May - June 2021

Ralph Gibson

Museums Administrator

As we look ahead to a summer that promises to be a little brighter than last summer, staff has been busy with reopening procedures and plans for all our museums. When we get to June, only the Bernhard Museum will remain closed. We hope to reopen that museum later in the summer, but there is another possibility floating in the warming wind. Sometime later this spring, perhaps at the May 25th Board of Supervisors meeting, we will request the Board approve the acquisition of the Fruitvale School near Lincoln. The schoolhouse began as a one room schoolhouse in 1888. In 1923, a second room was added.

The Fruitvale Community Hall Incorporation (FCHI), which owns the schoolhouse, lost the one person with the vision and energy to keep that historic site going. In desperation, they reached out to Supervisor Weygandt who then asked the Museums Division to see how it could help. The FCHI wanted their schoolhouse to be part of the Placer County Museums system. After inspections, estimates by Building Maintenance to make repairs and address immediate Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) issues, we have moved forward with a budget that scares me a little, but upper management has yet to flinch. The schoolhouse will operate as sort of a Museum/Veteran’s Hall hybrid as one of the main sources of revenue is in rentals

But for us, its value is its priceless history. We plan to not only expand the Fruitvale Living History program but explore and develop new educational programs that target grades 8 and above. The historical and educational potential of this site is immense.

I hope all of you have a terrific summer as we finally emerge from this pandemic. And perhaps, as more sites open for the public to explore, we’ll have one more museum in our County system for people to enjoy.

 

Kasia Woroniecka

Curator of Collections

Powder flasks were an essential accessory used by hunters and soldiers to store gunpowder used with muzzle-loading firearms. Gunpowder was sold in bulk and flasks of different shapes and sizes were used to carry it in the field. It would pour easily when dry, but would cake and fail to burn when damp, making well-sealed powder flasks necessary.

Embossed and fluted copper powder flask with four hanger rings and a leather strap, c. 1860. Donated by Mark Presley of Auburn. PCM Collection, 1964.18.3

Paper cartridges filled with black powder were in use since the 15th century, but they were not patented until 1808. People were forced to carry separate containers of black powder, bullets, and wads. Muzzle-loading a musket required multiple steps, but a well-trained soldier could load and fire two or three times a minute. Generally, a small amount of loose powder was poured into a measure and then down the barrel of the gun. A lead ball was placed on a lubricated patch on the muzzle, and then pushed down the barrel. A small amount of powder was placed on the firing pan, which was located between the cock and the frizzen. The cock was pulled back, the frizzen was closed, and the weapon was ready to fire.

Small copper flask with an embossed eagle with a shield, arrows, and olive branch and a brass spout. Made for the Colt pocket model or similar revolvers. Donated by Arthur Nicholls of Berkeley. PCM Collection, 1969.24.1

Powder flasks were made of different materials, most often copper, silver, wood, bone and leather. Early flasks were plain, but decorated ones with embossed designs or hunting scenes, became very popular. By the 1860s powder flask production was an increasing industrialized process and factories produced flasks for hunters and the military. Some notable companies include The American Flask & Cap Co., Robbins and Lawrence Company of Windsor, Vt., Samuel Colt, James Dixon & Sons G. & J. W. Hawksley or Bartram & Co. A majority of the flasks in our collection are made of copper, leather, and brass. Here are a few examples:

Violin-shaped copper powder flask with embossed design nd four hanger rings. Possibly English, c. 1845-1880. Donated by Guy and Adeline Gilchrist. PCM Collection, 1948.14.7

 

U.S. Military rifleman's powder flask. Embossed with "Public Property" and a small bugle. Purchased at a yard sale in Pilot Hill. These flasks were made around 1825-1830 in England under contract with the United States Army. The "Public Property" mark was added by the Army to prevent soldiers from stealing them. Donated by William Blotti of Foresthill. PCM Collection, 1991.36.1

Detail on a leather shot flask with an embossed hound, c. 1860. PCM Collection, 2010.0.7

Bryanna Ryan

Supervising Curator

Last month, an exciting new collection has been acquired by our Museums division and is slated to become an installation at the Bernhard Museum Complex. It is a forge, anvil, and bellows that came from the Auburn Iron Works building on Lincoln Way. This building is an official California Point of Historical Interest for reportedly being one of, if not the, oldest continually operating blacksmith shops in California. It sits in the area of town known as “East Auburn,” across from the historic train depot where Central Pacific Railroad track was laid in 1865.

