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.
The historic Pollock bridge above the Sacramento River in 1936 with the town of Pollock in the distance on the north-east side of the Pollock bridge. From the collection of Jeremy Tuggle.
Above: where Pollock should be at the mouth of Salt Creek on the Sacramento River arm at 115.20-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam. Time to compare the ridge line of the mountains in the background with the first picture. This photo was taken by Jeremy Tuggle on June 11, 2021.
Above: a 1915-1945 map which predates the establishment of the townsite of Pollock at the junction of Salt Creek and the Sacramento River. This map shows the former alignment of the Central Pacific Railroad which was later acquired by Southern Pacific Railroad. It shows what was known as the Shasta Route on this map at that location. Source: CalTopo.
Pollock was formerly located along U.S. Route Highway 99 at the junction of Salt Creek and the Sacramento River. Today, Pollock is located just opposite of Sugarloaf Resort and Antler’s Marina on the Sacramento River arm at the mouth of Salt Creek under Lake Shasta. Construction on U.S. Route Highway 99 (also known as the Pacific Highway) began in California in 1914 and it was finished in 1922. During the interim years, a man named George G. Pollock, a native of Indiana, and a general contractor owned and operated the Pollock Construction Company, of Sacramento, which was awarded a contract from the California State Highway Commission in 1916 to construct a bridge which would span the Sacramento River at this location. The bridge was open for auto travel in February of 1917.
Later, a fire broke out on August 11, 1921, at Pollock “...which destroyed seven outfit cars sidetracked there, found that it was due to hoboes entering one of the cars and building a fire for cooking or keeping warm, and failure to extinguish it entirely when leaving.” (SIC) As Pollock was emerging into becoming a permanent fixture along the new highway, north state locals Davis & Robinson obtained a permit from the local railroad commission to operate an automobile passenger stage line from Redding to Sisson (now Mount Shasta City) in Siskiyou County. Along the route this stage line conveyed passengers to Pollock, Delta, La Moine, Hazel Creek, Castella and Dunsmuir. It promised weary travelers fast traveling times at cheap rates.
It was Redding resident Chris Kutras who purchased eighty acres on the east side of the Sacramento River near the highway bridge from landowner Mrs. N.S. Stillson on February 17, 1922. Kutras promised that this transaction would include the erection of a general grocery store, combination post office and service station building to be leased to H.L. Scott. Scott was slated to be the first postmaster of this U.S. Post Office, but he was bypassed by the officials in Washington D.C., for unknown reasons.
Then, on January 5, 1924, John Steinaker became the first postmaster of the brand-new United States Post Office at Pollock. The Pollock United States Post Office was established by the United States Postal Service in Washington D.C., and they named the post office after George G. Pollock. It was a fourth-class post office which served about 30 families residing at Pollock. However, Steinaker had leased his store’s building from Kutras, and it was in operation before July of 1923 without the post office, which began serving the area on January 5, 1924.
Above: a 1939 mineral deposit map of Shasta County surveyed by Charles V. Averill showing Pollock and the railroad.
Above: the combined Pollock Grocery Store, Post Office & Service Station at Pollock owned by Chris Kutras and leased to John Steinaker on the Sacramento River at Salt Creek. Date unknown. Courtesy of Shasta Historical Society.
Above: originally labeled as the Pollack Auto Camp. This is the Pollock Auto Camp at Pollock on the Sacramento River at Salt Creek. Date unknown. Courtesy of Shasta Historical Society.
As early as April of 1925, talk of a dam being built in the Sacramento River Canyon was already mentioned in statewide media coverage, and the Healdsburg Tribune of Healdsburg, reported the following about submerging the town of Pollock within in the future reservoir of what would become Shasta Lake by the construction of this dam in the following article:
"Would Create Lake In Shasta County
SACRAMENTO, April 10.- A dam in the Sacramento River canyon at the proposed Kennett site would submerge the towns of Kennett, Antler, Copper City and Pollock, twenty miles of the main line of the Southern Pacific, nine miles of the stale highway, two smelters, one mine and the state fish hatchery on the McCloud River. These consequences of the backing up of water in the Sacramento and Pit Rivers for thirty-two miles with a 400-foot dam are discussed by Paul Bailey, engineer who is making the survey of the state’s water resources begun in 1921, in his supplemental report on the work to date made to the present legislature."
