Studio portrait of Thomas Dollard, c. 1875. (Gift of Hazel Jarvis Edwards) [This article was originally printed in the Mendocino Beacon on February 7th, 2013.] On October 15, 1879, the Beacon reported that Mendocino had been “…thrown into a state of excitement hitherto unparalleled by the occurrence of a shocking calamity….Two of our most esteemed citizens were atrociously murdered and a third wounded within [...]
April 7, 1878 - Frank Allen and Nettie Shuman were married by Rev. W. R. Stewart at the Mendocino Presbyterian Church. Their wedding announcement in the Mendocino Beacon ended with: “May their wedded life be happy; may they live long and prosper.” Frank Allen, his wife Nettie, and their two children Nettie and Warren, posing in front of the Carroll House in Mendocino, about 1898. [...]
Although Women’s History Month has ended, we are still celebrating the exceptional women of Mendocino. Here is an excerpt from the Kelley House publication From Maidens to Mavericks: Mendocino’s Women, Mendocino Historical Review Volume XXIX, written by local author, Molly Dwyer. The book can be purchased in the museum or on our website; the author’s lecture from May 17th, 2015, is available to watch on the [...]
April 1, 1878 - William Osborne, the cook at the mill cookhouse on Big River Flat, celebrated April Fool’s Day by playing a practical joke on the Mendocino Mill workers. The Beacon reported that, “When they were seated at dinner about the time to partake of dessert, they all went for some nice looking pies that were placed before them. One young man, having a weakness [...]
These two photographs, taken almost a century apart, look northeast from just west of the intersection of Little Lake and Williams Streets in Mendocino. The front and west sides of the Gordon-Mendosa House, located at 45300 Little Lake Street, can be seen on the left sides of both photos. (More about the buildings on the right sides of the photos below.) This lot was vacant in [...]
March 25, 1845 - S. J. “Jesse” Chalfant was born in Maryland, the son of well-known carpenter and builder William Chalfant and Elizabeth (Edwards) Chalfant. When Jesse was just 19 years old, he set out for California to join his older brothers, John and Aaron, who had settled on the Mendocino Coast in the 1850s. Jesse’s early years in California were spent in the lumber industry, [...]
The Kelley House Museum recently opened a new exhibit—Nathaniel Smith: Mendocino’s First African American Resident. It was made possible by a grant from California Humanities to the museum, which funded research by Alexander Wood. The following is an excerpt from Wood’s report on the Smith family. Nathaniel Smith married Julia (or Julie) around 1890. Julia and both of her parents were born in California. She was [...]
Nannie Escola, c. 1970. Courtesy of the Kelley House Museum. When the Kelley House Museum was founded 50 years ago, retired teacher Nannie Escola was a self-styled historian who became part of the organization. Directors Dorothy Bear and Beth Stebbins found her a valuable fount of knowledge about Mendocino. Her reputation preceded her: people had been getting answers to their questions from Nannie for [...]
March 12, 1921 - The Big River Justice Court held a trial between the Mendocino Foresters Lodge and the local chapter of the Portuguese ladies’ organization, U. P. P. E. C. The dispute was over possession of a desk and table, valued at less than $10. The trial attracted significant attention from the community, with the courtroom filled to capacity as spectators gathered to witness the [...]
March 10, 1895 - William McLean was found collapsed in front of Gus Semmler’s Saloon near the western end of Main Street about 7 am. William had been stabbed three times and died shortly afterwards, without naming his killer. Mendocino's Main Street looking westward, c. 1905-1908. On the north side, edged by a long boardwalk, are commercial buildings. The large two-story building with an enormous [...]