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Showing posts with label northern California. Show all posts
Showing posts with label northern California. Show all posts

Monday, April 3, 2017

Pioneer Photographer Preserves History.......by Gail L. Jenner


Louis Herman Heller, Pioneer Photographer, Preserves Local and Regional History

Although he was not as well known as many early, historic photographers, Louis Herman Heller was significant to early photography taken during the latter days of the gold rush in the "northern mines" of Northern California and Southern Oregon. He later became more important for his photographs taken during the Modoc War, the "last" Indian War in the West.

In our "neck of the woods," Heller was also important because his studio was located in Siskiyou County, and many of my husband's family were photographed by Heller. This is a photo of my husband's great grandmother, Mary "Muzzy" Wagner Jenner, c. 1886.
Louis Herman Heller emigrated from Germany in 1839 then moved from New York to California in 1862, after a brother died in the Civil War. A lithographer, he had assisted Julius Bien, a fellow German immigrant, in producing the chromolithographic edition of Audubon’s famous BOOK OF BIRDS. 

Heller settled in Yreka, California, where he set up a photographic studio in May 1863. The studio was located on Miner Street, one door west of the Yreka Brewery.

For several years, Heller traveled around the region, including Happy Camp, Rough and Ready (present-day Etna), Sawyer’s Bar, Callahan, and Fort Jones.  Heller traveled extensively, carrying his “gallery” all over the back country. Many of his studio prints remain as part of local family histories and a number of them have found their way into the local museums.  One massive chair, ornately carved, was often used in his studio portraits. In addition, Heller photographed the region’s emerging towns and communities, including  Black Bear Mine on the Salmon River, one of the region's most important and productive gold mines.

Heller is most noted for his photographs of the Modoc War, although he received only modest recognition because he sold his images to Carleton Watkins, who was credited for them when they appeared in Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper.   

The terrain of the lava beds was so rough and hard to map that the military called in the Corps of Engineers to photograph the topography and make maps and sketches. Heller was called in to photograph and do the sketches. Heller was also the first one on the scene to photograph the captured Modoc warriors, although Eadweard Muybridge, a San Francisco photographer, came later and received greater recognition than Heller.

Louis Heller was once called "the indefatigable photographer of the Modoc War." Of the nearly 100 images that exist of the infamous Modoc War, a set of Keller’s original 24 stereographs are kept at the University of Oregon, and a number of his over-sized photographs of the Modoc warriors are held at the National Anthropological Archives. 
According to the Yreka Journal:

            “Louis Heller returned from lava bed last week, and is now busy finishing up some beautiful and accurate views of the country in that section, including pictures of Jack's cave, Scarfaced Charley's hole, groups of Warm Spring Indians (scouts), soldiers camps, Tule Lake, and the lava bed in sections and in full..." This photo shows Schonchin and Jack. "Captain Jack" (Kientpoos) was the leader of the Modocs; originally for peace, he was hung. Truly, the Modoc War was a tragic event for all.

Again, according to the news article, regarding Heller: "Mr. Heller intends getting a copyright for his [Modoc] views, which cannot be excelled for beauty, shade and artistic finish, he being one of the most accurate and ingenious photographers on this coast. When they are ready for sale, they will undoubtedly sell with a rush, as everyone wants to see what the lava bed looks like, and to form an idea of the hard place soldiers have been obliged to fight the Indians[Yreka Journal, May 14, 1873]. Heller’s photographs were then mass-produced at Watkins' Gallery in San Francisco where". . . 20 women and a number of  'Chinamen' (are) being kept constantly at work" (Yreka Journal, June 25, 1873).  The photographic postcards sold for $4 per dozen. Today these are important historic relics.

After the Modoc War of 1872-73, Heller returned to Scott Valley and his private studio. This photo of a young boy comes from Fort Jones, but there is no identification. Notice the elaborate "setting" or vignette Heller created for his subjects.