Six years later, a brush fire erupted into flames two miles south of the town of Pollock in April of 1932 on the Kobe farm which resulted in the death of resident Mathew Kobe, age seventy-two, a native of Austria, and a local farmer. He had been fighting the fire when his trousers got caught in the flames and he jumped into Salt Creek to extinguish them. The flames caused serious burns upon his body, and in time, those burns were fatal to him. Kobe died on April 18, 1932, the decedent was survived by his wife, four sons and one daughter. The fire grew to two acres with no structure damage.
Beginning May 1st, of each year swimming at Salt Creek kicked off and even during the summer months Pollock residents were able to cool off in the creek which flowed year round. It would rise during rain storms. Much like today, even the local wildlife shared the running water of Salt Creek with their human neighbors.
Above: an article about Pollock happenings from the Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, dated: May 1, 1935, Pollock was a lively place along the Pacific Highway during the decade of the 1930s.
The town of Pollock was flooded during the historic Sacramento River flood of February 28, 1940, with winter storms flooding the river at that location, as Pollock got its first taste of being submerged in water. The flooding caused the Pollock bridge to be under six feet of water and at Woolman's store. The City of Redding was isolated in all directions which saw the traffic and the railroad trains stopped in all directions until the routes were passable a week later when the flood water lowered.
Four years later, on June 1, 1944, the Pollock United States post office was discontinued with Sarah Ann Moody being the last postmistress. Then it’s post office was relocated. The name of this United States post office was changed to Loftus in honor of Charles Loftus, a grandson of Mrs. Stella Woolman. The reason the Pollock United States post off was discontinued was due to the construction of Shasta Dam which threatened with submerging the town site into the reservoir of Shasta Lake (or Lake Shasta). Pollock would eventually become under the main water mark of the reservoir at full pool 1,067-feet elevation or distance from crest of Shasta Dam at 0-feet, with its 365 miles of shoreline. Lake Shasta began flooding its reservoir in 1942. Shasta Dam was engineered by Frank T. Crowe the owner of Pacific Constructors Incorporated, and construction began in 1938 and its construction was completed in 1945.
The Pollock townsite has surfaced during the drought years of 1976, 1977, 1991, 2008 and 2021 with portions of historic U.S. Route Highway 99 surfacing and the railroad of the Central Pacific built in 1884 and later acquired by the Southern Pacific Railroad this railroad was also known as the Shasta Route and traversed on the westside of the Sacramento River at Pollock. During these years, local Pollock relics included a 1916 cut and grade and a highway masonry wall with minimal foundations. The Pollock bridge is fully out of the water at 166.87-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam; and in the 1990's the resort that owned the bridge cut the bridge in half and repositioned it at an angle so they could start launching boats off of it during drought years, so not all of the bridge is intact. The Sacramento River arm at this location has changed drastically over the years. On July 11, 2021, the historic Pollock bridge began emerging out of the water at Lake Shasta for the first time in seven years at 131.15-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam.
POLLOCK POSTMASTERS:
John Steinaker - January 5, 1924
Mrs. Stella Klineschmidt - acting P.M. June 7, 1926, appointed June 10, 1926
Mrs. Stella Woolman (formerly Klineschmidt) - July 23, 1930
Mrs. Florence Mason - November 16, 1940
Mrs. Hazel N. Collins - April 23, 1942
Mrs. Sarah Ann Moody - December 1, 1942
Mrs. Sarah Ann Moody - June 1, 1943 - June 1, 1944.
Above: on top of the 1916 cut and grade (which is used for vehicle parking) on the north side of the Pollock bridge at Antler's Marina with historic U.S. Highway Route 99 below me. The Lake Shasta water level was 135.00-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam. This video was filmed on location July 16, 2021.
Above: at 148.45-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam the historic Highway Masonry Wall on Historic Route Highway 99 at Salt Creek is FULLY OUT of the water. This is at Pollock. A lot of Pollock history is discussed in this film. Filmed on location August 6, 2021.
Above: Portions of the historic railroad at Pollock surfacing out of the water at Shasta Lake. This is the railroad just north of the historic Pollock bridge. This video was filmed on location, September 4, 2021.
Above: the end of the Pollock bridge. The Pollock bridge is now full out of the water on 9-10-2021 at 900.13-feet elevation wise or 166.87-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam. This photograph was taken by Jeremy Tuggle.
Above: Jeremy Tuggle discovers a foundation of a building possibly connected to the Shasta Route Railroad at Pollock, just north of the historic Pollock bridge, at 891.58-feet elevation wise below full pool or 175.42-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam. Filmed on location on October 2, 2021 in Lakehead, California.
