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Volume 077-2 - April 2023 (8 pages)
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Page: of 8
NCHS Bulletin April 2023
that would depict the culture, landscape, and
activism of the last fifty years on the San Juan
Ridge. Their project would continue a long
tradition of women’s textiles documenting
community life across the generations. And it
too could last for a thousand years.
The San Juan Ridge
The San Juan Ridge is a geographic feature
in Nevada County extending approximately
twenty-four miles east-northeast between the
South and Middle forks of the Yuba River at
elevations between 2,000-4,000 feet. Prior to
the 1849 Gold Rush the land was inhabited
by the Nisenan People. During the Gold Rush
the population on the Ridge surged to about
10,000 people mostly engaged in mining. The
most destructive method was hydraulic mining
whereby water would be shot through a nozzle at high pressure onto the face of the cliff,
thereby washing away tons of boulders, gravel, and dirt. When hydraulic mining was made
illegal in 1884 other forms of mining, lumbering and agriculture continued. During the
1970s there was an influx of new inhabitants
to the Ridge including artists, ecologists, musicians, and writers who joined the still present
gold mining, lumber, and agriculture businesses owned by long-time residents. The influx
of newcomers resulted in growing pains as the
two communities gradually got acquainted.
The Project
Marsha enlisted the partnership of fellow
Ridge resident and friend, Mary Moore, who
Marsha described as: “already famous on the
Ridge for her generosity in providing quilts
for the yearly Fire Department and Storytelling Festival raffles.” Marsha also contacted
Ridge resident and renowned poet, Gary Snyder, about what should go into the tapestry. He
suggested that Marsha visit the WPA (Works
Projects Administration) murals at Coit Tower
in San Francisco.
Of immediate concern was what materials to
use and how to transport the work in progress. Marsha called up a yarn store in England
and asked what materials were used for the
background fabric and embroidery thread in
the Bayeux Tapestry. They told her about the
various types of linen with different thread
counts per inch that could be used for the
background, and suggested wool yarn for the
embroidery. Marsha initially ordered thirteen
different colors of wool based on the limited
color palate of the Bayeux Tapestry. Luckily, as she related: “Mary wouldn’t go for this
and began ordering many other colors. Thank
goodness. It was not the first time she rescued
and redirected us.” Another practical problem
was how to work on and transport the sections of the tapestry. Mary designed a PVC
pipe frame with legs that could be detached so
that the work could be carried to the stitchers’
homes until the next working day.
But what story to tell? And how to best illustrate it? Marsha asked old timers on the Ridge
to make a list of the most important events of
the last fifty years which could become topics
for the sections of the tapestry. She recruited
Jennifer Rain Crosby, an illustrator, painter,
and writer to prepare the designs. When Jennifer looked at the list of possible titles, she
chose Celebrations as the first section to do because, as she said: “I have that event all in my
head and won’t need any photographs.”
After the first section was done, it was hung in
the alcove of the North Columbia Schoolhouse
Cultural Center. As Marsha related their reaction: “We couldn’t see all the details that we
had labored over. Mary suggested that instead
of the three alcoves we had initially selected