Columbia Diggins Tent Town 1852

Mark Your Calendars!

2012-01-26T11:12:00.000-08:00

If you are in charge of a venue (i.e. Venue Head), first meeting is February 11th at 9:00am at Angelo's Hall.

First Diggins general meeting (everyone encouraged to come help in the planning process and hear any new news!) is February 15th at 5:30pm at Eagle Cotage.

April 14th from 9:00-10:00am will be a Diggins Planning meeting at Eagle Cotage.

May 12th from 10-noon will be a Diggins interpretive planning workshop meeting (location TBA).

May 30th at 6:00pm will be the Welcome meeting/final interp notes in the Diggins Theater.

2012 forms are available!

2012-01-18T14:20:00.000-08:00

To the left of this column, the 2012 form links are now up and running! If you haven't received your forms in the mail or at one of our meetings, please print out and mail in today! They are due by April 15th and we have already received a stack. Thanks everyone for getting them back to us so quickly!

Brushing up on our history...

2011-05-29T10:05:00.000-07:00

Hope you are all excited as we are about Diggins! Need to brush up on your Columbia history? Here’s a brief write-up courtesy of Judith Peebles:

1849, the area of Columbia was known as Santa Iago, a Mexican settlement with some buildings, possibly of adobe.
March 27, 1850 - gold is discovered by the Hildreth brothers, Walker, and Carson.
April 1850 - a mining district was formed, but only allowed with American born citizens.
May of 1850 - Columbia is the settled name, after being called Hildreth's Diggins and American Camp.
Summer of 1850 the area is almost deserted because of lack of water, but by the Fall, the population picks up when the rains return.
June of 1851 - the Tuolumne County Water Company is formed to insure a steady supply of water to the county and the various towns, camps and strikes.
November of 1851 - the streets of Columbia are laid out. Businesses promote steady growth, with the town size consisting of over 500 buildings.
Fall 1851-Spring 1852 The nearby town of Sonora has a terrible fire, the local populace of Columbia fears the same tragedy, but there is no serious danger until 1854. Citizens worry about foreign miners coming to the area and staking claims, a foreign miners tax is levied. Also, the Sole Trader Act is made into California law stating that a woman may own her own property and business, keeping any income earned herself.
In July of 1852, and the talk of our town is the increasing numbers of families so there is a need for churches and schools. St. Andrews church is built at this time. Two other churches are built, and a private school is started. With votes of 1,500 men, the town is well on it's way to incorporation.Also, the first water was brought into town by flume from Five Mile Creek, which gave the town a year-round stability. By August, the flume was extended to South Fork which would provide even more water.
Columbia has fires that devastate the town, but not until July 1854, August 1857, and July 1861. By April 1864 most the gold is finished, consequently many of the buildings are sold and moved to Sonora. Shortly after this, another fire in 1865 burns down many buildings in the financial area around the City Hotel.

Look for more history posts in the next couple of days! Looking forward to seeing you all soon!

Venue head reminder

2011-05-27T14:28:00.000-07:00

If you have not sent in a question for your venue to Ben, please do so as soon as possible. We are trying to create a "passport" for Diggins much like we have for the main part of town. Ben's email is: gooogle1996@yahoo.com

Saturday/Sunday schedule of events

2011-05-19T13:24:00.000-07:00

8:30 Breakfast
9:00 Flagpole meeting
10:00 Diggins opens
11:00 Town tour meet at Portals
12:00 Stage arrives with performers and mail drop --as many people as possible please come to the middle of town and make a big to do about mail finally arriving. Also, miners, this would be a great time to fuss over the theater ladies...
12:15 Boxing match scenario
1:00 Gambling Gone Bad scenario
1:30 Theater performance
2:10 Ladies scenario
2:15 Town tour meet at Portals
3:00 Theater performance
3:30 Bucket Brigade
4:00 Portals closes
5:00 Diggins closes

Reminder: Check in is also on Saturday morning from 8 - 10 and Survival Dinner is on Saturday evening at 6.

Meeting notes from Saturday....

2011-05-18T15:57:00.000-07:00

Everyone must check in with Louise Kirk and Barbara Davis on Wednesday 9 - 11 AM or 4 - 6 PM; Friday 4 - 6 PM; Saturday 8 - 10 AM. At this time, you will get your survival dinner ticket and your eagles. We are asking for a $10 donation to help go towards all the food costs this year. If you eat every meal that we offer, that amounts to $1 a meal, can't get any better than that!

There will be a sign in and sign out clipboard at Portals. Please remember to do this everyday that you are at Diggins beginning on Wednesday. This helps us track volunteer hours and helps us know who is around for safety reasons.

Survival dinner is on Saturday at 6 PM in the picnic area across from Diggins near the parking lot (where we had it last year). If you have not sent in your preference of a main dish - carnitas or turkey verde - please send an email to Mac at jmacnaughton@parks.ca.gov

If you like to bake, Jerry Tannhauser will love to have baked goods donated to the Green Room. Please bring your baked goods any morning between 8:30 - 9:30 throughout the week of Diggins. Please bake things in a disposable pan, drop it off in the kitchen of the Eagle, and label your food item with allergy information (nuts). We have some cake mixes and cookie mixes here at the Eagle if you would like to use those.

The Green Room will be open for lunch between 11 - 1:30 Thursday - Sunday. Taco bar and sandwiches with salads will be the menu throughout the weekend. Cold drinks will always be available in the afternoon. Please everyone take your breaks, have something cold to drink, and get out of the heat... say hi to the Green Room Crew!

We will be selling bags of ice for out of town people. If you would like to buy a bag of ice, we are asking for a $4/bag donation. See Thonni during the event for purchases.

Venue heads, we have asked that you come up with a question for your venue that we can put on a one page "passport". This will give the visitors a way to meet different venues and have good conversation starters. Please send your questions to Ben at gooogle1996@yahoo.com

Only 15 days left...

Survival Dinner

2011-05-07T10:41:00.000-07:00

This year the Jack Douglass Saloon will be providing dinner for us on Saturday night. The menu will include turkey verde or carnitas. Mike Keene has asked that we get a head count of who wants what meal. Please send a response to Mac whether you prefer turkey or carnitas.

Diggins Venue head meeting

2011-04-23T16:18:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, May 18, 2011 at 5:30 PM at the Eagle Cotage.
Let’s iron out any last minute details and get ready for Diggins 2011! Hope to see you all there!

Diggins Meeting Update

2011-04-13T15:53:00.000-07:00

The docents broke up into groups and we worked on some fun scenarios to play out on Saturday and Sunday of Diggins. Scenarios included: a shooting; a boxing match; and Sonora burning down and people coming to Columbia to look for places to live/work; among others. A few people took the scenarios home, will be expanding them further and at the May meeting, we will be assigning roles, etc.

Venue shift sign-up sheets were put out so docents could choose where they wanted to work and when.

The Green Room (Jerry Tannhauser) is looking for menu suggestions. Send the park staff an email and we’ll forward it on to him.

Danielle will be looking at the school group tours again to iron out inconsistencies. We are still looking for more people to lead school tours on Thursday and Friday. Ruth Ferguson will be making phone calls to schedule those who have already signed up.

Ben Wright had a suggestion to make a passport page for people to walk around with and ask questions of venues. Everyone agreed that this was a fantastic idea. If you are a venue head and would like to be part of the passport, please send Danielle (dbelluz@parks.ca.gov) a one sentence question that we can put into the page. This question could be something they can see in your venue or something they have to ask of the docents. Example: How much did water cost in 1852? (For the Water Company) Name two essential items you need in order to wash clothes. (For the Laundry Venue) This will be a great way for our visitors to interact with us, so think up some creative questions! These are Due May 6th.

The Diggins Forms Committee is hard at work entering all of your info. Thanks to those who have already sent in their forms and if you haven’t yet, please send them in ASAP or we won’t know you’re coming.

Due to an increase in transportation costs, this year we are requesting donations for meals. Meals include Wednesday night meeting dinner, Thursday-Sunday breakfast and lunches, and the Saturday night Survival Dinner. Donation Suggestion: $10 for the entire time; that’s 10 meals for $10! We understand that many of you travel from far distances and we appreciate your help immensely. With your donation, we hope to continue to be able to provide meals in the future. Remember, this is a “donation” and not required, but any amount would be helpful!

Venue Head Meeting

2011-02-16T19:17:00.000-08:00

Wednesday, February 23rd, 6 PM at the Eagle
If you plan on running a venue at Diggins, please join us for a brief planning meeting.
See you there!

Survived Diggins?

2010-07-07T13:26:00.001-07:00

Now that it has been a month since Diggins, we are going to have a venue head meeting this Saturday, July 10th at 11 AM. This meeting is following the regularly scheduled Docent meeting. Please bring your ideas of what worked and what didn't for your venue.

New Diggins Tee-shirts

2010-05-29T10:30:00.001-07:00

Our new Diggins tee-shirts have arrived. This year's picture was taken in front of the bakery. They are being sold for $12 and you may pick them up at the museum. Sizes range from Adult Small - Adult XXXL.

There are still a few of last year's Diggins tee-shirts. They are now on sale for $10. Sizes are limited.

Meeting reminder

2010-05-26T16:56:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, June 2nd at 6:00 PM Please meet at the Diggins theater for last minute information, school group instructions, and anything else that may come up between now and then.

Only 8 days until Diggins....

Scenario brainstorming

2010-05-23T13:21:00.000-07:00

Some of you have offered to begin these discussions. If you have not offered to start a conversation, feel free to start one, these are some of your ideas from last week's brainstorming session.

Mining issues disputes
Water company bills to laundry
Ordering food for the hotel
Someone having a baby (possibly with complications... we have a midwife)
Mail Call
People arriving by stage (theater troupe or other "loose" women)
Columbia Miner's Law discussion at the Coffee Saloon (Tim M. and John H.)
Bed bugs at the American Hotel or Boarding House (Louise and miners)
Rumor of weevils in the flour
Fire in nearby town so must practice bucket brigade

11 days left...

2010-05-23T13:05:00.000-07:00

Canvas went up this weekend (Thank you to Larry, Bernie, Rick & Carolyn Walters, Steve Lyons, Jim Napier, Bill Gylling, John Glamuzina, John Hand, Margaret Young, and Tim Martell)

Diggins Registration at Portals (all participants must check in): Wednesday 8-10 AM, 3-5 PM; Friday 5-7 PM; Saturday 8-10 AM. Come get your eagles, Saturday night dinner ticket, parking permit and any other paperwork

We are still in need of:
Help unloading food with Jerry on Tuesday, 8:30-11:30. Bring a hand truck if you have one
The Coffee Saloon is looking for help all day Thursday
Dishwashers at the American Hotel

The Green Room will be accepting baked items as donations. Jerry and his crew will serve baked items as dessert throughout Diggins. Please drop off your baked items anytime starting Wednesday. Please label your donations with food allergies items.

Are you still looking for a place to help out during the event?

2010-05-12T11:16:00.000-07:00

We are still in need of:
School tour guides on Thursday and Friday
Tamale salesperson on Saturday and Sunday
Dishwasher at the American Hotel on any day
Laundress on any day or any shift

If you are interested, call the park office at 209-588-9128.

