Previous Events
If you are looking for the video recordings of previous NCHS Speaker Nights,
they are available on the Members-Only Speaker Night web page.
Ghost Towns of Nevada County
With Bernie Zimmerman
When: Thursday, October 17th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
For our October Speaker Night, Nevada County Historical Society is pleased to hear from local author Bernie Zimmerman who will talk about his book, Ghost Towns of Nevada County and featuring the history of our local ghost towns and their cemeteries. His book contains histories of 38 ghost towns and Bernie’s talk will share the history of several ghost towns whose cemeteries remain today.
The book will be available for purchase.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event lasts one hour. Free refreshments offered after the presentation. For more information, call or text Daniel Ketcham at (530) 477-8056.
Back to Jones Bar
With Chris Ward
When: Thursday, September 19th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Well before California was a state and Nevada County was primarily a snow-covered wilderness, this narrow stretch along the picturesque and placer gravels rich South Yuba River, Uba Seo, even then, was sharing its abundant wealth, helping to provide riches enough to cement its place in local history.
More than a century and a half later our community, both local and state have continued to recognize the bounty this length of river can still provide, as it has now been embraced by the South Yuba River State Park lands and enjoys protection and meaningful stewardship that will maintain the space for future generations.
Come take a trip back to old Jones Bar and remember the role this important crossing has had in our local timeline and how it continues to draw folks nearer and still offers new insights and new chapters in our understanding of our beautiful Uba Seo, our Yuba.
From its early days, when only Nisenan feet tread its banks, to later on, as everyone else came to catch glimpses of its promise. From placer gold miners to silver screen starlets. Recent anthropological study has gained new insights and this is our night together to share in things newly learned from this old and well-known locale.
Chris Ward is a local author, archaeologist and contributor to numerous research projects throughout California. He is a member of multiple organizations dedicated to the conservation of California’s heritage, including the Society of California Archaeology and other regional and county preservation groups.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event lasts one hour. Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information, call or text Daniel Ketcham at (530) 477-8056.
An Abolitionist, A Southern Secessionist & Frontier Vengeance Along the Oregon Trail: John Brown’s Family Comes to Red Bluff, California, 1864
With Josie Smith
When: Thursday August 15th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Five years after fiery abolitionist John Brown was hanged in 1859 for his failed raid on Harper’s Ferry Arsenal, his wife Mary, three daughters, and son Salmon traveled overland by wagon to start a new life in Red Bluff, California. Author Josie Smith will be sharing about their journey that nearly ended in disaster on the Oregon Trail when a wagon train of “Tennessee rebels of the worst kind” discovered who they were and chased them along the trail.
The Brown family and subsequent historical journal and newspaper articles never identified these “Tennessee rebels” or why they doggedly pursued the Browns until now. This presentation by Josie Smith will present her research that finally reveals their surprising identity and the real reason behind the tension between the two wagon trains, which had nothing to do with the abolitionist movement.
This story spans pivotal moments in United States history and reaches back to the crown of England. It’s also a story about links. Several years after their near fatal encounter along the trail, both families were destined to meet again as they set roots in Northern California.
Josie Smith is an author, editor and researcher with the Association for Northern California Historical Research (ANCHR) and also works at the Tehama County Genealogical & Historical Society (TCG&HS) and with the Tehama County Heritage and Historical Records Commission.
Please plan to attend what will be an interesting journey through history framed in the lives of two families looking for a new start in Northern California.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
The Life and Times of Grass Valley’s Ada Mills Young
With Teresa Baker & Linda Jack
When: Thursday July 18th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
On the morning of Saturday, February 20, 1904, the San Francisco Call reported that the appearance of a pretty young woman in the doorway of the officers’ quarters of Army Captain Charles S. Young had caused quite a sensation at the Presidio. Any gossip was soon quieted when it was learned that on the night of February 18 th the 39-year-old bachelor had taken a wife in a simple ceremony at the home of the bride’s aunt. The ceremony was officiated by Reverend Otho E. Jones of the First AME Church of Oakland and witnessed by some of Young’s 9th Cavalry enlisted troopers and family members of the bride.
As the highest-ranking African American officer in the Regular Army at the time, Captain Young’s reputation was widely known in Northern California. Young was only the third Black man to graduate from West Point. He served in the 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments-the so-called Buffalo Soldiers-during the Indian Wars, the Spanish-American War and the incursion into Mexico to capture Pancho Villa. In May 1903 Young led the troops of the 9th Cavalry that served as the honor guard for President Theodore Roosevelt during his visit to San Francisco, and in that summer Young would become the first African American national park Superintendent when he and his troops were tasked to manage and maintain Sequoia National Park.
