Welcome to Exploring Shasta County history...
With this blog, I am bringing to life the stories of the early day pioneers and some of the oft-forgotten history of a bygone era in Shasta County, California. I'll also focus on important events after the turn of the 20th century. I would like to reflect upon current historical sites of the modern age as well.
This is copyrighted by Jeremy M. Tuggle.
Above: the front page and the masthead of the Shasta Sun newspaper of Redding, California, from the March 21, 1924, edition.
One of the most oft-forgotten local media outlets of Redding, Shasta County, California, is the Shasta Sun newspaper, which was established on March 21, 1924, and last published on July 17, 1925. It was owned and edited by Yreka, resident Herbert G. Moody, and was affiliated with the Siskiyou News newspaper of Yreka, Siskiyou County, California when it debuted. Moody was a son of Herbert L. Moody, also a printer and publisher of local newspapers in the area.
Herbert G. Moody was born and raised in Redding, California. Later on, Moody relocated to Redding, and merged this short-lived publication with the Searchlight newspaper, of Redding, in 1925 when Moody purchased that well-known media source. Every edition of this newspaper survived and preserved into microfilm in the archives of the Library of Congress. It's available to read in a few online newspaper archives as well.
RESOURCES:
"Shasta Sun" Is Born at Redding - The Siskiyou News newspaper of Yreka, March 27, 1924
The Shasta Sun newspaper of Redding, March 21, 1924
The Shasta Sun newspaper of Redding, July 17, 1925
Come see some unique pieces of history on display at the former Shasta County Courthouse and Museum in (Old) Shasta at what is now the Shasta State Historic Park. These items belonged to the luxurious, commodious, and comfortable, Empire hotel, a three-story brick hostelry, which stood towering above Main Street at Shasta, it offered lodging and meals to the weary travelers passing through the area. This hotel was erected in that town for $30,000 in 1857. It went through many changes of ownership during the years.
This hostelry operated well into the turn of the 20th century, and it was closed down in 1913, later on, it fell into decay and ruins like most of the former buildings of (Old) Shasta did. The Empire hotel was demolished in January of 1923. Its last owner was Sarah J. Hill, a resident of Redding, California. The Empire hotel boasted of the following famous guests lodging here during its prime which included California Governors Standford, Haight and Bigler. Along with Joaquin Miller, the famous Poet of the Sierra's. The lot in Shasta which the former hostelry stood upon has been turned into a park on the left side of the present-day, Shasta County Courthouse and Museum building.
On my maternal side my great-great-great grandparents, Valentine Doll, and his wife, Harriett (Schmidt) Doll stayed here. They were residents settling upon Huling Creek near Eagle Creek (now Ono, California). At one time Valentine Doll operated the local meat market in (Old) Shasta. He was also a local farmer and a miner in the area. On my paternal side my great-great-great-great grandparents George McFarlin, and his wife, Martha (Miller) McFarlin along with their kids, their kids at this time who were actually young adults their youngest being 17 years old, when they stayed here as well. George McFarlin was a local farmer, and this family also resided at Eagle Creek (now Ono). Please like, share, comment and subscribe to my YouTube channel if you haven't yet. Look out for the next episode, article, or blog on my website: Exploring Shasta County History as well.
RESOURCES:
Administrators Sale of Real Estate - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, March 12, 1853
Terrible Conflagration!! - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, June 18, 1853
Dissolution - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, August 13, 1853
The Empire Property for Sale - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, October 10, 1853
Empire Hotel - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, January 31, 1857
Empire Hotel - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, April 4, 1857
The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, January 2, 1858
The Empire Bar - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, January 30, 1858
Travel - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, October 30, 1858
In this episode of Exploring Shasta County History, I explore the interior of Shasta, California's Historic 1860's Courthouse, and its history, which still stands in the present-day town of (Old) Shasta. This wasn't the first courthouse in Shasta County's history, due to Major Pierson B. Reading's Adobe housing county records, and it wasn’t the first courthouse in Shasta either. It was actually the second courthouse in this ghost town. Come learn more in this episode of Exploring Shasta County History.
Resources:
Pacific Coast Dispatches - The Sacramento Bee newspaper of Sacramento, August 27, 1874
The Gallows - The San Francisco Examiner newspaper of San Francisco, August 27, 1874
Execution of Baker and Crouch - The Appeal-Democrat newspaper of Marysville, California, August 27, 1874
Hanged By the Neck Until Dead - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, September 17, 1903
Here's More About Romantic History of Old Shasta - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, March 10, 1940
Museum Impress Fourth Graders - The Record Searchlight newspaper of Redding, April 24, 1965
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