Meeting reminder

2010-05-12T11:14:00.000-07:00

There is a meeting this Saturday, May 15th at 10 AM. Please meet at the Eagle Cotage. We will be discussing any last minute details. Only 22 days until Diggins!

In need of housing?

2010-04-22T13:12:00.000-07:00

The Marble Quarry RV Resort about 1/2 mile away from Columbia is offering a special for docents and volunteers again this year. When you call to make your reservation, tell them that you are a volunteer for Columbia's Diggins event and you will receive a 10% discount. There are campsites for tents only, RV camping, and small cabins available. Please contact 209-532-9539 or toll free 866-MQRVING (677-8464). Also, you may check out their website at www.marblequarry.com
You may want to make your reservations soon as it will be getting into the busy season.

Updated info...

2010-04-10T14:08:00.000-07:00

We still need school tour leaders. Even if you can only do one tour, it would be greatly appreciated.

This year we will be selling tamales out of the Californio venue. We need a couple of people to help sell the tamales.

If you have a scenario idea (women's rights, temperance, people running for office) get a group together to work out your idea. Bring your scenario ideas to the next meeting and we can work out times for each scenario so we don't overlap them.

Our next Diggins meeting will be on Saturday, May 15th at 10 AM at the Eagle Cotage.

Donation Letter

2010-04-08T16:53:00.000-07:00

Look to the left of this post and you will see a link that says, "Diggins forms, rules, and donation letter" Please click on that link and print a copy of our donation letter. Please then take this to local stores that you think may want to donate something to Diggins. Also, if you have friends that may want to give a donation, give them this letter. Then, please let Mac know if you collected any donations and she will make sure the donors get the proper recognition.
On that link, you will also find a copy of one of our posters. You may want to print that out and show to the prospective donors.
We will take monetary or food donations. You know the type of things we sell at Diggins or eat in our Green Room. Anything will help!
Thank you for your participation and support!

Meeting minutes

2010-02-19T12:54:00.001-08:00

For those of you who were unable to make it to last night's meeting, here are some items that were discussed....

The mission of Columbia State Historic Park's Diggins program is to provide visitors and school children with an enjoyable, educational, and historical interpretation of a California Gold Rush tent town circa 1852.

--All forms are due by April 15th. The forms have been updated and are now on the blog. Check out the link to the left of this post.

--If you are a venue head and you have not met with Danielle, please make an appointment with her ASAP. All supplies needs for your venue must be submitted by March 1st.

--Construction update: the next work crew dates are February 27th - 28th;
March 13th - 14th; March 28th. It is now required by the State that if you are a docent/volunteer and you work with hand tools, you must be signed off on all the tools that you may use. Tool training will be held February 28th.

--The Coffee Saloon and Reading Room will have a small space in their venue for someone to set up a small business. If you are interested, please contact John and Mel Horton.

--The Brown's Store is looking for a wholesaler to interact with them.

--After long discussion, we feel that we should raise the cost of Diggins. It has not been raised in several years. We are now proposing to raise the adult price to $4.

--We began brainstorming new scenario ideas to add to Diggins this year. These are some of your ideas: conflict on the street- closure of a building; political discussion in the Coffee Saloon spilling out into the street; foreign miner's tax; water company protest; speeches in the street (people running for office); characters walking around continuously trying to sell items; using the public as messengers; women's rights; auctions/raffle for miner's goods

--In the near future, we will post a copy of a donation letter for you to print out and take with you to any businesses that you think might donate to our event. Any amount will be helpful. More details to follow.

--Our next meeting will be on Saturday, March 13th at 11:00 AM

Meeting date changed

2010-01-15T16:43:00.000-08:00

After looking at the calendar again, we have noticed that the original date for the next meeting was on Ash Wednesday and some of you may have not been able to make it so we have changed the date.
The new meeting date is Thursday, February 18th at 6 PM
See you all there!

Venue head meeting notes

2010-01-09T15:35:00.000-08:00

For those of you who were not able to attend this morning's meeting, here are a few notes:
--we need to sell more items and do more street peddling:
dried fruits and nuts maybe out of wagons
hard tack from the Coffee Saloon
soap
selling more high end items and selling drafts for these items or maybe selling these items out of Portals

--we might have some empty buildings this year so we will be looking at moving some of the smaller venues around

--if one of your friends is not linked up to this blog, please help us forward information to them. Also, help us keep in contact with our friends from visiting parks (Old Town Sac, Old Town San Diego, Marshall Gold, Sutter's Fort, etc.)

--If you are a venue head and have not already set up a meeting, please set up a meeting date with Danielle between now and early February to discuss your venue budget, what you are going to sell, and any needs.

--Any new Green Room suggestions? Jerry is always looking for ideas to fill our bellies.

--Next Diggins meeting is Wednesday, February 17th at 6 PM

--Next Construction Crew meeting is Saturday, February 13th (after the docent meeting)

Venue Head meeting

2010-01-01T15:51:00.000-08:00

It is the start of the year which means our planning needs to begin if you haven't done so already. Our first venue head meeting will be on Saturday, January 9th right after the docent meeting (approximately 11:30 AM). See you all there!

Venue head reminder

2009-07-24T11:59:00.000-07:00

We will be having a venue head debrief meeting tomorrow, Saturday, July 25. Please meet at the Eagle Cotage at 2:00 PM.

Diggins Picture

2009-06-25T10:13:00.000-07:00

I hope everyone has recovered from Diggins by now. Just to let you know, the Will Dunniway photo that we took with the stage coach is now available for purchase at the Columbia Museum. There are three different sizes available. So stop by to say hi and get your photo!

3 more days...

2009-05-25T14:05:00.000-07:00

We are still in need of a couple more school tour leaders. We are trying our best to give everyone adequate breaks this year, so that means we could really use a couple more people. So if you haven't signed up for something to do and are looking for a place, please let Danielle know that you are interested in being a school tour leader.

Don't forget..
-- move-in day is Tuesday
-- set up day is Wednesday
-- interpretative meeting at the Diggins theater at 6 PM on Wednesday
-- DIGGINS!!!! Thursday - Sunday

Our Mission

2009-05-23T12:49:00.000-07:00

"The mission of Columbia State Historic Park's Diggins program is to provide visitors and school children an enjoyable, educationally and historically rich reenactment of a California Gold Rush tent town circa 1852."

GOAL: To provide an experience as close to the living conditions of a California Gold Rush boom town at the start of June 1852.
GOAL: That Diggins will be a fundraiser for the Friends of Columbia.
GOAL: That staff, Docents, Friends of Columbia, and all visiting volunteers are treated equally and with courtesy before, during, and after the event.

Gator Crew

2009-05-15T14:21:00.000-07:00

If you are looking for a behind the scenes job during Diggins, think about joining the Gator Crew. We would still like to have some more help on Friday definitely. If you are available for other days, that would be great too. The Gator Crew is the group who drives back and forth from Diggins to the Eagle Cotage basement and brings orders of food and supplies to the different venues. You must be able to lift possible heavy objects (cases of water, sarsaparilla, peanuts, etc.).

Training

2009-05-13T10:28:00.000-07:00

If you have signed up to give a school tour or a Diggins town tour or you are a venue head and need an interpretative training... training will be on Wednesday, May 27th at 6:00 PM. Please meet at the theater at the Diggins site.

A word from our Green Room...

2009-05-10T13:40:00.000-07:00

This year lunch will be served from 11:00 AM - 1:30 PM. There will be NO bag lunches this year. It gives you an excuse to get out of the hot sun and cool off with something good to eat and something refreshing to drink.

Also, everyone loves baked goods. The Green Room staff is asking for donations of baked goods to be brought between May 26 - May 31 to the Eagle Cotage.

18 days and counting

2009-05-10T13:20:00.000-07:00

As requested, here is a list of all the venues for this year's Diggins in no particular order:
Portals
American Hotel
Bakery
Tomlinson House
The Mines
Laundry
Blacksmith
Tinsmith
Artist
Dunniway photography
Mexican Merchant
Browns Store
Star Spangled Banner Saloon
Tobacconist
Coffee Saloon and Reading Room
Express Office
Dr. Logan
Chinese Merchant
Seamstress
Hardware Store
Water Company
Theater Troupe
Gun Smith
Baker
Justice of the Peace
Egg lady
Bowling Alley
Gambling at both saloons
We also, have school tour leaders and town tour leaders, as well as, several different residences will be set up

Home Stretch...

2009-05-01T16:32:00.000-07:00

Just in case you haven't gotten your newsletter, here are a few important dates.
May 2-3, 7-8: Construction days- there are some things that still need finishing up before Diggins
May 9-10: Canvas up- Larry will be out there putting up all the canvas on each building. The canvas is heavy and Larry needs help.
May 26: Move in day- We will be moving all of the basement of the Eagle over to the Diggins site. Also, the Wilson Store will be packed and brought over to become the Brown's Store. There is a lot of stuff to move, so the more hands the better!
May 27:Set up- This is your opportunity to help put all the venues together. Again, there is a lot of stuff and many venues that need to be decorated.
Also, we will be hosting an interpretative and school tour meeting. The time is still to be determined.

Want to help out in a venue but don't know where...

2009-04-19T13:16:00.000-07:00

American Hotel: Prep work, dishwashers, and servers are still needed (especially Thursday and Friday)
Theatre: A fee collector for performances
Browns: Looking for an easy job selling goods, this is the place
Portals: Help with exchanging modern money to Eagles
Star Spangled Saloon: Need someone to help set up on Wednesday and also need help on Thursday and Friday especially for gambling and selling sarsaspirilla
Coffee Saloon and Reading Room: Still in need for one person to help out selling coffee
Bakery: Still in need of a couple of people to do shifts on Thursday and Friday to help sell baked goods and lemonade
Gator Crew: Anyone with a good back and legs, we need help lifting items to bring to each venue
Green Room: If you don't do well in the heat or you don't have a costume yet, please help out in the green room doing food prep.
Laundry: Still in need of laundresses on Thursday and Friday afternoons

April Construction Days

2009-04-03T10:09:00.000-07:00

If swinging a hammer is your sort of thing or you don't mind a little dirt on your hands and pants, then come join Larry and his construction crew down at the Diggins site. The dates for April are 4th, 5th, 10th, 24th, 25th, and 26th.

Housing Update

2009-03-18T11:55:00.001-07:00

Park staff have spoken with the owner of the Marble Quarry Campground. The owner has agreed to give a 20% discount to those Diggins volunteers who decide to camp there over Diggins week. Just let the owner know when you are making your reservation that you are a Columbia Diggins volunteer.

Need housing?

2009-03-06T15:52:00.000-08:00

If you are traveling from afar to volunteer at Columbia and you do not have a period correct tent, there are a few options for you. We do have some limited space here at the park that will be available by lottery. Please let Mac (jmacnaughton@parks.ca.gov) know if you are interested in a spot. Your name will be put on a list and drawn by lottery. There are also two rv parks within one mile of Columbia. The 49er RV Ranch, located on Italian Bar Road, may be contacted at 209-532-4978. The Marble Quarry RV Restort, which has rv hookups, tent camping, and cabins, is located on Jackson Street and can be contacted at 209-532-9539. If you need other ideas of places to stay, please contact the park staff at 209-588-9128.