Captain Young’s bride was Ada Mills. Sixteen years her husband’s junior, Ada had been born in Grass Valley in 1880 at the modest Townsend Street home of her paternal grandparents, Edward and Jane Mills. Yet despite her youth and lack of prominence, she had already shown a resiliency, intelligence and spirt that may have captivated her new bridegroom. Although she has been neglected by the history books, Ada lived an exemplary life of service: working in partnership with her husband in his military and diplomatic careers, maintaining their homes as centers of learning and culture, educating their children to be cosmopolitan citizens and educators, and teaching and nurturing generations of Black college students.
Please join us to learn more about the life and times of Ada Mills Young.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
The History of the South Yuba Canal
With Dom Lindars
When: Thursday June 20th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Today, much of the water for western Nevada County is transported from the high country along the South Yuba Canal. This became particularly apparent in February 2024, when a rockside just below Lake Spaulding, damaged 240 feet of the canal’s 50-inch diameter steel pipe. Combined with a badly timed leak inside a tunnel at the Spaulding powerhouse, this stopped the precious flow to Nevada City and Grass Valley of more than 100 million gallons of water a day.
This talk will take a look at the origins of the canal, the fight over how it came to be built and the mammoth engineering that was involved.
At the time the South Yuba Canal was built in the late 1850s, its 2½-year construction was heralded as the “most extensive and costly enterprise” in California. Some people thought it was a financial scam run by rogues. You’ll hear how the entire concept, the water rights, its planned route and even its name was stolen from the original founders. There followed a battle of words and a battle of wills, a near-violent confrontation with 60 gold miners, claims of trespassing and counter lawsuits, all spanning nearly 20 years. Building the canal involved blasting out a mile of vertical cliff ledge, building 7 miles of flume, digging 8 miles of ditch and blasting a 3,000-foot tunnel. This was all while the ruthless and greedy South Yuba Canal Company worked out how to crush its rivals to establish a monopoly over all the water for gold mining in Nevada City and Grass Valley.
This story is taken from the award winning book, The Ditches of Nevada City, whose unique format blends beautiful archival images with more than 35 in-depth biographies of key figures in Nevada City. This 884 page hardcover book includes over 600 full-color illustrations, including 200 historic photographs and 75 hand-crafted maps based on modern lidar technology that reveal the locations of the old mining ditches, flumes, mines and tunnels. For more information, please visit the website. Copies of the book will be available with a $15 discount for $150 (check, Zelle or Venmo).
Amazon Reviews
“Local history in full color, author Dom Lindars has captured Nevada County’s volatile past, in our ditches, in our gold-fever and other influences. Is it a reference book? A history book? Or a fascinating encyclopedia of challenging times long gone? Each time I turn a page, I change my mind – and I learn something new. It’s attractive enough to be a “coffee-table book,” but its content runs deep. Meticulously researched, it’s full of eye-opening, sometimes quirky facts. It’s a book that deserves pride of place on any history buff’s bookshelf.” – Local GV Author
“This book is absolutely essential to anyone interested in the history of Nevada City, California. It is physically a massive tome; with almost 900 pages full of thick, high-quality glossy paper. The history of the ditches is presented in a very readable and engaging format, supplemented with an enormous quantity of full-color photographs. Dom Lindars has truly created a masterpiece for posterity with this impeccably researched book that is both engaging and entertaining. Mr. Lindars is clearly passionate about history, engineering, accuracy of facts, and a true love for this locale. Although it isn’t physical gold, Dom Lindars has created this absolute treasure with words.” – Nevada County resident
About the Author
Dom Lindars is a historian and retired software engineer. He grew up in England and moved to the Bay Area in 1995, where he worked in high-tech. A resident of Nevada City since 2013, he started writing in 2019. Today he manages the Nevada County Historical Society website, helping to share the county’s amazing history with everyone online. In 2023, Dom was awarded NCHS’s “Citizen of the Year” for his contributions to the Society and to local history in the community.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
The History of the Fowler Family in Nevada County
With Rick Cooper
When: Thursday May 16th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
This presentation will trace the classic emigrant story of the 1849 Gold Rush, settlement in California and homesteading in Nevada County. It will detail the journey of five generations of the Fowler family in the timber and lumber business culminating with the current B&C Home Center in Glenbrook Basin. The story is set against the development of Western Nevada County and the emigrant story will be familiar to many of our pioneer families. The story is told by Richard Cooper, son of Shirley Fowler and George Cooper.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
Nevada County Stories in Videos & Books
With Lisa Redfern
When: Thursday April 18th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
In a series of short videos, we’ll explore Deer Creek Watershed natural history, the social commentary of Jennie Carter, an early female pioneer, and learn about a recently published book that tells a story of Chinese railroad workers at Donner Summit.
