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

DR. KENNETH A. DAVIDSON, M.D., AND THE HISTORIC PINCKNEY CEMETERY.

Imagine yourself as a physician trying to conduct a critical operation upon yourself, while a neighbor holds a mirror during this critical chest surgery. One inch the wrong way during this major operation could end your own life. Well, that's just what happened to this local medical doctor who performed his own chest surgery after a major incident at a former settlement called Pinckney, now a ghost town in southwestern Shasta County, just about 24 miles from the city of Redding, in Shasta County, California. His death is what established this local cemetery there at the corner of Foster Road and Gas Point Road which is the only remainder of this former settlement. Come learn about the life of a Shasta County pioneer medical doctor named Kenneth Anderson Davidson and the establishment of the historic Pinckney Cemetery.

RESOURCES:

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.

Place Names of Shasta County by Gertrude A. Steger revision by Helen Hinckley Jones, ©1966 by La Siesta Press, Glendale, California

U.S., Appointments of U.S. Postmasters, 1832-1971

JAMES SCOBIE THE NAMESAKE OF SCOBIEVILLE, IN SHASTA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA.

Presently, very little information remains about the former town of Scobieville in Shasta County, California. Its namesake is James Ross Scobie (1835-1902) who is buried at the Cypress Lawn Memorial Park in Colma, San Mateo County, California. In this video we visit his headstone and gravesite of James Ross Scobie, and learn some things about Scobieville, Shasta County, California, that is not too well-known. Filmed on location: August 30, 2024. 

 

RESOURCES:

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, September 29, 1883

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, October 27, 1883

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, November 3, 1883

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, November 10, 1883

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, December 8, 1883

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, December 29, 1883

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 5, 1884

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 12, 1884

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 2, 1884

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 22, 1884

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 10, 1884

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 17, 1884

Sims Items - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 27, 1889

The Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 22, 1893

Shasta Masonic Cemetery, Established: 1864

 

The first recorded burial here was William Benedict Hull, known as "Willie", he was born at Shasta on May 3, 1863, and died at Buckeye on August 23, 1863, at the age of three months and twenty days. He was the son of Shasta County Sheriff, Sylvester Hull, also known as "Vet", and his wife, Martha Fidelia (Whiting) Hull who are also buried here. This historic cemetery was established the following year in 1864 and is located at 11471 Mule Town Road at Shasta, in Shasta County, California, and just southwest of the town of Shasta and three miles from the City of Redding. Come discover the lives which these pioneer residents led and see their final resting place in this video. Among the early pioneers who are buried here is Lloyd Lee Carter, a son of a local pioneer newspaper man who captured the notorious outlaw and highwayman, Charles Lyman Ruggles, of the infamous Ruggles Brothers after the Ruggles' Brothers deadly heist of May 14, 1892, on Middle Creek Road near Shasta Carter caught some fame after capturing the notorious bandit with two of his friends. Filmed on location July 4, 2024.

Resources:

1850 U.S. Census

1852 California State Census

1860 U.S. Census

Fire At Shasta - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, February 28, 1860

A Dwelling Burned - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, March 3, 1860

Board of Supervisors - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, February 16, 1861

Died - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, September 26, 1863

Died - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, March 11, 1865

Died - The Trinity Journal newspaper of Weaverville, January 27, 1866

Administrators Sale of Real Estate - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, November 17, 1866

1870 U.S. Census

1880 U.S. Census

California U.S. Voter Registration 1885

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, September 10, 1892

Sylvester Hull Dead - The Red Bluff Daily News newspaper of Red Bluff, November 24, 1899

Death Of a Pioneer - The San Francisco Call newspaper of San Francisco, November 24, 1899

Mr. Hull's Funeral - The Red Bluff Daily News newspaper of Red Bluff, November 25, 1899

The Ruggles Brothers' Reward - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, September 7, 1895

1896, California Voters Registration

1899, City & Business Directory of Shasta County

1900 U.S. Census

Death Ends Pain of Editor Carter - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 3, 1901

W.L. Carter’s Obsequies - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 3, 1901

Daniel P. Bystle Answers the Call - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 8, 1903

A Shasta Pioneer Called by Death - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, June 9, 1903

1910 U.S. Census

1920 U.S. Census

1930 U.S. Census

1940 U.S. Census

Our Storied Landmarks – Shasta County, California, written by May H. Southern, published by Balakshin Printing Company, ©1942.

