THE LYONS CONSOLIDATED MINE: DAMMING A NEARBY GULLY IN A DRAW UPON THE MINING PROPERTY.

This mine's lucrative vein was struck by Major John F. Lyons in 1890, the year that he and his family settled at Shasta County, California. Last worked in the 1950's, it went through various ownership during its production years. Upon the property is this late 19th century dam. Which was used to retain water for mining purposes upon the property. Filmed on location, January 14, 2025.

The Disappearance of Thomas F. Halcomb

Filmed on location.

Resources:

1920 U.S. Census

1930 U.S. Census

File: Redding, California, 1930 Census Enumeration District Maps. Source: Wikimapia.

Community Is Searched for Missing Boy - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 6, 1932

 

Halcomb Youth Still Missing After 2 Days - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 6, 1932

Redding Plane Crash Kills Three - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, July 7, 1932

The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 7, 1932

Young Halcomb Believed Seen Wednesday P.M. -  The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 7, 1932

Structural Defect Was Not Cause of Accident to Plane - Inspector - The Courier Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 8, 1932

George Halcomb, Wife, O.A. Rose Die in Air Crash - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 8, 1932

Reports Halcomb Youth Found Without Ground - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 8, 1932

Searchers For Missing Youth Die in Plunge - The Santa Cruz Sentinel newspaper of Sant Cruz, July 8, 1932

Three Victims of Plane Crash - The Madera Tribune newspaper of Madera, July 8, 1932

Three Die in Plane Crash at Redding - The Tulare Daily Times newspaper of Tulare, July 8, 1932

The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 9, 1932

Halcomb Is Continued Monday - The Courier Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 11, 1932

Search Still Being Pushed for Missing Boy; Reported Seen - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 12, 1932

Halcomb Estate Comprises $4,000 Insurance Policy - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 13, 1932

The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 14, 1932

$100 Reward for Finding Halcomb - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 16, 1932

Reward Spurs Search for Boy - The Bee News Bureau newspaper of Sacramento, July 18, 1932

Statewide Appeal Made in Boy Hunt - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 19, 1932

Plane Victims’ Estates Are Probated - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 22, 1932

Grandparents May Contest Custody of Halcomb Baby - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 23, 1932

Halcomb Youth - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 12, 1932

Contest Over Halcomb Youth - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 29, 1932

Hearing on Contest Over Halcomb Boy Is Continued in Two Weeks - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, August 30, 1932

Halcomb Boy’s Body Believed Found in River - The Colusa Herald newspaper of Colusa, September 22, 1932

Amos Halcomb Named Guardian of Grandson - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, September 26, 1932

Thomas Halcomb's Body Is Found - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, February 26, 1933

Halcomb Boy’s Body Is Found in Oregon Gulch - The Courier Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 27, 1933 

Funeral Services to Be Held Today for Halcomb Boy - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, February 28, 1933

Card of Thanks - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, March 2, 1933

Halcomb Action Over Insurance to Start Today - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, October 3, 1933

The Courier Free Press newspaper of Redding, October 4, 1933

Jury Holds Rose Made Contract to Carry Halcomb's on Fatal Journey - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, October 5, 1933

Correction Made - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, October 5, 1933

Thomas F Halcomb in the California, U.S., Death Index, 1905-1939

The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, April 7, 1940

The Lyons Consolidated Mine

Happy New Year folks! Come explore a partially flooded historic gold mine from the 1890s which still has some relics left behind like its rail, piping, drill bits and more. This mine's lucrative vein was struck by Major John F. Lyons in 1890, the year that he and his family settled at Shasta County, California. Last worked in the 1950's, it went through various ownership during its production years. Find out more in the video and if you haven't subscribed yet, please do. Like, share and comment. For my resources, please visit Exploring Shasta County History...

Resources:

Fine Mining Property - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, November 28, 1891

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, November 18, 1892

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, September 23, 1893

The Free Press newspaper of Redding, November 14, 1896

On Rich Gulch - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 15, 1897

The Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 29, 1897

The Lyons Property - The Daily Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 22, 1898

The Major Lyons Mine - The Daily Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 2, 1898

Major Lyon’s Condition - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 19, 1898

Major J.F. Lyons Dead - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, April 19, 1898

The Lyons Mines Sold For $12,000 - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 21, 1905

Build Tramway From Mine To Mill - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, November 10, 1905

New Cyanide Plant In Rich Gulch - Mineral Wealth Magazine - March 15, 1906 edition, page 3.