East Auburn

Auburn Iron Works 

Beneath the building, runs the South Yuba (formerly, Bear River) ditch – another historically significant feature of Auburn which, no doubt, provided a valuable resource for the blacksmith operations above. Meanwhile, the shift from wagons and railroads to automobiles is another development which impacted this site for more than a century.

We have begun researching the history of the lot in hopes of learning precise details of this new collection. In 1870, the official Map of Auburn identifies the parcel as Lot 1 of Block 19 and, at the time, was owned by J. J. Smith. Research is ongoing but the earliest blacksmiths identified on the site are George E. Allen and Joseph Sandhofer of the partnership “Allen & Sandhofer.”

Placer Herald, June 25, 1898

In 1888, a bill by this company was approved by the Board of Supervisors and they were noted in the Placer Herald for their work which was mainly as wagonmakers and blacksmiths. In 1891, they even had a California patent approved for their design of “vehicle tongue support.” In 1892, they were one of five blacksmith shops in Auburn. Shortly after, Sandhofer sold his interest to his partner and moved from the area and by 1897, “Walker & Duryea’s Blacksmith Shop” was on the site when a fire broke out in the nearby Kenison & Johnson’s Bottling Works which caused heavy losses in the area and to the blacksmith shop. 

Louis (aka L.A.) Duryea had apprenticed with Sandhofer & Allen and enjoyed glowing local reputation as a blacksmith and man of character, when he took over the business which he ran until 1914. In this year, he sold the operation to William M. and Tillie M. Haines.

Duryea occupies another notable position in local history when he was later appointed deputy by Elmer Gum to fill out the term of F.H. “Big Dip” Dependener when the former deputy was killed in an auto accident in 1928. Duryea was then elected Constable in 1930, an office he occupied until his death in 1938. His obituary in the Placer Herald described him as “a quiet mannered man, strictly square and honest.” He was a member of Parlor 59 of the Native Sons of the Golden West who publicly mourned the loss of their brother.

L.A. Duryea, 2nd row, 2nd from the right 

William Haines was elected to the Placer County Board of Supervisors in 1922 and served in this position for 30 years while continuing to manage his blacksmith shop until selling it in 1937 to Dave F. and Don A. Gebhart who officially adopted the name “Auburn Iron Works” in 1939. They sold the operation to Kent Harris and Norma Harris in 1973 and it is Norma Harris we thank for working with us to have the historic collection transferred to our care.

 

Forge at the Auburn Iron Works

Anvil at the Auburn Iron Works 

We also thank Parlor 59 of the Native Sons of the Golden West for physically moving the pieces to the Bernhard Museum where it temporarily sits awaiting a proper installation.

Bellows awaiting installation at the Bernhard Museum Complex

The Bernhard property once held a blacksmith shop on site and it has long been a goal of Bernhard Museum preservationists, to see one return. A forge, anvil, and bellows would have been very useful resources on the farm. With them, equipment repairs and metalsmithing would save valuable time and keep operations running.

Unidentified blacksmith in Auburn

We are grateful for this opportunity to preserve so many historic themes in Auburn’s history and will look forward to sharing it with the public.

Kelsey Monahan

Curator of Archives

In the late 1880s an interesting phenomenon of “literary societies” appeared in Placer County. These groups formed throughout the area including in Penryn, Forest Hill, Ophir, and Newcastle. One of the most celebrated was the Citrus Literary Society, founded north of Auburn.


The Citrus Literary Society, or C.L.S. as it was sometimes known, was formed in November of 1888 in the Rock Creek District. The purpose of the society was to hold social and literary gatherings that included picnics and dances. Entertainment at the picnics included readings, plays, three-legged races, pie eating competitions, and tug of war contests. The dances comprised of supper and dancing with an orchestra providing the music.

Placer Herald, March 9, 1889

Placer Herald, December 6, 1890

In 1889 the C.L.S. built the Citrus Hall, which was used as a venue for the society’s dances and as a community hall.

Rock Creek residents who were instrumental in the C.L.S. included brothers Thomas and John McCarty, F. Dependener, Fred Gates, and the Duryea brothers Lewis and Walter.

Auburn Journal, November 24, 1893

Unfortunately, the last mention that could be found of the C.L.S. was for their annual dance in 1895, although it seems the Citrus Hall was still used in the community. In 1905 Mrs. A.J. Smith bought the hall and renovated it, she later referred to it as the Rock Creek Hall, and she and her son Walter Smith held many dances and suppers there.