Diggins planning Meeting

2009-02-19T13:23:00.000-08:00

We will be focusing on Diggins for the entire docent meeting on March 14th. There has been some concern about the upcoming Diggins and we wanted to let all of you voice your thoughts and concerns. We will begin the meeting at 9:30 AM, this way we have plenty of time to discuss Diggins.

DIGGINS WORK CREW

2009-02-19T13:15:00.000-08:00

The Diggins construction work crew are gearing up for Diggins and have a lot of scheduled work days. If you know how to swing a hammer, can use a skill saw, or just want to come out and help in some way, then put on your work pants and join in the fun! All work days will begin at 9 AM. They are as follows for March: 6, 7, 8, 15, 16, 28, 29, and 30. If those dates don't work for you, there will be more to come in April and May!

Minute notes from January 10th

2009-01-10T14:30:00.000-08:00

If you are a venue head, please start thinking about different items that you could sell in your venue and what you need for your venue this year. Park staff will be contacting all venue heads in February to go over these ideas. No new ideas will be accpeted after April 1 (this allows for two months for purchasing materials, checking suppliers, etc).

The next Diggins Construction meeting will be on February 14th at 9 AM (before the docent meeting).

The next Diggins Planning meeting will be on March 14th at 9 AM (before the docent meeting). Please come with new ideas or any suggestions to make this year's Diggins even better!

Diggins Work Crew

2008-10-26T17:44:00.000-07:00

The next construction days will be held Friday, November 7th at 9 AM and Sunday, November 9th at 10 AM. All are welcome to help out. Please bring a hammer, square, pencil, and skill saw if you have any.
Also, does anyone have a air compressor or a gas powered generator that the construction crew can borrow? If you do, let Larry know.

Green Room Survey

2008-08-10T13:06:00.001-07:00

Everyone seemed to like the food this year provided by our wonderful Green Room Staff headed by Jerry Tannhauser. But they are always looking to improve just as we are at Diggins.
Please think back to Diggins and all the things you ate.

Were you pleased with the assortment of foods?
Was there anything that you disliked about the food?
Are there things you would like to see next year at the Green Room? (besides chocolate)

Did you receive a sack lunch? Was it enough food? Would you like to see anything else in your sack lunch?

Any other suggestions or comments?

Last meetings notes...

2008-08-10T12:51:00.000-07:00

--Thanks for making this year REALLY look like a real town. Also thanks for the staff being so visible and easy to find.
--Clean up the bushes to do trail tours and see other mining areas.
--Need to rethink PORTALS: traffic control, school group entry, new location for eagle exchange
--BEER: can it be done? where? perhaps only in Star Spangled Saloon. Can we brew beer during Diggins? What permits are needed?
--Have more town tours of Diggins maybe increase pay by $1
--March deadline for new venue ideas: give detailed map of what will go into your venue, what you need, and provide own tent
--Puppet show-- perhaps Jewish culture
--Mail delivery was a plus: smaller stage coach? horseback? trained pigeons?
--Need to have more for sale, especially "real" food besides cookies; perhaps stamped tin cups with year on it as a collectors item
--Roll call at flagpole, those not registered will not hear their name and must check in with designated volunteer (Ruth F.?) to fill out paperwork, then receive ribbons
--Gator Senior and Gator Junior guys to help load and unload materials
--perhaps increase the entrance fee $2; have a Tuolumne County discount day

Diggins Re-Cap meeting

2008-08-02T12:12:00.000-07:00

Now that it has been a couple of months since Diggins and hopefully everyone has had time ot relax and get back into the "normal" swing of things... we will be having a Diggins meeting on Saturday, August 9, 2008 at 9 AM at the Eagle Cotage. This will be a time to voice your opinions and thoughts of how Diggins went this year and maybe some new ideas for next year. We only have an hour for this meeting so please keep it brief. Also, please return your Diggins Surverys.
There will be an October pre-planning meeting also to talk more logisitics and to give new ideas.

Bakery - Ann Geierman Personna

2008-05-26T14:24:00.000-07:00

Dear Cousin Marie:
The service for poor Mr. Fox was well attended at the Methodist Episcopal Church. Rev. Malone was so kind in his words. I felt like my James was among Angels. I am never going to serve Oysters again. I feel like I must be jinxed. Mr. Smith died after I served him those Crabs and now my beloved Mr. Fox is dead too.
Mrs. White has a wonderful Bakery established in Columbia and has offered me employment. All the miners love her tasty Sugar Biscuits. It’s a fine business. I am to serve the customers, but she doesn’t want me helping in the kitchen. I don’t understand why, truly I am a good cook. I placed an ad expressing my desire to find another Husband. There are so many lonely men surely I’ll find the one the dear Lord intended. Pray for me cousin. Mr. Napoleon said the Foresters are still looking into my two claims, I know they will do what is right.

Fondly,

Cousin Ann
Columbia, California

Bakery - Louise Kirk Persona

2008-05-24T17:46:00.000-07:00

Dear Sister:
Just this day I have found employment in Columbia. It is a fine position; I will be working at the Bakery.
My position is that of assistant baker and saleswoman for Mrs. White. Mrs. White is the owner of the Bakery as Mr. White passed away leaving her with some money to invest. And with the laws in California letting married women own property this has worked out quite well for Mrs. White. The Bakery is a fine establishment with a good reputation in the area.
I truly am impressed with the quality of Mrs. White’s Merchandise, and will be proud to sell her products. Mrs. White says that when a customer comes into the Bakery I am to say, “How may I assist you.” And Mrs. White also says that she will help me with the weighing of the Gold Dust and how she likes to make her bread and products. I have so much to learn.
Although it will be a long walk to and from Springfield I assured Mr. Cannon that all his laundry and meals and a clean house would be kept the same order as now. But I do worry about this winter and walking in the rain and snow. Oh well, I endured worse coming to the Mines.
Now I feel that even if Mr. Cannon does not succeed in mining at least we will not starve. And I may have some extra money to send back home to you dear Sister. You are such a dear to watch over my children.
Please give my love to all of yours and mine. I do miss my children; give them an extra hug for both Mr. Cannon and myself.
At last, “A Fine Position”
Love Always,
Bedelia Cannon
Springfield, California

American Hotel- Susie Webb Persona

2008-05-24T14:35:00.000-07:00

I portray Rachel Freeman, a made up person. The name is actually from someone in my own history. My husband and I lived in Rockland, Maine. My husband heard about the gold rush and decided we were going to California. We had no children. We came to California across the plains. Shortly before we arrived in California, my husband died of disease. He wanted to come to California in the worst way so I decided to follow his dream and keep coming to California. Because of the Sole Trader Act I was able to purchase the American Hotel.

That is all I really say.

Susie

Diane Glamuzina- Browns Store Owner Persona

2008-05-24T13:27:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Melison R. Brown Mauldin has just arrived at the Diggins from Maryland. She is here to assist her brother, Hugh Nelson Brown who has a General Store in the Diggins. His business has been sso good that he needed help to run the store. If any merchants or miners wish credit and are upstanding citizens, we will extend them credit. Please just apply to one of our excellent clerks. Ne'erdowells neeed not apply.
H.N.Brown and Mrs. Melisson R. Brown Mauldin

Potluck update

2008-05-24T10:41:00.000-07:00

Thursday night dinner will remain the same: minestrone soup, quiche, and salad.
Thanks to the Garcia's, we will be having homemade chicken and pork tamales on Friday night. We will provide salad and beans.
Saturday night's dinner will be provided by the Garcia's: Chicken Mole. We will provide rice, corn tortillas, and salad.
Sunday will stay the same... Survivers BBQ dinner

If there is something that you would like to bring to compliment the dinners, that would be fabulous.

Cancled Saftey and Interp Meetings

2008-05-22T19:31:00.001-07:00

We will not have any other meetings in the Evenings besides the May 28th
( Wednesday, at 6pm at Diggins).
Our saftey meeting will be held at our flagpole meeting. We will also be updating people on whats happening that day interpretivley. The 9 am flagpole is manditory for everyone particpating in that days diggins festivies.( meet at TENT TOWN flag pole) If you cannot make it please let Amber know at acantisano@parks.ca.gov so we can send it to you on email. Thanks Amber

Saftey and Interp Meetings

2008-05-22T19:28:00.000-07:00

We will be having a wed(28th)at 6pm night meeting at 6pm for tour guides ( we understand some of you will not make it) and Venue Heads. It will be 1 hour and will concetrate on school tours and how they work for Thursday and Friday and we will be ordering our supplies for thursday morning. If you are a venue head and connot make it please make sure you email your request to amber no Later than Tuesday night the 27th. See you then

Fondly, Amber

Diane Jacobsohn- persona for diggins

2008-05-21T08:51:00.000-07:00

“My name is Madeline McDougall. I have arrived in Columbia from Waterloo, Iowa. I am a spinster and was born in 1812. My baby brother, Alexander McDougall, came to the West, along with his wife and two children 2 years ago. His wife died this past winter and my brother has paid for my passage from Waterloo to San Francisco, taking the route around Cape Horn. He will meet me in San Francisco and accompany me to Columbia so that I may care for my niece and nephew. Alexander seems to have prospered as a miner in that he could manage to pay for my passage. I have corresponded with a childhood friend, Bedelia Cannon, who is also living in the Columbia area. Bedelia assures me that she will be of assistance to me in my acclimation to living in a mining camp.”

Food at the Event and Pot Lucks

2008-05-20T10:03:00.000-07:00

We will be providing the main couse for each nights potluck, so If you are not already signed up for this please let us know so that we can order the right amount of food and still stay in budget. Thursday night meal is minestrone soup, salad bread and quiche plus whatever you want to bring. Friday is lasagna, salad and bread ans sat night is taco/ burrito bar. Sunday night survivers BBQ.( if you would like to bring something please let us know).
In the morning we will be bringing in coffe, yogurt, granola, muffins, bagels and fruit for a contential breakfast. Please rember that we do not have staff on in the evening to help with clean up of potluck and we will need your help in the morning to get everything picked up from breakfast before the event starts at 10am. Thanks and we lookforward to seeing you all at Diggins.
Fondly, Amber

Camping at Diggins

2008-05-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

If you are camping at Diggins tent town- you are welcome to bring a camp stove for your own use before 9am or after 5. If you are still in need of a place to stay you may camp at the school house without a period correct tent. Just rember valuables should be taken with you and not left in camp. Although there are bathrooms there is no shower there, but we can work out something either at Tibbits or Eagle cottage.
For questions please contact the park. 209-588-9128 or email Amber at acantisano@parks.ca.gov

Interpretive activity for sat and sun

2008-05-20T09:59:00.000-07:00

Welcome to a new venue! A social gathering place for "proper ladies" to meet and stitch, far away from the bars and rabble rousing (next to the new bakery). Bring your own project or try something new. Will have demos of redwork, embroidery, cross-stitch, hand-quilting, tatting, lace making, you name it. Come and sit a spell and catch up on the latest on your neighbors. Share a cup of tea.

If you bring your own, please be period correct on the tools. No plastic or aluminum. Will have extra wooden hoops and some threads if you'd like to try your hand. Perhaps a crochet hook or two.

