Workday Wednesday - Harvesting Crews in Richvale California

Editor's note: Today's post was edited by Sandra Gardner-Benward and written by member Jack Bank

Jack BANK, a long time member of Root Cellar Sacramento Genealogical Society. Each February Root Cellar SGS have what we loving call 'Show n Tell'. Members bring all types of items/ heirlooms that may have been passed down through ancestors. Jack has a rich ancestry in Northern California. 

One of the many pictures on his board is a harvesting crew working near Richvale* [California]. It is a pretty typical scene in the early 1900's in the Sacramento Valley.  Some of Jack's mother’s side of the family have farmed there since the late1800s growing wheat until converting to rice production fifty years ago.  This picture came to me from one of my mother’s cousins and she did not know the relationship of the harvesting crew in the picture to our family.  I have not come across any of the names from the back of the picture in my own research either,

The harvesting pictured below are not family members as far as I know.  The picture came to me with a whole pile of pictures that are of family members. The date and names of the harvesting crew are listed on the back.

Sunday, June 13, 1913

Engineer:             Jim BYRNES

Separator Tender: George JACKSON

Sack Sower:        Murel McDANIEL

Sack Filler:          Kit MOOR

Superintendent:    Jess BAKER

My guess is that the harvester and crew were just hired for the harvest and not regular McQUEEN Ranch hands.  At least someone took the time to write the names and date on the back of the picture, unlike many photos that I have with no identification at all on them. [gee not that I have ever heard of any pictures that aren't identified] 

*Richvale, California - Richvale is a small census-designated place in Butte County, California, USA, south of Chico and west of Oroville. The primary crop grown in the area surrounding Richvale is rice, irrigated from the Oroville Dam on the Feather River. The history of Richvale was recently written by the Richvale Writing Group (with Teresa Ward) and published by The Community Foundation of Richvale in a book (Richvale: A Legacy of Courage, Dedication, and Perseverance) with 364 historical photographs.

My family names associated with the ranches are: McQUEEN, EATON, PETTY and DANCE.

Some of the family ranch land was in Biggs, which is south of Richvale, where my grandfather, Louis EATON was born in 1877,  I was told by one of my mother’s cousins that the land was planted to wheat until rice became the more profitable crop to grow.

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Tuesday's Tip --- April Fools Day

Editor's note: Today's post was edited by Sandra Gardner-Benward  - Pictures & Captions from the Wikipedia

HAPPY April Fools Day - April 1

Why celebrate a day of  foolishness? 

  Why not! (if not harmful) 

An "April Fools' Day" hoax marking the construction of the Copenhagen Metro in 2001

An April Fools' Day prank with a purported new design of an (alleged) city bus, from an April 1926 issue of the company newspaper "Echo Continental", published by the Continental Rubber Works Hannover AG company [I love this bus, wouldn't it be a fun ride -without wind]

In 1957, the BBC pulled a prank, known as the Swiss Spaghetti Harvest prank, where they broadcast a fake video of Swiss farmers picking freshly-grown spaghetti. The BBC were later flooded with requests to purchase a spaghetti plant, forcing them to declare the video as a prank on the news the next day.[woman harvesting spaghetti in the BBC programme]

In Scotland, April Fools' Day is traditionally called Hunt-the-Gowk Day ("gowk" is Scots for a cuckoo or a foolish person), although this name has fallen into disuse. The traditional prank is to ask someone to deliver a sealed message requesting help of some sort. In fact, the message reads "Dinna laugh, dinna smile. Hunt the gowk another mile". The recipient, upon reading it, will explain he can only help if he first contacts another person, and sends the victim to this person with an identical message, with the same result.

.....................a little more information, background on April Fools Day and  history on April Fools Day

                                Have a Fun SAFE Day
       put a smile on someones face

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Society Saturday - Happenings in APRIL

Editor's note: Today's post was written by Sandra Gardner-Benward

April is (almost) here and we (Root Cellar Sacramento Genealogical Society) have a lot planned 

Mark your calendars now and don't miss out on the fun

Thursday, April 3

Root Cellar Board Meeting - members welcome!