VIDEOS:
Aerial Views & History of the Deer Creek Watershed 30:00 min
Explore Deer Creek’s history and geography from the air, land, and water. Along the entire 34-mile journey, you’ll see vignettes of the plants and animals that live there.
Jennie Carter, Nevada City Journalist 10:00 min
Jennie Carter lived in Nevada City in the late 1860s, and wrote social commentary essays that were published in The Elevator, a San Francisco black newspaper. This video highlights a small portion of Carter’s work and was created to accompany a series of blog posts on FollowingDeerCreek.com.
Crossing: A Chinese Family Railroad Novel 2:15 min
Crossing is a vividly human re-imagining of the love, sacrifices, and history that laid tracks for the North America of today. Leaving behind ancestral Chinese homelands and their family, brothers Yang and Lee face harrowing challenges as they join countless immigrants seeking a better life in the 1860s. This story follows their remarkable journey across the ocean to San Francisco, then into the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where they’ll labor to build the Transcontinental Railroad.
Visit LittleMountainPublishing.biz for details.
About Lisa Redfern
Lisa Redfern is a lifelong storyteller who enjoys the challenge of working in different mediums to convey them. For her first twenty years in Nevada County she was part of the Redfern Studio team that contracted with the local high schools to create and deliver senior portraits for yearbooks. “The heart of the art isn’t the camera,” Redfern says, “it is connecting with clients, so they relax. The second part is genuine curiosity about what’s important to them.”
In the early 2010s, Lisa focused her people skills on interviewing experts for her Deer Creek Watershed project and developed custom genealogy heritage videos for online family tree builders. She produces videos and podcasts for Sierra College Press and has a series of Hiking and History Self Guided Tours for various locations throughout Nevada and El Dorado Counties. MANY more are in the works!
A voracious reader, Redfern also writes books. Her fourth title, Crossing: A Chinese Family Railroad Novel, was published in February. Elements of California history, humorous animal antics, and appreciating often overlooked aspects of life are themes in all of them.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
The Doctor Was a Woman: Stories of the First Female Physicians on the Frontier
With Chris Enss
When: Thursday March 21st at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
“No women need apply.”
Western towns looking for a local doctor during the frontier era often concluded their advertisements in just that manner. Yet apply they did. And in small towns all over the West, highly trained women from medical colleges in the East took on the post of local doctor to great acclaim. In this new book, author Chris Enss offers a glimpse into the fascinating lives of ten amazing women, including the first female surgeon of Texas, the first female doctor to be convicted of manslaughter in an abortion-related maternal death, and the first woman physician to serve on a State Board of Health.
The Doctor Was a Woman is available at fine bookstores everywhere, Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble.com, and nbnbooks.com. Visit chrisenss.com for more information.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
California, A Slave State
With Jean Pfaelzer
When: Thursday, February 8th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
The untold history of slavery and resistance in California, from the Spanish missions, indentured Native American ranch hands, Indian boarding schools, Black miners, kidnapped Chinese prostitutes, and convict laborers to victims of modern trafficking.
California owes its origins and sunny prosperity to slavery. Spanish invaders captured Indigenous people to build the chain of Catholic missions. Russian otter hunters shipped Alaska Natives—the first slaves transported into California—and launched a Pacific slave triangle to China. Plantation slaves were marched across the plains for the Gold Rush. San Quentin Prison incubated California’s carceral state. Kidnapped Chinese girls were sold in caged brothels in early San Francisco. Indian boarding schools supplied new farms and hotels with unfree child workers.
By looking west to California, Jean Pfaelzer upends our understanding of slavery as a North-South struggle and reveals how the enslaved in California fought, fled, and resisted human bondage. In unyielding research and vivid interviews, Pfaelzer exposes how California gorged on slavery, an appetite that persists today in a global trade in human beings lured by promises of jobs but who instead are imprisoned in sweatshops and remote marijuana grows, or sold as nannies and sex workers.
Slavery shreds California’s utopian brand, rewrites our understanding of the West, and redefines America’s uneasy paths to freedom.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
"On the Trail of Gold Rush Artist Henry B. Brown in Nisenan Country"
With Tanis Thorne
When: Thursday, January 18th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
In the course of doing research on her 2022 book The Nevada City Nisenan, Tanis Thorne uncovered new information about gold rush artist Henry B. Brown. Though Brown’s artistic renderings of landscapes and Native people have only recently come to light, his work is highly acclaimed for its ethnographic accuracy and artistic merit.
