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  • ART AND LIT
    • ART
    • LITERATURE
      • POETRY
        • ROOTED IN POETRY
      • FICTION
        • SHORT STORIES
        • THE RED SEDAN by CHANCE MOON
      • BOOK REVIEWS
    • MUSIC
      • LAKE COUNTY MUSIC GUIDE
      • LOCAL MUSICIANS
    • THEATER
  • FOOD AND DRINK
    • RESTAURANTS AND BARS
    • WINERIES
  • HISTORY
    • LAKE COUNTY HISTORY by GENE PALENO
    • LAKE COUNTY TIME MACHINE
    • LOCAL HISTORY
  • COLUMNS
    • HOLIDAY SHOPPING GUIDE
    • EDITORIALS
    • THE NEIGHBOR YOU NEVER KNEW
    • COMMUNITY NEWS
    • ROOTED IN POETRY
    • STRESSLESS CAMPING
    • WITTER SPRINGS CHRONICLES by GENE PALENO
    • WINDOW ON LAKE COUNTY
    • FEATURED LAKE COUNTY BUSINESSES
    • COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE INSIGHTS
    • OBITUARIES
  • CALENDARS
    • THE BIG CALENDAR
    • THE PARTY CALENDAR
  • PRESS RELEASES
LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
January 13, 2021  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 116: The White Cap Murders, Part 7

The prosecution asked, “Did you not say that Blackburn said to you, ‘Charley, I have just found the thing to make masks. It is flour sacks.’ The defendant objected to the question. Osgood was next asked where he was on the night of the crime. He answered, “I had been resting.”
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
January 6, 2021  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 115: The White Cap Murders, Part 6

The plot thickened. It was common knowledge that Bennett had thrashed several of the raiders. They all hated him. Testimony was given to say that Blackburn wished to get ‘even’ with Bennett, and Blackburn was the man that originated the idea of the raid. Habishaw added, “There was never any intention to injure the Riche’s. The raid was aimed solely at Bennett. Blackburn said, ‘We’ll flog him well, give him a coat of tar and feathers, escort him to the County border, and order him never to set foot in Lake County again.’”
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
December 31, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 114: The White Cap Murders, Part 5

Who were these ten men? They were not outlaws. They were ordinary citizens. The single thing they had in common was that they all worked for the mine. One man was part owner of the Bradford mine. Staley, one of those held for murder, had been an election officer at the Great Western Mine, one of the places selected for polling.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
December 23, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 113: The White Cap Murders, Part 4

The men in the posse stared at the bleeding corpse with interest. The dead man was dressed in what was meant as some sort of disguise. He looked like he had dressed for Halloween. His arms were covered in red sleeves, burlap sacks were sewn around his body and his legs, and there was a white paper mask over his face. Later, as they searched around the tavern grounds, the officers found more white masks made of flour sacks with holes cut for the eyes. Near the barn, sixty feet from the tavern, they discovered a small tin lard bucket filled with tar and a cat-o’-nine-tails whip lay next to the bucket.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
December 17, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 112: The White Cap Murders, Part 3

Helen Riche was a fighter. Somehow, during the melee, instead of remaining where she was on the floor, she crawled to the front door and managed to grab the Winchester from behind the door. Before she could throw the rifle to her husband, one of the men saw what she had done and took the Winchester out of her hand, throwing the weapon out of reach. Making no further move, Mrs. Riche lay on the floor bleeding. Fred Bennett, the bartender, had disappeared into the bedroom, leaving Mr. Riche alone to deal with the situation. Riche stated, “I thought the best thing I could do was get right in the middle of them. That way, they could not shoot me without risking their own safety. I did, and they backed out of the room onto the porch. The last one in the room I kind of threw out. As I did, I heard more shots outside on the porch by the door.”
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
December 10, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 111: The White Cap Murders, Part 2