Heller continued to travel all over Siskiyou County and beyond, but he also served as a justice of the peace for the valley from 1878-79 and as postmaster for Fort Jones from 1894-98. A long-time bachelor, he eventually married Alice Daggett, the sister of John Daggett (owner of the Black Bear Mine who also served as CA lieutenant governor and Superintendent of the Mint in San Francisco).  Heller opened a pharmacy in Fort Jones, alongside his studio, nothing that he had been “a thorough druggist of many years experiences previous to locating in Fort Jones.”

To keep up with the times, he added several photographic services usually available only in metropolitan studios. One of these was the hand-painting of imperial-sized portraits.

Heller gave up photography in 1899, and in 1900, his home, studio, and private property, including his photographic equipment, were sold at public auction. His wife died before him and he spent his remaining years in the King’s Daughters’ Home in San Francisco, where he died in 1928.

The fact remains that Heller was the first to photograph the Modoc War, being the first to arrive at the lava beds with his camera, the first to publish Modoc imagery in a national publication, and the first to photograph the Modoc captives. In addition, he captured hundreds of family portraits that are an integral part of Siskiyou County and local history.

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Gail L. Jenner is a multi-published author of historical fiction, 
published by Prairie Rose Publications, as well as regional and local history, including ACROSS THE SWEET GRASS HILLS, Winner of the WILLA Literary Award, from Women Writing the West.


For more, visit: www.gailjenner.com or https://www.amazon.com/Gail-Fiorini-Jenner/e/B005GHR47O.

Monday, October 5, 2015

The WEST and the Fires That Burn ...... by Gail L. Jenner


Throughout the West, fires have become a dreaded reality. Watching the fires in California, Washington, and Oregon these past few months, one can only imagine the devastation. It’s one thing for fires to spring up in wilderness areas; it is quite another for them to devour homes and structures.

            But fires are not a new phenomenon in our area. The Jacksonville, Oregon, newspaper reported in 1864 that: “during the past few weeks…fires have been raging with increasing fury.” Fire was a tragic reality in the early days as most settlements went up in smoke quite frequently. Locally there were at least three fires that destroyed the small western towns in northern California.

            Historically, fires that erupt in July and August often burn or smolder until October or November rains extinguish them. It’s also important to note that the northern California tribes, such as the Shasta, Karuk, Tolowa, Takelma, Yurok and others, used fires routinely to open up stands of oak, collect insects, fungi, or acorns, or even to clear regions for travel or settlement, and, perhaps most common, to improve habitat for game animals. The fires they lit occurred in the fall and were allowed to burn. Many early settlers, as well as tribes, disagreed with the policy of fighting fires—a policy that continues to be a matter of controversy. 
            Early ranchers, who learned from the tribes, also incorporated fires in their management practices of the land, the forests, the grasslands: one old-timer told me that as his grandfather and other ranchers pushed cows across the hills and through the upper mountain ranges, they would light the grassland here, there, and everywhere, and always in the fall, just before the rains so that the fires never got out of control. In those days, the underbrush was burned off, even in the years of drought. Indeed, the 1920s were considered some of the worst years for drought in the West, as were the '30s.
        


            Suppression of fires began in 1906 with the creation of the federal forest “reserves” – later to be renamed the U.S. Forest Service. It’s interesting that in our area, many fires are the result of lightning rather than human activity, although fire suppression efforts have been noted to have added to the fire danger. There were a number of large, lightning-caused fires in the early decades of the twentieth century; locals, as well as the limited forest rangers, fought the fire as best they could. In the 1930s, the CCCs were also employed as fire fighters.
           Fire lookouts were established as a means of monitoring the forestlands and these lookouts were important in locating fires before they grew in size. One important early lookout "ranger" was Hallie Daggett, daughter of John Daggett (who was not only a successful miner but became Superintendent of the San Francisco Mint in the early 1900s and Lieutenant-Governor of California). Hallie, hired in 1905, was the first woman lookout in the United States and served every summer for 13 years.

