Locals know the secret of wild hops growing in Monitor Canyon – modern-day left-overs from an old brewery that quenched the thirst of silver miners in the 1870s. But how did those hops plants find their way here in the first place? Ah, meet brewer Nicholas Piequet! Piequet arrived […]
Roots a Mile Deep: The Story of the Adams Family
They weren’t trucking cattle up to summer pasture when Wally Adams was a kid. Nah. For over 30 years, Wally helped drive cattle the hard way, saddling up at 2 a.m. to get the herd to the top of Old Kingsbury Grade before nightfall. That meant long, dusty days on horseback. But it’s what you […]
The Story of Dr. Ernest Hand
Physician. Surgeon. Obstetrician. First responder. Ambulance driver. Back in the day, Dr. Ernest Hand did it all. Baby arriving? He’d come to your home for the delivery. Had a hunting accident out in the wilderness? He’d fight his way through the roughest territory to get to your side and render aid. Need an ambulance? He’d tote […]
Gardnerville’s Coolest Building (Part 1)
The sign on the outside used to read “Perry’s Dry Goods.” And locals today still smile when they remember Frank Perry, a short, wiry Basque known for his charming mustache and his wide range of Western wear. But Perry, as it turns out, wasn’t actually his real name. At birth it was Yparraguirre. “Perry” was […]
The Forgotten Story Behind the Lebec Hotel: Thomas O’Brien
He always carried a Colt .45 under that natty suit jacket. “Irish-stubborn” about business, he was filled with exuberance, too. Over the years he founded half-dozen saloons and gambling halls from Kingman to the Klondike. Yet he didn’t drink or gamble (or so, at least, his family said). Meet Thomas O’Brien, little-known proprietor of the […]
From Tragedy to Inspiration: How Writing a Memoir Can Be Healing
Q&A With Author Jodi Graber Pratt: Imagine being just a few yards away from the World Trade Center the morning of September 11, 2001. Hearing the first of two planes fly directly over your head. Running for your life as pieces of concrete and other building materials rained down around you. Author Jodi Graber Pratt takes you there, […]
Lexington: The Long-Lost Treasure Of A Long-Lost Town
It was a couple of weeks before Christmas, 1886 – December 3rd, to be exact. “Colonel” Alonzo Winfield Scott Smith was out exploring the back country of eastern Ventura County, near the confluence of Piru and Lockwood Creeks. And some might say it was a Christmas miracle: Voilà! Smith stumbled across a “lost” gold mine. Or maybe it […]
Mrs. Pitts’ Maternity Home
This year, a modest house on Centerville Lane will celebrate its 100th birthday (or so the assessment records say). And ironically, the word “birthday” holds a very special meaning for this old home. Think 159 of them . . . . Options for pregnant mothers were limited in Gardnerville during the World War II years. You could have your baby the […]
Jonas Winchester’s Wild, Crazy, Adventurous Life – Part 2
So, how did Jonas Winchester get to California? Ah, that’s a story in itself! (And if you missed Part 1 of Winchester’s wild and crazy story, here’s where to read it!) The eighth of 13 children, Jonas Winchester entered the world on November 19, 1810 in Marcellus, New York. At roughly age 16 he was apprenticed […]
The Wild, Crazy, Adventurous Life of Jonas Winchester (Part 1)
Jonas Winchester was one of a kind . . . . The year was 1871. Hope was in the air, in the tiny mining town of Monitor, California. “General” Jonas Winchester and his wife had recently arrived from back East. And word was that the Globe Gold & Silver Mine was finally going to be […]
Stalking Perry Mason: Following the Footsteps of Erle Stanley Gardner in Ventura
What’s not to like about a lawyer who got kicked out of law school?! His best-selling Perry Mason novels aside, Erle Stanley Gardner would still be legendary for that un-lawyerly feat! Born in 1889 in Malden, Massachusetts, Erle Stanley Gardner managed to stay enrolled at Valparaiso University’s law school for only a few short months. […]
There’s More to the Lillian Virgin Finnegan Story!
Sure, you’ve probably heard of Lillian Virgin Finnegan — one of the founders of the famous Genoa Candy Dance! But here are a few things you probably haven’t heard about this hometown Genoa gal. Lillian was born in Genoa on October 6, 1878, to parents Daniel W. Virgin and the former Mary Raycraft. Older brother William had […]