His portfolio includes drawings of landscapes, mining activity, and Native people, plus sketches and finished drawings done in Nevada City, Grass Valley, and the Empire Ranch/Union Ranch near present-day Smartsville. Thorne is excited to share Brown’s drawings created during his repeated trips to Nevada County in 1851-1852 —some never seen or published before —and to tell the intriguing story of Brown and the excitement and foibles of doing research in archival collections.
This presentation is a reprise of the May 2022 Speaker Night presentation, where there were technical issues with the projector.
About Tanis Thorne
In her Thorne’s long career as a college professor, Thorne primarily taught courses on Native Americans. Her research specialization was California Indians. Curiosity about the local Indian people of her adopted home, Nevada City, has resulted in a number of publications about the Nisenan and their reservation or “rancheria” on Cement Hill. A retiree with deepening interest in Nevada County history, she is now completing a book, “Between Gold Cities” with co-author Vince Seck on recreation in the Glenbrook Basin from the gold rush to the 1950s.
On the Trail of Gold Rush Artist Henry B. Brown in Nisenan Country and The Nevada City Nisenan will be available for sale at the event for $15 and $20.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event last one hour.
Free refreshments offered after the presentation.
For more information contact Daniel Ketcham @ (530) 477-8056 or President@NevadaCountyHistory.
The Historic Sluice Box
with David Lawler & Hank Meals
When: Thursday, November 16th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Nevada County Historical Society is pleased to present David Lawler, geologist and Hank Meals historian, speaking on “The Sluice Box’: THE MOST COMMONPLACE GOLD RECOVERY TOOL OF THE 19TH CENTURY.
Included will be a slide show presentation on the sluice, a gold recovery device that was used everywhere in the mines.
AND, recently, an “atmospheric river” revealed a sophisticated streamside sluice that’s been buried for over 150 years. The sluice has provided a lot of information on 19th century mining techniques, and it has been salvaged to soon provide an exhibit for the Nevada County Historical Society History Center.
Don’t miss this resourceful adventure story.
Dedication of Dr. W. C. Jones Hospital Landmark Plaque
When: October 22 at 10 AM.
Where: Swan Levine House at 328 S. Church St in Grass Valley.
About two months ago, The Friends of the Nevada County Historical Landmarks
Commission called on Jones Hospital babies and staff to help fund a plaque for this
historic landmark. The response was awesome and the fundraising was successful.
Now the Nevada County Historical Landmarks Commission invites the public to attend a
dedication ceremony and reunion of the Jones Hospital babies and staff on October 22
at 10 AM. The hospital building, also known as the Swan Levine house, is located at
328 S. Church St in Grass Valley. The sidewalk is elevated and the stairs in front of the
building are steep. Access is easier from Walsh Street. If you have access questions,
call Commissioner Chuck Scimeca (530-277-1573).
These are the angels who contributed: Alec and Carol Ostrom, Alex Gourley, Alice
Horton McHale, Andrew and Kathleen Cassano, Aria McLauchlan, Austin Wilson,
Charles Durbrow Baker, Charlie Jakobs, Cindi Anderson, Dan and Karen Davis, Danny
Wilson, David DeMartini, Debbie Hunyada, Dolores and Gregory Bulanti, Gage
McKinney, Janeva Junies Galayda, Jerry Martini, Linda Vance Bennett, Marian Jewett,
Michael Hieronimus and Dorothy Carroll, Nicholas and Catherine Whittlesey, Patrick
Farrell and Melissa Fowlkes, Steven Sharsmitt, Tara Sullivan, Terry and Susan Ann
Wearne, Trish Moreland, Vern and Joyce Canon, and Vicki Spannagel. More
information about them can be found in the program that will be distributed at the
ceremony.
The W.C. Jones Hospital is featured in the Landmarks Commission’s interactive map and in its book Exploring Nevada County, a guide to all the County’s historical
landmarks. The book is available in electronic format for any Apple smartphone or
tablet. Go to www.youbetpress.com to find clickable links. A print version is available at
local bookstores and museum gift shops and from Amazon.
The purpose of the Nevada County Historical Landmarks Commission is to promote the general
welfare of Nevada County and its citizens through official recognition, recording, marking,
preserving and promoting the historical resources of Nevada County. For more information,
please call 415-264-7230.
Pictured Left: Chuck Scimeca, Jerry Martini, Tara Joeng, Bruce Boyd, Torben Eriksen installed the new plaque for the Jones Hospital dedication ceremony.