           Two years, 1956 and 1987, were labeled extreme fire years in northern California, and occurred during a long dry period coupled with frequent lightning strikes. More than 100,000 acres were burned during those two fire years. The fire of 1987 did not begin dramatically, but was sparked by dry lightning storms. In southwest Oregon, in 1987, more than 1,600 lightning strikes occurred during a twelve-hour period in August. The result: more than 600 fires were ignited.
            Northern California was literally submerged beneath a wall of darkness. City street lights stayed on day and night. Temperatures began to drop because sunlight could not penetrate the heavy, ash-filled smoke. People with allergies and lung conditions were asked to leave the area. Others wore masks to keep the large particles of ash and debris out of their mouths and lungs.
            Much of the smoke from the towering plumes, because of the height of the Marble Mountains and blustering winds, were swept out of our own Scott Valley, located near the Oregon border. But even with less smoke, the sun, when visible, shone through as a brilliant, deep red-gold. The small, local airport became a mini-city with blazing lights, helicopters, and fire-fighting aircraft coming and going at all hours.
            After more than two months of battling nature and spending millions of dollars, the last of the fires were put out. This, however, was not achieved by man’s efforts, but by the winter rains that arrived mid-November. In all, the fire of 1987 scorched 260,000 acres, making it the largest and costliest fire (at the time) in the history of Northern California and the Klamath National Forest. The fire cost more than 480 million in suppression efforts and employed 10,000 people.         
            The Klamath Complex Fire in 2008 burned over 190,000 acres and was made up of three major fires, the Panther & North Ukonom fires, the Bear Wallow Complex Fire (Anthony Milne, Caribou, & South Ukonom fires) and Siskiyou/Blue 2 Complex fires. Located 20 miles southwest from Happy Camp, the Siskiyou Complex didn’t immediately threaten structures or private land.


Of course the last few years have continued to rank as some of the most dangerous years for fire. The results: the loss of thousands and thousands of timberland as well as homes, buildings, and even lives...
            Research reveals that when fires are more frequent, they are less disastrous and relatively small and “patchy,” while less frequent fires are often larger and more devastating. Sadly, according to a 1984 study of fire history, “In spite of [all the] dozers, tank trucks, helicopters and air tankers, fires continue to become larger and larger, doing great damage to the natural resources.”  
            Interestingly, the Forest Service has once more adjusted its fire repression and fire prevention policies; the old ways are once more being recognized as a good way of dealing with the increased fuel loads found in the forests and grasslands. Like the tribes who lived for centuries throughout the area, small ground fires provide one important deterrent to the raging infernos that are otherwise created by the overgrowth of dry matter.
            The devastation that this year’s fires have again produced makes one realize the frightening results of fire. No doubt all of us will continue to feel the consequences these fires have reaped. 
Gail Jenner, author of ACROSS THE SWEET GRASS HILLS, JULY'S BRIDE, JUST IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS, and THE PRETTIEST HORSE THIEF, lives on the family's five generation cattle ranch in a rural valley in the Northern California mountains where fire is a constant summer threat.



Monday, July 6, 2015

Five Generations Strong....Ranching is What We Do.... By Gail L. Jenner


Although I've briefly talked about the ranch, I thought I'd delve a little more into its history. Several people have mentioned they enjoy hearing about the ranch. So here's a little more on the Jenner Cattle Company, three generations working together today, representing 3 of the 5 original generations:

L-R: nephew Frank; "Great Papa" Jack (91); brother-in-law John; son Matt; hubby Doug; son Nick.
 The Jenner Cattle Company, Inc., is one of the oldest ranches in Scott Valley, Siskiyou County, California.  For those who think California is the land of beautiful people and beautiful beaches and sun year-round, they have not visited the most northern quadrant of the state! Forty miles from Oregon, we are a rural (very rural) mountain community. We are surrounded by the Klamath National Forest, the Trinity-Salmon Alps, and the Marble Mountain Wilderness Area. The "valley" is perhaps 30 miles long and 6 miles wide. Originally the land of the Shasta, it is still the home of one of the largest tribes in northern California. Neighboring tribes include the Karuk and Yurok (further to the coast).

