McARTHUR-BURNEY FALLS MEMORIAL STATE PARK

Above: Burney Falls. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on October 21, 2020.

If you’re ever in Northern California one of the premier destinations in Shasta County to visit is a natural wonder called Burney Falls. This magnificent water fall was designated as a National Natural Landmark in 1984 by the National Park Service. Yet, long before it was developed into a state park in 1930 it was President Theodore Roosevelt who supposedly labeled this natural landmark as the "eighth wonder of the world" during his presidency. Thousands of tourists come from all over the world to visit Burney Falls which is situated in the McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park along Highway 89.

This state park was established by Frank McArthur on one hundred sixty acres of land. He donated its land to the National Park Service and dedicated its donation in memory of his parents John McArthur and Catherine McArthur for the purpose of preservation. McArthur didn't want the site of the falls to be destroyed or to be utilized for hydroelectric power, and three years later the State of California added an additional one hundred seventy-five acres of land to the property. Since then the park has grown in size and is currently at 910 acres of land according to their website. 

Above: is Burney Falls. The falls height is approximately 129 feet from Burney Creek,  a tributary of the Pit River, while the depth of its pool is 22 feet, it’s water temperature reaches a chilling forty-two degrees to forty-eight degrees and it’s daily flow is 100 million gallons of water. This video was filmed by Jeremy Tuggle on October 21, 2020.

Above: this cabin is original to the park and it was constructed in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corps. The cabin was restored by the Friends of the Falls between 1984 and 1986. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on October 21, 2020.

Above: a general store remains on site as well and is often open for business within the McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park. Yes, that is a payphone in front of this building. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on October 21, 2020.

The town of Burney, Burney Falls, Burney Mountain, Burney Valley and the McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, are all named for Samuel Burney, a Scotsman, who arrived and settled in the area during November of 1858. His occupation was that of a caretaker, guide and trapper. However, Native Americans broke into his cabin and murdered Burney striking him to the back of his head with a hatchet in March of 1859. During the time of his death he was living at the Brook Farm which was homesteaded by James Preadmore. 

It's been documented that Samuel Burney had a love for the land he lived on and that it was possible another neighbor named William Cayton may have conspired with the Native Americans to have him killed for his land. Either way, Cayton eventually acquired the land which belonged to Samuel Burney. A Native American boy who had helped caretake for Burney was also murdered during the attack. Samuel Burney's body was found a short distance from his cabin covered with rocks. Burney is buried in the Burney Cemetery at Burney.

Above: the headstone of Shasta County pioneer, Samuel Burney at the Burney Cemetery in Burney. An error on his headstone at the cemetery states, "Killed by Indians 1857", and that is incorrect. He was killed in 1859. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on July 7, 2018.

The pioneer Burney Falls Cemetery was also laid out on spacious ground and established in 1890. It is included in the boundaries of the McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park. My maternal great-great-great aunt, Laura May Felch, is buried in this cemetery, she was the daughter of John Richard Felch and Lettetia Jane (Joiner) Felch, who were married at Pittville, in Shasta County, on July 24, 1889 by the Clergyman, M.H. Vineyard. Their daughter, Laura, died in August of 1891 during the diphtheria epidemic which swept through the Burney area. Laura's father, John, was a farmer who also leased a local sawmill from Isaac Ray and Felch began operating it as well. Laura's parents are buried in the Burney Cemetery at Burney.

Above: this park also features cabins which you can rent and spacious camp grounds, hiking trails, and access to Lake Britton. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on October 21, 2020.

Above: Jeremy M. Tuggle appears kneeling at the monument erected for the Burney Falls Cemetery. The first name on the marker is his maternal great-great-great aunt, Laura May Felch. Laura never had a headstone yet her plot was purchased for by her family. A selfie. This photograph was taken by Jeremy M. Tuggle on October 21, 2020.

Above: tour the historic pioneer Burney Falls Cemetery with Jeremy Tuggle. This video was filmed on location by Jeremy Tuggle on October 21, 2020.