(Note: this article was featured in the October 2021, Shasta Historical Society Stagecoach newsletter, page 9, written by Jeremy Tuggle for the Shasta Historical Society.)
RESOURCES:
Canyon Roads Open For Automobiles - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, February 16, 1917
Sacramento Canyon Open To Auto Travel - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, February 16, 1917
Road From Redding To Dunsmuir Finished - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, February 18, 1917
Marin Journal newspaper of San Rafael, April 12, 1917
1920 U.S. Census
The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, February 4, 1921
The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, August 21, 1921
The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, September 27, 1921
Stage Permit Granted - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, September 28, 1921
Pollock Will Have Post Office Store - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 17, 1922
Chris Kutras Buys 80 At Pollock - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, February 17, 1922
The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 19, 1922
The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, April 7, 1923
Automobile Truck Had Five Million In Gold As Cargo - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, May 29, 1923
Pollock Wants To Have A Post Office - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, June 23, 1923
For Pollock - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, July 10, 1923
Kennett-Pollock Road May Get State Money To Be Used As Detour - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 22, 1924
Would Create Lake In Shasta County - The Healdsburg Tribune of Healdsburg, April 10, 1925
Former Pollock Merchant Asks Divorce - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, June 10, 1925
The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 20, 1925
Folks You Know - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 23, 1932
Personal - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 9, 1932
Pollock Man's Death Blamed On Trousers - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 18, 1932
The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 9, 1935
The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 12, 1935
Pollock Woman Struck By Small Boy In Snowball - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, January 31, 1935
Camp Salt Creek Quarantine Lifted - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 7, 1935
Local Brevities - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 22, 1935
The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 9, 1935
Highway Rerouting Is Studied - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 16, 1935
The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 2, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 8, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 18, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 20, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 23, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, April 27, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 1, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 8, 1935
Pollock Items - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 17, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, May 18, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 4, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 11, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, June 18, 1935
Pollock - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, July 9, 1935
The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 12, 1935
Pollock Items - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 17, 1935
Pollock Items - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, August 22, 1935
Pollock Items - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, September 4, 1935
U.S., Appointments of U. S. Postmasters, 1832-1971
Redding Isolated - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, February 28, 1940
That Ribbon Of Highway I: Highway 99 from the Oregon Border to the State Capital by Jill Livinston 1996 0-9651277-3-2 Second edition. Published by Living Gold Press. 212 Pages.
Head on over to California Unearthed to watch the brand-new episode that features myself, and in collaboration with the Shasta Cascade Rail Preservation Society’s general historian, Dave Jungkeit. Filming Rizzle Hammon, James White and Riah Stevens’ 1909 Freight Train Car Wreckage discovery site at Shasta Lake.
California Drought Lowers Shasta Lake To Its Second Lowest Record. 2014 Is Now The Third Lowest Recorded Year.
Above: the California drought takes its toll on the Sacramento River just north of the modern 1939 Union Pacific Railroad Trestle at Charlie Creek. Looking south down the Sacramento River arm of Shasta Lake. This photograph was taken on September 30, 2021, by Jeremy Tuggle/Shasta County News Source.
Shasta County, California, October 7, 2021 - The present California drought has lowered Shasta Lake’s elevation to its second lowest record surpassing 2014’s elevation total of 889.49-feet, below full pool to 889.42-feet, and continuing to lower to tie or break the 1977 all-time historic low record this year, or possibly next year. Shasta Lake is currently listed at twenty-three percent full.
Very little rain has fallen this year, since summer waned down, and fall started. The top six historic records are listed by feet below and below the full pool elevation of 1,067-feet, with 365 miles of shoreline when full, as they are posted below in order:
1.) September 14, 1977 - 836.68
2.) October 7, 2021 - 889.42 and continuing to drop.
3.) November 29, 2014 - 889.49
4.) September 10, 1976 - 906.78
5.) October 30, 2008 - 909.23
6.) December 24, 1991 - 909.88
Shasta Lake according to my research is now 52.81-feet from the September 14, 1977, all-time historic low record. Shasta Lake’s official website claims 238-feet, is the all-time low but research through microfilmed newspapers from 1977 show differently. Already this year, some oft-forgotten relics have emerged from the murky depths of Shasta Lake such as a 112-year-old freight train car derailment on the Shasta Route Railroad on the Sacramento River arm just north of Charlie Creek and north of Tunnel Number 6 in Lakehead, a sunken boat mystery at Bridge Bay Marina with no-known history. Their resort has been requesting help with identifying it, and railroad tunnel number four which is rarely seen in drought season, and a foundation of a building at Pollock, just north of the historic Pollock bridge, to name a few of the many relics that have emerged during this drought season.