The first contact with whites dates back to Hudson Bay Company's beaver trappers and early mountain men, circa 1928-30. Stephen Meek, brother to Joseph Meek, is "credited" with putting Scott Valley (then called Beaver Valley) "on the map."  Interestingly, Stephen Meek lived for a time on a part of our ranch, and Old Pop used to recall how the Meek would hang his beaver pelts on our barn to dry in the sun (that would have been in Meek's later years -- around 1900+)... today the beaver are few, but they remain -- rather fascinating to watch how quickly they can build a dam. Only trouble is that we often try to plant trees along the slough and they saw them down very quickly! LOL...

The Jenners' entry into the valley goes back to the days of the gold rush (more on that in a future blog <g>).....the gold rush here followed on the heels of the Sierra Mother Lode "rush," but actually produced as much, if not more gold. Gold was first noted in 1848, but it wasn't until 1850 that the rush north into the Trinity region and beyond took hold. Even today, few people realize that the "northern mines" were as rich as they were, and the gold rush here lasted into the 1900s.
The Wagner Saloon in Etna
Part of the family’s ranching operation has its roots in the Wagner Ranch, purchased by Ignace and Mary Ann (Lichtenthaler) Wagner, both of Alsace, France, in March of 1874 (March 17, 1874). Although Ignace first went to mine in the area of Placerville (then known as "Hangtown" in the Sierras), he soon moved north, with a little bit of gold, as did so many gold seekers. He was a hard-worker and began to look around at how he could make a living for his family; farming and ranching was very profitable in the early days and he had come from farming stock. Later, at least one of his sons ran the Wagner Saloon in Etna. 


Another branch of the family included the Kapplers, who founded the original Etna Brewery--which has been resurrected and has won many micro-brewery awards since its "re-creation" in 1990! The Kapplers were also from Germany, arriving again as part of the gold rush. Settling in Etna, the Kapplers established the brewery and built an ice house and were the first to bring electricity to the town in 1898. Prohibition forced the brewery to close, although the beer did win a Blue Ribbon at the San Francisco Exposition in 1915.

The original farmhouse on the Wagner Ranch was built in 1859, but Ignace soon built a new home on the flat, opposite the old structure. The painting below was done by A. Cedro and stretches a good 4-5 feet across; it shows the layout of the Wagner Ranch in its "heyday."

Note the "horse barn" (still a beautiful and historic barn, on the right....).
The Wagners raised prized horses, including some magnificent Percherons; one even won a Blue Ribbon at the 1915 Exposition. They also raised hogs and apples. Today we still butcher hogs in the same way as did the first Wagners and we smoke our hams, bacon, sausage in the "old smokehouse on the hill." 

Our oldest son - note the "scrapers" to the left of the hog - 150 years old.
We also press cider in the 150-year old family cider press, made from a variety of apples on the ranch (many of which were planted later by my husband while in high school). Both are annual traditions that we have passed on now to the sixth generation. In fact, each Christmas our gift to neighbors, family and friends includes some of our wonderful sausage. Everyone looks forward to the gift!

NOTE: if anyone's interested in the historic and fascinating history of processing pork -- I could do a blog with photos...?

The first Jenner to arrive in Scott Valley was E.P. Jenner, who emigrated from Sussex County, England, in 1849 (again, because of the gold rush!), then founded the Union Flour Mill c. 1864, outside the town of Rough and Ready, now called Etna. With gold miners needing food and supplies, it was E.P.’s nephew, Frank S. Jenner, who followed his uncle to the valley and established a ranch on land straddling the “Island” (land between Scott River and Patterson Creek/slough) in the early 1870s, where rich bottomland produces good feed for cattle. 
This is the view from our living room window.