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.

Place Names of Shasta County by Gertrude A. Steger revision by Helen Hinckley Jones, ©1966 by La Siesta Press, Glendale, California

Shasta State Historic Park Brief History and Tour Guide, published by Shasta State Historic Park, ©July 1985

A Newspaper of Prosperity and Longevity: the Shasta Courier written by Jeremy Tuggle - The Record Searchlight newspaper of Redding, August 3, 2016

Furnacville & Ingot: The Home of the Afterthought Mine written by Jeremy Tuggle, June 23, 2021

The Fender Cemetery, Established 1885, at Oak Run, in Shasta County, California.

Aaron Fender established the Fender Cemetery upon his death in 1885 near Oak Run, in rural Shasta County, California. From sandstone markers and a wooden marker in the cemetery come find out whose laid to rest in this historic cemetery.

Filmed on location August 18, 2024.

REOURCES:

1850 U.S. Census

1860 U.S. Census

1870 U.S. Census

North-Eastern Shasta - The Republican Free Press newspaper of Shasta County, July 4, 1885

Died - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, February 9, 1897

1900 U.S. Census

1910 U.S. Census

1920 U.S. Census

1930 U.S. Census

Place Names of Shasta County by Gertrude A. Steger revision by Helen Hinckley Jones, ©1966 by La Siesta Press, Glendale, California

The Covered Wagon, 1975, published annually by Shasta Historical Society.

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

The Beck Cemetery of Millville

Filmed on location October 28, 2022. 

The Beck Cemetery was established in 1857 at Millville. The first burial was that of Paul Heryford, a local farmer, who was born in 1794, in Wilkes County, North Carolina. Heryford died on October 3, 1857, at Pine Grove, in Shasta County, California, at the age of sixty-three years old from a congestive chill. His body was then transferred to this cemetery for burial. This cemetery lies within the boundaries of the Millville Cemetery District. Additional burials were made within this small cemetery. The last recorded burial occurred in 1877, but there are three unknown burials at this historic site in Shasta County.

Resources:

1850 U.S. Census

Millenium File for Paul Heryford available at Ancestry.com

Find A Grave Memorial: Paul Heryford 1794-1857

Bushwhacking to the Historic and Abandoned Brown Cemetery

Video filmed on location February 22, 2023.

On this episode of Exploring Shasta County come join Robert Frazier, host of California Unearthed, and I as we bushwhack into this desolate cemetery to examine the history behind the five burials at the truly abandoned and lost to time historic Brown Family Cemetery which was established circa 1898, and it may date back further than that. Check out Robert's version of this history as well on his YouTube channel California Unearthed at the following link:

(28) Fairly Unknown Cemetery in Shasta County Unearrthed- The Brown Family Cemetery - YouTube

Three of the five burials are seen in this picture at the Brown Family Cemetery picture taken by Jeremy Tuggle on February 22, 2023.

Resources: 

1860 U.S. Census

1870 U.S. Census

1880 U.S. Census

1885 Colorado State Census

Nebraska, U.S., Select County Marriage Records, 1855-1908 for Jacob S. Brown

SitNeThe Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 27, 1898

Jacob S. Brown in the Shasta County, California Register of 1898

The Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 23, 1898

The Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 27, 1898

1900 U.S. Census 

Skull Crushed By Falling Rock - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 30, 1903

The End Came In Keswick Hospital - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, June 2, 1903

Victim of the Iron Mountain Accident Dies - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 6, 1903

THE FORMER SITE OF THE REDDING GOLF CLUB, NOW LAWNCREST CEMETERY.

The 9-hole golf course of the Redding Golf is shown here with golfers enjoying this golf course. Now, it’s home of the Lawncrest Cemetery. Courtesy of Shasta Historical Society.