Railroads of Nevada County
With Andrew Brandon
When: Thursday October 19th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Nevada County Historical Society presents Andrew Brandon is an author, historian, and preservation consultant from Grass Valley. Andrew is also a longtime member of the NCHS and volunteers at the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum in Nevada City he currently serves as the curator.
Andrew will present a look at historic photographs from his book “Railroads of Nevada County”, which was released in 2018. The book presents a brief history of eleven different railroads that operated within Nevada County from 1866 – 1996. For nearly 20 years Andrew has been researching the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad and collecting photographs and documents for an upcoming book on the railroad. The material collected for “Railroads of Nevada County” was born out of this research including many photographs which have not been published before.
The Annual Day at You Bet and Old Red Dog
Saturday, September, 30, 2023 – 8:30 am to 2:30 pm
Meet of the Nevada City Veterans Memorial Building parking lot, of the corner of Pine and Cottage.
Jerry Brady will show points of historical interest emphasized with photographs. Other members of the Brady family plan to give a detailed description of placer and hydraulic mining in the 1930’s.
This is aided with poster sketches showing the steps in each process. Stops include a former homestead, town-site, historic cemeteries and hydraulic mining diggins.
Portable restroom facilities are available only of the picnic area, the last stop on the tour.
Items to Remember:
- clothes and shoes for walking short distances on dirt/grovel ground
- a folding choir or seat cushion as there ore no tables of the picnic site.
- bee sting kit, if you are allergic
- lunch and water
For more information: Jerry Brady (310) 831-3201.
Their Spirits Took Flight: Nevada City's Historic Pine Grove Cemetery
with Brian Suwada
When: Thursday, September 21st at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Their Spirits Took Flight is a fascinating look at the “residents” of Nevada City’s Pine Grove Cemetery. This beautiful book is produced in a beautiful hard-cover binding with high-quality paper and fascinating biographies and information. As you turn every page, you will get to know centuries’ worth of people whom might otherwise have been forgotten.
The book relates the history of Nevada City through the lives of some of the earliest pioneers. You’ll meet veterans of various wars, congressmen and other public officials, people who worked as domestics, miners, teamsters, and in the saw mills and local bordellos; all of whom left this Earth between 1854 – 1961. Their stories are here, featuring over 3,600 biographical sketches and more than 140 photographs and other images. The book includes a directory of pioneers and early citizens residing within, a cemetery map, and touches upon cemetery symbolism and death related customs of the late 19th and early 20th century.
Brian will introduce the audience to Pine Grove Cemetery, and some of the people interred there, whose lives parallel ours, yet we will never personally know. This talk will include slides of the cemetery and photos of a few of its permanent residents. The topic may not be suitable for everyone.
About Brian:
Brian Suwada, a retired librarian, was born in Sacramento and currently lives in Rancho Mirage, California. He has many relatives interred in Nevada City’s Pine Grove Cemetery. Brian entertains and fascinates readers with every sentence and phrase. Meticulous in his research, he adds a touch of heart and soul so that his readers are informed and engaged.
Second Sunday Steam-Up
Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum
When: Sunday, May 14, June 11, July 9, August 13, September 10, October 8th.
Where: 5 Kidder Court, Nevada City, CA 95959.
Come join our locomotive team as they have both their steam locomotives steamed up and ready to go!
The museum exhibits a collection of railroad and aviation artifacts, photographs, and documents for visitors and historians alike. Exhibits include the NCNGRR Engine 5, rolling stock, an early steam automobile, and other examples of Nevada County’s transportation history. The gift shop offers railroad-themed books, toys, gifts, clothing, and other collectibles. Visitors are offered a docent-led historical tour of the museum, rail yard, and restoration shop. Admission to the museum is free.
For more information, check out the Railroad Museum website and train schedule.
American Dude Ranch: A Touch of the Cowboy and the Thrill of the West
When: Thursday, August 17th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Nevada County Historical Society is pleased to present Lynn Downey who is an award-winning historian, novelist, and consulting archivist.
Lynn’s presentation is about her latest book, American Dude Ranch: A Touch of the Cowboy and the Thrill of the West (on Amazon), which came out in 2022. Lynn gave lectures about the book at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, the Rockmount Ranchwear clothing store in Denver, at the Angeles Camp Museum here in California, and in many venues around the state of Arizona. She will talk about the fascinating and sometimes hilarious history of the dude ranch, and will also show slides of historic places, people, and advertising.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event lasts one hour. Free refreshments offered after the presentation. For more information, call or text Daniel Ketcham at (530) 320-5116.