RESOURCES:

A White Man And Indian Boy Murdered - The Shasta Republican newspaper of Shasta, April 2, 1859

The Covered Wagon, 1957. Published annually by Shasta Historical Society. 

Place Names of Shasta County by Gertrude Steger, published by La Siesta Press, ©1966.

Mountain Echo edition of December 10, 1988

Burney Falls - Visit a booming waterfall nicknamed the “eighth wonder of the world”

McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park 

McArthur-Burney Falls: A Particulary Memorable State Park by Carl Gwyn

Laura May Felch - Find A Grave.com

The Many Places Claiming to Be the Eighth Wonder of the World - by Becky Little written for History

McArthur-Burney Falls Memoria State Park

The John James Stevenson family, circa 1889-1890, at Anderson, Shasta County, California.

The John James Stevenson pioneer family poses for a photograph, circa 1889/1890, at Anderson, Shasta County, California. From the collection of Jeremy Tuggle.

I just uploaded this throwback portrait yesterday to my Ancestry.com account. This is the John James Stevenson pioneer family circa, 1889/1890, at Anderson, Shasta County, California. I have one set of great-great-great-great grandparents in this photo, and one set of great-great-great grandparents in this photo as well as my great-great-grandfather in this photo. This is on my maternal side of the family. The following people are identified: 

Back row L-R: Mary (Roberts) Stevenson, Rachael (Burkhead) Stevenson, Jane (Moore) Stevenson, Mary (Fitch) Stevenson, unidentified, Nina (Decker) Stevenson, and Laura (Cross) Stevenson. 

Middle Row L-R: Jay Weyland Stevenson, Wilsa Elmer Stevenson, John James Stevenson, William Scott Stevenson (holding baby, Winnie (Stevenson) Asbell), Willard Eugene Stevenson, and Vint Wayne Stevenson. 

Front Row L-R: Verda (Stevenson) Taylor, Joseph W. Stevenson, Jack A. Stevenson, Charles A. Stevenson, John Prosper Stevenson, and Lena (Stevenson) Waldorf in dress, and the family dog. Only one person is unidentified. A copy of the original Stevenson family portrait, very faded in parts. 

NOB HILL

Above: an 1889 Birds Eye View Map of Redding - Nob Hill showing the L-shape structure of the Del Monte hotel also known as the Del Monte Lodging and Tennant's.

Nob Hill is where Redding's wealthiest residents lived in luxurious homes during the 1880s, located on the westside of Redding surrounded by Court, Yuba, West and Placer Streets. Nob Hill is situated on the hillside, near the Placer Street hill and Court Street alongside the John J. Balma Justice Center, also known as the Shasta County jail.

Some of the earliest known landowners on Nob Hill were James T. Loag, Holton S. Cochran, M. Hayles, John H. Madison, O.J. Willis, and the Yeakey brothers. Some of the known renters of these luxury homes were the John Estes family, who rented the house and property belonging to James T. Loag, as well as Mr. And Mrs. E.G. Parker who rented the house and property belonging to Holton S. Cochran.

In 1887 one of Redding's hotels was erected on the top of Nob Hill and named the Del Monte Hotel. Later it would be known as Del Monte Lodging and Tenants' Its builder/proprietor was George Groves, and his hostelry was a two-story L-shape structure facing Yuba Street. It had an observatory on top and it contained ninety-six rooms. During the hostelry's construction, one local newspaper stated the following about its owner: "There are men in town who have more money than Geo. Groves, but none with more enterprise." It seemed to be their way of accepting Groves' building in the wealthiest part of town. By 1889 several more dwellings had been completed within the area but the Del Monte hotel stood out as one of the tallest buildings in the city. 

The Del Monte hotel grounds consisted of freshly made sidewalks and bridges. On the south-west side of the hotel property fronting West Street was a water well, an outhouse, barn, and shop, erected by Groves for his tenant's use. By May of 1896, the Sanborne Fire Maps of Redding noted the well as private property then owned by the Well & Rider Company of England. Later this water well supplied water for Redding's business district.