Riche’s young wife, Helen, angry at the sudden rude intrusion and manner, rushed to one of the men and tried to pull the mask from his face. At the same time, seeing her intent, her husband grabbed at her, moving to protect his wife. One of the masked men reached her first. He pushed her to the floor, and at that same instant, a volley of gunfire erupted in the room. “There were eight or ten shots, or maybe more,” Riche said later. ”I tried to pull Helen away from the man that was holding her down. That was when I saw Helen was wounded. She had been shot, and her side was bleeding.” Riche always kept two pistols in his bedroom under his pillow. He also had a rifle. Unfortunately, getting to that weapon at that moment was no longer possible. His Winchester 44 was behind the front door of the saloon, and the masked men were in the way. “I pushed Helen’s body under a little raised part of the bar. I hoped to take her into the kitchen for safety while I went to the bedroom for my pistol.”
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Jimmy Restani showing off his guns in front of the Loch Lomond Resort. Photo courtesy Madelyn Martinelli.
November 20, 2020  |  By David Wakefield

Memories of the Mayacamas Mountains: The Story of Adams Springs, Loch Lomond, and the Prather Family

Where once stood a kitchen, only an old stove remains. It lays on the ground, flopped on its side, once-white enamel slowly rusting to grey-brown. Sheet metal and tin scatter across the grounds, holding back the scotch broom and blackberry bushes. Bedsprings jauntily poke out of the creekbed, sagged and twisted. Among the debris, a thick piece of handblown glass dating from the turn of the 20th century sits, only a small slice of what once was a gallon jug. The winter sun barely pokes through the hazy sky. It doesn’t look like the map Steve Prather had scribbled on the bottom of a 24 pack of 7-Up a week earlier. His map had squares on it, marking houses and the location of the spring. I look at the torn piece of cardboard in my hand one more time, then look up. There’s nothing here.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
November 19, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 110: The White Cap Murders, Part 1

After the smoke and sounds of the bloody Civil War died away, there was peace. Yet, for some, the prejudice and hatred remained. Long after the Civil War ended, there was bitterness and prejudice between people of different political parties; Democrat and the Klan-like bands of marauders and vigilantes rode by night to enforce their ideas of right and wrong and punish those who held views about slavery, race, morality, and religion different from their own. These avenging night riders were descendants of the Civil War Northern Knights of the Golden Circle, or as they were called by others, The Circle of Honor or The Knights of the mighty Host. One of the most violent was the White Caps.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
November 12, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 109: Boats of Clear Lake, Conclusion

On the day of her launching, the watching crowd was uncertain whether the solid Teakwood Golden Dragon would float… or would it even survive her launching. As the Golden Dragon slid into the waters of Clear lake, the audible gasp of relieved tension that came from the assembled citizens was a testament to her success. During the next hour, as the Golden Dragon showed off and skimmed upon Clear Lake’s water, she behaved as though she had swum there all her life.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
November 5, 2020  |  By A Community Member

Lake County History, Chapter 108: Boats of Clear Lake, Part 1

More than three dozen sailboats, steamboats, and gasoline-powered boats were built and moved across Clear Lake on their various journeys and duties during the 1800s. From 1856 until nearly to the present time, some ships and their builders took part in adventures that are worth the retelling in this brief history of Lake County.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
October 29, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History Chapter 107: Beautiful Ladies, Part 2

The ladies of Lake County were not only beautiful and charming, but they were also, in matters of personal grooming and personal conduct, a cut above the ladies of most other counties. In 1879 they outdid themselves, and the rules described next explain why. Do not suck the head of your parasol. To follow that unladylike habit will make one to question whether you have breakfasted. To suck it is not lady-like. And, let me tell you, it is excessively unbecoming.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
October 22, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 106: Beautiful Ladies, Part 1

Thank goodness the ladies today are not under the same courtship pressures as they were in the 1880s. The playing field between men and women is more level. In Victorian times it was a matter of social survival for a woman of 1900 to look beautiful without showing any of the signs of powder and paint make-up. How did they do it? An article by Marilyn Johnson of Lake County gives us some of the answers as to how the magic was wrought.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
October 15, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 105: The Chinese Pioneers, Part 2

