Volume 052-1 - January 1998 (8 pages)

NCHS Bulletin January 1998 hurt anybody? She had firm opinions on political matters, which was shown the most clearly in her behavior in Bavaria. On the other hand, she could be very generous. Money did not mean anything to her. I hope that this book will be the start of a movement to see Lola in a more generous light. Anyone who is interested in Lola should read this book. vdP Olive Newell: Tail of the Elephant, The Emigrant Experience on the Truckee Route of the California Trail. 1844-1852. Nevada City; Nevada County Historical Society, 1997. The discovery of gold in Coloma in 1848 started what some historians consider the greatest migration in history. People migrated to the western areas from the east by ship and overland. There were several overland routes; some of them already used before 1848. As time went by, some of the trails were abandoned for shorter or easier routes. The earlier emigrants did not come to California to dig for gold; they were attracted by its favorable climate and the expectation of cheap land. For most of them, the end of their journey was Sutter’s Fort—and most of them used the Truckee route to get there. The Truckee route was located largely in the present Nevada County and was hardly used any time after 1852, since easier routes had been discovered by that time. There exists an extensive literature on the overland trail, descriptions of the various routes and life on the trails. And then there are organizations to study and protect the trail, not the least among these is OCTA (Oregon-California Trails Association). The present book is devoted to 8 the second half of what we will call the Truckee Route. The trail discussed in this book, starts at Fort Hall (in eastern Idaho) and extends to Sutter’s Fort or the areas where gold mining was in progress. In addition to the description of the trail, there are many quotations of diaries or reminiscences; in fact, these occupy the major part of the book. Few people will realize how much work has gone into collecting these sources, only someone who has tried to do the same can appreciate this. It is claimed that quotations have been taken from the writings of 125 authors, and the quotations are claimed to be 200 in number. This book is in the sign of the Elephant. Not only does the title page refer to this animal, but the several chapter headings are elephantine also. A nice collection of maps is an important feature of this book. A few of them are reproductions of contemporary maps, by G. H. Derby, T. H. Jefferson, or W. C. Graves (Donner Party), or modern ones (P. M. Waddell). The remainder of the 20 maps are modern ones by L. J. Oliveria. The later ones are based on contour lines. This way, or a background of waterways, provides the easiest way of orienting oneself on the maps. This orienting has been made even easier by a feature which is unique in this book. In many places of the quotations there is a little elephant in the margin. This elephant has a number on its tummy. These numbered elephants are repeated at appropriate locations on the maps, making it easy to locate the regions which are discussed. I have only one complaint. Many of the quotations are diary entries, which in the manuscript are usually dated. In the quotation these dates are often omitted. This is to be regretted, because the date often offers additional information. For example, there would be a difference in the description Of a topographical feature made in June or in September. This book is published by the Nevada County Historical Society. This is proper, because most of the material under discussion pertains to our county. Therefore I hope that many members of the NCHS acquire and read this book, I have no qualms in rating this book OUTSTANDING. vdP NEVADA COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY The Board of the Society for 1998: President Priscilla van der Pas First Vice President Adele Santos Second Vice President Anne Brooke Membership Secretary Cynthia Sosa Recording Secretary Gay Conner Paul Hinshelwood David Comstock Jim Rose Executive Secretary Treasurer Past President Directors with terms ending 1998 Nevada City Brita Rozynski Grass Valley Alan Aspey County-at-large Bedford Lampkin Directors with terms ending 1999 Nevada City Bill Postell Grass Valley Bea Delpino County-at-large Fred Relaford Directors with terms ending 2000 Nevada City Ed Breitt Grass Valley Pat Maule County-at-large Elmabel & Nick Rohrman THE NCHS BULLETIN Administrative and Editorial Office: Nevada County Historical Society P.O. Box 1300 Nevada City, CA 95959 Subscription Fee: $12.00 per year LIBRARY AND MUSEUMS Searls Historical Library 214 Church Street, Nevada City (530) 265-5910 Open 1-4 pm except Sundays & holidays Firehouse Museum 214 Main Street, Nevada City Summer: 11 am to 4 pm daily Winter: Open 11 am to 4 pm Thurs-Sun (530) 265-5468 North Star Mining Museum Allison Ranch Road, Grass Valley May 1 to Oct. 15: 10 am to 5 pm Winter: call (530) 273-4255 Video Museum and Theater Central Ave., Memorial Park, Grass Valley Summer: 11 am to 4 pm except Wednesday Winter: call (530) 274-1126 PUBLICATIONS NCHS Books P.O. Box 56, Cedar Ridge, CA 95924 (530) 273-6220 or (530) 478-0231 \

