JULY HISTORY PROGRAM: The Trails We Walk!

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Miles Wilson
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JULY HISTORY PROGRAM: The Trails We Walk! Collaboration between various agencies and organizations is known to assist in keeping a region vital and engaging to its citizens.

teachers curriculum advisers. The project was funded by a grant to the Tuolumne County Visitors Bureau from the Stanislaus National Forest Rural Redevelopment Program.

1 JULY HISTORY PROGRAM: The Trails We Walk! Collaboration between various agencies and organizations is known to assist in keeping a region vital and engaging to its citizens. Considering that 77% of Tuolumne County is public land, it shouldn t be surprising that the Tuolumne County Historical Society (TCHS) has a rich history working with the United States Forest Service (USFS). In 2004, the Historical Society s Landmarks Committee created a county-wide tourism guide, Our History and Our Heritage, in conjunction with the Tuolumne County Superintendent of Schools fourth grade teachers curriculum advisers. The project was funded by a grant to the Tuolumne County Visitors Bureau from the Stanislaus National Forest Rural Redevelopment Program. Then, just a few years ago, in 2015, the TCHS supported the USFS, along with the Sonora Area Foundation and the Davis Family Foundation, to design, fabricate, and install three Sonora Pass interpretive signs. Once again the TCHS is collaborating with the USFS to bring an engaging speaker and presentation to the attention of the general public. Everyone is invited to attend the Tuolumne County Historical Society s Thursday evening History Program on July 12, The program, titled The Trails We Walk!, will feature U.S. Forest Service Interpreter Jaclynn Swope from the Stanislaus National Forest, Summit Ranger District, in Pinecrest. Jaclynn is in her twelfth season working in public lands. She began her interesting career at Bodie State Historic Park, where she spent three seasons as an interpreter. Her original career goal was to see how many sites she could work at before the age of thirty she s made it to ten so far! Jaclynn is married to a National Park Service trail worker, who has given her a much greater appreciation for the work and history that has gone into the trails of the Sierra Nevada. She is also currently pursuing her master s degree in American History through Adams State University (Alamosa, Colorado) and is just beginning thesis work with a focus on the history of Bodie State Historic Park s employees and the development of their unique community. The Trails We Walk! will take you on a journey through time and terrain as we look at some of the stories behind our Sierra Nevada trails. The presentation will include historic photos, glimpses into the vast wilderness off Hwy 108, and a discussion of the traditions of trail work still alive within the Stanislaus National Forest today including the use of explosives! The program begins promptly at 7:00 p.m. at the Tuolumne County Public Library, Community Meeting Room, 480 Greenley Road, Sonora. The history program will be followed by a question and answer period, and light refreshments will be available after the program. The Library is handicap accessible, with plenty of free parking. Admission is also free.

2 Hi President s Message Everyone!!! It s summer time and there is so much happening I would like to announce a new appointment to the TCHS Board Cheri Q. Holmes.

!! However, we still have two Director spots open, as well as a vacancy for Treasurer, so please consider how much your volunteer commitment would help us. Our summer calendar is filling up quickly.

We will be selling TCHS books and black-and-white prints from the Viola Siebe Sonntag family art collection.

After that, we are making a presentation to the TC Board of Supervisors on July 17th. We have so much to share with them.