The 1899 City of Redding Directory described the Del Monte hotel as an apartment house, not a hostelry. It is interesting to not that the directory  mentions its location as being on the south side of Butte Streets between West and Court Street. It was still owned by George Groves at that time.

The nearest subdivision to Nob Hill was the Breslauer Addition to the west. By March of 1912, ten dwellings had been erected on Nob Hill including an Episcopal church on the south-west corner of Yuba and Court Streets. Construction and new development have changed Nob Hill's look over time from residential to a business area. 

The Del Monte Apartments were condemned by the City of Redding in 1959 and demolished in 1960, never to be rebuilt. There was another Del Monte Apartments, but it had no relation to the pioneer hostelry business. The John J. Balma Justice Center was erected on Nob Hill in 1984.

RESOURCES:

The Reading Independent newspaper of Redding, March 25, 1880

A Tough Crowd - The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 16, 1887

Another Improvement - The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 21, 1887

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 4, 1887

The Republican Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 11, 1887

1899 City of Redding Directory

Sanborne Fire Map of Redding

REDISCOVERING THE COMPTON MINE OF THE SHASTA MINING DISTRICT

Above: modern graffiti appears inside the main haulage tunnel of the Compton mine, this photo was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on September 22, 2020.

The Compton mine was a producer of gold which was located in the boundaries of the Shasta mining district about 1 1/2 mile south of the town of Keswick, and south of Keswick Dam on the west side of the Sacramento River, at the mouth of Rock Creek on forty acres of land. In 1915, this mining property was owned and operated by G.F. Bassett, of Redding. Bassett developed the property from a vein of quartz associated in granite-porphyry.

Mining records indicate it contained a small pay-shoot. Bassett brought in two small five-pound stamp mills on the property near the adit of this lode mine which crushed the rock so he could obtain the ore it produced. The stanchions of these stamp mills remain on site along the present-day Sacramento River Trail at that location. 

Active Sacramento River Trail users have seen the trail which leads to the Compton mine many times, but the adit is blocked by a rock in front of it and you can't see the opening until you climb to the top of the trail. It's a very tight squeeze to get into. It contained an adit with a short drift, and two small winzes above the adit which have been plugged. Production notes were not kept for the Compton mine. 

Above: this YouTube video was filmed on location of the Compton mine by Jeremy Tuggle on September 22, 2020.

RESOURCES: 

Mines and Mineral Resources of Shasta County, Siskiyou County, and Trinity County, by G. Chester Brown, ©1915 published by California State Printing Office.

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

The Compton Mine

The Zogg Fire Destroys Two Landmarks in the Historic Town of Ono

Above: this clapboard style building was erected in 1935 at Ono to house the meetings and events of the Ono Grange No. 445. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on July 4, 2018.

Confirmation from the Redding Record Searchlight newspaper confirms that the Zogg Fire which erupted into flames on the afternoon of September 27, 2020, on Zogg Mine Road in Igo destroyed two landmarks in the historic nearby town of Ono. The Ono Grange No.445 was instituted on March 26, 1930, at Ono which empowered them to act under the bylaws of the National Grange for a permanent charter or warrant confirming a perpetual right of succession, and securing them the privilege's of a regular constituted grange. 

The first meeting of the Ono Grange No. #445 was held in a rented building on Buell Road in Ono on April 2, 1930. The first master was James J. Barr Sr., [the husband of my paternal great-great-great aunt Edna L. (Kidder) Barr], and the first secretary of this grange was Lena Driscoll. The charter members of this new establishment were: James J. Barr Sr., Mrs. Martin Driscoll, Olive Miller, David Miller, Marshall Gill, Richard Edmonds, Bob Jordan, W. Kingsbury, May Kingsbury, C.M. Murphy, Joseph N. Moon, Pauline Stevens, Eugenia Graham, Sydnie Jones, Nelly Murphy, Mrs. Addie B. Graves, Charles Plumb, Mabel Fowler, Frankie Fowler, and Mrs. Julia Edmonds.