10:00 am to 12:00 pm

Sylvan Community Center, 7521 Community Drive, Citrus Heights

Thursday April 3 Legacy Family Tree software Special Interest Group (SIG) 1pm - 3pm with Marian Kile (first Thursday of Month) Family History Center, 2745 Eastern Ave, Sacramento, CA 95662

Saturday, April 5 Annual Spring Seminar- sorry you must be registered, no walk in's, no registration at the door 9:00 am to 3:45 pm Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church, 11427 Fair Oaks Blvd., Fair Oaks, California Legacy Family Tree Guest speaker Geoff Rasmussen, Legacy Family Tree Genealogy Software and host of Legacy Family Tree Webinars. TOPICS: * Timelines and Chronologies: Secrets of Genealogical Success * Googling Around with Google and Other Fun Technology * The Latest in Digital Imaging for Genealogists * What's New in Legacy 8     Thursday, April 10 Root Cellar Membership Meeting 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm Christ Community Church, 5025 Manzanita Avenue, Carmichael 6:15 to 7:00 PM 6:15 Pre-meeting open discussion – Each table will be dedicated to several U.S. states. Share tips, information, problems and solutions with people researching in the same region. 7:00 to 8:30 PM “Practical Tips for Planning an On-Site Research Trip” Presented by Pam Brett. Pam Brett has been interested in genealogy for nearly forty years since she began filling in the family tree of her first-born child's baby book. Raising two daughters and working as a public health social worker left little free time until 1999 when she began her family research in earnest. Brett's ancestors were mobile which led to research in thirty-one states and the District of Columbia. She loves doing on-site research in the States "where there are many challenges but the rewards are priceless."

Friday, April 11
Root Cellar SGS Extractions
Center for Sacramento History
551 Sequoia Pacific Blvd., Sacramento, CA 95811
9AM - Noon - extra hands are always welcome.
 Contact: Marilyn Ulbricht

Alot going on with this committee. But we can always use more help. You know those records that you are looking for in another state, we'll as we are extracting those same records here, we hope someone in another state is doing the same. You can see why it is important to join in, it is not difficult, hand writting might be a challenge, but there is lots of support to help you. Find out if you would like to do this.

Wednesday, April 16

Root Cellar Workshop

1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Sylvan Community Center, 7521 Community Drive, Citrus Heights

Learn research tips. Share your successful finds and brickwalls. The session may include a webinar or a demo of a research tool. Guests welcome

Friday, April 18 Root Cellar SGS Extraction AM Center for Sacramento History Sacramento, CA 9AM - Noon - extra hands are always welcome.  Contact: Marilyn Ulbricht Alot going on with this committee. But we can always use more help. You know those records that you are looking for in another state, we'll as we are extracting those same records here, we hope someone in another state is doing the same. You can see why it is important to join in, it is not difficult, hand writting might be a challenge, but there is lots of support to help you. Find out if you would like to do this.   Wednesday, April 23 Reunion for the Mac Special Interest Group (Special Interest Groups) 10:30 am to 12:30 pm FamilySearch Library, 2745 Eastern Avenue, Sacramento Brainstorm solutions to users' problems, questions & explore ins/outs of the best Mac genealogy program. Contact Ron Setzer (PreservesEditor@rootcellar.org) to be added to our email list. All are welcome.

Friday, April 25
Root Cellar SGS Extraction AM
Center for Sacramento History
Sacramento, CA
9AM - Noon - extra hands are always welcome.
Contact: Marilyn Ulbricht

Alot going on with this committee. But we can always use more help. You know those records that you are looking for in another state, we'll as we are extracting those same records here, we hope someone in another state is doing the same. You can see why it is important to join in, it is not difficult, hand writting might be a challenge, but there is lots of support to help you. Find out if you would like to do this.

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Treasure Chest Thursday - Started in New York Ended in California

Editor's note: Today's post was edited by Sandra Gardner-Benward but written by member Kathie Gutierrez

Henry Hill BANKS and Dora Olive (LAWRANCE) BANKS are my great grandparents.           [Note: The surname "LAWRANCE" is correctly spelled, with two of the letter "a".] 

They were married at Red Bank, in Tehama County. California on August 4, 1886. This was the second marriage for Henry, whose first wife died when their only child, a son, was about two and a half. 

Henry was born in 1848, in Chemung County, New York, came to California in 1870, and owned a ranch in Red Bank, Tehama County, California. One of several diaries written by Henry's eldest brother Eugene, tells us that he encouraged Henry to come to California despite the fact that their father William and one other brother, John, were trying their best to discourage him from leaving home. Two other brothers were already in California. Jerome, a lawyer, who became District Attorney of Red Bluff; and George, also a teacher, who became a prominent farmer in Woodland. I believe that his brothers told him there was more opportunity to prosper in the West than in the small towns where he lived in New York. It took him just 7 days for Henry to get here, so I believe he probably came by train in July, 1870, rather than by ship as his brothers had.