Originally, the golf course pictured in the above photograph was designed and developed by W.B. Tucker and L. Hawkins, of Redding, in 1923. It was a 9-hole golf course which was owned and operated by the Redding Golf Club. It was located on the east side of the Sacramento River and laid out on Lawncrest Road in Enterprise. The golf course stayed in business for many years. Then in 1950, a man named George Stetler, founded a new funeral parlor in downtown Redding, which he named Linn and Fulkerth Funeral Home, and the land which this former golf course was situated on transitioned into a cemetery under his ownership, and it became the Lawncrest Cemetery. Its namesake was the road it was located on. Eventually, this road was widened and later renamed Cypress Avenue. This cemetery is still in use today, and generations of my family on both my maternal and paternal side are buried here including my eldest son, Jason Meyer Tuggle (born & died on: July 16, 2009.) 

RESOURCES:

Golf Fans Are Thick On New Course Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 26, 1923

Golf Enthusiasts Organize At Meet Wednesday Night - The Courier-Free Press, March 8, 1923

Invite Redding Golfers To Red Bluff Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 28, 1923

Redding Golf Fans To Play At Red Bluff - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 11, 1923

Redding Golf Club Goes To Corning Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 31, 1923

Redding Golfers Divide Matches - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 5, 1923

Golfers Will Put On Drive For Members; Seek Grounds - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, September 21, 1923

Golf Schedule Is Announced - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, October 12, 1923

Golfers Like Fine Weather - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, October 27, 1923

Local Golfers Victorious At Chico Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, October 29, 1923

Local Golfers Beat Arbuckle Players Here - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, November 12, 1923

Golf Tournament Is Postponed - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 5, 1924

Local Golfers Plan Ladder Tournament - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 11, 1924

Cummins Tops Golf Ladder - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 17, 1924

Golfers Change Position On Ladder - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 19, 1924

Golfers Draw Big Gallery - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 21, 1924

Cummins Gives Few Rules To Be Observed On Golf Course - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 23, 1924

33 Match Games Of Golf Over Weekend - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 25, 1924

Klukkert New Top Player On Ladder - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 18, 1924

Redding Plays Biggest Golf Match Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 22, 1924

Cummins Now Tops Golfers - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 23, 1924

Redding Golfers Defeated - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 25, 1924

This Golf Match Ought To Create Healthy Interest - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 26, 1924

Golfers Will Work On New Course Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 15, 1924

Cummins New Golf Leader - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 24, 1924

Golfers Play For Big Store Trophy Sunday Afternoon - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 12, 1924

Ritchie Wins Big Store Golf Trophy Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 1924

New Course To Be Built Soon By Golf Club - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 15, 1924

Red Bluff Golf Players Here On Sunday - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, October 10, 1924

New Directors For Golf And Country Club - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, December 19, 1925

Red Bluff Golf Players Coming Here Tomorrow - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, November 28, 1925

https://riverviewgolf.clubepay.com/history

https://www.dignitymemorial.com/funeral-homes/redding-ca/lawncrest-chapel/2483

The Conant Cemetery.

Filmed on location October 21, 2022.

Learn about this unique cemetery which dates back to 1898, and includes a biography of the founder of this cemetery and the contributions he made to our society in the area which, William R. Conant, resided in. Come explore the historic Conant Cemetery. The location just might surprise you.

The burial markers of one interment: Ione Silvanna Conant. Photo taken by Jeremy Tuggle on October 21, 2022.

Resources:

1888 California Voters Register for William R. Conant

1892 California Voters Register for William R. Conant

1896 California Voters Register for William R. Conant

Mr. Conant - The Free Press newspaper of Redding, The Free Press, May 16, 1898

Judge Conant Heart Failure Victim Today - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, March 23, 1918

1900 U.S. Census

1910 U.S. Census

THE HISTORIC JOHN MEYER GRAVESITE

Picture taken by Jeremy Tuggle on September 17, 2022. 

This sandstone marker marks the burial site of John Meyer my maternal great-great-great granduncle. The inscription is faded on the marker itself. When John Meyer was born on November 5, 1864, at Cow Creek, in Shasta County, California, his father, Frederick Valentine Meyer Sr., was 35 years of age and his mother, Caroline Louise (Notten) Meyer, was 22 years of age. John Meyer had seven brothers and six sisters. He died on March 6, 1865, at Cow Creek, near the present-day town of Bella Vista. John Meyer's father, Frederick Valentine Meyer Sr., was a miner and farmer who came to the town of Shasta in 1851 and settled in the area. We believe this is this only burial at this location. Picture taken: September 17, 2022. This historic burial site is located on private property on the Meyer family ranch which can be seen in my newest YouTube video below:

Video: the Historic Meyer Ranch: Eastablished 1853.