Donations of desert for the Green Room

2008-05-20T09:23:00.000-07:00

Wanted
Donations of Dessert items for the Green Room We will be serving lunch from Thursday thru Sunday 11:00 am until 2:00 pm Please bring items to Eagle Cotage =========================================

Tnx & Rgds,

Jerry T.

Daily Sign-in/Sign-out

2008-05-18T10:53:00.000-07:00

We will have a daily Sign-in and Sign-out sheet starting Tuesday, May 27 (move in day). This will help keep track of all your hours since everyone will be so busy. Also, it helps us staff know if you have left for the day so we don't have to worry that you are missing. The sign-in sheet will be kept at portals.

Saturday and Sunday Schedule

2008-05-17T17:39:00.000-07:00

11:00 Diggins Town Tour
12:00 Drop Mail
1:30 Theater
2:15 Diggins Town Tour
3:00 Theater
3:40 Bucket Brigade

Diggin’s School Tours

2008-05-17T17:32:00.000-07:00

Thank you for taking the time to lead a school tour through this year’s Diggin’s Program. We are attempting to touch on as many of the California State Educational Standards as possible. Routes for the tours have been planned. This is so that we do not have tours backing up at stations. Please show up Wednesday, May 28th at 6pm at Diggins Tent town for a brief walk through and a chance to answer any last minute questions.

Notes for event organization.
• Please arrive by 9:00 a.m. for the flag pole meeting/briefing.
• We will prepare a sack lunch for you, your order will be taken after the 9:00 a.m. meeting at the “Meeting Place” across the street. Your choice is meat or veggie.
• We will deliver your lunch and cold drinks to the meeting place so that you can have as long of a rest as possible.
• The last tour ends at 4:00 p.m.

Notes on the Tours.
• Each tour has a planned route so that we don’t have people bunching up at any stations.
• Tours will move at the ringing of the school bell. This will occur every 10 minutes. You have a script, you may use it if you want to, or make up your own dialog with your students. BUT you must follow your route to avoid confusion and cover the State Standards for your group.
• After 45 minutes, your students will have 15 minutes to explore or shop on their own, you can have a break at this time, but return within 15 minutes.
• If you are scheduled for another tour, return to the meeting place. You will begin to gather your next group.

Thank you very, very much for your participation. The school groups generate more than half of the costs for the production of this event. Without you this event could not happen as we could not afford to present it.

Tours and Topics for Venues on School Days

2008-05-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

--Bakery: Diane Mifflin, Louise Kirk
The bakery is an activity spot. The children will have the opportunity to work with dough and learn about different opportunities from women in California. With a predominately male society early in the rush, many women found financial opportunities not available in the place from which they came. The “Sole Trader Act” is passed by the legislature in 1852 and allows married women to own property individually of their husbands. Ensure that the children understand that up until this point no other state in the United States allowed this. Once you were married your husband owned your business.

--American Hotel: Susie Webb
The hotel is an activity spot. The children will have the opportunity to work with aspects of cooking, sleeping and about different opportunities for women in California. With a predominately male society early in the rush, many women found financial opportunities not available in the place from which they came. The “Sole Trader Act” is passed by the legislature in 1852 and allows married women to own property individually of their husbands. Ensure that the children understand that up until this point no other state in the United States allowed this. Once you were married your husband owned your business.

--Laundry: Sandy Tanhouser
The laundry is an activity spot. The children will have to opportunity to learn how laundry was done and soap was made and learn about different opportunities for women in California. With a predominately male society early in the rush, many women found financial opportunities not available in the place from which they came. The “Sole Trader Act” is passed by the legislature in 1852 and allows married women to own property individually of their husbands. Ensure that the children understand that up until this point no other state in the United States allowed this. Once you were married your husband owned your business.

--Blacksmith: Biscuits (Dennis Brehm)
The Blacksmith is a demonstration stop. The children will have the opportunity to learn about the production of tools and implements for mining without factories to produce them and the rapid industrial development of California. As California grew fast, many services and goods were not available. These holes were filled quickly as people learned that it was easier to make money at their old trades than mine for gold. Often times these trades were worth more than the gold itself.

--Tinsmith: Bill Brown
The Tinsmith is a demonstration stop. The children will have the opportunity to learn about the methods of producing goods in an area with no factories and the rapid industrial development of California. As California grew fast, many services and goods were not available. These holes were filled quickly as people learned that it was easier to make money at their old trades than mine for gold. Often times these trades were worth more than the gold itself.

--Californios (foreign): Delfina and Francisco Garcia
This stop gives the children a “foreign” view of the mines and society. The children will have the opportunity learn about the various people who came to California and review aspects of Mexican California. Californios had been here prior to the Gold Rush. These people had to get used to the way that Americans governed themselves which was radically different than the Mexican style. The Californios struggled to fit it, but the Foreign Miners Tax of 1850 was introduced to target Latinos. In 1852 a second Foreign Miner’s Tax was established to target the Chinese, but was indiscriminate in its application. Californios often found themselves foreigners in their own land.

--Saloon (Yankee):
This stop will present the “pro-American” view point of foreigners and society. The children will have the opportunity learn about the various people who came to California and review aspects of Mexican California. California grew in population rapidly with the Gold Rush. This is now an American State and fought for and won fair and square. It is felt that Americans own the gold in the ground and any foreigner can dig for it as long as it is “paid for.” The military was ineffective in dealing with civil issues and with the growth of California dictated the need for civil law and Statehood, equality is the hallmark of the American way.

--Overland Route (two stations):
Travel to California was very difficult. Coming overland would take months and require certain provisions that would not spoil. There were mountains and deserts to deal with, great unknown lands to cross and disease that were great obstacles to success. This stop will give the children information on these aspects of the journey.

--Panama and Nicaragua Route (two stations): Barbara Anderson (House); Terry Melau Physcian
Travel to California was very difficult. Taking the Panama or Nicaragua route was supposed to save time. Early on, it often took longer than expected because ships were not always available on the Pacific side. The land was dense with tropical forests (Jungle is a modern term) rife with disease, many died on the route. Many times, the people (mostly Americans) providing services swindled travelers who were desperate and far from the security of home or escape. A railroad had been started in Panama by 1852.
Barbara portrays Eliza Ann Tomlinson who came to California by way of ship, crossed the Isthumus of Panama experiencing diseases and hardship.

--Sea Route (two stations): John Salico
Travel to California was very difficult. “Coming ‘round the Horn” was not as easy as many thought. Seasickness, scurvvy, and starvation were all issues of the sea route. Once people arrived they had to get from San Francisco to the mines. Often the trip took as many as five months due to weather. Stops had to be made on the journey and Valpariso, Chile was one of the most popular. Quarters were tight and ships were often overcrowded.

--Express Office: Rebbecca Lund & John Phillips
Early communication in California (and even in parts of the United States) was difficult at best. The Post Office Department was a haven for political favors and become difficult to manage. Mail was slow, expensive and unreliable and early on the only Post Office was in San Francisco, Sacramento would receive one later. Either way, mail had to be called for at one of these offices. Express Companies (established early on in the east) were highly popular and successful due to this. They also provided financial services by sending money with relative safety to all parts of the world.

--Water Office: Frank Cimino & Lyle Taylor
Water was a very scarce commodity in Gold Rush Columbia. The Tuolumne Water Company was formed to bring water to the mines from the Stanislaus River. To do this a flume was built. Supplies to build it had to be brought in and a mill to saw wood into lumber needed to be erected. This machinery and goods were imported from San Francisco by river steamer and then drawn by oxen or mule to Columbia. Great financial backing had to be obtained for these endeavors.

--Theater: Don Deluca
The goods and materials to build a theater had to be obtained. Discuss with the children the need for industry in California. Without industry all of the goods had to be imported causing problems in both quality and supply of needed material. Hopefully sawmills will be erected close by so that you won’t have to rely on goods being shipped from as far away as Sonora. Towns grow fast and need ways for people to be entertained. Miners expect a certain level of entertainment. Without that a theater cannot make a return.

--H.N. Brown: Diane & John Glamuzina
The children will understand the difficulties of obtaining goods in the early mining camps. The children will understand how goods got to California and then to the mines. They will also be introduced to the various places that they came from aside from the United States (Chile, France, England and China). They will understand the capitalist approach to supply and demand and that relationship to prices, explaining why prices in the early mines were so high.

--Hardware: Joe Waltz, Gene Marrow, Bob Carter
The children will understand the difficulties of obtaining goods in the early mining camps. The children will understand how goods got to California and then to the mines. They will also be introduced to the various places that they came from aside from the United States (Chile, France, England and China). They will understand the capitalist approach to supply and demand and that relationship to prices, explaining why prices in the early mines were so high.

--Mines: (Tours will stop during all rotations. The mines tours will last through two five minute rotations. There may be as many four groups in each rotation.)
Each rotation will cover use of common Gold Rush tools (i.e. long tom, rocker, and pan). Mining laws and gold in general will be discussed while mining methods are demonstrated.

School Tour Rotation

2008-05-17T17:04:00.000-07:00

Thursday May 29th& 30th 9:45, 11, 12:45, 2:00 and 3:00(same rotation only times change)

Tour Group 1
10am - 10:10 Theater
10:10- 10:20 Mines
10:20-10:30 Water Company
10:30-10:40 Express office
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 2
10am - 10:10 Mines
10:10- 10:20 Bakery
10:20-10:30 Browns
10:30-10:40 Blacksmith/tin
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 3
10am - 10:10 Laundry
10:10- 10:20 Browns
10:20-10:30 Bakery
10:30-10:40 Mines
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 4
10am - 10:10 Herb Shop
10:10- 10:20 Laundry
10:20-10:30 Water Company
10:30-10:40 Mines
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 5
10am - 10:10 Blacksmith
10:10- 10:20 American Hotel
10:20-10:30 Californios
10:30-10:40 Mines
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 6
10am - 10:10 Mines
10:10- 10:20 Hardware Store
10:20-10:30 Saloon
10:30-10:40 Blacksmith
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 7
10am - 10:10 Yvonne's House
10:10- 10:20 Express Office
10:20-10:30 Hardware store
10:30-10:40 Laundry
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 8
10am - 10:10 Hardware Store
10:10- 10:20 Theater
10:20-10:30 Blacksmith
10:30-10:40 Mines
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

Tour Group 9
10am - 10:10 American Hotel
10:10- 10:20 Theater
10:20-10:30 Californios
10:30-10:40 Mines
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap Up

Tour Group 10
10am - 10:10 Mines
10:10- 10:20 Theater
10:20-10:30 Express office
10:30-10:40 American Hotel
10:40-10:55 Shopping
10:55 - 11:15 Wrap up

School Tours: Thursday May 39th 2008
9:45; 10 groups
11:00; 6 groups
12:45; 6 groups
2:00; 6 groups
3:00; 6 groups

School Tours: Friday May 30th 2008
9:45; 8 groups
11:00; 6 groups
12:45; 6 groups
2:00; 6 groups

Sacramento Interpretive Work Shop

2008-04-24T11:22:00.000-07:00

Sacramento area Volunteers are invited to join Amber Cantisano Interpreter 1 from Columbia for our interpretive workshop on Diggins Tent Town 1852.
Sat, April 26th from 10:15 to 11:45 at the Sutters Fort. As you check in at the kiosk they will direct you to the Distellert. No one will be allowed into the Fort before 10 am. They have a great History Live program that day if you want to stay around for the cannon firing. We must be out of the builidng by 11:45!! Please call 209-588-9128 for Questions on this training! This training will cover getting to know you and your part at diggins, roving interpretation and some of the new interpretive tools we will be using this year to brign the town to life. We hope to see you there. Fondly Amber

Weapons at Diggins

2008-04-18T12:20:00.000-07:00

We have been getting a lot of questions about weapons at Diggins, so we'll try to explain what exactly is going on:

State Parks has a draft weapons use policy in review. However, we are not currently implementing it until it is finalized. None of these comments are concerned with that policy.

