A MATTER OF CONVENIENCE
I’m sharing a couple of my photos and stories of the life in Placerville, California in the gold rush era that began around 1849 and, in some circumstances, is still alive now.  These two buildings have quite an interesting history as one gave immediate gratification in the form of a drink and [...]

Charlotte “Charley” Parkhurst

She chewed tobacco, smoked “two-bit” cigars, and was one of the best “whips” in the West.  Her name was Charlotte “Charley” Parkhurst, a woman who, for reasons of her own, masqueraded as a man for almost 50 years. 
Charlotte Darkey Parkhurst was born around 1812 in New Hampshire.  She was placed in a Massachusetts orphanage at [...]

Amelia Celio’s Cattle Ranch Adventures

For almost a century, from 1853 to 1950, the Celio family owned and operated one of the largest enterprises in the Sierra Mountains of California.  Their sawmills provided lumber for most of the homes built in the South Lake Tahoe area, and they were also responsible for the community’s milk, butter, cheese and meat, and owned Meyers [...]

Early Entertainers and Theaters of the West

Everyone likes to be entertained.  The arrival of a theatrical troupe or a famous personality has always been exciting, and the early days of the West were no exception.  Entertainers were always a welcome sight, especially in the mining towns and camps of the Mother Lode where the audience was mostly masculine.  The miners wanted [...]

Early School Rooms

Most of the schools of the Sierra Mountains in California in the 1800s were crude, inhospitable dwellings within mining camps and other small communities.  They were usually made of logs, or adobe, with earthen floors, plastered walls, and, in some cases, thatched roofs.  Many students sat upon wooden boxes, without desks, or a single desk [...]

Eliza Cook, Nevada’s First Woman Doctor

In the 1890’s Dr. M. Cary Thomas requested permission to attend a class at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland.  She dared to tread where no other woman had been allowed.  She was accepted only on the condition that she sit behind a screen.  Later, Dr. Thomas became president of Bryn Mawr [...]

The Sutter Creek Inn

“I will protect your Inn.”  A spirit told Jane Way in 1966, soon after she purchased a 16-room New England style home in Sutter Creek, California, with hopes of creating a beautiful Inn.  And he kept his word.  He also brought his friends along.  What he didn’t tell her was with the package she would [...]

Beermann’s Beerwerks Ghostly Haunts

If the walls of Beermann’s Beerwerks and Meat Market (Lincoln, California) could talk, you would no doubt hear stories of fortunes made and lost.  Echoes of socialites and scoundrels whisper through the halls, painting a colorful and odd history of those who gathered there over the past 140 years.  They came for gold, clay, cattle, [...]

The Imperial Hotel

     A man and his wife had just returned from a long day of antique shopping in Amador City and nearby Sutter Creek in the gold rush area of California.  His wife, in fragile health, was parched and exhausted.  He flagged down the harried waitress and asked for a glass of water.  The hostess did [...]

The Mine House

Rose Mendy was very happy with her newly purchased Mine House, located in Amador City, CA, gold rush area.  Then she realized they had gotten something in the deal their money couldn’t buy – something they certainly had not expected in the purchase price.  They got ghosts.
 
“I first noticed something being strange when I was [...]