*Disclaimer: For years, I have claimed the lowest to be 836.92-feet, below full pool, or 230.08 below the crest of Shasta Dam which was wrong.
On October 2, 2021, Shasta Lake’s water level was recorded at 891.58-feet elevation wise below full pool or 175.42-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam for the third lowest record of all-time. By this date we were 2.09-feet away from the second lowest record set on November 29, 2014, of 889.49-feet below full pool elevation. This building was also located at Pollock on October 2, 2021, and is located just north of the historic Pollock bridge. Presumably, it is a building connected with the Shasta Route railroad.
Filmed on location on October 2, 2021 in Lakehead, California.
California Drought Reveals 112-Year-Old Freight Train Car Derailment On Shasta Lake. One Of Five Freight Train Cars Found In The Sacramento River Channel. Wreckage Dates To 1909.
Above: this video was filmed on location September 18, 2021.
In the rain and mud at the discovery site in Lakehead north of Railroad Tunnel Number 6. L-R: Jeremy M. Tuggle (Education & Community Engagement Manager at Shasta Historical Society) and Ryan "Rizzle" Hammon the discoverer of this freight train car wreckage. Selfie. Photo taken: September 18, 2021, by Jeremy M. Tuggle/Shasta County News Source.
Lakehead, California, September 29 - After following the footsteps of my metal detecting buddy, Gabriel Leete, of Redding, and I, who helped me film a metal detecting segment of my YouTube show “Exploring Shasta County History” on September 4, 2021, near Railroad Tunnel Number 6 at Charlie Creek, on the Sacramento River arm of Shasta Lake, for recreation purposes only. While we were there we were trying to determine if the rail of the Shasta Route were still there or if they were removed by the railroad. It is our opinion that the railroad removed them to be utilized elsewhere along the modern route of the railroad heading north and south due to the hefty costs of manufacturing and purchasing of the rail at that time.
We were finding many iron pieces connected to the railroad and railroad spikes along the way, both old and modern versions, including a piping system of some sort below the rail bed before we concluded our search that day. We did not expect to locate anything important, and we thought we covered the entire area because parts of the river channel below the rail bed was still muddy, wet and not walkable at that time.
However, this warranted further investigation of the site by local Redding resident, Ryan “Rizzle” Hammon, age 29, who picked up where we left off. However, he didn’t think he would locate anything of interest or anything this exciting! Yet, what Hammon found was a historic derailed freight train car buried in the Sacramento River channel.
Looking north from a southern point along the rail bed at Railroad Tunnel Number 6 on the Sacramento River arm of Shasta Lake near Charlie Creek. This photograph was taken on July 11, 2021, by Jeremy M. Tuggle/Shasta County News Source.
Looking south from a northern point along the rail bed at Railroad Tunnel Number 6 on the Sacramento River arm of Shasta Lake near Charlie Creek. This photograph was taken on August 18, 2021, by Jeremy M. Tuggle/Shasta County News Source.
In 1872, the California & Oregon Railroad, a division of the Central Pacific Railroad stopped its construction at Redding until their surveying was completed to decide if they were heading west towards Shasta into Oregon or north through the Sacramento River Canyon into Oregon. As the end-of-the-line, Redding was very fortuitous in its role in the development of our county for ten years until the railroad resumed construction and laid its tracks north of Redding through the Sacramento River Canyon in 1883, and established additional communities, depots and "flag stations" along the way. Most of the railroad tunnels were erected along the route in 1884, a total of seven in all, and most of them were remodeled during the 1920’s these dates are etched into their concrete except for Railroad Tunnel Number 6 whose dates are faded away and lost to time. Only two remain above Shasta Lake's water line.
Later, this railroad was acquired by the Southern Pacific Railroad, and eventually this region of track became known as the Shasta Route. The Shasta Route was used for both passenger and freight trains. One of the routes main passenger trains was the popular Shasta Limited. The Shasta Route promised to be the prominent and scenic travel route from San Francisco, California into Portland, Oregon. The railroad company advertised it as being the "road of a thousand wonders" since it traveled through the heart of the Shasta Cascade district. Train derailments rarely happened on this route, but they did occur.
