo-rian who will do several "special" things for us. She isconsidered the foremost expert on Snowshoe Thomp-son and will do a cemetery tour. She has a book andwill do a chatauqua. We are in the process of arrang-ing several other activites, like a private tour of themuseum.

So that everyone's mind is at rest, every aspectof the symposium has been handled. We will have allthe information firmed up and will send out a directmailing to all members when appropriate.

Additional details will follow in Trail Talk.

Page 16

California-NevadaChapter

OREGONCALIFORNIA

TRAILS ASSOCIATION

The CALIFORNIA-NEVADA CHAPTER

of the Oregon-California Trails Association

was formed in April of 1984 and has grown to

nearly five hundred members.

OCTA is an organization dedicated to the

preservation, appreciation and enjoyment of

the Trans Mississippi migration trails to the

West - the trails that made the United States

truly an ocean to ocean nation.

The purpose of our chapter is to study, explore,

mark, map, maintain and preserve the historic

trails and sites within the California Trails

system. The chapter vigorously supports

legislation to preserve emigrant trails.

In our historically rich area we have a unique

opportunity to be an active participant in

securing our "trails treasures" for generations

to come. Our work includes nearly every

aspect ofpreservation imaginable from

mapping to clean-up. We're a hands-on group

which has many activities during the year. A

winter symposium is a great opportunity to get

together and discuss current projects and

interests of the chapter along with visiting a

new point of interest from the host area.

We invite you and your family

to become members of the

California-Oregon Trails

Association and the

California-Nevada Chapter.

You will receive a quarterly

publication from the chapter

called "Trail Talk" full of

activities information,

important projects, diary

quotes and interesting articles

about our trails heritage.

For more information contactus on the web at:canvocta.org

Name

Address_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

City State Zip_________________

Phone Email__________________________________________

Number of coins x $29.95 = + $3.85 (S & H) Total enclosed

Please enclose a check or money order. You can also enter your credit card information in the space provided below.

Visa ______ _____ MasterCard

Credit Card Expiration Date

Signature

You may order by return mail or phone. For phone orders please call 1-888-811-6282. To order by mail please return this form to theOregon-California Trails Association, P.O. Box 1019, Independence, MO 64051-0519 or visit our website at www.OCTA-trails.org .

CALIFORNIA-NEVADA CHAPTEROREGON-CALIFORNIA TRAILS ASSOCIATION1765 HICKS AVE.SAN JOSE, CA 95125

NON-PROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDNEW ALMADEN, CA

PERMIT 48

WHAT'S INSIDE:

PRESERVATION

DONNER DIG

TRUCKEEOUTING

COED

ACTIVITIES

TRAIL TALK Deadline - OCT. 1, 2004