Today we still raise cattle on these rich pastures and native grasses – which adds to the flavor and nutrition found in our beef. It is 100% All Natural, with no hormones, no antibiotics, and it has a strong reputation as prime and superior beef.
The Jenner family, operating in its fifth generation, is centered around Frank’s original Island property, in addition to the Wagner Ranch, but we have also added to the family’s holdings and cow herd in the years since my husband and his brother joined the business (40+ years). And in the last 15 years, our two sons and nephew have joined the family operation/corporation. But "Grandpa Jack" (now 91) still works a good 8-hour day!

Today we run 1000+ cows and we've moved from raising Hereford to Angus-cross cattle. We calve in the late fall but since we have FOUR seasons (yes, temps drop to well below zero in the winter and we get snow that often lasts for days or weeks). With the valley floor at 2800 feet and the mountains around us peaking at 9,000 feet, we are a beautiful, green, lush valley. It's no wonder that so many immigrants from Germany and Switzerland made this valley their home.
    
In addition, the Island ranch features a lush, natural slough, with roughly 50 acres of ponds and four reservoirs. The area is maintained as a natural preserve where waterfowl and other wildlife congregate year-round. 
In winter, the geese often "skate" along the frozen slough....
We limit hunting in order to protect both wildlife and cattle, so it’s not uncommon to see hundreds, if not thousands, of ducks, geese, herons, even pairs of eagles (both Bald and American Golden) and other bird life, as well as beaver and/or otters, etc. The diversity is amazing and there is rarely a day I don't look out and marvel at the beauty and the fertility of nature. We love our cows, and for those who have wondered, cattle AND wildlife do cohabitate incredibly well. Cattle are natural recyclers; they are also natural fire retardants and can convert otherwise dry material into a powerful food source (like the dry hillsides that ignite in California every summer -- a shame they are no longer used to keep the fire danger down). 

Now that we have the sixth generation coming on, it's been wonderful having our rich family history to pass on -- not only the stories, but the actual "material" culture of a family that has lived on the same land for almost 150 years! And now, even the Jenner "girls" have expanded the family's enterprise; we've created our own business, Jenner Family Beef, which offers beef locally and regionally.



Just this year, Jenner beef is being featured at the new and exclusive Clove & Hoof butcher shop and eatery in Oakland, CA......along with an endorsement by San Francisco's Slow Food group. By expanding what we do, we feel that we can provide for our growing family. With four generations at work now and the next coming on, we hope to maintain our family's rich heritage!

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Gail L. Jenner is the wife of Doug Jenner. She considers
her life on the ranch to be almost a dream-come-true!
Keeping the history of five generations alive is another
reason she collects and records local history, in addition
to writing historical fiction....
For more, visit: www.gailjenner.com
OR: http://www.amazon.com/Gail-Fiorini-Jenner/e/B005GHR47O
OR: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Gail-L-Jenner/207027702703732?ref=hlhttps://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Gail-L-Jenner/207027702703732?ref=hl
She is the author of the PRP release of her WILLA Award-winning novel, ACROSS THE SWEET GRASS HILLS. Her stories have also been included in the PRP anthologies, PRESENT FOR A COWBOY, LASSOING A BRIDE, and COWBOY KISSES. She has also coauthored 5 regional histories, and edited and contributed to ANKLE HIGH AND KNEE DEEP, an anthology of Western rural women's stories.

Monday, January 20, 2014

LIVING THE LIFE OF A RANCHER'S WIFE....HOW IT ALL STARTED...


Howdy! This marks my second blog and the first one on living the life of a rancher’s wife…

Marrying into a fourth generation cattle ranch was a jump of sizable proportion for this gal! I was not raised in a rural community, although I was raised in a family that had some roots in farming (on my mother's side). I met my bull riding cowboy husband while at college; it was a romance that, more than anything, could be described as a whirlwind affair. He is still a man of “few” words, but he was definitely a man of “fewer” words then! He was silent, rugged, rather serious, and I was intrigued.... I simply couldn't get him off my mind. What I didn’t know for many months, was that he was so tongue-tied and nervous after our first few dates, that he would return to his apartment and throw up…..yikes! 
Regardless, I threw caution to the wind as we moved quickly into a serious relationship. He asked me to marry him and I said yes, without hesitation. Forty-two years later, I'm still enamored.