2 2 Hi President s Message Everyone!!! It s summer time and there is so much happening I would like to announce a new appointment to the TCHS Board Cheri Q. Holmes. We are so excited to have her join us. Congratulations and thank you, Cheri!!! However, we still have two Director spots open, as well as a vacancy for Treasurer, so please consider how much your volunteer commitment would help us. Our summer calendar is filling up quickly. We ve reserved a booth at the Mother Lode Fair, on July 5-8, The theme of our booth will be The City of Sonora, Then and Now. We will be selling TCHS books and black-and-white prints from the Viola Siebe Sonntag family art collection. On July 12, as you already noted on the first page, all are invited to our Library Thursday history program with USFS Interpreter Jaclynn Swope. After that, we are making a presentation to the TC Board of Supervisors on July 17th. We have so much to share with them. We will be bragging about new exhibits soon to be mounted in our Museum as well as describing the success of our Facebook page, Motherlode Memories. In addition, we will ask for help with finding needed volunteers and docents. Museum corner As TCHS President Brown mentioned in her letter, your Historical Society volunteers are active participants in local happenings. Collecting and preserving historical items is a big job at the History Research Center, but many of our volunteers are deeply engaged in disseminating our local history as well especially through events and publications. That said, besides visiting our City of Sonora promotional booth at this year s Mother Lode Fair, July 5-8, we hope you ll join us for our Smithsonian-inspired Museum Day activities, on Saturday, September 22. The day will begin at 8:00 a.m. with a geocache event at the History Research Center. For the uninitiated, geocaching is a treasure hunt using GPS, a Global Positioning System device. Caches will be located in historic places throughout Tuolumne County, and a medallion will be given to the individual who finds all 20 caches by the next day, September 23. A children s geocache will be located along Washington Street s historic places. Running simultaneously, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., our historic Jail Museum will be mounting an exhibit for the ages as docents work with the Tuolumne County Sheriff s Dept. to showcase law and justice, then and now. While docents give tours of the old jail, serve snacks, and sell surplus books, the Sheriff s Dept. will demonstrate their canine program, drones, and the SWAT Team s BEARCAT vehicle, which doubles as a medevac ambulance. Mark your calendars now for this historic family event! Finally, as you ll see on the next two pages, we re still promoting our legacy bricks for the Museum Courtyard. There s still time to purchase a brick, and we hope to begin laying the bricks in August. Best, as always, Angela Brown Welcome New Members Sam Thompson Rick Mugele

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I know it seems a bit early since the tours are in October, but we are coordinating our call-out with the Historian publication schedule.

5 HEAR YE! HEAR YE! HEAR YE! It s me again local town crier, better known as Hardluck Lin. It s time to post the OFFICAL call for volunteer sign-ups for the TH Grade Walking Tours of Historic Downtown Sonora. I know it seems a bit early since the tours are in October, but we are coordinating our call-out with the Historian publication schedule. For those of you who are new to the program, these walking tours are a joint effort between the TCHS and the City of Sonora. The purpose of these tours is to teach our local 4 th graders about their own home-heritage as well as to use their eyes, their ears, and their mouths to learn. We want our students to realize that learning to look, to wonder, to listen, and to inquire can be as much fun as those buttons on their ever-present cell phones! To this end, the call is now going out for volunteers. On any of one of the assigned four tour dates, this program necessitates volunteers. The basic requirement to be a volunteer is simple: the individual must love Sonora, must love Sonora s history and, of course, must love kids! Our guides and trailers must be physically able to usher between students and their chaperones from the Opera Hall to the Red Church, from the TCHS Museum to the Sugg House, and then back to the Opera Hall. We also need specific venue presenters and assistants. If you are interested but a bit unsure, we have another spot for you. We call it shadowing. Shadows do just that they shadow an experienced volunteer. We do ask that all those who wish to participate, as a returning volunteer, a new volunteer, or a shadow in this celebrated event, sign-up. We need your name, contact information (phone and address), and your availability. Again, the tour dates are Tuesday, Oct. 2; Thursday, October 4 th ; Tuesday, October 9 th ; and Thursday, October 11 th. We ask that guides and trailers be at the Opera Hall on the date assigned no later than 8:30 a.m. Tours culminate back at the Opera Hall at noon. There will be a Pre-Tour meeting in late September; that date will be announced. We ask that all volunteers attend that meeting. If you wish more information, or just want to get signed-up (YEA!), please contact Linda Clark or Sandy Fisher. Now is not too soon. 5 Linda Clark: hardlucklin@mlode.com Sandy Fisher: fisher@goldrush.com This cannot be stated often enough: Our volunteers are truly the backbone of this educational program. They are literally the Little Engine That Could! Each volunteer, from guide to trailer, from stationary presenter to thank-you writer, is equally important and we need each of you to make this another successful season. Every volunteer is as the spoke of the wagon wheel. Each spoke is vital to keep the wheel strong and rolling; not enough spokes not only stress the wheel but weaken the wheel! We need your help to keep this wonderful program rolling strong and steady! Volunteering and Civic Pride Nothing more than the investment of your time and energy shows how much you care about your community. Just as Hardluck speaks of the young people s program rolling along strong and steady, so does an organization like your Historical Society require an involved membership. Become a TCHS History Research Center volunteer or a Museum docent today and be rejuvenated! Join the TCHS Volunteer and Docent Class of 2018/2019. Make new friends and expand your understanding of our county s rich history. TCHS volunteers and Museum docents provide guided tours of permanent galleries and special exhibitions to diverse audiences while gaining intimate knowledge of the Museum and its collections. Training Program: As a Museum docent, you will enjoy many social and professional benefits, including TCHS/Museum sponsored gatherings and the creation of lifelong friendships! TCHS History Center volunteers and Museum docents conduct tours for schoolchildren and family groups during weekdays and weekends. No experience is necessary. Training includes instruction in Western history, California history, art and art history, material culture, touring techniques, and more. Volunteer responsibilities include completing monthly assignments, maintaining active annual TCHS membership, and participating in continuing education both at the Museum and the History Center. For further information contact: Fran Gardner, TCHS Vice-President/Chair of the Museum Board of Governors, at (209)

