We stumbled across the grave of Robert Marshall Briggs the other day in St. Patrick’s Cemetery in Jackson. It was a familiar name from Alpine’s early days. And that led to a story about a bandit, a hanging, how Mono County got its beautiful courthouse — and Alpine County’s very first D.A.. Robert M. Briggs […]
Silver Mountain City’s Stone Jail
If you’ve ever traveled California’s lonely Highway 4, you may have seen these mysterious stone ruins. They’re one of the few tangible remains of Silver Mountain City, Alpine County’s original county seat. This was the county’s jail, built in 1867 and built to last! Eighteen-inch outer walls were hewn from the volcanic cliff east of […]
Charles Fiske
Charles Fiske (or Fisk) was born in Vermont in 1813, and operated a store in Old Town, Maine for many years. He and his wife, Mary Ann (Eaton) had 13 children. Charles’ older brother Royal was a merchant in California, and although Charles wrote that he wished to see “fancy places,” he felt he […]
Eliza Withington
Her real name was Elizabeth, but everyone still calls her “Eliza.” She was born Eliza Kirby in New York in 1825. By the age of 20 she was residing in Michigan, marrying George Withington there in 1845. When the gold rush began, George — like so many others — joined a company of men and […]