THE BURIAL SITE OF KATE CAMDEN.

On this episode of Exploring Shasta County history, Jeremy takes you on an adventure to the historic burial site of Kate Camden. Learn more about her in the video. Enjoy! This video was filmed on location, April 17, 2021.

THE ADVENTURE:

ABANDONED, UNCOVERED AND THEN RE-INTERRED: A REDDING CEMETERY

Believe it or not, this location at 2146 Pine Street in between Market and Pine Street in Redding was home to Redding's first cemetery. It's on the flatter surface of this knoll. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on December 12, 2018.

Redding was established by the California & Oregon Railroad, a division of the Central Pacific Railroad, on June 15, 1872. Once the construction of the railroad resumed north from Anderson, the railroad company decided to bypass this burial ground, and make its way north to Poverty Flats where the construction stopped that year. This cemetery was now on the outskirts of the brand new town at the southern end. 

The first streets in town which were laid out by the railroad company was North, South East and West Streets followed by the nearby counties Placer, Tehama, Butte, and Yuba Streets. While Redding grew larger with additional streets and the development of Pine and Market Streets it brought more commercial businesses and private residences to town. The town grew into a flourishing city and this cemetery became an oft-forgotten location. It's a site of historical importance because it was Redding's first cemetery which a lot of people tend to over-look in Redding's early history. Over the years, the cemetery has been called the Redding Abandoned Cemetery. Today, the site is the former home of Biggins Lighting who just recently relocated to Larkspur Lane in Redding.

Since the cemetery's establishment in 1867, this piece of land became the final resting place of some of our counties early pioneer settlers for nearly thirty-nine years when it became abandoned and then rediscovered in 1906. At Shasta Historical Society, there are volumes of interment records for Shasta County cemeteries and among these are the records for this cemetery. It was Samuel Dinsmore, a young man, who died on April 24, 1867, at Dinsmore's ranch due to consumption at the age of twenty-five and he became the first interment into this newly established cemetery. Samuel Dinsmore was the eldest of four children born to John W. Dinsmore and Arabella (MacGlashon) Woodrum-Dinsmore. 

Together, the John W. Disnmore family arrived in Shasta County in 1852, and they settled at Shingletown. John W. Dinsmore was a millwright who is noted with erecting the Dry mill at Shingletown in 1853, with his partner Merriman Ferrel, a brother to his future son-in-law. Then in 1857, John W. Dinsmore purchased land from Major Pierson B. Reading, this land was part of the Rancho Buena Ventura land grant. According to Shasta County historian Madge R. Walsh, "Dinsmore located his home, the Four Mile House, about four and a half miles east of Shasta, on the west side of the stage road where it divided to go east to Green's Ferry, or south to Tehama via Canyon House. He had built his house before paying for the property, as it was already extant when the deed was recorded. Today, the site is about a quarter mile west of the junction of Highway 299 W and Ridge Drive." 

The headstone of Samuel Dinsmore whose remains were re-interred into the Redding Cemetery (now Redding Memorial Park). His name is misspelled as Samnel. He is buried next to his sister Angeline (Dinsmore) Ferrel (whose surname is misspelled as Ferrell. Ferrel is the correct spelling. There are no dates on this headstone. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle August 28, 2014.

Later that year, Arabella Ferrel, a niece of Samuel Dinsmore, and a daughter of Henry Clay Ferrel and Angelina (Dinsmore) Ferrel died at Balls Ferry, at the age of eleven from congestive chills on July 27, 1867. Henry Clay Ferrel is my paternal great-great-great uncle, and his daughter became the second interment at this former cemetery. Henry C. Ferrel, was a native of Ohio, and he arrived in Shasta County in 1853. He was married in 1854 to Angelina Dinsmore. In 1860, they were living at Shasta, Henry C. Ferrel was a miner by trade.