TUOLUMNE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY 158 Bradford Street SONORA CA 95370-4920 Non-Profit Organization U S POSTAGE PAID Permit #15 Sonora, California ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED The Mission of the

The Historian is published several times a year by the Tuolumne County Historical Society, 158 Bradford St., Sonora, CA 95370-4920, for the benefit of the membership.

) Historic Jamestown Museum and Blacksmith Shop The Jamestown Museum is officially open on most weekends.

6 TUOLUMNE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY 158 Bradford Street SONORA CA Non-Profit Organization U S POSTAGE PAID Permit #15 Sonora, California ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED The Mission of the Tuolumne County Historical Society shall be to discover, collect, preserve, and disseminate knowledge about the history of Tuolumne County and the State of California. The Historian is published several times a year by the Tuolumne County Historical Society, 158 Bradford St., Sonora, CA , for the benefit of the membership. There is no charge for the Historian. (In compliance with Public Law , 39 U.S.C subsection [j].) Historic Jamestown Museum and Blacksmith Shop The Jamestown Museum is officially open on most weekends. This museum, a replica of the Rocca Ranch blacksmith shop, highlights ranching/agriculture, railroading, and the Gold Rush. If you would like to be a volunteer, please contact Joe Sparagna at or jbsparagna@gmail.com. TCHS BOARD OF DIRECTORS Angela Brown President Chuck Holland First Vice President Frances Gardner Second Vice President Joseph Celentano Acting Treasurer Betty Sparagna Recording Secretary Kathy Boone Membership Secretary Tuolumne County Museum 158 Bradford Street, Sonora Hours: Mon., Tues., Thurs., Fri. 10 a.m. 4 p.m. Wed. 1 4 p.m. Sat. 10 a.m. 3:30 p.m. Sun. 11 a.m. 2 p.m. History Research Center Open on Tues. and Thurs. for Walk-ins and Research: 9 a.m. 2 p.m. Museum: History Research Center: DIRECTORS Linda Crocker Sandy Fisher Michael Ghiorso Cheri Holmes Lisa Mayo Janet Montano MUSEUM BOARD OF GOVERNORS Frances Gardner Chair Dan Azevedo Allan Bryant Brad Fisher Winnie LoVine Bob Rogers Billie Lyons Curator

Fairview Register. Promoting and preserving Costa Mesa s history is our mission.

Fairview Register. Promoting and preserving Costa Mesa s history is our mission. Fairview Register Monthly Publication of the Costa Mesa Historical Society Headquarters: 1870 Anaheim Ave Member: Conference of California Historical Societies, National Trust for Historic Preservation