Volume 036-3 - July 1982 (8 pages)

museum, but first the donor removed the scalp from the doll and buried it where he believed the sawmill waslocated. So the bald Indian now sits in our Firehouse Museum Indian case, after 130 years! Priscilla Kepfer FROM THE LITERATURE Shirley Ewart, Cornish Miners in Grass Valley; the Letters of John Coad, 1858-1860. The Pacific Historian; vol. 25; pp. 38-45; Winter 1981. The reader may remember that, in the April 1980 issue of our Bulletin, an article by Shirley Ewart on the occurrence and meaning of Cornish names in Nevada County was published. The Cornish people have continued to interest Mrs. Ewart, witness her Master’s Thesis, which will be reviewed elsewhere in this issue and, in addition, the above mentioned paper. John Coad was born in Cornwall in 1819; he emigrated to Mineral Point, Wisconsin around 1844. There, he married Frances Strongman a year later. Her mother, brother Charles and two married sisters lived at Mineral Point also. In 1852, this entire clan decided to move to California. Mrs. Strongman with her kin traveled overland, John and Frances with their two children via Panama. They met again in Grass Valley. From the time of their arrival until 1858, we learn nothing about their experiences. They probably were not too prosperous, although it seems that John Coad managed to save some money. In 1858, it became apparent that a depression was coming and this was possibly one of the reasons why it was decided that Frances Coad with her two children should return Mineral Point. John was to stay in California and “make his pile,’’ so that they could live on their own farm in the future. On account of this separation, we now have nine letters which record a couple of years in the life of a lonely miner and his relatives in Grass Valley. John rejoined his family in Mineral Point sometime in 1860. Mrs. Ewart does not present the verbatim text of these letters; she discusses them instead. However, we are allowed a look at life in Grass Valley in those years, a look which should interest our readers. vdP. THE NCHS BULLETIN Administrative Office: Nevada County Historical Society, P.O. Box 1300, Nevada City, California 95959. Subscription Fee: $5.00 per year. Editorial Office: P.W. van der Pas, Pacific Library, 212 Hill Street, Grass Valley, California 95945. 24 IN MEMORIAM DORIS FOLEY LARSEN It is with sadness that we include in this bulletin an announcement of the death of our beloved Doris Foley Larsen. Her name is practically synonymous with that of the Nevada County Historical Society as she was a charter member and two-term president in its early years. She was editor of the Bulletin for five years from 1948 to 1955 and wrote 23 articles for it herself. She was a motivating force in the establishment of the Firehouse Museum in Nevada City. An idea she developed with the late John Larue -a memorial to Niles Searls came to fruition with Searls Historical Library in August, 1972. What she accomplished there until her health forced her to slow down about a year ago is monumental. Aside from the law library which came with the building, with the help of some _ excellent volunteers, she acquired and catalogued about 3500 books and bound periodicals approximately 350,000 documents (marriage licenses, deeds, patents, lawsuits, letters, pamphlets, newsclippings, etc), 240 maps and charts, 50 oral history tapes, 2500 identified photographs and portraits, a collection of old sheet music and a file of more than 25,500 names of people who were in Nevada County from 1849 to 1942. Her devotion to historical, original research also resulted in the publication of The Divine Eccentric, Gold Cities (with photographer Jim Morley), the recently printed booklet on The History of The Donner Monument, and numerous articles the last of which can be found in the latest edition of Sierra Heritage magazine. She was honored by the Historical Society for her achievements as a Citizen of the Year, she has held the title of official Nevada County Historian and was appointed to the Nevada County Historical Preservation Commission. The legacy of this lovely lady to the heritage of this area and our nation has such value that it can never be fully appreciated or measured. Her splendid achievements will live forever, and she will never be forgotten by those whose lives she touched. Her modesty, wit, joy of life, dedication to excellence, commitment to her community, and unselfish willingness to assist others have been an inspiration to all. She will be truly missed. Madelyn Helling SAMUEL G. PARTRIDGE Sam Partridge passed away on Sunday, April 4, 1982, at the age of sixty seven. He was the owner of Golden Sierra Printing, where the Bulletin of the Nevada County Historical Society has been printed for many years. I remember him only from my contacts in connection with the Bulletin and as such! will always remember him for his helpfulness and his great interest in our publication. It is thanks to him that our Bulletin is such a fine publication. May he rest in peace. Peter W. van der Pas. PICTURE CREDITS The three illustrations in Dave Comstock’s article are by the author himself. The picture of the Indian basket comes from Doris Foley and Jim Morley’s Gold Cities. Mr. William Partridge contributed the portrait of Sam Partridge while the portrait of Doris Foley Larsen is due to John Hart of the Union.

