HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF THE
UPPER MOJAVE DESERT
VOL. 14 NO. 1
January 19, 1999
NEVADA GHOST TOWNS WILL BE THE TOPIC OF JANUARY MEETING
Our January meeting will feature S. M. "Marty" Shelton with an update on his decade-long obsession with creating a comprehensive written and visual database of Nevada's ghost towns.
For more than 11 years, Marty has been obsessively documenting every ghost town and mining camp he can find in Nevada. His ambitious goal is to record the exact location of each of these remnants of the state's colorful past and to document those ghost towns photographically.
Ultimately, he expects the University of Nevada to publish a coffee-table book and CD-ROM showing the results of his labors. In the meeting, Marty will talk about some of the adventures and colorful characters he has met along the way, as well as showing around 140 slides, most of them from ghost towns he has visited recently.
Holder of a B.S. in physics from St. Mary's University in San Antonio, Texas, Marty also has a M.A. in cinema from the University of Southern California. He was head of the Film Projects Branch at China Lake for many years, garnering numerous awards for the films the group produced under his leadership.
He now runs his own business, Shelton Communications, with consulting, seminars, and buying and selling motion picture equipment his main products.
The meeting is set for 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 19, at the Sylvia Winslow Gallery. Refreshments will be served. Be there - you'll enjoy it!
Liz Babcock
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
That great baseball player, Satchel Paige said, "Never look back as your shadow might catch up with you!" or some similar statement. I don't think he had in mind history and those that promote the past.
Our 1998 past was a nice one and contained outstanding events such as the Sand Canyon Video, good speakers at the monthly meetings, informational and dazzling displays, the bell installation, and above all, a membership that continues to support your Board of Directors efforts. Thank you one and all. Lou Pracchia
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Our February speaker will be Bart Parker, a local historian who specializes in the history of the Rand Mining District.
Bart will speak on the history of Randsburg's business district from 1895 to 1925. His talk will cover the first merchants, the merchants who remained the longest and the effects of the major fires which destroyed large parts of the business district three different times.
He will also tell us about the influence of The Yellow Aster Mining and Milling Co. on the town's business.
Mark Feb. 16 at 7:30 p.m. on your calendar - here's another HSUMD meeting you'll want to attend. As usual, we will meet in the Sylvia Winslow Gallery of the Maturango Museum.
Liz Babcock
COMPUTING MEMORABILIA SOUGHT
Do you have an abacus, a Marchant calculator, a punched computer card, a photo of the Naval Ordnance Test Station's IBM 701, or other computing memorabilia that you'd be willing to loan us for our next exhibit for the vestibule of the Maturango Museum?
We plan on installing the new exhibit in early February. Already George Silberberg has volunteered to let us display a variety of fascinating early devices, including the type of calculator the Credit Union used in its early days, plus a mechanical adding machine that keeps track of sums with a series of wheels. We've had an offer of several slide rules, including a circular one, that we'll be displaying.
But with the luxury of space available in our new cases, we have room for a lot more memorabilia, perhaps including yours.
If you think you have something we can use, please contact Liz Babcock, ph. 375-7900 or e-mail lizbab@ndti.net, or Bruce Wertenberger, ph. 375-2369 or e-mail brucew@ndti.net. Liz Babcock
DUES
Dues are again due the Society and may be paid at the next general meeting (see above) or mailed to Treasurer, Fred Weals, 551 Dana, R/C. Dues are a main source of the Society's funding and so enable us to carry out much of our yearly program and so it is important that they be paid promptly. Dues are $10.00 annually per family.
SOUNDING NOTES OF APPRECIATION
Voices ranging from robust to delicate joined-together in singing Christmas songs under the direction of Eleanor Hartwig with Ron Hise accompanying us on the keyboard. Most surely, everyone present would agree that our performance of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" was both unique and surprising (the latter, especially, when each table's turn came around)!
In spite of their reputation for Christmas Eve world-wide travel, Santa's reindeer seem instinctively to know that in Texas a change over to a team of longhorns is in order. John DiPol's reading of the "Texas Night Before Christmas" apprised us of the Lone Star State's particular slant on secular events of that eve. In keeping with the party's theme of wild animals in the forest our "White Chris Moose" gift exchange was entertainingly conducted by Jenny Miller.