More about Lynn:
She was the company Historian for Levi Strauss & Co. in San Francisco for 25 years, and wrote the first biography of the founder, which was published in 2016: Levi Strauss: The Man Who Gave Blue Jeans to the World. Her interest in dude ranching began when she worked for Levi’s, which made clothing for dudes in the 1930s and 1940s. Her debut novel, Dudes Rush In, is set on a fictional Arizona dude ranch in the 1950s and won the Will Rogers Medallion Award and the New Mexico-Arizona book award. The sequel, Dude or Die, comes out this October.
Lynn retired from Levi Strauss & Co. in 2014 and now consults with museums, libraries, corporations, and historical societies on archives and historic preservation. Her California clients include Beaulieu Vineyard in Rutherford, Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, and the Tomales Regional History Center in Marin County. Her Arizona clients include the Desert Caballeros Western Museum in Wickenburg, and the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe in Lake Havasu City.
She is the president of Women Writing the West, the co-chair of Advocates for the Sonoma County Archives, and is on the board of the Frank Lloyd Wright Marin County Civic Center Conservancy, and Friends of California Archives.
The Ditches of Nevada City by Dom Lindars
The Untold Story of Nevada City’s Gold Mining Ditches,
the Men Who Built Them, and Their Thirst for Water and Power
When: Thursday, July 20th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
A New Local History Book – Now Available
For its first 100 years, everything in Nevada City revolved around gold. But this is not another book about finding gold. To get gold, you needed water — to pan for it, to blast away a hillside with a water cannon, or to turn the water wheel for your quartz-ore stamp mill. This book instead asks: Where did the water come from? It reveals the engineering marvels that brought water to Nevada City’s dry hills from tens of miles away. But what if all the water in every ravine, creek and valley around Nevada City was controlled by just three men? Well, for three decades, every miner, farmer or business had to buy water from the South Yuba Canal Company. What would happen if you got into an argument with them? Or couldn’t afford to pay their water bill? Or even dared to compete with them?
The book traces the ingenuity and hard work of the town’s miners and ditch builders, highlighting the origins of various local neighborhoods, including Nevada City, Willow Valley, Gold Flat, Selby Flat (near Sugar Loaf Mountain), Rough and Ready, Randolph Flat (now Bitney Corner), Alpha, Omega, Blue Tent, Cement Hill, Hirschman’s Pond, Manzanita Diggings, and Scotts Flat.
What began as a search to uncover a sprawling network of old ditches, turned into a collection of never-before-told stories of the gold miners, the ruthless and greedy ditch company, and the rivals that it crushed. The domineering ditch company later enabled the next generation of monopoly to provide electrical power. This, in turn, led to the now more forward-looking stewardship of the Nevada Irrigation District.
The unique format of this book blends beautiful archival images with more than 35 in-depth biographies of key figures in Nevada City. This 884 page hardcover book includes over 600 full-color illustrations, including 200 historic photographs and 75 hand-crafted maps based on modern lidar technology that reveal the locations of the old mining ditches, flumes, mines and tunnels. For more information, please visit the website. Copies of the book will be available with a $15 discount for $150 (check, Zelle or Venmo).
Amazon Review: “Dom Lindars has created a treasure trove that so many people will be able to draw from. The breadth of information and photos included in this book, combined with an unpretentious, approachable narrative, make it both a valuable resource and a highly enjoyable read.” Also see this review by Bill Oudegeest from the Donner Summit Historical Society.
Dom Lindars is a historian and genealogist with a passion for storytelling and discovering unsung heroes. He grew up in England and moved to the Bay Area in 1995, where he worked in high-tech. A resident of Nevada City since 2013, he started writing in 2019.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event lasts one hour. Free refreshments offered after the presentation. For more information, call or text Daniel Ketcham at (530) 477-8056.
Tales of the Restoration of Historic Homes in Nevada City
Speaker Night with Jesse Connor
When: Thursday, June 15th at 7:00 PM.
Where: The Sierra Presbyterian Church located at 175 Ridge Road, Nevada City.
Local building contractor Jesse Connor has a long record of experience repairing, renovating, vintage homes and businesses in Nevada County dating back to his arrival in the county in the Seventies. Growing up, his interest in classic architecture started in Southern California as an adolescent crawling into boarded up Victorians absorbing the unique architectural details of quality craftsmanship. Drawn by the wealth of history and architecture in Nevada County, at the age of twenty-two he abandoned the smog of L.A. and migrated to Nevada City where his interest in architectural restorations started.