This is the headstone of Arabella Ferrel, a daughter of Henry Clay Ferrel and Angelina (Dinsmore) Ferrel who was re-interred at the Redding Cemetery (now Redding Memorial Park). The Ferrel surname is spelled correctly here. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST BURIAL IN REDDING MEMORIAL PARK.  Note: Redding Memorial Park was established in the 1890s. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on August 28, 2014

The death notice of Joseph W. Brackett who died March 27, 1875 at Redding, he was a local lawyer. He was a son of Joseph Warren Brackett and Lydia (Miller) Brackett. His funeral was conducted under the supervision of the Masonic fraternity, of which he was a member. He was survived by his wife and a large family to mourn his loss. Taken from the Shasta Courier newspaper, Saturday, April 3, 1875.

The following is a confirmed listing of burials which took place between the years 1875 and 1877 and all of them were re-interred into the Redding Cemetery (now Redding Memorial Park);

Joseph W. Brackett died March 27, 1875

Emory Farhner died March 20, 1876

Ethol F. Wood died February 15, 1877

Annie Guilbert died July 20, 1877  (has no death notice, nor headstone.)

Six years after the turn of the 20th Century on February 13, 1906, the Redding Water Company rediscovered parts of the original cemetery when they were lowering the manes in that section of Redding. The majority of these burials above were re-interred into the Redding Cemetery (now Redding Memorial Park), that year. It was heralded across the state as a gruesome discovery, as their employees were finding the original coffins which were still intact and the headstones.

The local media claimed there were seven burials which had been unearthed, and only six of those seven burials are named in the cemetery records at the historical society. So who was the seventh burial? More research may uncover the answer to that question while it remains a mystery.

It’s possible that there might be additional burials at the former site of the Redding Abandoned Cemetery, only ground penetrating radar could tell us if there are any anomaly’s underground that shouldn’t be there today. It’s not clear if they recovered all of the burials because some references give this cemetery a much larger perimeter. It’s definitely, a location of historical interest that doesn’t get a lot of exploration, the next time you drive-by this former cemetery take a look as you're passing 2146 Pine Street.

The death notice of Emory Farhner, son of John Farhner, who died due to drowning in a small creek which ran through Redding and near the railroad tracks. Taken from the Shasta Courier newspaper on Saturday, March 25, 1876. 

The headstone of Ethel Florence Wood a daughter of William A. Wood and Mattie Wood. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on August 28, 2014.

RESOURCES:

Death Notice - Samuel Dinsmore - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, April 27, 1867 

Death Notice - Arabella Ferrell - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, August 3, 1867

Death Notice - Joseph W. Brackett - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, April 3, 1875

Death Notice - Ethel Florence Wood - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, February 24, 1877

Ditch Men Make Grewsome Finds - The Press newspaper of Redding, February 13, 1906.

Finds Coffins And Headstones In The Streets Of Redding - The San Francisco Call newspaper of San Francisco, February 14, 1906

Shasta Historical Society Cemetery Records (Small Cemeteries) - Redding Abandoned Cemetery, page 299, available in the archives of Shasta Historical Society.

Shasta County Cemteries compiled by Ronald Joliff

DP-015 Dinsmore, John W. Pioneer Plaque file available on file at the Shasta Historical Society in Redding

The Dinsmore Family by Madge R. Walsh

Selected sawmills of the Shingletown area by Jeremy M. Tuggle, Record Searchlight newspaper of Redding, February 4, 2017.

The Shasta Catholic Cemetery at Shasta, established 1855.

A state park sign marking the restoration of the historic Shasta Catholic Cemetery. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on April 28, 2016.

In 1855, a Catholic Cemetery was established at Shasta. This cemetery is located on the hillside above the Pioneer Union Cemetery. Today, its known as the Shasta Catholic Cemetery. Sadly, the cemetery fell into disrepair and vandals continued vandalizing the head stones well into the 1980s. Under the direction of the California State Parks in 2005, this cemetery was cleaned up and restored. A black gate was placed around its perimeter complete with a lock. This locked gate helps prevent further vandalism to the headstones of the early Shasta pioneers who are buried here with their families.

Among those people buried here is a German immigrant by the name of Henry Blumb. Blumb arrived in California by the way of Panama in 1854 and he settled at Shasta during the latter part of the 1850s. At Shasta Blumb was naturalized as an American citizen on January 22, 1859, by the District Court of Shasta County. During the following year he married his wife Mary Garrecht, also of German descent. 