NCHS Bulletin January 1998 hurt anybody? She had firm opinions on political matters, which was shown the most clearly in her behavior in Bavaria. On the other hand, she could be very generous. Money did not mean anything to her. I hope that this book will be the start of a movement to see Lola in a more generous light. Anyone who is interested in Lola should read this book. vdP Olive Newell: Tail of the Elephant, The Emigrant Experience on the Truckee Route of the California Trail. 1844-1852. Nevada City; Nevada County Historical Society, 1997. The discovery of gold in Coloma in 1848 started what some historians consider the greatest migration in history. People migrated to the western areas from the east by ship and overland. There were several overland routes; some of them already used before 1848. As time went by, some of the trails were abandoned for shorter or easier routes. The earlier emigrants did not come to California to dig for gold; they were attracted by its favorable climate and the expectation of cheap land. For most of them, the end of their journey was Sutter’s Fort—and most of them used the Truckee route to get there. The Truckee route was located largely in the present Nevada County and was hardly used any time after 1852, since easier routes had been discovered by that time. There exists an extensive literature on the overland trail, descriptions of the various routes and life on the trails. And then there are organizations to study and protect the trail, not the least among these is OCTA (Oregon-California Trails Association). The present book is devoted to 8 the second half of what we will call the Truckee Route. The trail discussed in this book, starts at Fort Hall (in eastern Idaho) and extends to Sutter’s Fort or the areas where gold mining was in progress. In addition to the description of the trail, there are many quotations of diaries or reminiscences; in fact, these occupy the major part of the book. Few people will realize how much work has gone into collecting these sources, only someone who has tried to do the same can appreciate this. It is claimed that quotations have been taken from the writings of 125 authors, and the quotations are claimed to be 200 in number. This book is in the sign of the Elephant. Not only does the title page refer to this animal, but the several chapter headings are elephantine also. A nice collection of maps is an important feature of this book. A few of them are reproductions of contemporary maps, by G. H. Derby, T. H. Jefferson, or W. C. Graves (Donner Party), or modern ones (P. M. Waddell). The remainder of the 20 maps are modern ones by L. J. Oliveria. The later ones are based on contour lines. This way, or a background of waterways, provides the easiest way of orienting oneself on the maps. This orienting has been made even easier by a feature which is unique in this book. In many places of the quotations there is a little elephant in the margin. This elephant has a number on its tummy. These numbered elephants are repeated at appropriate locations on

the maps, making it easy to locate the regions which are discussed. I have only one complaint. Many of the quotations are diary entries, which in the manuscript are usually dated. In the quotation these dates are often omitted. This is to be regretted, because the date often offers additional information. For example, there would be a difference in the description Of a topographical feature made in June or in September. This book is published by the Nevada County Historical Society. This is proper, because most of the material under discussion pertains to our county. Therefore I hope that many members of the NCHS acquire and read this book, I have no qualms in rating this book OUTSTANDING. vdP NEVADA COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY The Board of the Society for 1998: President Priscilla van der Pas First Vice President Adele Santos Second Vice President Anne Brooke Membership Secretary Cynthia Sosa Recording Secretary Gay Conner Paul Hinshelwood David Comstock Jim Rose Executive Secretary Treasurer Past President Directors with terms ending 1998 Nevada City Brita Rozynski Grass Valley Alan Aspey County-at-large Bedford Lampkin Directors with terms ending 1999 Nevada City Bill Postell Grass Valley Bea Delpino County-at-large Fred Relaford Directors with terms ending 2000 Nevada City Ed Breitt Grass Valley Pat Maule County-at-large Elmabel & Nick Rohrman THE NCHS BULLETIN Administrative and Editorial Office: Nevada County Historical Society P.O. Box 1300 Nevada City, CA 95959 Subscription Fee: $12.00 per year LIBRARY AND MUSEUMS Searls Historical Library 214 Church Street, Nevada City (530) 265-5910 Open 1-4 pm except Sundays & holidays Firehouse Museum 214 Main Street, Nevada City Summer: 11 am to 4 pm daily Winter: Open 11 am to 4 pm Thurs-Sun (530) 265-5468 North Star Mining Museum Allison Ranch Road, Grass Valley May 1 to Oct. 15: 10 am to 5 pm Winter: call (530) 273-4255 Video Museum and Theater Central Ave., Memorial Park, Grass Valley Summer: 11 am to 4 pm except Wednesday Winter: call (530) 274-1126 PUBLICATIONS NCHS Books P.O. Box 56, Cedar Ridge, CA 95924 (530) 273-6220 or (530) 478-0231 \