            Coming “home” to the ranch -- after our wedding -- actually felt like coming home to me. It was an old farmhouse, the original family ranch house, and had been rented out for years so it was in pretty poor shape. In fact, in one 24 hour period that first year, we trapped 29 mice in our old pantry!


            The ranch was established in the early 1870s, but part of the family (on the maternal side) had established their ranch in the 1850s. My husband’s family immigrated from England (on one side) and Germany (on the other) during the gold rush, so his roots here in our valley go back to the original settlement period. This area is home to a number of tribes and the conflict in those early days was harsh; California miners were not kind to the tribes at all. Today the tribes are still an active and vital part of our community, but like all of America’s settlement history, there are scars that will never heal.



            Living in a northern California mountain valley, only 40 miles from Oregon, our seasons are short; elevation starts at 2800 feet.  As ranchers, however, that works to our benefit because this creates a higher nutrient content for the hay we produce each summer and feed out in winter. Many people do not understand that this climate (with four distinct seasons, including long cold and snowy winters -- though lacking this year) -- is not conducive to growing commercial crops, but is ideal for cattle and hay. 



In the summer our cows remain on the ranch grazing on our own pastures, many of which are native grass, having never been farmed at all. The cattle live their entire lives on this ranch. We used to assist our in-laws in taking cattle into the mountains on horseback (which I loved) to graze – a practice today sadly misunderstood. Cattle co-habitate with wildlife beautifully and these wonderful bovines have the ability to convert dry, fire-kindling matter into feed, protecting the forests and mountain regions from fire. Would that California encourage more grazing – perhaps some of the recent grass and forest fires could be reduced significantly. But that’s another issue!



Our ranch has a historic natural wildlife area, which we preserve, and have for over a hundred years. That means we have an abundance of waterfowl and bird and animal life that thrives here: ducks, geese, eagles (including bald eagles and golden eagles), heron, blackbirds, etc., along with mink, otters, fish, and even a few stubborn beaver! Another interesting fact that few understand is that we are not unique; more than 75% of migrating waterfowl, for instance, are protected by ranches and farms, not by public lands. The view from where I'm seated right now, in fact, looks out over several hundred Canadian geese, busily and happily "grazing" on the remnant of hay the guys scattered out earlier for the cows. Their frequent honking is music in the stillness of the frosty morning air.



Life here is idyllic in so many ways. It’s been an ideal place to raise children, and now 2 of our 3 children have returned to work the ranch, with children of their own. There is a tradeoff, of course; as I’ve told my two daughters-in-law: you will always have security, a great place to raise a family, and an unending supply of great food <g>, but if you’re looking to get rich or to take long extended vacations, this is not the life for you. Vacations are few and far between. I’ve likened ranching to being a MOM. Once you sign on, the job is almost 24/7 – or at least it feels like it much of the year. But, again, the rewards are worth the “sacrifice!” Just this year, all of the women of the ranch, including daughters who are not "on" the ranch (that is 7 women all together!), have started our own business, Jenner Family Beef. We have been asked so often over the years about purchasing our meat, that we have entered into marketing it. We do raise 100% natural Angus cross beef, with no hormones, no antibiotics, grass-fed, and are excited about the direction the business is headed. For those who may be interested, our new website is: www.jennerfamilybeef.com. We do ship all over...



I love this life of mine and thank God daily for the beautiful valley where we live and for having the space and opportunity to live alongside cattle, our horses, the mountains, the wildlife, and my rugged, hard-working cowboy husband! I hope to share a more about life on a cattle ranch in weeks to come…and if you have questions, please respond. I'll be happy to answer whatever I can. And if you want to know more about me, check my Author page out on Prairie Rose or www.gailjenner.com. And I'll see you in two weeks -- on the first Monday of February...

My husband on far left; one of our two sons, in the center, working calves...with over 900 calves each year, it's a job!