One freight train derailment occurred on this rail line on March 27, 1909, when freight train number 221 came to a screeching halt approximately a mile north-west of Railroad Tunnel Number 6, near Charlie Creek, on a bend of the Sacramento River which derailed for 100 yards or more. Original reports say that four freight cars departed the track, later reports claimed that five freight cars departed the railroad. This incident held-up the traffic along this Sacramento River Canyon route for several hours that Saturday. The railroad was busy that weekend with the northbound passenger Portland Express Number 16 halted at Kennett and the southbound passenger Dunsmuir Express Number 35., halted at Dunsmuir on its way to Kennett and Redding. The cause of the wreckage was never determined. There was a transient who had hitched a ride on a break beam of the train as well, but this person walked away without injury. This wreckage made headlines all over the State of California.
A 1915-1945 map showing the Shasta Route at Charlie Creek at the Sacramento River. Source: CalTopo.
One hundred and twelve years later, on September 9, 2021, Ryan “Rizzle” Hammon with the assistance of local Redding residents Mariah Stevens, age 26, and James White, age 30, discovered something which many people can only dream of locating and “this discovery was made by hand with absolutely no metal detecting involved”, says Hammon as the current drought revealed this wreckage site to them, that day after digging by hand through the mud. On that day, Shasta Lake’s elevation was 900.13-feet below full pool and the wheel, drum bearing, and axel of the car appeared to them with other pieces neatly preserved by the murky depths of Shasta Lake.
Then, he departed Lakehead and anxiously went home to Redding where he immediately began his own research with the help of his friends above. Later, he contacted the author of this article at the Shasta Historical Society and invited me out to explore the discovery site with him. I first saw this discovery site on September 18, 2021, and I met him there in Lakehead to film and document it. I later finished compiling the research for Hammon. With hopes of salvaging the freight train rail car wreckage, Hammon, seeks to go through the proper channels before digging and he's aware that it might cost him money. With my help he contacted the Shasta Cascade Rail Preservation Society, general historian, Dave Jungkeit, who became fascinated and mind-blown by this rare discovery.
Jungkeit, remarked during an interview that: "it's a real possibility that whatever cargo those freight cars were hauling could still be intact and nicely preserved for Hammon to find, if he gets cleared to start digging it up from the river channel, of course he would have to go through Fish & Game to make a salvage claim." One newspaper article mentioned that most of the cars were hauling ties. Jungkeit, has set up a date with Hammon to review the discovery site himself.
The chances of locating the other four cars are slim since the newspaper articles claimed that they were smashed into pieces. So, it's a very rare possibility that any more lie there in the Sacramento River channel. Currently, Shasta Lake is 892.66-feet elevation below full pool, and or 174.34-feet below the crest of Shasta Dam.
FOUR CARS LEAVE TRACK NEAR TUNNEL 6 - CANYON TRAFFIC TIED UP FOR SEVEN HOURS SATURDAY - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 27, 1909.
One of the five derailed freight train cars is shown here. It has been nicely preserved by the murky depths of Shasta Lake for one hundred and twelve years. This discovery was made by Ryan "Rizzle" Hammon and his friends. This photograph was taken on September 18, 2021, by Jeremy M. Tuggle/Shasta County News Source.
L- R: James White, Ryan “Rizzle” Hammon, Zack Stevens, age 18, and Mariah Stevens checking out their incredible discovery in Lakehead. This photograph was taken on September 18, 2021, by Jeremy M. Tuggle/Shasta County News Source.
RESOURCES:
The Shasta Route - In All Of Its Grandeur - A Scenic Guide Book.
Four Cars Leave Track Near Tunnel 6 - The Courier-Free Press newspaper of Redding, March 27, 1909
Freight Wrecked Near Tunnel No. 6 - The Searchlight newspaper of Redding, March 28, 1909
Shasta County - Wreck - The Sacramento Daily Union newspaper of Sacramento, March 28, 1909
Freight Cars Smashed To Pieces - The Marysville Daily Appeal newspaper of Marysville, March 28, 1909
Freight Train Wrecked Saturday - The Colusa Daily Sun newspaper of Colusa, March 29, 1909
Bridge Bay Marina’s Sunken Boat Mystery, Shasta Lake, 9-17-2021. Today’s Shasta Lake level is 897.53-Feet elevation wise or 169.47-Feet below the crest of Shasta Dam. This mysterious sunken boat must have a history, and Bridge Bay Marina wants to learn more about it. You might know the answer! What is it?
New YouTube video: Railroad Tunnel Number 4 Now Surfacing Out Of the Sacramento River Arm of Shasta Lake, 9-17-2021. Today’s Shasta Lake level is 897.53-Feet elevation wise or 169.47-Feet below the crest of Shasta Dam. Built 1884 and remodeled in 1925. See my video below:
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