In 1878, Henry Blumb acquired a building along Main Street at the corner of Boell Alley which formerly housed the U.S. Bakery, established in 1859 by Charles Boell who the alley way is named for. After Blumb bought it, he renovated it and turned it into a thriving saloon and bakery. He operated it until he had a stroke in 1918. Blumb died in 1924. His wife Mary preceded him in death in 1919, and is buried next to him.

An Irish immigrant by the name of Patrick Mullee, and his wife Ann, were residing at Iowa County, Wisconsin in 1850. This is where was Patrick Mullee was naturalized as an American citizen on October 28, 1850 in the Circuit Court of Iowa County. At a later date, Mullee relocated his family from Iowa County, Wisconsin to California where they settled at Churntown, in Shasta County, and he became a merchant who owned his own store. 

Churntown was one of the original 1849 gold mining communities of Shasta County. Mullee is recorded on the 1867 Great Register of Shasta County, but this document misspells his surname as Mulee. Three years later, Mullee became a miner according to the 1870 U.S. Census. The 1870 U.S. Census notes that Patrick Mullee was age 55, Ann was noted at the same age, and their daughter Winnifred was age 20. 

At that time, the Mullee's were residing at the community of Stillwater. Patrick Mullee died at Churntown and his remains were brought to Shasta where he was interred into this cemetery. Ann Mullee survived her husband by another 16 years before she died on April 5, 1892, eventually she was interred into this cemetery as well.

Another pioneer by the name of Theobald Garrecht  (D. April 18, 1875) was a native of Offenbach by Landau, Rheinptaltz (Bavaria). Garrecht departed his native country in 1860 and he arrived in the United States of America. In America, Garrecht, ventured towards the West Coast and settled at Shasta, California, that year. Garrecht was employed as a saloon keeper. Theobald married a woman named Catherine.

Five years later, tragedy struck the Garrecht family when Theobald & Catherine’s daughter, Apollonia (Garrecht) Wentz died on December 21, 1865. She wasn’t buried in the Shasta Catholic Cemetery. Her remains ended up being interred in the Shasta Masonic Cemetery located on Muletown Road just south-west of Shasta. Apollonia married Henry Wentz. The following year, Theobald Garrecht was naturalized as an American citizen in the District Court of Shasta County at Shasta on May 14, 1866. He then registered to vote in July of that year. In 1870, the pioneer was still employed as a saloon keeper, he and his wife Catherine were living in the home of their son Lorenz Garrecht, a prominent Shasta butcher.

There are many other notable Shastan’s who are buried in this historic cemetery. According to my research the last recorded interment in this cemetery was that of James Stephen Coughlin Sr., in 1936. At different times the Shasta State Historic Park offers cemetery tours of both the Shasta Catholic and the Pioneer Union Cemetery, explore it when you can.

L-R: The headstones of Patrick Mullee (D. September 1, 1876) and Ann Mullee (D. April 5, 1892). This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on April 28, 2016.

Above: In Memory of Theobald Garrecht. Died April 18, 1875. Catherine Garrecht died December 13, 1870. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on April 28, 2016.

Above: the headstone of James Smith who died February 23, 1862. Smith was a native of Parrish of Lava, County of Cavin, Ireland. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on April 28, 2016.

RESOURCES:

REPORT  of the Proceedings of the Board Of Supervisors, For May Term 1855 - The Shasta Courier newspaper of Shasta, June 9, 1855

1867 California Voters Registration

1870 U.S. Census

1873 Great Register of Shasta County 

The Shasta Courier, Saturday, April 24, 1875 Theobald Garrecht obituary

The Shasta Courier, Saturday, September 23, 1876 Patrick Mullee death notice.

The Blumb Bakery, a publication by Shasta State Historic Park

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

Shasta: The Queen City by Mabel Moores Frisbie and Jean Moores Beauchamp, published by the California Historical Society, © 1973

The Bates Family Pioneer Cemetery

This granite marker which is visible from the roadside is in the historic Bates Family Pioneer Cemetery. This historic cemetery was rededicated in 2012 by the Millville Historical Society. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on June 23, 2018.