However, last August, we received orders from HQ which stated that "Effective immediately, all staff, volunteers, and special event participants who have access to or possess a firearm or ammunition on Department property must be pre-screened for any of the convictions specified in the state's gun control statutes to comply with state law. California law does not contain an exception for antique firearms or ammunition use and possession."
It goes on further: "For the purpose of this memorandum a "firearm" is defined as "any device, designed to be used as a weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel a projectile by the force of any explosion or other form of combustion"
What does all of this mean? It means that if you carry a weapon at Diggins, you need to be pre-screened for felony convictions.

Now, that is where we have some trouble. Because we cannot afford to fingerprint all participants, (it works out to about $50 per volunteer) we are limiting the people we fingerprint to current, active volunteers at Columbia. This is defined as those folks who present programs here year-round, and contribute 96 hours a year or more.

We have been asked:
What if I pay for the fingerprinting? This doesn't work, because the reporting agency is also charged by DOJ, directly, for the criminal check.

What if I have been fingerprinted for another job? Also doesn't work, because your other job is the reporting agency, not us. The information is confidential and can't be passed between agencies.

What if I have been fingerprinted at another park in the state park system? This WILL work! Just give us the name of your docent coordinator, and we can coordinate. However, not everyone has been fingerprinted yet, and probably won't be in time for Diggins this year. But be patient, because in the future this will be a workable solution.

What if my gun is a designed to be non-operational replica? This is ok. Under the definition above, if it wasn't DESIGNED to be used as a weapon. . . it wouldn't fall under the definition of a firearm. However, please talk to us about this ahead of time. A firearm that doesn't fire anymore because you took out some of the parts, or has rusted closed, was still designed as a firearm so it is not exempt.

We thank you very much for your patience. Some of you who will not be able to carry this year, may be permitted next year, as things get smoothed out. We are trying the very best we can to keep the program at a professional level and meet all of the required rules and regulations that will allow us to continue.

Thanks for working with us!

Meeting this Saturday! Free Pizza!

2008-04-10T13:37:00.000-07:00

Saturday will be a long day here at Columbia (Docent meeting, Gold Rush Days, then the meeting at 6pm), so we have decided to order several pizzas to ease into the Diggins Planning meeting.
Despite anything you've heard or read previously, we will meet at the Eagle Cotage at 6pm for food and the meeting, and end the meeting with an optional visit to the site.
Larry and Kim met with our representative with the State Fire Marshall's office today, and it appears that all of our requests for cooking fires will be able to be accomodated. Larry is to be thanked for his hard work on diagraming, clearing and working with everyone to make this happen!

Diggins Slideshow

2008-04-08T07:41:00.000-07:00

View a brief slideshow from Diggins 2007. (If you are reading this via email, you will have to visit the site at www.columbiadiggins.blogspot.com in order to view the photos).

Change in Date!

2008-04-07T08:33:00.000-07:00

Mary Helmich's presentation has been changed to this SUNDAY, the 13th at 10am, at the Wilson Store. We hope you can make it!

As a reminder, here are the other important upcoming events:

April 12th 6pm Planning Meeting- at the site, (pizza provided)
Venue development reports, themes and scenarios for web sharing
Staffing considerations
Construction
Publicity needs
Brainstorming- theme interactions between venues
April 26th-Sacramento area Diggins Interpretive workshop
May 10th- (Docent Meeting) 4PM!!
Columbia Diggins Interpretive Workshop
May 11th Canvas Up
May 17th
School Program guides & trailers planning meeting
Weekend tour guide meeting
May 27th- 7am-Diggins Move In
May 27th & 28th-Event set up, work days
May 28th- 6pm-Final Education Day walk-thru, including tour guides and venues
May 29, 30, 31, June 1-DIGGINS!
June 2nd-Clean up and packing
June3rd-Diggins Move Out
June 7th- 7am Canvas Down!
August 9th 10:00
Recap (survivors meeting)
October 11th- 6PM
Start planning it all over again!

Meeting Reminder

2008-03-22T16:06:00.000-07:00

We (park staff) are feeling like many things are going pretty smoothly for Diggins this year. However, we all know how time slips away with all of the extra details in the final months. So, as a reminder:

Next (and last!) planning meeting is APRIL 12th at 6PM.

On that day at 10 am, we tentatively have planned a really exciting interpretive training with Mary Helmich, which will cover 19th century merchant practices. (How goods were sold, packaged, ledgered, how merchants and customers interacted, how payment was made and taken). This is still pending, but save the date.

Our interpretive workshop dates this year are:
April 26th (Sacramento)
May 10th (4PM)
May 28th (5PM)
May 30th (6PM)

These workshops will be different than in the past, and will be part of how we develop better interactions thoughout the event. We hope to see more news and rumors spreading through town, more common events (trials, worship, story threads, etc), and we want everyone to know how things come and go from the town, how the water company works, and how mail service is conducted. These workshops will be times for us to be able to develop and share some of these very important interpretive elements. Obviously, the 28th & 30th workshops will be more convenient, but probably less in-depth. We'll be happy to see you whichever workshops you can attend.

Other important dates:
May 11th- Canvas up
May 17th- School program leaders/trailers meeting
May 27th 7am, move-in

Mid-19th Century Merchandise- Before the Gold Rush

2008-03-17T10:09:00.000-07:00

Prior to the Gold Rush, the following merchandise was available in Mexican California, from Boston, the Sandwich Islands (Hawaiian Islands), Mexico and overland, as well as some locally produced goods and food. The primary currency was hides, tallow and animals in trade for goods:

Hats, printed calico, sugar, panocha, hatchets, colored cloth, paper, loose pita, tobacco, handkerchiefs, thread, needles, stockings, silk, rebozos, ribbon, red pepper, salt pork, rice, panocha, saddlery, silk and cotton rebozos, cotton and woolen serapes, shoes, English, American and German goods, flannels, gloves, tin boxes, madras, cologne water, reams of cigar paper, cork, guitars, razors, padlocks, needles, daggers, patterns for gowns, nails, lace, jewelry, hinges, screws, matches, silk shoes, coffee, brandy, whiskey, ornamental shell combs, chocolate, wine, glassware & pottery, salt, onions, pears, beans, watermelon, soap, saddles, boots, figs, peaches, quinces, pomegranates, grapes, olives, potatoes, lumber, cheese, jerked beef, bullocks, candles, tallow flour, goose fat, various skins and hides, American furniture, scarfs, aprons, farming utensils, wagons, wheels, powder, chinese fireworks, rifles, plates, spoons, knives, forks, kettles, iron and hardware, axes, sickles, hammers, hatchets, screwdrivers, shovels, paint, wire, nails and lumber, tinware, thimbles, hoes, window glass (8 x 10), tea trays, carpeting, oilcloth, artificial flowers, false pearls, beads, gold and silver lace, silver hunting-watches, palm leaf prints, pit saws, files, sweet potatoes, teas, porcelains, fans, peacock feathers, games, buttons, chinese lanterns, straw mats, koa wood furniture from Hawaii, Goods were moved accross land by the use of pack trains or carreta (ox-cart).

With the Gold Rush commerce mushroomed

-- From The Old Town San Diego Retailer's Reference (and sources contained within)

The Role of Merchants in the Gold Rush

2008-03-17T09:31:00.000-07:00

Merchants provided not only provisions and necessities, but also news for miners. Many kept current by reading from their stock of newspapers, books and periodicals. Daily transactions familiarized them with neighborhood and domestic affairs, while travels or contacts with wholesalers made most proprieters aware of more distant events. California merchants were well informed and respected, although not always agreed with.

Going to the store to purchase groceries, supplies and other merchandise was not the quick procedure of today. It was commonly a social occasion. Individuals came to argue politics, exchange gossip, gamble and share each other's company. Leisure hours were spent in stores as a form of recreation and most proprietors accommodated them although at times loafers could be a problem.

Some storekeepers served the community as postmasters or express agents. Alonzo Delano described the letter keepers importance to those individuals away from their families during the Gold Rush: "The trader is the general receptacle of news, either as an express agent, or from his position in seeing more of the wandering Esaus from the valley, and the miner sends through him to th epost office, his hopes, his fears, his love, the whole outpouring of his very soul, written in burning words, to those who are dearer to him than all the world, and for whose sake he exiles himself, or receives through the same channel, with a glistenting eye, the long, long, expected letter from HOME."

With American currency scarce in California, merchants had to be well informed on financial matters. They had to understand the exchange value of: gold, foreign coins, bank notes from other communities, and different commodities. This was especially true in the years before banks became well established.

Undoubtedly, a merchant's attire reflected his personal background and traditions, whether a Californio, from the Eastern Seaboard, France, Chile, or elsewhere. During the Gold Rush, Englishman J.D. Borthwick noted how different nationalities could be determined by their clothing: "The Mexicans were very numerous, and wore their national costume--the bright coloured serape thrown gracefully over the left shoulder, with rows of silver buttons down the outside of their trousers, which were generally left open, so as to show the loose white drawers underneath, and the silver-handled bowie-knife in the stamped leather leggins. Englishmen seemed to adhere to the shooting-coat style of dress, and the down-east Yankees to their eternal black dress-coat, black pantaloons, and black satin waistcoat; while New Yorkers, Southerners, and Frenchmen, cam eout in the latest Paris fashions."

-- From The Old Town San Diego Retailer's reference and Historic Account Book or, Advice for Merchants Re-creating a c.1835-1872 Store

Mary Helmich will be offering a presentation on April 12th at 10am at the Wilson Store

More Gold Rush Mail

2008-03-17T05:55:00.000-07:00

Mail delivery- In one month—October 1949 13,362 letters and 15,571 newspapers arrived from New York State alone. Long lines formed at the post office in San Francisco with the arrival of each steamer. Some men would stand in line all night when a delivery was scheduled; late comers would offer a packet of gold dust in return for a place near the beginning of the line. The mere word that a mail steamer had entered the Golden Gate could provoke pandemonium.

The hunger for mail was so insatiable that it led to the establishment of an institution unique to gold rush San Francisco: letter bag operators. For a small fee these entrepreneurs would deliver a letter to the next outgoing steamer (contract or noncontract), thus bypassing the bottleneck (and monopoly) of the United States Post Office. Some letter bag operators required senders to bring the letter to their offices; others set up mail boxes around town and picked up outgoing mail on a regular schedule. Their fees were added to the legally established postage (forty cents per half ounce), but they did a brisk business with San Franciscans who wanted their letters to go out as soon as possible.