Many, many thanks go to all the people who generously gave their time and efforts to setting up the party and helping afterwards to "leave no trace" of our even having been in the forest! They were Carroll Evans, Bill and Mary Lee McBride, Lou Pracchia, Don Goodson, Kathy Armstrong, Barbara Hall, Dot Gould, Dick and Kathy Moe, Bruce Wertenberger, and Liz Babcock. And lastly, but not certainly not "leastly," John and Martha Faron were the good souls who prepared all the beverages - punch, spiced cider, and coffee. Even more lastly, is a thank you to everyone for coming and bringing wonderfully delicious food...........Charlotte Goodson
BEANS, BACON AND SPUDS
Continuing with this issue we present the serialized story, through letters, of a George Enos entitled, "Beans, Bacon and Spuds." They are letters the young man wrote to his mother after he left home to seek his way in the world and were written over a period of roughly three years.
This correspondence was sent to the Society's Board Member and Director of History and Collections, Dot Gould, by native California, Elinor Monjar, of Reno, NV, who is related to Mr. Enos. The spelling and punctuation arre as used in the original letters. Ed.
"Dear Mother,
"I arrived here yesterday and I am going to start back tomorrow or Sunday. I wrote you last time I was in camp and have not heard from you since but I suppose there is a letter some where in country waiting for me.
we have been having some warm weather but the wind blows like sixty in Mojave every day. Things must be very dry below as people are moving stock from Los Angeles and other places as fast as possible. I see bands of horses and cattle every day I am on the road. Hay is $30 a ton in Mojave and $50 at the mines. Three train loads of soldiers went through here yesterday afternoon with horses, mules, wagons and cannons bound for New Orleans. Well I have not got anything to write and did not have when I started, so will draw my letter to a close."
Geo. Enos
May 7, 1898.
Mojave, Cal.
"Dear Mother,
I arrived here yesterday morning and found your postal waiting for me. I went down to see the N .G. (National Guard) boys go through. I saw Conley (Ray, future husband of sister Dotha), Harlan and Clarence Miller. I also had an introduction to Mr. Wing (future husband to Esther Enos, Geo.'s. sister) and saw Esther's photo. I will enclose a flag pin which Conley gave to me to send to Dotha. He said to tell her that he would write as soon as he got to San F. He also said to be sure and tell her that he had been promoted."
George decides to quit making trips to Mojave and stays in camp to work in the mines near Argus. "I am trying to learn Spanish but am not making much headway. I forget as fast as I learn it." His letter July 19 is written from Weldon, Kern County. 'I rode over here on a burro, it is sixty miles from Kernville. When you write address to Argus the same as ever as I will soon be there."
A mine he has been working in has shut down, and he does not have much money, but gets supplies sent in from the "head of the concern" to work his claims. An August, 1898, letter is sent from Onyx, Kern Co., where he states: "I am working for board and room and $1.50 a day at a hay press, so I am not busted." He encloses a stock certificate for safe keeping and advises Mary to write him next at Weldon, where he will be next. It appears that he may have returned home for a visit or two, as there are no saved letters after August, 1898, although the copies below tell of his whereabouts for part of 1900.
Ballarat Inyo Co., Cal
Nov. 19, 1899
"Dear Mother,
I received your letter a few days ago and this is the first good chance I have had to answer it. I am not working this morning, but will be this afternoon. I am building mud houses now. I have got nearly two months work ahead of me right in town. There is quite a boom here in town lots now.
Nearly everyone is locating lots. I don't think I will take up any lots as it costs $2.50. The weather is pretty cold here now. I have been investing in some wool underclothes. I am going to get me a cooking outfit and feed my self awhile. I have been paying a dollar a day for grub ever since I have been in town and I think I can beat that enough to try. I think that I will stop and write a letter to Dotha."
Geo.