This small and oft-forgotten cemetery is located in the Enterprise area of the Redding city limits. The Bates Family Pioneer Cemetery is located on Rancho Road, and since it’s establishment in 1878, it become the target of vandalism and blight. Today, only a few of the original burial markers remain in this historic cemetery.

The Bates Family Pioneer Cemetery is within the boundaries of the Millville Cemetery District. A granite marker with a 2010 date etched into it was donated to the Millville Historical Society by the Allen and Dahl Funeral Chapel of Redding. Then in October of 2012, the pioneer cemetery was cleaned up and rededicated by revealing the new granite marker which lists the names, birth and death dates of the individuals buried in this cemetery. The Millville Historical Society celebrated in grand style with a potluck and special appearances from the Shasta County Board of Supervisors. The descendants of Salem Bates and his wife Rebecca (Horton) Bates were also in attendance that day.

The first recorded burial in this cemetery is that of Dan Bates who died as an infant child on March 3, 1878, his death remains a mystery to me. He was a son of A.S. Bates and Sophia (Keefer) Bates who are buried in Colusa County, and during my research I didn’t find any relation between them and the Salem Bates family. It appears the A.S. Bates family were passing through the area heading south when their baby boy died.

Salem Bates and Rebecca (Horton) Bates were both natives of Vermont. They were married in the town of West Haven in 1832. They became the parents of four children, two boys and two girls, which were born between 1835-1844, respectively.

Salem Bates led an estrange life. A search for him in the 1870 U.S. Census yielded no results, yet his wife Rebecca is noted as living with her son Hiram F. A. Baker in Hartford, Ohio, that year. Hiram was a working as a farmer and his mother was unemployed, but she kept house. Salem Bates last appeared in the 1860 U.S. Census living at Putah in Yolo County. His occupation was noted as a farmer. He boarded with a man named Benjamin White. There were no other family members who were documented as living with him in California at that time.

Once again, another search for Salem Bates in the Shasta County Great Register of 1879 yielded no results. With this register lacking Bates’ name it suggests that the Bates family arrived in Shasta County sometime after the register was taken or in the early weeks of January 1880. The earliest record I located the Bates family on is the U.S. Census Mortality Schedules 1850-1880 for Hiram F.A. Baker and his mother Rebecca (Horton) Bates, available on Ancestry.com

Upon their arrival in Shasta County, tragedy struck the Salem Bates family when his son died of heart disease at the age of forty-four, on January 10, 1880. Hiram was soon interred into this cemetery. Eighteen days later, Salem’s wife Rebecca (Horton) Bates died on January 28, 1880, of the same complication as her son. She was interred here as well. After the deaths of his wife and son, Salem Bates settled in township number six of Shasta County, working as a laborer at the age of 70. According to the 1880 U.S. Census, Bates was boarding with the family of John Thompson.

Thompson was a 52-year-old broom maker. He was married and had at least two children of his own to provide for. Five years later Salem Bates is living on his own in Pacheco and working as a farmer. He died on March 9, 1894, and he was interred into this cemetery, near his wife. Eventually, additional interments were made in the Bates Family Pioneer Cemetery through the years. The last interment to be made into this cemetery was that of Earl Stenerson in 1936.

  

   

A fence surrounds the perimeter of the Bates Family Pioneer Cemetery on Rancho Road, to keep people out. The cemetery is on private property. All photographs taken with permission. Parking is limited. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on June 23, 2018.

Above: fallen headstones covered by plants, weeds and dry grass. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on June 23, 2018.

Above: the fallen headstone of Rebecca (Horton) Bates. The wife of Salem Bates. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on June 23, 2018.

Above: a faded burial marker within the cemetery. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on June 23, 2018.

Above: an unknown burial that is fenced off inside the cemetery. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on June 23, 2018.

RESOURCES:

1860 U.S. Census

1870 U.S. Census

U.S. Census Mortality Schedules 1850-1880 for Rebecca (Horton) Bates (Ancestry.com)

1879 Shasta County Great Register. (No mention of Salem Bates.)

1880 U.S. Census

1885 California Voters Registration

Millville Historical Society Gives Bates Cemetery New Life - East Valley Times newspaper, October 17, 2012.

Shasta County Resources