Dora was born in 1863, in Rough and Ready Township, Nevada County, California, and met Henry while living on his ranch with the rest of her family, while her step-father was working for Henry, managing the ranch. 

Henry began teaching while still in New York. He was certified as "to Moral Character, Learning and Ability to Teach" and licensed to instruct a "Common School" by the School Commissioner for Chemung County, New York in November, 1867. Then in 1868 he received a Certificate of Academic Scholarship from the East Genesee Conference Seminary by the regents of the University of New York. He was then just shy of being 20 years old. After arriving in California he attended the State Normal School in San Jose, California and received teaching certificates in several counties, the last of which in Mendocino County.

Henry was primarily a school teacher, and much of the time was not able to tend to his own ranch while teaching in various other districts, such as the town of Vina and Red Bluff in 1885.   This was the same year several secret love letters were written between Henry and Dora while she was caring for her elderly grandparents during that winter in Nevada County. Her sister Ida was the go-between. And I am the lucky descendant who recently inherited them.

He obtained some land in Tehama County after he got here  But I'm not yet sure whether he purchased that piece of land, or whether he was given that land by his first wife's father. His Father-In -Law already owned quite a lot of land in the Red Bank area. A few years after he married Dora, he moved his family to Mendocino County, where he homesteaded some land in Hopland. This is where he and his wife raised four more children while he continued teaching in one-room school houses. When the eldest daughter was old enough to attend high school, the family moved to Ukiah and bought a house.  The down payment for this house was paid for with the money Dora had saved from the eggs she sold to her neighbors. At least that's the story that was passed down.

Henry and Dora's youngest child was my grandmother, Flossie, who attended U.C. Berkeley, paying her own way with scholarships and work such as babysitting and housekeeping on campus. She later changed her name to Florence, which was felt to be a more professional name for her career as an English professor at San Jose State College.

Thank you Kathie for sharing this story with us. I see other story's I would love to hear more about ......... 

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Tuesday TIp - Journal Jar Ideas

Editor's note: Today's post was written by Sandra Gardner-Benward

What the heck is a Journal Jar? (orginally this was an idea submitted to SHARE-SISTER by Ann Boldt- no longer available) This was Root Cellar Sacramento Genealogical Society member Sammie Hudgen's offering at the February Show N Tell evening. A simple idea but it can be very effective. Sammie has an aunt that just didn't want to talk about herself and family. She sent a jar and a binder to her asking her to just pull out a question each day and anwser it in the binder. She said no. Sammie again asked saying while you are enjoying your morning coffee, would you consider pulling out a slip of paper from the jar and write about it in your binder. She said yes. YIPPPEEEY!!! But now she doesn't want to give up the binder - well that is another story for another time!!

 

Now the Jar itself...........  you start with a quart canning jar with lid, ring and a small piece of cloth, some rafia, a blank recipe card  AND.....  now write out the questions that you would like answered. Give this some thought. When done, cut them into individual pieces and place them in the jar. Put the material on top of the jar, place ring on top and tighten it down. Tie raffia around the neck of the jar with the a recipe card attached saying-

RECIPE FOR MY LIFE HISTORY combine a generous slice of your life history, a dash of nostalga, several cups of facts and feelings and 104 deliciously interesting questions. Take a few minutes to enjoy the memories. paste or write the question at the top of a blank page., Fill in your answer. Don't worry about your handwriting or spelling - just tell your story. This product was prepared to preserve your life as a message. Enjoy the scrumptious, home-made memories that celebrate something very important - YOU
(NOTE: you certainly can decorate jar your way with your own greeting) You could very easily put a binder together with a question at the top of each page and just send out the binder. But where is the fun?