museum, but first the donor removed the scalp from the doll and buried it where he believed the sawmill waslocated. So the bald Indian now sits in our Firehouse Museum Indian case, after 130 years! Priscilla Kepfer FROM THE LITERATURE Shirley Ewart, Cornish Miners in Grass Valley; the Letters of John Coad, 1858-1860. The Pacific Historian; vol. 25; pp. 38-45; Winter 1981. The reader may remember that, in the April 1980 issue of our Bulletin, an article by Shirley Ewart on the occurrence and meaning of Cornish names in Nevada County was published. The Cornish people have continued to interest Mrs. Ewart, witness her Master’s Thesis, which will be reviewed elsewhere in this issue and, in addition, the above mentioned paper. John Coad was born in Cornwall in 1819; he emigrated to Mineral Point, Wisconsin around 1844. There, he married Frances Strongman a year later. Her mother, brother Charles and two married sisters lived at Mineral Point also. In 1852, this entire clan decided to move to California. Mrs. Strongman with her kin traveled overland, John and Frances with their two children via Panama. They met again in Grass Valley. From the time of their arrival until 1858, we learn nothing about their experiences. They probably were not too prosperous, although it seems that John Coad managed to save some money. In 1858, it became apparent that a depression was coming and this was possibly one of the reasons why it was decided that Frances Coad with her two children should return Mineral Point. John was to stay in California and “make his pile,’’ so that they could live on their own farm in the future. On account of this separation, we now have nine letters which record a couple of years in the life of a lonely miner and his relatives in Grass Valley. John rejoined his family in Mineral Point sometime in 1860. Mrs. Ewart does not present the verbatim text of these letters; she discusses them instead. However, we are allowed a look at life in Grass Valley in those years, a look which should interest our readers. vdP. THE NCHS BULLETIN Administrative Office: Nevada County Historical Society, P.O. Box 1300, Nevada City, California 95959. Subscription Fee: $5.00 per year. Editorial Office: P.W. van der Pas, Pacific Library, 212 Hill Street, Grass Valley, California 95945. 24 IN MEMORIAM DORIS FOLEY LARSEN It is with sadness that we include in this bulletin an announcement of the death of our beloved Doris Foley Larsen. Her name is practically synonymous with that of the Nevada County Historical Society as she was a charter member and two-term president in its early years. She was editor of the Bulletin for five years from

1948 to 1955 and wrote 23 articles for it herself. She was a motivating force in the establishment of the Firehouse Museum in Nevada City. An idea she developed with the late John Larue -a memorial to Niles Searls came to fruition with Searls Historical Library in August, 1972. What she accomplished there until her health forced her to slow down about a year ago is monumental. Aside from the law library which came with the building, with the help of some _ excellent volunteers, she acquired and catalogued about 3500 books and bound periodicals approximately 350,000 documents (marriage licenses, deeds, patents, lawsuits, letters, pamphlets, newsclippings, etc), 240 maps and charts, 50 oral history tapes, 2500 identified photographs and portraits, a collection of old sheet music and a file of more than 25,500 names of people who were in Nevada County from 1849 to 1942. Her devotion to historical, original research also resulted in the publication of The Divine Eccentric, Gold Cities (with photographer Jim Morley), the recently printed booklet on The History of The Donner Monument, and numerous articles the last of which can be found in the latest edition of Sierra Heritage magazine. She was honored by the Historical Society for her achievements as a Citizen of the Year, she has held the title of official Nevada County Historian and was appointed to the Nevada County Historical Preservation Commission. The legacy of this lovely lady to the heritage of this area and our nation has such value that it can never be fully appreciated or measured. Her splendid achievements will live forever, and she will never be forgotten by those whose lives she touched. Her modesty, wit, joy of life, dedication to excellence, commitment to her community, and unselfish willingness to assist others have been an inspiration to all. She will be truly missed. Madelyn Helling SAMUEL G. PARTRIDGE Sam Partridge passed away on Sunday, April 4, 1982, at the age of sixty seven. He was the owner of Golden Sierra Printing, where the Bulletin of the Nevada County Historical Society has been printed for many years. I remember him only from my contacts in connection with the Bulletin and as such! will always remember him for his helpfulness and his great interest in our publication. It is thanks to him that our Bulletin is such a fine publication. May he rest in peace. Peter W. van der Pas. PICTURE CREDITS The three illustrations in Dave Comstock’s article are by the author himself. The picture of the Indian basket comes from Doris Foley and Jim Morley’s Gold Cities. Mr. William Partridge contributed the portrait of Sam Partridge while the portrait of Doris Foley Larsen is due to John Hart of the Union.