Good or ill, the news that letters contained linked the recipient with the daily life he or she had left behind. A letter was an intimate talk with an absent friend or a longed-for spouse. A letter was like holding in one’s hands a piece of home. Very quickly mail became more precious than gold.

From A Year of Mud and Gold—San Francisco in Letters and Diaries 1849-1850 Edited by William Benemann

Quotes from various Gold Rush Letters, pertaining to mail:

"P.S. Your package of three letters and envelopes cost me $1.65. Put on a thin envelope. You will get them at the bookstore." Jonathan F. Locke 1849

"Dear Brother. . .I heard all about your love scrape long before I received your letter containing the news. Charles Mintum came into the store and told all he knew about the affair-- and he with the help of Arthur Ebbits have continued to spread it among all of our aquaintances. In fact, Arthur appears to know more about it than I do." Henry DeWitt 1850

"We are looking daily for the arrival of the Steamer Unicorn, which is expected to bring the mails up from Panama. . . When this mail shall have arrived, I shall begin to prepare letters for home. Sometimes I feel disposed to sit down and write to each and all of my dear friends, and it is only the fact of there being such enormous postage on letters between here and the United States is that deters me from this." Anne Willson Booth 1849

"I received [a letter] under the date of October 16. These letters announce to me the afflicting and mournful news, in the loss of two dear children. . . Oh, how bitterly have I wept and with what poignancy of grief have I lamented their loss, to feel and know that on the twelfth of March last I bade an eternal adieu to them, that they have gone without resting their eyes on their Father. . . Tis this, My Brother, that has grieved me, and caused me to regret that I left my humble but happy, happy Home." Josiah Griswold 1849

"I was up this morning at five o'clock. The morning was bright and but little wind. I with others took my stand at the [post] office to get my letters, but after standing there till 8 1/2 o'clock, I was informed there were no letters for me and I left really disappointed. I had occasion to go to the post office about noon, when to m y delight I was delivered two letters from home, of the 7th and 12th of February." John McCracken April 1850

"The mail which arrived on the 8th inst. brought but a few bags, and I little thought when I presented myself at the "Bone Office" I should receive letters, and how my heart thumped with joy as I searched my pocket for a small gold piece. How insignificant seems the postage, if it were ten dollars an ounce for every letter, how readily would I pay it to hear from the dear ones in my own distant home." John McCrackan May 1850

"I cannot help telling you the offer made me for my chance at the [post] Office. I was within one of the delivery [window] when a person presents himself and offers me sixteen dollars for my place, but I noticed his remark only by saying as many hundred [ie: sixteen hundred dollars] could not keep me from my letters ten minutes, and he turned back to make an attack upon some one behind me. There must have been six hundred persons in my line from K to Z, and about the same number in the A to K line. So, as you may imagine, my breakfast this morning was a very sweet one." John McCrackan June 1850

Gold Rush Mail Delivery

2008-03-17T05:50:00.000-07:00

"The above illustration will be recognized as a correct Post-Office scene upon the arrival of mails from the Atlantic. An interval of two weeks elapsing from the arrival of one mail to another, creates an anxiety to hear from home that can scarcely be comprehended by other than residents of California. At an early hour of the morning on which it is announced the mails will be ready for delivery, anxious faces commence forming in the lines leading to the different deliveries, and by 8 o'clock the whole interior of the spacious building is completely jammed with persons, as well as the streets adjoining. The letters are generally delivered with all possible dispatch, yet evening will often find the different lines but little shortened; and the RUSH sometimes continues for three days.

Persons in the Atlantic States will readily understand the disappointment a friend here experiences at being told at the window, after undergoing for three or four hours the persecution of being jammed and jostled by an anxious crowd, exposed to a burning sun or the freezing and disagreeable winds which at seasons sweep round the corners of our streets carrying with them clouds of dust--yes, at being told by the clerk that there is nothing for him. The announcement falls harshly upon his ear, and with the speed of thought settles upon his countenance a shade of gloom and disappointment. On the other hand, should a letter be handed him, it is refreshing to note the gleam of joy that sparkles in his eyes, and the smile of thankfulness that beams upon his face, as he places the sacred epistle in his pocket, and walks hurredly away. Friends in the Atlantic States, could they but for a moment witness the scene so perfectly represented by the artist in the sketch above, and watch the anxiety depicted in the features of each figure slowly working his way to the delivery, we think they would be more punctual in their correspondence, for it would be no pleasing sight to notice the disappointment of a husband, a father, a brother or a friend, caused perhaps, by their negligence. "

Published by LELAND & McCOMBE. Post Office, Building, San Francisco Engraved expressly for the Publishers by Anthony & Baker. [1854]

From the Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco http://www.sfmuseum.org/hist10/postoffice.html

Excellent Costume Link

2008-03-16T13:20:00.000-07:00

Sent to us by Judith Peebles, via Louise Kirk (thanks!)

Lots of photos of extant garments.

http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~ulrich/19cdress/50s-60s.htm

Places to stay in Columbia

2008-03-14T11:10:00.000-07:00

My sister and I stayed at Marble Quarry RV Park last Diggins. Just a heads up, there was a large group of students and their adult supervisiors camping there. You might request a spot away from them if they are coming again this year.We are staying there again this year!

They can be reached at 209-532-9539

Don't Miss Huell's Visit to Diggins!

2008-03-09T21:11:00.000-07:00


AN EVENING WITH HUELL HOWSER on KVIE 6
Begin the evening with California’s Gold: Half Dome, which documents Huell’s 17-mile adventure of climbing Yosemite’s formidable Half Dome. Then, stay tuned for back to back episodes of California's Golden Parks. In "Columbia Diggins," Huell visits this preserved gold rush-era town to attend their annual celebration. Then in "Tarantulas," Huell attends the annual Tarantula Fest of spiders.
Thursday, March 13, 8 pm-10pm

Competition Requested

2008-03-09T14:54:00.000-07:00

Jim left this on the comments section, but just in case you didn't see it, thought it was worth posting:

Greetings All,Julius Jones here, your friendly(?) forwarding agent for Read & Taylor of Stockton. I recently had the pleasure of chatting with Mr. Brown, who informed me that he might actually have a Bank Draft for me this year. It certainly will help process his order.What I would really like to see this year (can I be so bold?)is a competitor.I will gladly show the ropes (enough to hang himself) to any pup agent that presents himself in "my" territory. See you in the Diggins'.Your obedient servant,Julius Jonesaka Jim Miller

Diggins Poster

2008-03-09T14:48:00.000-07:00

Let us know if you can post some of these.

Notes from the March 1st Meeting

2008-03-09T11:58:00.001-07:00

Final Venue confirmations-A few minor re-arranging needs to be done, but looking good and full! Its going to be a great year, and with venues confirmed, we have a few months to really coordinate some solid interactions and stories to tell. Marianne has been the main park point person for venue coordination.

Registration Process- Registration packets have been mailed out to 150 past participants, and are already flooding in. As part of the packet, we expounded quite a bit on the event rules, particularly so that any newcomers will be better oriented, or can express concerns prior to the event, when we have time to work with people.

The new department weapons policies will be an issue, and will impact some folks, but we are trying to work with visiting interpreters, and their home docent coordinators wherever we can.

Lynn will be the park staff person processing these registrations, and coordinating as much of the details as possible now, before the event.

Scheduling- This is new this year. Why are we doing this? Mainly because it is good volunteer management, and to resolve staffing issues from the past. When a venue is overstaffed, people don't feel needed, and tend to not stay or show up for their next shifts (which occurrs). This has left venues with spotty coverage. Also, some volunteers feel pressure to work longer than is healthy under the conditions, and we'd like to give people an opportunity to work with a better understanding of their time committment when they start.

We THINK this will work better, but of course, there is always an unknown when trying out new things. We have received feedback from various venue heads on needs and preferences, and are trying to come up with something that works for everyone. Please help us make this work.

Amber is the primary park contact for scheduling.

Budget We'd like to have the budget set by March 15th (roughly). There will always be unforseen expenditures, and we'll hold out some funds for those. However, don't count on money being available later, if you need it, get your requests to Kim ASAP.

Those who have been approved to spend money will get their approval in writing, with a copy of the Friends spending policy. Please don't make purchases without these, it can undermine our credibility with Friends, and make it harder to get funding approved in the future.

If you need purchases, you can request a check from the Friends' treasurer (through Kim), use petty cash, or in some instances, you can spend your own funds and be reimbursed. If you need bulk food purchases, we can coordinate if you'd like. Many of the standard items have already been purchased for the event.

Construction Status Larry and the construction team have a lot to get done, and could really use some help. Please coordinate with Larry if you are available to come out and work on any of the work days. There are no guarantees that there is enough labor to get the site ready, so we need you!

School Program- Amber is the main coordinator for the school programs. Since we always need more tour guides, she's recruiting now to cover those spots. She passed out some of the venue themes (which we'll post later) and talked about some of the pending improvements, which include simpification of tour guide responsibilities (less waiting!), perhaps longer stops at venues, tour guide planning meeting prior to the event week.

Venue Sharing, Topics and Themes Roundtable This was a fun part of the meeting. Everyone got to go around and talk about what they were working on, and it opened up potential for interactions. In brief:

Mr. Ho will be operating an herb shop. Working on appropriate items for sale. Miners may wish to make a visit to Mr. Ho for advice on some of their ailments, he's right around the corner from the mining area, set off from the camp a bit.

Maddie Hawkins will be selling eggs again, and next door she will be caring for Mr. Bassett's milk cow. She'll be storing items in her evaporative refridgerator and interpreting that technology to visitors. Mr. Bassett, as some of you may know, sold milk to miners for $1 a pint (empty whisky pint, I believe).

Mrs. White and Mrs. Canon will be running the bakery, in its new building this year. They will be allowing the public to assist them in kneading bread, squeezing lemons, and will be expounding on the benefits of the sole trader act, and the benefits to women running business in Gold Rush. The bakery will be selling a better quality product this year, including bread, cookies, fruit and meat pies. Lots of volunteers needed here for scheduled shifts.

Laundry As last year, excellent simulations of how soap is made. Some discussion of introducing real fire, but determined that interpretive message may not be as effective. 3 volunteers a shift are needed, especially Thursday and Friday.

Brown's Store Mr. HN Brown and his sister will be discussing how wagon trains bring the goods, how road conditions affect them, price of labor and goods. Would like to have a framed lithograph of President Polk

Theatre The Theatre scheduling will be done by Kelli, with lots of acts this year, Don D. will be running the saloon as an agent of Cazneau. Some discussion of holding AM activities in the theatre, such as church, or trial.

Reading Room will be much expanded from last year-- literally. A new wall tent will be here. Will be serving iced tea & coffee, and is producing a paper for the camp, which will be available for reading, as well as a collection of books. All in the camp are invited to stop by for a beverage and civilized discussion of current events.

Star Spangled Saloon- Hotbed of gambling, with sasparilla and other sodas available.

Mining Area Succintly summed up: Gold=Good, Water company=Bad. Mining activity, as usual, will be demonstrated.