The project gives 104 questions......  too many to list here but I will list a few to give you a good starting place -- obviously you will want to customize your questions depending on who you will be sending this too ....... (NOTE: if you want the entire list please send me a message  and I will scan them in and email it to you- I did find several duplicates in the list but having this many questions to pick from without thinking about it is great)

1. Tell something about each of your children, their personalities, their talents, traits, that make them different and special.
2. Describe a favorite vacation of your married years.
5. Describe your wedding dress, bridesmaid dresses, if mail your suit, best man and attendants, etc
8 Describe your mother's wedding dress - what do you know about her wedding?
12. What do you feel has been the most significant world events that has taken place in your lifetime and why?
15. Describe your yard as a child - did you help with the yardwork? What are your memories - draw a diagram if you can.
19. Describe your first home as a young couple.
25. What were the favorite places to go with your family when you were young?
30. What is your mother's best trait?
36. Describe a favorite childhood friend and somethng you did with her/him.
37. Tell about your grandchildren. How many - how did you feel about being a grandparent?
42. Describe your Sundays as a mother/father or as a child.
50. Where did your Grandparents live? What was their home like? Did it have a certain smell or look?
63. Describe a childhood Christmas.
70. Do you remember any of your four grandparents? Any greats? What were their names? Any memories that you have.
77. Thinking back was there a teacher who had a great influence on you?
83. Did you go to college or have vocational training - where or when?
91. Write about some place you went with your father?
95. Describe a typical day during your Jr. High years.
96. What kind of extra-curricular activities did you participate in at school?
97. Tell about the houses you lived in childhood - addresses, phone numbers, etc.
99. Tell about all the places you have worked.
102. How did you mother spend her time?
103. Were you responsible for household chores? What were they? Which did you enjoy most/least?

 Enjoy the Project and Good Luck.

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Society Saturday - Western Migration in March

Editor's note: Today's post was written by Sandra Gardner Benward


What a super general meeting in March. After we got through all the introductions (and yes, Welcome to all our guests, new members and newer members), announcements: our Spring Seminar coming up APRIL 5, 2014 with Geoff Rasmussen, and, through our Parliamentarian Glenda Gardner-Lloyd a need to vote on a change to our by-laws,  special request for a member (s) to step up as the new Preserves Editor or one run by Committee.

We were then introduced to Kathryn Miller Marchall, Ph.D,  presenting "Western Migration Trails". Excellent, just an excellent presentation and great stories. This is the first session I have had with Kathryn and I was very impressed.

 Kathryn's description of this presentation (WESTERN MIGRATION TRAILS): The five most important trails to the West are described, along with the reasons for choosing one trail over another, the specific  seasons and challenges of travel along each, and what may be inferred about your ancestors from the routes they chose. Explore the fascinating, moving history recorded in trail diaries, wagon train rosters and other documents.

Among those trails that were discussed were the Oregon and California Trail, Truckee Route, Old Spanish Trail, Southern Emigrant Trail or Butterfield Stage Trail, Mormon Emigrant Trail or Carson Emigrant Trail, Central Overland Route.

Kathryn gave us a page of great references- websites and books. Did you know that almost each trail has a Trail Association? She also introduced us the to Paper-trail website and to virtual trails online.

I am jealous because I don't have anyone that came over on any of these trails, mine stayed on the east coast area.  But still great information and historically very interesting.

Kathryn probably has many hours of stories about people coming west over these trails. I want more.
I 'Googled' Kathryn's name and found she has book/DVD on sale through Amazon.com

While at Amazon.com I surprised to see that there is only          1(one) used copy available for sale ($50.00 plus s&h)

A further Google search shows Kathryn's a Director for the Lodi Family History Center, and advisor for the California Pioneer Heritage Foundation

                THANK YOU Kathryn and thanks for our Program Director Carolee Jones


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Those Places Thursday - Legacy SIG

Editor's note: Today's post was written by Sandra Gardner-Benward


DID YOU KNOW...........  there is a Legacy Software Special Interest Group (SIG) in Sacramento.

Marion Kile has taken on the task of continuing this SIG group. This is the same group led by Elizabeth which met at the Mission Oak Community Center.

NOW meeting at Family History Center, 2745 Eastern Ave, Sacramento, California. It meets on the first Thursday each month at 1pm to 3pm

If you are using Legacy and have upgraded to version 8 this is the place for you right now.

If you are attending Root Cellar Sacramento Genealogical Society Spring Seminar on April 5 you will learn about a lot of the new items in Legacy v8 during the last segment of the day. It will be worth waiting for ........  and you will hear and learn from the creator Geoff Rasmussen. Then start attending the Legacy SIG group.

It is my hope that once the SIG goes through all the upgrades of version 8 then they will concentrate on the program for all levels. But there is a Q&A where you can ask your questions.


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