The main hotel in Kelseyville was typical of the undisguised prejudice against Chinese. The name, ‘Uncle Sam Hotel’ was in recognition of the establishment’s location near Mt. Konocti, which was, at one time, was called Uncle Sam Mountain. A prominent sign in the front of the establishment made their prejudice known: UNCLE SAM HOTEL Good Hunting and Fishing Close Proximity to the Hotel Table Always Supplied with the Best the Market Affords NO CHINESE EMPLOYED
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
October 8, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 104: The Chinese Pioneers, Part 1

In Lake County, men searched in the heavens and dug in the ground for discovery and for wealth. Gold and quicksilver were discovered in California in the 1850s, but nobody thought overly much about the Chinese. They worked in the Lake County Cinnabar mines, and they worked hard.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
October 1, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 103: The Stargazer

James Lick and his associates, John Fraser and Richard Floyd, helped create the Lick observatory. They were amazing men. Two things stand out; Lick’s drive to know more about our universe and Captain Floyd’s role as a Confederate pirate in the Civil War.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
September 24, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 102: The Bartlett Springs Fire, Part 2

At one o’clock in the afternoon, Hans Anderson, faithful employee of the Bartlett Springs forty years, discovered a fire in the bottling plant. The conflagration soon spread to the nearby buildings. Strong winds, blowing up from the steep canyons below, drove the flames from building to building in minutes. The four large hotels were quickly engaged in the inferno. The handful of guests and workers at the resort could not hope to combat such a fire. In less than three hours, more than fifty buildings, from the four large hotels to the smallest open-air cabin and tool house, were no more than smoldering embers and ashes.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
September 16, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 101: The Bartlett Springs Fire, Part 1

20 September 1934, the Lake County Bee reported Bartlett Springs Resort was destroyed by fire. It was a bad fire. Fifty buildings were torched. Only the heroic efforts of hundreds of CCC boys, called to battle the blaze, kept the mountains around the Resort from burning. The Resort was above Nice, northwest, and twelve miles from Clear Lake. The road to that forlorn memory twists and turns like a peripatetic snake. To reach Bartlett Springs, the intrepid traveler must climb into Lake County’s higher mountains to an altitude of nearly forty-five hundred feet. He must pass over Bartlett Mountain’s summit at about four thousand feet. He will pass Pinnacle Rock and then Little Pinnacle on his left; both also close to four thousand high. Finally, as the road runs beside the South Fork of Bartlett Creek, the traveler may heave a sigh of relief. The last stretch to the springs levels out. Once there, the traveler will be in the center of what once were some of the most important mineral springs in Lake County.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
September 10, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 100: Aunt Hester’s “Medicine”

“The pools at Seigler Springs are inside a great building. There is a warm pool, a cool pool, and a hot. It is the fashion to enter the warm, then the hot, and finish up in the cold. Stone steps lead down into the water. Every person seems to be having a relaxing time. There is a group of men in one corner. They are discussing bear fighting and cockfighting. Another group is enthusiastically looking forward to a boxing exhibition to be given at Harbin Springs nearby. The ladies chat about needlepoint, babies, and the impossible task of keeping domestic servants. With the lowered voices, they talk about the interesting fact that the waters of Witter Springs are supposed to cure a social disease. ‘Well,’ I tell Aunt Hester, ‘When you consider that most of us know someone, who has gone there… Well, it certainly opens the room for conjecture.’ “
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
September 3, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 99: Good, Fresh Air