A recipient of three local awards and one national recognition for his work, Jesse will be making a Power Point presentation of three of his largest projects including the Emma Nevada House, the Wiess-Hieronimus Brewery residence on Searls Ave., and the heritage Redwood House on Nursery Street, all in Nevada City. Although theoretically in retirement, Jesse was happily pulled out of retirement to work on Drs. Mark and Melisa Agness’s home in Nevada City. Jesses shares that they are super people and Mark has been especially helpful in creating the Power Point that will be shown at the presentation.
Also check out a 2007 article about Jesse’s work in The Union.
Admission: FREE and open to the public, this event lasts one hour. Free refreshments offered after the presentation. For more information, call or text Dom Lindars at (650) 670-7497.
Mary Hallock Foote & The Journey West
The North Star House presents Mary Hallock Foote & The Journey West, by author Stacey Guill.
When: Wednesday, June 14th, 2023 At 4pm
Where: North Star House, 12075 Auburn Road Grass Valley, CA
Tickets $10 online or cash at the door. Plus docent tours to follow.
About this Event
The historic North Star House of Grass Valley invites you to join us on Wednesday, June 14th at 4pm to welcome Stacey Guill, PhD, author of “The Stone House in the Cañon”. This book details the Boise home of Arthur and Mary Hallock Foote, the first residents of The North Star House. Her beautifully crafted and uniquely designed book tells of the Footes’ life in Boise, Idaho, where Arthur had a vision of creating a canal system that would one day serve to irrigate the entire Boise Valley. From 1885 to 1889, the couple built and lived in the house overlooking the Boise River, 10 miles outside of town.
Guill spent 20 years researching the Footes and their remarkable home. Arthur’s design of the floor plan and the building’s structure were not a typical style of the period. Her research became a key element in developing The Foote Park Interpretation Center near the site of the original home.
In 1895, the Footes moved their family to Grass Valley when Arthur became the superintendent of The North Star Mine. Mary continued her career as an illustrator and author. In 1905, the family moved into the newly constructed North Star House, which was designed and built by the then young architect, Julia Morgan. Morgan was a very talented architect who gained recognition for the Hearst Castle, Asilomar, and hundreds of other buildings. The Footes lived in Grass Valley for almost 40 years.
Stacey Guill earned her Master’s Degree in English from Boise State and her Ph.D. in Literature and Criticism from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She and her husband Ron are long-time residents of Boise. The possibility of discovering new information about the Footes and their Idaho home inspires Guill to continue digging through library archives, pouring over old letters, photos, and newspaper clippings. She believes there is more to tell! Ron Guill is a mining engineer and retired mining contractor will add his thoughts about mining in the past and mining today during the presentation.
Purchase of “The Stone House in the Cañon” and book signing will follow the presentation. Please join us in welcoming the Guills on June 14th at 4pm at the historic North Star House, 12075 Auburn Road, Grass Valley.
Docents will be present for tours throughout the house, including a permanent display of Julia Morgan’s Life and Legacy, after the presentation and book signing. This event is part of the historic North Star House Speakers series. For more information go to thenorthstarhouse.org.
A Special Screening of Chinatown Rising and a Conversation with the Filmmakers
Please join us for a one-night-only special screening of Chinatown Rising, a documentary film about the Asian-American Movement from the perspective of the young residents on the front lines of their historic neighborhood in transition. We will be joined after the film for a conversation with filmmakers Harry Chuck and Josh Chuck. A portion of the proceeds will go to the CATS Cultural Enrichment Program.
When: June 11, 2023, 7:00-9:00pm
Where: Nevada Theatre, 401 Broad Street, Nevada City, CA 95959
Tickets: $13 from the Onyx Theatre or buy tickets here.
About the Film – See https://www.chinatownrising.com/
Against the backdrop of the Civil Rights Movement of the mid-1960s, a young San Francisco Chinatown resident armed with a 16mm camera and leftover film scraps from a local TV station, turned his lens onto his community. Totaling more than 20,000 feet of film (10 hours), Harry Chuck’s exquisite unreleased footage has captured a divided community’s struggles for self-determination. Chinatown Rising is a documentary film about the Asian American Movement from the perspective of the young residents on the front lines of their historic neighborhood in transition. Through publicly challenging the conservative views of their elders, their demonstrations and protests of the 1960s-1980s rattled the once quiet streets during the community’s shift in power. Forty-five years later, in intimate interviews these activists recall their roles and experiences in response to the need for social change.
Volunteer Job Fair - We are looking for volunteers!
What: Center for Nonprofit Leadership (CNL) Community Volunteer & Job Fair
When: Saturday June 3, 2023 – 11am – 3pm
Where: Nevada County Fairgrounds, Main Street Center Building & Lawn
Do you have a few hours to spare time during the week? Are you looking for something interesting to help out with in the community? Want to meet like-minded people and talk about our rich Nevada County history?