Nearby, on Saturday and Sunday, we will have the hands-on rockers again. This hasn't reached its potential in the past, but we are giving it another go-round. We need volunteers to encourage visitors to try their hand at working the rockers.

Throughout the camp, there are many opportunities for discussion among participants of how well, or poorly the miners have been doing, and how that impacts businesses. Supply Agents can interact with various businesses (see Jim, who is looking for competetors!), and the Express Office and Water Company should be visited by EVERYONE in camp. These are very important places! We'll have more of this later at the interpretive meeting, as well as on this blog.

If you weren't at the meeting, please email us your ideas, topics, and themes, and we'll post them here. We want Diggins to be like a real town, where everyone knows everyone else's business, and its hard to create that in just 4 days. The more we know before you come, the easier it is!

Construction Schedule

2008-03-09T11:46:00.000-07:00

Where'd the Bakery Go?

Construction Dates coming up:

Work starts at 9am, all dates

March 10th, 18th, 19th, 28th, 29th

April 13th, 14th, 19th & 20th

There is a lot of work to get done before Diggins, including replacing the bakery, plumbing, building a new Mower Mansion, and sewing the new fireproof canvas (when it arrives). Lets take advantage of the nice weather!

Agenda for March 1st Meeting

2008-02-23T16:30:00.000-08:00

March 1st
6-8 PM
Diggins Agenda

Final Venue confirmations-discuss map (Marianne, Larry, Kim, All)
Registration Process (Kim)
Scheduling- individuals (Amber)
Budget (Kim)
Construction Status (Larry)
Fires (Larry & Kim
School Program- Themes (Amber)
Venue Sharing- Topics and Themes (roundtable)

Where to Stay

2008-02-02T12:19:00.000-08:00

We've had several inquiries about where to stay when volunteering at Diggins, especially those far flung volunteers from other parks. Hope this list will help give you an idea of the options.

Columbia Inn Motel
Easy walking distance from Diggins, next to the Post Office, only local hotel with pool. Room rates are: Single Queen $55, 2 double beds $75, Single King $65, 2 Queens $85, Suite (2 bedrooms) $95. Their phone number for reservations is: 209-533-0446 website www.columbiainnmotel.com

The Columbia Gem
About a mile away on Parrotts Ferry Rd 209-532-4508 rates start at $89. Has rooms, and cabins with small kitchens (offers a special rate of $70 for volunteers, subject to availability) www.columbiagem.com very accomodating for park people.

We have a couple of showers in the offices, and some visitors prefer to camp at the Diggins site, which is an option, especially if you have a canvas tent. Contact us ahead of time, to coordinate these most primitive options.

We also have a parking lot with no hookups, where those with RVs are welcome to stay, if they let us know in advance.

The Marble Quarry RV Park
www.marblequarry.com is just behind the Diggins, a short walk away. They have tent sites, cabins and RV sites, including a swimming pool 209-532-9539

The 49er RV park, about ½ mile away has RV sites only, www.49rv.com 209-532-4978

The City Hotel
(includes the Fallon) here on Main Street: 209- 532-1479 http://foreverlodging.com/cityhotel/ Room rates $135-$145, with cheaper rates on weekdays. (also AAA discount)

Hope this helps!

A voice from the past

2008-01-19T18:34:00.000-08:00

Louise Kirk referred us to review pages 61 & 61 from Joanne Levy's They Saw the Elephant. The quotes are relevant to Diggins construction, so it seemed like a good time to post them:

Louisa Clapp believed, as did Mrs. Berry and thousands of other wives, that accompanying her husband to the mines was preferable to being left behind, whatever the discomfort. Like most emigrant women, Mrs. Clapp readily adapted to her rustic log cabin. As Harriet Ward, a fifty-year-old grandmother, observed of her log home: "Living in such a house does not make half the difference with one's happiness you would imagine."

Even so, Louisa Clapp's home at Indian Bar, near Rich Bar, was a far departure from her New England, or Even San Francisco, experience. Dame Shirley's cabin still enchants those who tour it with her:

"Enter my dear; you are perfectly welcome; besides, we could not keep you out if we would, as there is not even a latch on the canvas door. . .

The room into which we have just entered is about twenty feet square. It is lined over the top with white cotton cloth, the breadths of which being sewed together only in spots, stretch apart in many places, giving one a birds-eye view of the shingles above. The sides are hung with a gaudy chintz, which I consider a perfect marvel of calico printing. The artist seems to have exhausted himself on roses; from the largest cabbage, down to the tiniest Burgundy, he has arranged them in every possible variety of wreath, garland, bouquet, and single flower. . . .

A curtain of the above-described chintz, (I shall hem it at the first opportunity), divides off a portion of the room. . .

The fireplace is built of stones and mud. . . The mantle-piece---remember that on this portion of a great building, some artists, by their exquisite workmanship, have become world-renowned-- is formed of beam and wood, covered with strips of tin procured from cans, upon which still remain in black hieroglyphics, the names of the different eatables which they formerly contained. Two smooth stones---how delightfully primative--do duty as fire dogs. I suppose that it would be no more than civil to call a hole two feet square in one side of the room, a window, although it is as yet guiltless of glass.

We'll continue this later. If you are on the edge of your seat, our library has two copies of this book for your use, as well as many other research options! Library hours are Tuesday 12-2, Archive Thursday 10-12. The Library/Archive is located behind the Main Street Firehouse.

We promised to post the map of the Diggins site, and we will soon, along with the registration forms and schedule sign-ups.

Kudos to our great construction crew!

2008-01-19T13:13:00.000-08:00

Hard at work this morning, before the frost had melted, even, was our hard-working construction crew, finishing up the new Theatre.

Thanks to: Jerry T, Larry B, Bernie W, Dave W and John H!

They'll be back out again tomorrow if you want to join them.

Work Crew Schedule Additions

2008-01-12T16:31:00.000-08:00

The Work Crew is scheduled to work next Saturday & Sunday, January 19th & 20th, starting at 9am.

There is also a work crew meeting after the docent meeting on February 9th at 1:00.

Notes from Meeting

2008-01-12T14:46:00.000-08:00

The Diggins Planning meeting on January 11th was very well attended! It was great to see everyone there. In Attendance: Dave W., Bernie, Gary & Yvonne, Larry, Danette & Floyd, Dave & Judith, Tom & Dolores W., Sherrin, John H., Marianne, Diane M., Ruth F., Thonni & Alan, John and Melinda H., John and Diane G., Jerry & Sandy, Jim & Louise, Amber & Kim.

We were able to confirm venue heads for most of the venues. We still have questions about Cazneau's Theatre, Wheelright, Express Office, Dag Studio, and a couple of smaller venues.

There are lots of grand plans for construction improvements, but we are, as always, limited by labor and funds. Larry and his crew are going to do what they can to accomplish what they can, but will most likely be prioritizing the bakery, canvas for the newer buildings, and doing what they can to develop a "starter" boarding house on the outskirts of town.

Amber led a productive brainstorming session on interpretive opportunities, and here are some of the ideas suggested: more roaming town with purpose (docents making demonstration purchases, etc), more business transactions occurring between costumed interpreters (auctions, selling out businesses leaving mines), develop a newspaper for the coffee saloon and reading room, info scavenger hunt for release at portals (or, alternatively, suggested questions and prompts for visitors to ask interpreters), head shots and "bios" of interpreters to post on this site or in green room, so our many interpreters can be spurred to interact with each other spontaneously, suggestions for interpreters to break ice with the curious public, merchants requesting drafts at the express, peddlers selling used items, cooked potatoes for sale, used clothes "bone man", better heirloom agriculture products.

Our next meeting is March 1st at 6pm. We are hoping to finalize shift schedules, budgets, and other fun stuff then!

NEW Subscribe via Email

2008-01-11T08:02:00.000-08:00

We had a problem with the "widget" (the free bit of software that makes this feature work) and had to replace it.

If you subscribed before, you probably need to do it again!

We apologize, but remember, this is all new to us too!

If you want us to subscribe your email address for you, call us at 209-588-9128, and we'll be happy to do it for you.

Current Events 1851

2008-01-10T17:40:00.001-08:00

Current Events 1851- March 1852

California as a State and Place:

California has been a State since September 1850
President Millard Fillmore at the helm of the United States

If you are a woman or a foreigner you need not be familiar with the following:
California’s Governor is John McDougall originally from Ohio. His proclamations earn him the nickname “I John.” Peter Burnett was the first Governor elected in 1849 serving to 1851
Lt Governor is Samuel Purdy.
California’s Senators are John B. Weller and William M. Gwin (pro-Slavery)
The Congressional Representative for Tuolumne County and the First District is Edward C. Marshall a Democrat
The Ninth Assembly District (originally the San Joaquin District) in the State Legislature is where Columbia is located and your representative is Benjamin Moore.

The State Legislature has reinstituted the Foreign Miners Tax that was so devastating to the economy in 1850. The 1852 tax is primarily aimed at Chinese. Latinos suffered from the 1850 Foreign Miners Tax.
World events of importance to Columbians and certain foreigners:

Queen Victoria is still on the throne. Crowned: June 20th, 1837 The ruling British cabinet is headed by Edward Stanley in February 1852. He has replaced the Russell Ministry who has ruled for five years.

France’s Second Republic ends in 1851 after three years in a coup by President Louis Napoleon Bonaparte in December. Unarmed citizens are massacred in the streets by troops.

Argentina’s Juan Manuel de Rosas is defeated by Uruguay in February 1852 at the Battle of Monte Caseros.

In July 1851, Victoria, Australia is declared a colony independent of New South Wales.

China is still in turmoil and rebellion, there is famine. Many Chinese are arriving in California. There are beginning to be thoughts that perhaps the Chinese are not such a good thing. Many politicians initially believe that they are good for the State. In fact Governor “I John” MacDougal calls for land grants to be given to Chinese who have the potential to be “one of the most worthy of our newly adopted citizens.” In 1852 50,000 Chinese come to California, defying a Chinese law that includes the death penalty for leaving the country. Even though many politicians accept the Chinese in California with open arms, competition is heating up for gold, and ideas are changing.

Ireland’s Famine continues. Widespread blindness is now occurring from malnutrition. 250,000 people leave Ireland in 1851, emigration will peak in 1852.

London is the World’s largest city with 2.37 million people living in it.

Issues in the U.S. for Americans in Columbia

Slavery Issues:

As part of California’s entry into the Union in 1850, the Fugitive Slave Law has been enforced. This allows Southerners to hunt blacks who have escaped to freedom. Many Freedmen are also kidnapped and sold into slavery. The law is highly controversial. Demonstrations are rampant. In February 1851 Boston blacks break an accused slave out of jail, and President Fillmore demands that Massachusetts uphold the Fugitive Slave Law. In Syracuse, New York, in October, abolitionists rescue another accused fugitive slave from jail.

Cincinnati Papers in January of 1851 tell of a story of black woman who has crossed the Ohio River when it was frozen to attempt to be free of slavery. When caught, she cut the throat of one of her children rather than let her live in bondage.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin is published in 1851 and produced as a book in March of 1852. Harriet Beecher Stowe relates the episode of Eliza Harris who murdered her child as she crossed the Ohio River in January of 1851. The book is widely popular and 120 editions are published by the end of 1852.