In February of 1934 negotiations began with the members of the grange and Ono resident David Boyer to purchase a piece of property that Boyer owned near the channel of Eagle Creek for the future Ono Grange Hall. Yet, Boyer decided to donate the land for the grange to use, and on May 25, 1934, the construction began on the new Ono Grange Hall.

Above: the siding of the Ono Grange Hall. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on July 4, 2018.

Above: the siding of the Ono Grange Hall. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on July 4, 2018.

The Ono Grange Hall was completed in 1935. Many people joined the new association which provided assistance to farmers, denotes a marked change in the economy of the area, away from mining toward farming and ranching. Through the years, the Ono Grange Hall remained an active gathering place for the people in the community, and many events and community fundraisers were held there. The building served the community for eighty-five years, until it was destroyed by the ravaging Zogg Fire on September 27, 2020.

Another landmark which was destroyed by the ravaging Zogg Fire on September 27, 2020, was the Ono Store and Stopping Place, also known as the Ono Store and International Cafe, which formerly marked the center of Ono. The store was built in the 1950s by Lamar and Aletha Green, opposite of what used to be David Miller's merchandise store. Since the Green's owned and operated the establishment it has been through various owners over the years. I'm sure that more fire ravaged landmarks of the Igo and Ono areas will be announced if any once the area reopens to the public. As of 8:30 A.M., on September 28, 2020, this fire has exploded to 15,000 acres. The fire is being driven by the wind. Praying for Igo and Ono. Thank you, to the fire fighters and our first responders!

Above: The Ono Store and International Cafe. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on July 4, 2018.

Above: the early stages of the Zogg Fire in Igo filmed by Jeremy Tuggle on September 27, 2020.

Above: the early stages of the Zogg Fire in Ono filmed by Jeremy Tuggle on September 27, 2020

RESOURCES:

Patrons of Husbandry Charter - Ono Grange No. 445, instituted March 26, 1930

A History of the Grange by Merla F. Clark

A Journey Through Time: Ono and the Bald Hills by Jeremy M. Tuggle, with an introduction by Al M. Rocca; copyright 2008, published by Preserving Memories, in Charlotte, North Carolina. ISBN Number: 978-0-9742576-8-6

http://onogrange.org/

Historic Buildings Lost To Fire - The Record Searchlight newspaper of Redding.

AN UNNAMED COPLEY GREENSTONE/QUARTZ MINE ALONG THE SACRAMENTO RIVER TRAIL NEAR REDDING.

Above: this photograph of the adit was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on September 19, 2020.

This unnamed Copley Greenstone/Quartz mine is located along the upper Sacramento River Trail on the east side of the Sacramento River. A marker at that location details the geological history of the mine. The marker states the following:

“This trail to a mine in the Old Diggings (Buckeye) Mining District leads past outcroppings of Copley greenstone, a basement rock in this part of of the Klamath Mountains believed to be about 400 million years old. Composed of old lava flows and some river sediments, the rock was altered by heat and pressure over the centuries to its present greenish hue on freshly broken surfaces. Veins like this mine were tapped for their gold and silica content. In the early 1900s, the low-grade quartz ore was mined chiefly for its silica, used as a fluxing agent in nearby Iron Mountain and other copper smelters.”

Above: this video was filmed by Jeremy Tuggle on location on September 19, 2020.

The Mount Shasta Mine: A Gold Mine on the Mt. Shasta Mine Loop Trail

Above: a miner pushing an ore cart filled with rock at the Mount Shasta mine. Courtesy of the Shasta Historical Society.

Located about 2 1/2 miles from the town of Shasta is the Mount Shasta mine, a once-lucrative producer of gold and one of the larger gold mining operations in the Shasta mining district, after gold was discovered in the area in 1897. The mine, which is within the boundaries of the Whiskeytown National Recreation Area on the Mt. Shasta Mine Loop Trail, can be found after a moderate 1.2 mile hike to the mining property, or you can hike the entire loop distance of 3.1 miles. 