Ballarat, Inyo Co.,
Nov. 28, 1899
"Dear Mother,
Although I do not owe you a letter I am going to begin one to you this evening as I am alone in my house. I have got started in boarding myself This is my third day and I have been doing pretty well at it so far. I have a tent ten by twelve ft., with a lumber frame and a door, which makes it about as good as a house, for which I am paying two dollars a month rent. I bought a new sheetiron stove for $5 and borrowed the most of my dishes. I can live a good deal cheaper this way and eat what and when I please. It also makes me a good place to sleep and spend my evenings reading or writing or whatever. The nights are beginning to get rather chilly now and for that reason I think I will stay in town as long as the mud houses hold out. There will be plenty of work at the mines now but all the mines here are way up in the mountains four or five thousand feet higher than the town and have no accommodations for cold weather and by boarding myself I can do just as well as I would mining if I get in full time as I have been doing since I have started building houses. I expect to go over in the Argus range with some fellers that are starting up a mine over there when the boom busts here and if there is any show of making the thing pay will probably stop there the balance of winter. Well I guess that I will close for tonight, take a walk up town for a few minutes, come back home and go to bed.
Nov. 29. Well I have got another day in hand cooked supper and got the dishes washed. I am keeping a little fire in the stove this evening and it feels very comfortable. I have got a little cold and am going to take some Bromo Laxative right now before I forget it. They are surveying a railroad through here from Randsburg. I am going to quit this thing now until I hear from you and then I sign my name to it and send it along. I am now going to get some water and a little wood and get things ready for morning so that I can get breakfast in a hurry.
Nov. 30. This is I believe Thanksgiving but I have worked all day just through with my supper dishes so will add a little more to my letter. The stage has just gone by so I will go to the P. 0. in a little while as I am expecting a letter from you. I have got company now, a guy that I knew in Hedges has struck town on the bum and he is stopping with me until he gets a job.
Later. I have just been up to the P.O. and received your letter so will finish this up and mail it tonight as the mail goes out in the morning. The mud houses I am working on are supposed to be adobes but it's a mighty poor quality of adobe. I will try to explain the process a little. The regular adobe is generally made up in brick and laid up the same as a brick house, but with this mud we make a box frame out of inch board a foot high, just the size that the house is supposed to be. Then we make another the same way only bigger that sets on the outside of the first, just the distance from it that we want the thickness of the walls, from eight inches up according to the style of the building, then we fasten them in place and full up the space between the boards with mud and let it stand until it dries, then take off the boards and set them on top of the first course and fill them up again and so on, until the walls are high enough and finish off with lumber the same as any other house. It takes about two days for the walls to dry enough to put on another layer but we have two houses to build so it will keep us at work pretty steady. I have been thinking some about building a mud house for myself but I don't know what I would do with it after I got it done.
Well I guess I will sign off and go and mail this..."
Geo.
By January, 1900. George has moved on again, this time to Borate, San Bernardino, Co., Cal., where he finds employment in a borax mine twelve miles from Daggett. Apparently he has managed to save some money, as he would like his mother to look into investing it for him, but is cautious about having it tied up for any length of time...."as I may want to use some of it...If I go to South Africa, which I am thinking very strong of doing now, I will be on the road for six months." Figuring that if he continues to work full time and stays in one place for a couple of months, it will be but a short twine to get a few hundred dollars ahead. I don't know as I have much longer to stay here as there is a new superintendent here and I may hit the road any time for we may have different notions about how the concern should be run. If I leave here I think I will go right back to Ballarat."
DIRECTORS 1999
Lou Pracchia, President - 375-7385
Liz Babcock, Dir. Exhibits & P.R.- 375-7900
e-mail: ldpracc@ridgecrest.ca.us
e-mail: lizbab@ndti.net
Charlotte Goodson, Vice President, Dir. Programs - 375-6449
Dot Gould, Dir. History & Coll. - 377-4117
e-mail: none
e-mail: dgould@ndti.net
Bruce Wertenberger, Secretary - 375-2369
Dick Moe, Liaison to MM - 446-4382
e-mail: brucew@ndti.net
e-mail: moeind@ndti.net
Fred Weals,Treasurer, Dir. Hosp. & Mbrshp. - 375-5249
John Faron, Director at Large- 375-9516
e-mail: weals@ridgecrest.ca.us
e-mail: jfaron@ridgecrest.ca.us
Chet Creider, Bulletin Editor - 375-5725
e-mail: ccreider@ridgecrest.ca.us
HSUMD Web site: http://www.ridgecrest.ca.us/~matmus/Hist.html
Webmistress - Janet Westbrook
Annual dues are $10.00 for the calendar year.
Payable now.