Westward Expansion:

Sioux Chiefs are persuaded by government officials to give up lands in Iowa and Minnesota Territory in July 1851. A large gathering at Ft Laramie uses gifts and arguments to persuade the chiefs of many tribes to move to lands “reserved” for them.

In 1851 a small town that will be named Seattle in 1853 is founded in the Oregon Territory.

Transportation:

The Flying Cloud an American Clipper Ship is launched in 1851. She displaces 1,783 tons and sails from New York to San Francisco in just 89 days! Clippers are now the fastest ships on the run around the horn. In 1852 the Sovereign of the Seas is launched and demonstrates that a 2,421 ton clipper is practical.

In 1851 the Erie Railroad is completed connecting New York with Lake Erie. President Fillmore and Daniel Webster take a 447 mile ride. Webster’s rocking chair is secured to a flatcar for the trip. But to get to New York City, a steamboat must be taken across the Hudson River. However, the New York and Hudson River Railroad actually gets into the city itself and is the first railroad to do so, connecting with horse car lines.

In 1851 the Pennsylvania Railroad reaches Pittsburg and the Baltimore & Ohio reaches the Ohio River at Wheeling, Virginia (West Virginia won’t be a state until 1864). By February 1852 the first train from the east reaches Chicago (the Michigan Southern Railway). The Pacific Railway, a grand name, is the first Railroad to lay tracks west of the Mississippi from St. Louis, Missouri in 1851. In all during 1851 4,400 miles of railroad track are laid between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mississippi.

The British Navy Frigate Birkenhead, an iron hulled paddle-wheeler, strikes a reef while rounding the Cape of Good Hope in February 1852. 455 of 648 are lost, all 56 women and children survive.

Steamboats regularly serving Stockton from San Francisco are the John A. Sutter (first Steamboat into Stockton) that blew up in 1851 in a boiler explosion. Others regularly serving California River Ports were Lady Washington (sunk 1849 returning from Coloma on its first trip), Senator (arriving 1849), Comanche (sunk 1853 Suisun Bay by collision with), J. Bragdon, Sagamore (blew up November 1, 1851 killing 50 people in San Francisco), Secretary, Commodore Preble, and the General Warren. On July 11, 1850, New World steamed through the Golden Gate with 250 cash-paying passengers on board and enough money in her safe to pay off creditors. On New World's first run to Sacramento April 1, 1850, Wakeman halved the best time heretofore made by any other steamer, setting a record that held for a decade.

Small boats often less than 100 feet could travel up the Sacramento as far as Red Bluff or on the San Joaquin almost as far as today’s Fresno. They went up the Tuolumne and Stanislaus Rivers, up the American, Feather and Yuba. They parted the tules on French Camp Slough, went into the South Delta to Old River, and slogged their way into Suisun City and up the Petaluma River -- and to many waterways in between.

Freighting to the mines was done with mules and oxen. When roads were developed teams of 20 or more mules pulled multiple wagons full of goods to camps. Camps tucked into some of the more rugged country were accessed by mule trains without wagons. Freighting could command high prices.

The California Gold Rush:

The rush to Kern River is started in 1851. It is short lived and disappointing.

The U.S. Mint produces four million $1 gold pieces. They are small, but made mostly of California Gold.

The Australian Rush in New South Wales begins in 1851.

In Nevada City, Hydraulic Mining techniques are first used.

Items of interest:

Colt’s 36 Caliber Revolvers are exhibited in England. They are not immediately accepted because they are American. Samuel Colt gives one to Prince Albert and the Prince of Wales in 1851.

Porcelain Dentures are patented in 1851 by Dentist, John Allen. Allen helped to found the Ohio College of Dental Surgery in 1845.

The New-York Daily Times (now known as the New York Times) begins publication in September 1851 with a steam press. By the end of the year it has a circulation of around 20,000. Other New York papers include the Tribune (Horace Greeley) and Courier and Enquirer (one paper).

A fire in the Library of Congress in 1851 destroys two thirds of Thomas Jefferson’s collection housed there. Thousands of other books are also destroyed, congress will allocate $100,000 to replace and improve safety.

During 1851 the great Crystal Palace in London is built. It is the largest glass structure in the world. It will be used to house exhibitions. It used 1/3 of England’s glass production for a year and 2000 men to put together.

Maine passes the first U.S. Prohibition law in June 1851.

The average consumption of coffee per person in the U.S. is 6 ¼ pounds.

Interesting Sayings:

Pregnant women were in an “interesting condition” or “visiting the country.” Newborn children were often said to be “discovered under the gooseberry bush” or “found in the cabbage patch.”

Food for Thought

2008-01-10T16:34:00.000-08:00

November, 1852: Documented Diggin’s Businesses.
Eastman from Columbia Gazette.

21 Produce and Grocery Stores (these are primarily general merchandise stores)
4 Hotels
7 Boarding houses
4 Banking and Exchange Offices
2 Book and Stationery Stores
5 Doctor’s Shops
5 Law Offices
3 Tobacconists
7 Bakeries
1 Tin shop
1 Paint shop
2 Barber shops
3 Meat Markets
3 Blacksmith shops
8 Carpenter shops
3 Silversmith shops
1 Printing Office
3 Drug stores
2 Wagon maker shops
3 Laundries
4 Livery stables
1 Reading room
1 Brewery
1 Ground Coffee depot
1 Daguerrotype room
1 Boot and Shoe shop
1 Wine and Liquor store
1 Fruit and Confectionery store
1 Mexican Fandango house

“In addition to these we have a large hall for a theater, as well as an amphitheater for bull & bear fights; and last, though not least, we have a church, with regular preaching at two different places every Sabbath. A Sunday School which is well attended; a Masonic Lodge, a Division of the Sons of Temperance and a Vocal Music Society."

There were also many businesses that were not able to be classified by the Gazette as they were “kept by European, Asiatic and South American; taking our town in the aggregate, we have as heterogeneous a mass of human beings as can be found in any other mining town in California.”

2008 Diggins Schedule

2007-12-03T16:51:00.000-08:00

Here is the schedule for the entire year. Mark your calendars, now, for a year of fun and excitement!

Important Diggins Dates

December 8th- 9am Work Crew Meeting, Eagle Cotage
January 11th, 6pm Planning Meeting Eagle Cotage
Map the site
Confirm venue locations and heads (as possible)
Identify additionally desired venues
Discuss venue expectations, deadlines, purchasing, reporting
Construction needs and
Brainstorming period
January 12th- 9am Work Crew Meeting, Eagle Cotage
March 1st, 6 pm Planning Meeting Eagle Cotage
Share venue development status & ideas
Venue needs lists (staffing, materials, construction)
Theme and scenario developments
Brainstorming period
April 12th 6pm Planning Meeting
Venue development reports, themes and scenarios for web sharing
Staffing considerations
Construction
Publicity needs
Brainstorming
April 26th-Sacramento area Diggins Interpretive workshop
May 10th- (Docent Meeting)
Columbia Diggins Interpretive Workshop
May 11th Canvas Up
May 17th
School Program guides & trailers planning meeting
Weekend tour guide meeting
May 27th- 7am-Diggins Move In
May 27th & 28th-Event set up, work days
May 28th- 6pm-Final Education Day walk-thru, including tour guides and venues
May 29, 30, 31, June 1-DIGGINS!
June 2nd-Clean up and packing
June3rd-Diggins Move Out
June 7th- 7am Canvas Down!
August 9th 10:00
Recap (survivors meeting)
October 11th- 6PM
Start planning it all over again!

November Construction Schedule

2007-11-15T17:15:00.000-08:00

The following dates are planned for construction at the Diggins Site.
November 15, 16, 19, 20, 26, 27, 29 & 30. Most days will start at 8am.

This afternoon, the crew (John H x 2) Bernie & Larry & John G were working away, getting the front facade of the Theatre up, as well as part of the floor.

There will be a work crew meeting on December 8th at 9am, at the Eagle Cotage.

Notes from the planning meeting

2007-10-28T20:40:00.000-07:00

In attendance: Mac, Dave & Judith, Amber, Sandy & Jerry, Jim K., Bernie, Yvonne & Gary, Floyd & Dannette & Chris, Vince, Diane M., John H., Doug, Kim.

Notes from brainstorming: We should consider more/Different cultures, maybe via home/tent life? More (planned) spontaneous interactions on the street, less of a booth atmosphere. More tents, especially on the new street. How about some "Dung" (aka trash) piles? We should look at the interpretive content of the event from weekdays, vs. weekends, should we have more planned content for the weekends? How about if we planned for a building to be constructed during the event, as part of the content? More benches for visitors to sit. More applications on hand for the following year participants. We should have people moving in or out of the event, during the event, using handcarts, etc. Interpret people entering/leaving the diggins, selling off their tools, etc. Do the same for the stores, have wholesale deliveries being received and unpacked. More period items for sale. More information distributed ahead of time as to what characters and activities are occuring, so more interactions can be planned (maybe use this blog to help distribute that info?). We agreed that this type of brainstorming should be a continuing part of the event planning.

Meeting dates: Park staff will be scheduling all meeting dates for the event, within the next couple of weeks. They will be posted here. Feedback from those present felt that having meetings on Saturday evenings would be more convenient for those who worked days, and those who had to travel to make the meetings.

Construction: It was discussed that it would be great if construction could be started now/soon. Lumber has been delivered. Since Larry is on a trip with Susie, Jim, Lindy, Dwain this weekend, we would talk to him and set up a meeting soon to see what could be started while the weather is nice. Some venues have requested changes/improvements which might be able to be implemented now.

Next Meeting: We would like to have venues committed in January so people can start working on them. Everyone was asked to give some thought to planning changes/new venues.

Staff proposed changes: Amber suggested that having routine tours of the camp on weekends would help visitors have a better introduction to the event, and have more confidence to interact. Improved venue scheduling and scheduling docents to "rove" during the event were also proposed improvements.

Communication: Improving communication is a big committment from staff. This blog is new idea to implement communication improvements. Volunteers and staff are encouraged to submit idea, research sources, photos and costuming sources, etc, to be shared. Character bios & scheduled interactions during the event can also be posted on here, as well as registration paperwork, etc.

Thanks to those who were able to attend and help get planning off on a positive note. Staff will post the planning schedule soon, so watch for it here.

Agenda for Oct 26th Meeting

2007-10-24T22:00:00.000-07:00

Slideshow of 2007 event will be shown just prior to meeting, for early arrivals.
6:00- Introductions
6:25- Review Mission of the Event
6:30- Brainstorming Period
7:00- Staff Identified Issues and Solutions
Communications/Blog use
Planning Schedule
Set next meeting date, topics
7:30- Meeting End!

Planning for Columbia Diggins 2008

2007-10-21T18:56:00.000-07:00

Just 7 months to go! Its time to start planning. Our first planning meeting will be Friday, October 26th, 2007 at 6PM at the Eagle Cotage in Columbia. This time will be to brainstorm new ideas, find out who is "on board" for this year, and start generating some discussion and excitement for the upcoming event.

We hope to be able to use this venue to update participants on developments, big and small, as they occur. Look for access to registration forms, easy contact info for staff, and subscription information to come soon.

Thanks for being a part of Diggins!