The mine was first owned and operated by then-Shasta County Sheriff, Charles Behrens, the maternal grandfather of the late Honorable Shasta County Superior Court Judge, Richard B. Eaton. Behrens operated the mine with his mining partner, Levisay, and they negotiated a contract with the Keswick smelter to have their ore treated. The Mount Shasta mine consisted of the Pittsburgh mining claim and one other mining claim as well.

Above: a man tending to two horses hitched to a wagon at the Mount Shasta mine. In the back ground is the building which enclosed the eight stamp steam powered mill. Courtesy of the Shasta Historical Society. 

Behrens and Levisay, began digging a winze on the property which sunk down to about 80 feet below the surface of the earth, and this was the start of the 463 foot shaft on the property. To jump start the production earnings, Behrens and Levisay’s ore first earned them between $80 to $90 per ton at Keswick. Later that year, Behrens and Levisay sold their mining claim to San Francisco capitalists Hirshly, Vair & Farfst for $10,000.

Early on, in 1898, the new owners organized the Mount Shasta Gold Mine LTD., and they employed fifteen men to operate the mine by February of 1898. During the following year, Hirshly, Vair & Farfst had a stamp mill built for them on the property consisting of eight stamps, which operated by steam to crush their rock so their miners could obtain the ore they were seeking. Each stamp weighed 1,050 pounds, and a building was erected which enclosed the perimeter of the stamp mill as well.

Other equipment included a wooden head frame with a steam powered hoist, and a cage so miners could toil away in the shaft to extract the ore of the lower levels or to enter a drift they were working. The Mount Shasta Gold Mine LTD., began lowering the winze on the property as well. Eventually, the mine included seven levels with drifts branching off from the main winze.

By 1900, the Mount Shasta mine and its holdings were sold to O.O. Howard and F.E. Ware of Redding. Ware was a former superintendent at this gold mine. Howard and Ware employed W.G. Scott as their superintendent who supervised the work of their miners as the production of this mine continued. While the work progressed on the property, their miners probed and examined the rock on site which also consisted of digging and blasting out an adit, not far from the main shaft of the property.

The Mount Shasta Gold Mine LTD. expanded their holdings in the area after purchasing additional mining claims and bringing in additional shares of investors or capitalists from the Chicago area. Eventually in 1901 this company entered the copper mining industry of Shasta County, with most of the company’s copper claims were in the Pittsburgh mining district near Bully Hill. They focused on those copper claims between 1901 and 1904 due to the shut-down of the Mount Shasta mine which remained idled after that.

Surprisingly, another transaction occurred in 1912 when the Mount Shasta mine was sold to A.A. Linsdsay & Associates of Portland, Oregon, for an impressive $35,000. They had planned to enter an extensive hiring phase that December to employ one hundred miners, and continue the production of this gold mine.

During May of 1913, after re-timbering the adit and drifts on the property and installing a new ore-shoot, the mine was sold to H.O. Cummins and Associates for about the same price as the previous transaction. 1915 was the final year of production for this gold mine and the total production reached an output of $180,000 in gold, which is the equivalent of $2.5 Million in today’s currency.

Note: the Mount Shasta Gold Mine LTD., can be found as the Mount Shasta Gold Mine Corporation in the written historical records as well.

Above: The Mount Shasta mine as filmed on location by Jeremy Tuggle on August 25, 2020.

RESOURCES:

Mining and Scientific Press, 75 no. 18 (October 1897)

The Free Press newspaper of Redding, October 14, 1899

The Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 22, 1900

Mount Shasta Mine Sold And Paid For - The Courier Free-Press newspaper of Redding, February 16, 1912

Mount Shasta Mine Sold To H.O. Cummins - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 22, 1913

Mines and Mineral Resources of Shasta County, Siskiyou County, and Trinity County, by G. Chester Brown, ©1915 published by California State Printing Office.

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