Early morning at Seigler Springs was beautiful. “Warm sunshine wakens us next morning. It is early, and there are birds singing outside our windows. A different maid brings us hot water, and we dress quickly, for the room is cold. The ladies don shawls, and we go downstairs and out into the veranda. How beautiful the mountains are! How clean the air smells! In the city, one is continually afflicted by the odors of livery stables and garbage. Siegler Springs is quite large and modern. It is one of the nicest places to take the waters. The hotel, where we have spent the night, is two stories tall with a gracious veranda extending around to its side. The dining hall is a separate building to the left of the hotel. To the right, down the hill a short distance, is a dance-hall and a theater. There is a dormitory out back for the help. Numerous small cabins are sprinkled about under the trees, that one can rent for a reasonable rate. Directly in front of the hotel, there is a lovely fountain. Beyond this a badminton, tennis courts, and a race track with what must be the most elegant barn in all Lake County. A path behind the hotel leads to the mineral springs, and then the bathhouse and then the enormous swimming pool.”
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
August 26, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 98: A Hard Road

“I am sure the ladies appear as disturbed over the dangers of the road as Aunt Hester and me. One of the gentlemen passengers explains, ‘Ladies, you must not be concerned. This stage is being driven by one of the best drivers on the route. He is driving one of the most experienced teams of horses.’ I noticed the two rear animals were chosen for their size, being larger than the horses in the front. On the sharp turns, our driver allows the horses to deal with the situation on their own. The leaders pick up speed, swinging out, which allows the Wheelers to hold back just enough to keep the stage under control. Be that as it may, Aunt Hester has become ill with motion sickness and must take a sip from the medicine bottle she carries in her handbag.”
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
August 20, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 97: A Perilous Beginning

This next cheerful travelogue may lighten your spirits. The author, Marilyn Johnson, took everything in easy stride, including her slightly inebriated Aunt Hester. Ms. Johnson’s description deserves recognition, if for no other reason than she takes us back to that day as if we made the trip with her. Her marvelous incite and awareness of things around her, and her ability to impart her impressions with the written word is almost too fine. The reader might have the sneaking suspicion Ms. Johnson fabricated this tale. It is too perfect. Whether a genuine experience or a work of fiction, Kudos to Ms. Johnson.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
August 13, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 96: Coming Home

Lilly’s tour through the West in America covered her with money, and Lake County was already becoming known as a good wine country. She met Freddie Gebbard, a wealthy American playboy and man about town. Handsome Freddie lavished the beautiful Lilly with attention. They wanted to be married, but divorce was not possible. Unable to divorce Edward Gantry, a Belfast shipping merchant, Lilly purchased the Guenoc Ranch in Lake County to live with Freddie, her real love. She ignored the scandal, and since California was known for its liberal views, California is where Lilly set her sights.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
August 5, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History, Chapter 96: Coming Home

Lilly’s tour through the West in America covered her with money, and Lake County was already becoming known as a good wine country. She met Freddie Gebbard, a wealthy American playboy and man about town. Handsome Freddie lavished the beautiful Lilly with attention. They wanted to be married, but divorce was not possible. Unable to divorce Edward Gantry, a Belfast shipping merchant, Lilly purchased the Guenoc Ranch in Lake County to live with Freddie, her real love. She ignored the scandal, and since California was known for its liberal views, California is where Lilly set her sights.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
July 29, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History Chapter 95: Lillie Was a Lady

Lillie Langtry deserves a special place in Lake County’s history. She wasn’t here long, but during the brief time she lived in Lake County, she became a legend. Her dazzling beauty, her electrifying personality, the story of her life, and what she did for Lake County, is still remembered.
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LAKE COUNTY HISTORY
July 22, 2020  |  By Gene Paleno

Lake County History Chapter 94: The Dashiell Affair

One story about a Confederate sympathizer is typical of the hard feelings that remained after the Civil War. The Santa Rosa Press-Democrat reported on what happened to southern sympathizers in Lake County. On the 20th of April, 1865, six days after Lincoln was assassinated, a company of soldiers, dispatched from Fort Wright and under the command of Captain Charles Douglas, were given orders to arrest any ‘Johnny Rebs’ that expressed glee at the news of the assassination. They took the road into Potter Valley on 1 June, to receive written complaints from residents that heard any expressions of glee over the assassination. Ranchers, loyal to the Union, reported such expressions they heard from certain of their neighbors, and, upon receiving the report, the soldiers took off to arrest the culprits.’
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