Cyanide Plant Is Now In Operation - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, March 16, 1906

Lyons Mine Sold Under Trust Deed -  The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, May 17, 1907

The Lyons Group - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, May 8, 1910

Mines and Mineral Resources of Shasta County, California – County Report 6 – by Philip A. Lydon and J.C. O’ Brien ©1974 by California Division of Mines and Geology

ROYAL TYLER SPRAGUE; A SHASTA COUNTY 49NER & A CALIFORNIA SUPREME JUSTICE.

Royal Tyler Sprague, a native of Vermont, (according to the 1870 U.S. Census) was born about 1814. He led a busy productive life who started out as an elementary school teacher, and eventually Sprague opened his own school. Later on, he became a lawyer, and eventually the seduction of the California Gold Rush seduced him to venture west from Ohio to California where he settled in Shasta County in September of 1849, settling at Reading Springs (now Shasta), that month. This is where the forty-niner mined for gold on Clear Creek. He became a public figure holding various titles in the State of California, and ultimately, becoming a California Supreme Justice. He died on February 24, 1872, and is buried in the historic Old Sacramento City Cemetery, in Sacramento, California. You can learn more about this Shasta County pioneer in the following YouTube video from Exploring Shasta County History:

Filmed on location October 19, 2024.

Resources:

1850 U.S. Census

1852 California State Census

The Supreme Judgeship - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, May 22, 1858

Death of Chief Justice Sprague - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, February 26, 1872

Death of Judge Sprague - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, March 2, 1872

1860 U.S. Census

1866 California, U.S., Voter Registers

Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, October 10, 1867

Took the Oath - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, January 11, 1868

Appleton's annual Cyclopedia (1867), Volume 7, 1869.

1870 U.S. Census

Appointment of Supreme Judge. Russian River Flag. No. 17. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 7 March 1872. p. 2. 

Sacramento Daily Union, January 1, 1873, State & County Statistics (For the year 1872)

The Legislature Sacramento Daily Union. Vol. 2, no. 247. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 6 January 1852. p. 2. 

My Playhouse Was A Concord Coach, an anthology of newspaper clippings and documents relating to those who made California history during the years 1822-1888, by Mae Hélène Bacon Boggs. Published by Howell-North Press ©1942

Shasta County, California A History by Rosena Giles, published by Biobooks, ©1949.

Johnson, J. Edward (1963). History of the California Supreme Court: The Justices 1850-1900, vol 1 (PDF). San Francisco, CA: Bender Moss Co. pp. 104–106. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2016. 

Old Shasta, Town of Shasta Interpretive Association with Al M. Rocca, 2005, Arcadia Publishing, p.

Sacramento Historic City Cemetery Burial Index (PDF). Old City Cemetery Committee. 2005. 

Online Archive of California, Royal T. Sprague journals, collection guide.

BENJAMIN BARNARD REDDING (1824-1882); THE NAMESAKE OF THE CITY OF REDDING, IN SHASTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA.

 

Filmed on location on October 19, 2024.

In my newest video you can visit the headstone and grave of Benjamin Barnard Redding who was born on January 17, 1824, to Fitz W. Redding and his wife Mary at Yartmouth, Yartmouth County, Nova Scotia, Canada, and died in San Francisco on August 21, 1882. Benjamin Barnard Redding is the man who the town of Redding, California was named for which was established on June 15, 1872, by the California & Oregon Railroad, a division of the Central Pacific Railroad. He was also a mayor of Sacramento in 1856 among other high profiled positions in California. He also became a land agent of the Central Pacific Railroad. This is the Redding family plot in the Sacramento Historic City Cemetery, in Sacramento, California, while I chase Shasta County's history to this historic location. Don't miss out, this is the newest video from Exploring Shasta County History... 