We are looking for new docents and tour guides to help work at our museums. Literally no experience or knowledge required; just an interest for local history. We have experts who can help you find out more. Come find out about the volunteer opportunities at the Nevada County Historical Society.
For more information visit the CNL website.
Want to signup to be a volunteer now? Let us know through our Get Involved form.
Washington's Chinese Community - Historical Landmark Dedication
When: Saturday, May 27, 2023 at 11 am
Where: 15382 Washington Road, Nevada County, CA 95959
Did you know that in the 1850s, over 20% of Nevada County‘s population was Chinese and the town of Washington had one of the County’s largest Chinese communities. Learn more on Saturday, May 27, 2023 at 11 AM when a plaque commemorating Washington’s Chinese Community will be unveiled. The Nevada County Historical Landmarks commission invites the public to attend the ceremony at the head of China Alley, which led down to the Chinese community. The Alley is located next to the General Store at 15382 Washington Road. Explore the rest of this historic town while you’re there.
One of the most prominent Chinese families was that of Suey Chung (later better known as Fong Chow) and his wife, Lonnie Tom. Mr. Fong operated the nearby Omega Mine for some years. The plaque was sponsored by their descendants, led by Professor Gordon Chang of Stanford University, who will attend and speak.
The landmark is featured on the Commission’s interactive landmarks map and in the electronic edition of Exploring Nevada County, a guide to the over 200 historical landmarks in the County, available for any smartphone or tablet from Apple or Amazon.
Go to You Bet Press to find clickable links. A print version of the guide is available at local bookstores.
The purpose of the Nevada County Historical Landmarks Commission is to promote the general welfare of Nevada County and its citizens through official recognition, recording, marking, preserving and promoting the historical resources of Nevada County. For more information, please call 530-263-4963.
Kentucky Flat School - Historical Landmark Dedication
When: Tuesday, May 23, 2023 at 10 am
Where: 13281 Newtown Rd, Nevada City, CA 95959
The Nevada County Historical Landmarks Commission and the Grass Valley School District are pleased to invite the public to attend the dedication ceremony of a plaque commemorating the Kentucky Flat School as a historical landmark. The ceremony will be held on May 23, 2023, at 10 am. The school is located at 13281 Newtown Rd.
The Kentucky Flat School was originally located near the Kentucky Flat mining camp below Kentucky Ridge. It became too small for that community and was moved to its current Newtown site in 1855. In 1877, Mr. Hubertus Schardin deeded to the Kentucky Flat School District the property the School now sits on. The original building was destroyed by fire in 1895, but was quickly rebuilt. The School continued to operate for 108 years. In 1963, it closed after serving generations of Nevada County school children. The School was annexed to the Grass Valley School District in July, 1964, and leased to the Kentucky Flat Community Center. Today, it continues to serve young children as the Kentucky Flat Community Pre School.
The landmark is featured on the Commission’s interactive landmarks map and in the electronic edition of Exploring Nevada County, a guide to the over 200 historical landmarks in the County, available for any smartphone or tablet from Apple or Amazon. Go to You Bet Press (youbetpress.com) to find clickable links. A print version of the guide is available at local bookstores.
The purpose of the Nevada County Historical Landmarks Commission is to promote the general welfare of Nevada County and its citizens through official recognition, recording, marking, preserving and promoting the historical resources of Nevada County. For more information, please call 530-263-4963.
Speaker Night: Nevada County Library & Nevada County Historical Society Present: Legacy & Going Home
When: Wednesday May 17th, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Where: Nevada Theater, 401 Broad Street, Nevada City, CA
Filmmakers Min Zhou and Joe Flannery present two documentaries on the history of Chinese railroad workers in the greater Nevada County area. FREE and open to the public.
Every event organizer aspires that their event is attended to capacity. The co-event chairs Ian Bolt and Dan Ketcham were pleased with the nearly full house level of attendance at the Nevada Theatre. The attendee count was 230 persons!
Some post-event comments and pictures of the event following:
- Film Producer Min Zhou: I am so grateful to be invited to be part of this great event. I can feel people’s enthusiasm and cares about the history. This is so rewarding to my three-year-and-half journey to trace the story as far as Carlin, NV. I have read some history about Nevada City and learned a little about the Gold Rush history. I hope to know more and I look forward to doing something together with you and the historical society. I would love to bring my films back to Nevada City to show to the passionate people.
- Linda J: Great turnout last night, guessing lots of new faces. Hopefully more collaborative events. Thanks for getting engaged with that effort.
- Kathy H: Let’s do this again!