Placer Argus, April 24, 1891

Placer Herald, March 9, 1889

No photos of the society’s picnics or Citrus Hall could be found in our collection. If you have or know of a photograph relating to the Citrus Literary Society, we would love to speak with you!

 

April McDonald-Loomis

President, Placer County Historical Society

Normal is right around the corner! Things are starting to open up! We might even be able to have an in-person general dinner meeting in June. We have the Veteran’s Hall which is more than enough room. The question would be how people feel about food; I don’t even know if we could get a caterer. Potluck? Cookies and iced tea? Please email and let me know how you feel: April.pchs@gmail.com . We will try to have a great speaker to celebrate! If we do meet we will also hold the election that we missed.

By the time you read this, we will have four new plaques up on buildings downtown: 805, 823, 835 and 922 Lincoln Way. We are very grateful to E Clampus Vitas who installed them for us. They’re a great bunch! The new plaque for Firehouse # 1 is on its way and hopefully the Hook and Ladder Company can help us with installation.

Installation at 922 Lincoln Way

I hope you have had a chance to look at the new Landmarks of Auburn book, which is full of information. John Knox and I are working on another one, Historical Buildings of Auburn. With so many historic buildings, it will take a while to produce.

 
Looking forward to seeing you all! April McDonald-Loomis

 

Katy Bartosh

Curator of Education

I've had plenty of questions about when our museums will be hosting education programs again. While we created an amazing array of online resources (that I hope will be used into the future!) I am excited to say we're preparing for Living History. 

We expect to welcome students back to the Bernhard Museum by September. Fall 2021 will start at the end of September and go through mid-November. For Spring 2022, we'll open in late February and continue through May.

Anyone want to pan for gold? Hopefully we'll have our Gold Rush students start right after the New Year. 

It's wonderful to see our museums opening but I definitely won't feel like we're back until we have students doing laundry or acting out early Placer pioneers. 

Are you ready to get out of the house? A little time can make a big difference for students in our education programs. Join our group of volunteers today!

Calendar of Events 

If you have any questions about meetings for May or June, please contact the specific historical organization you are interested in. Thank you!

Historical Organizations

Colfax Area Historical Society 
Jay MacIntyre, President
(530) 346-8599 
colfaxhistory.org

Donner Summit Historical Society
Bill Oudegeest
(209) 606-6859
donnersummithistoricalsociety.org

Foresthill Divide Historical Society
Troy Simester
(530) 367-3535
foresthillhistory.org

Fruitvale School Hall Community Association
Mark Fowler

Gold Country Medical History Museum 

Lynn Carpenter
(530) 885-1252

Golden Drift Historical Society 
Sarah Fugate
(530) 389-2121

Historical Advisory Board
Glenn Vineyard
(916) 747-1961

Joss House Museum and Chinese History Center
Larry Finney
(530) 305-9380 

Lincoln Area Archives Museum
Elizabeth Jansen
(916) 645-3800
laamca.org

Loomis Basin Historical Society
Karen Clifford
(916) 663-3871
ppgn.com/loomishistorical.html

Maidu Museum & Historic Site
Kaitlin Kincade
(916) 774-5934
roseville.ca.us/indianmuseum

The Museum of Sierra Ski History and 1960 Winter Olympics

David C. Antonucci 
(775) 722-3502
Sierraskimuseum.com

Native Sons of the Golden West Parlor #59
Dave Allen
(530) 878-2878
dsallen59@sbcglobal.net

Newcastle Portuguese Hall Association
Mario Farinha
(530) 269-2412

North Lake Tahoe Historical Society

Phil Sexton
(530) 583-1762
northtahoemuseums.org

Old Town Auburn Preservation Society
Lynn Carpenter
(530) 885-1252 

Placer County Genealogical Society
Toni Rosasco
(530) 888-8036
pcgenes.com

Placer County Historical Society
April McDonald-Loomis 
(530) 823-2128
placercountyhistoricalsociety.org

Placer County Museums Docent Guild
Fran Hanson
(530) 878-6990 

Rocklin Historical Society
Hank Lohse 
(916) 624-3464
rocklinhistory.org

Roseville Fire Museum
Jim Giblin
(916) 538-1809
rosevillefiremueum@gmail.org

Roseville Historical Society
Denise Fiddyment
(916) 773-3003