RESOURCES:

B.B. REDDING - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper, of Sacramento, August 22, 1882

DEATH OF B.B. REDDING - The Shasta Courier newspaper, of Shasta, August 26, 1882

Redding: A Railroad Town’s Transition Into A Flourishing City written by Jeremy M. Tuggle, July 10, 2018

Visiting the Grave of Benjamin Barnard Redding (1824-1882), the Man Whom Redding Is Named For written by Jeremy M. Tuggle, February 25, 2019

Benjamin B. Redding Find A Grave Memorial

Sacramento Historic City Cemetery 

SHASTA HISTORICAL SOCIETY - HOW REDDING GOT ITS NAME

AN OLD MINING PROPERTY, AN ORE CAR SYSTEM - SHAFT - PROSPECT.

AN OLD MINING PROPERTY, AN ORE CAR SYSTEM - SHAFT - PROSPECT.

Filmed on location, November 16, 2024. Near: Quartz Hill in Shasta County, California, an abandoned mining property.

(OLD) HIGHWAY 299 EAST & WEST ALLIGNMENT BETWEEN WHISKEYTOWN AND THE TOWERHOUSE HISTORIC DISTRICT.

Filmed on location November 2, 2024.

Come explore the following sections of (Old) Highway 299 east and west alignment between Whiskeytown and the Towerhouse Historic District, of Shasta County, California. This highway route was formally a stage road established in 1854, and later a toll road called the Shasta to Weaverville Road or Weaverville to Shasta Road pre-1872 or after the establishment of Redding it was called the Redding to Weaverville Road or Weaverville to Redding Road. In 1934 this historic route became Highway 299 east and west and parts of this route were later decommissioned about 1963.

Resources:

Shasta - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, April 13, 1852

Shasta - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, June 14, 1852

California Legislature - Fifth Session - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, April 15, 1854

Trinity River Correspondence - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, May 20, 1854

From Weaverville - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, January 6, 1855

Trinity River Correspondence - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, February 17, 1855

Trip To Weaverville - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, October 13, 1855

Report of the Wagon Road Committee - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, June 20, 1857

Organization Of The Wagon Road Co. - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, June 27, 1857

Wagon Road Meeting And Report Of Survey - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, July 25, 1857

Proceedings of the Board of Supervisors - Aug. Term - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, August 8, 1857

Wagon Road Meeting - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, August 15, 1857

The Wagon Road - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, August 15, 1857

The Trinity Wagon Road - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, August 22, 1857

Weaverville Wagon Road - The Sacramento Union newspaper of Sacramento, September 1, 1857

Hurrah For The Wagon Road - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, October 3, 1857

Wagon Roads - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, October 16, 1857

The Sacramento Valley And Weaverville Wagon Company - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, October 16, 1857

Shasta And Our Neighbors - The Trinity Journal  newspaper of Weaverville, November 7, 1857

The Wagon Road - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, November 28, 1857

Progress Of the Wagon Road - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, December 26, 1857

Trinity Wagon  Road - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, February 6, 1858

Wagon Road To Weaverville - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, March 27, 1858

Improvements As We Go - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, March 27, 1858

The Trinity Wagon Road - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, January 2, 1858

The Road - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, January 16, 1858

The Louden Road - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, March 13, 1858 

Increased Travel To The North - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, September 11, 1858

Staging To Weaverville - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, April 24, 1858

Trail To Weaverville - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, April 24, 1858

To Weaverville - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, May 1, 1858

Teams To Weaverville - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, May 15, 1858

A Bad Road - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, November 20, 1858

Bill Lowden declares... - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, December 18, 1858

The Redding And Weaverville Stage - by May H. Southern, January 22, 1933, sketch by Mabel Lowden Moores, 388 - P. 1086; VF 388.0 Roads/Trails Misc., Roads/Trails 1086, available at Shasta Historical Society in Redding.

My Playhouse Was A Concord Coach, an anthology of newspaper clippings and documents relating to those who made California history during the years 1822-1888, by Mae Hélène Bacon Boggs. Published by Howell-North Press ©1942

Shasta County, California A History by Rosena Giles, published by Biobooks, ©1949

Historic Resource Study Whiskeytown National Recreation Area by Anna Coxe Toogood, May 1978, Denver Service Center, Historic Preservation Team, National Park Service, United States Department of the Interior

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, by Al M. Rocca, Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (May 3, 2010) ISBN10: 1451568533,ISBN-13: 978-1451568530