Twenty-three years ago on August 16th, 1992 our county was declared a disaster area with over 25,000 acres burned in the next few days. Many areas were evacuated including Fricot City, Sheep Ranch Cae City and part of Michel and Old Gulch Road.
Four thousand firefighters were here in our county, some from Southern California and all neighboring counties.
The fire was caused by an auto exhaust on Old Gulch Road near Mountain Ranch. They used the pasture behind the Alberts residence in Mountain Ranch for a staging area. We served cold drinks to the young firefighters who asked “Where are we?” Mountain Ranch Realty provided local maps so they could see what area they were in.
The fire moved in an easterly direction fron Old Gulch toward Fricot City, south of Sheep Ranch toward Highway 4 at Forest Meadows, Murphys and Indian Creek.
Mary Oslen’s home on Indian Creek became a victim of the Old Gulch Fire. This historical building was once the Valente Store, run by Mary’s family since the Gold Rush.
Many more homes were lost in its path toward Ebbetts Pass, including the mansion at Fricot City.
Your Mountain Ranch Fire Department was assigned to protect the homes along Cave City Road with equipment considered old and out of date today. We never lost a home. The only community in the fire path that did so.
For a few days there was mass confusion with firefighters and equipment by the hundreds, evacuating people out of harm’s way and protecting as many homes as possible, and because of their endurance today there is hardly a scar left to see.
Here is a partial list of equipment, manpower and losses from this fire:
* 521 engines, 76 bulldozers, 14 helicopters, 16 air tankers and 28 water tankers have been pressed into service.
* An estimated 15,000 people reside in the evacuated area, which stretches from Sheep Ranch to Big Trees Village.
* $9.5 million was spent to supress the fire.
* 11 minor injuries to firefighters have been reported.
* 54 structures have been destroyed, including 35 residences, 11 outbuildings, and 5 commercial buildings. Residences lost include 16 at Fricot CIty, four at Mineral Mountain, three along Ponderosa Way, two at Forest Meadows, and 15 at Northwood.
* 22 vehicles and two travel trailers have been incinerated.
Showing posts with label California. Show all posts
Showing posts with label California. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Monday, July 14, 2014
The Great Oak Tree Murder
It was not a dark and stormy night, it was a bright blue sky day. As the appointed time grew near, the witnesses to this horrible event started to gather.
The doers of this dirty deed appeared out of nowhere as they surrounded the intended victim. The crowd slowly sunk back across the street waiting for the first silent scream.
Small pieces fell to earth little by little with little respect for its life long contributions to the comm’‘’unity. As the larger parcels begin to fall the instigators of this unfortunate event slowly moved to the back of the crowd that had gathered to witness this dastardly deed as if they were not sure the correct decision had been made.
As the last chunk hit the ground you could feel the sadness in the air. The despair of the moment was like a cloud over the small crowd that by now was standing silent.
No longer will little children frolic within the shade of this Mother Oak, little girls will no longer set up their tea for the dolls, little boys will never climb among its protecting branches, old ladies will never rock and knit under its protecting branches.
The event of this day will go down in history as one of the saddest days the Ghost from Dirty Gulch has ever witnessed.
Old men will never again lean against its comforting trunk and tell tales of the days of yore. That frustrated mother Elvira bird must look for a new home to raise her young and that lively gray squirrel Melvin who had so much fun running up and down must now move on to unfamiliar territory.
The jury of that twenty seven who voted guilty completely ignored the petition signed by 126 concerned citizens
The investigation into this tragic event will continue until all facts are presented to the citizens of the village.
One of the beauties of Mountain Ranch is gone now, but the rich memories of what was remains. We have had our moment in time, and while some may go on forever, others must be content to be memories of the past.
So it is with this small and unforgettable memory.
The doers of this dirty deed appeared out of nowhere as they surrounded the intended victim. The crowd slowly sunk back across the street waiting for the first silent scream.
Small pieces fell to earth little by little with little respect for its life long contributions to the comm’‘’unity. As the larger parcels begin to fall the instigators of this unfortunate event slowly moved to the back of the crowd that had gathered to witness this dastardly deed as if they were not sure the correct decision had been made.
As the last chunk hit the ground you could feel the sadness in the air. The despair of the moment was like a cloud over the small crowd that by now was standing silent.
No longer will little children frolic within the shade of this Mother Oak, little girls will no longer set up their tea for the dolls, little boys will never climb among its protecting branches, old ladies will never rock and knit under its protecting branches.
The event of this day will go down in history as one of the saddest days the Ghost from Dirty Gulch has ever witnessed.
Old men will never again lean against its comforting trunk and tell tales of the days of yore. That frustrated mother Elvira bird must look for a new home to raise her young and that lively gray squirrel Melvin who had so much fun running up and down must now move on to unfamiliar territory.
The jury of that twenty seven who voted guilty completely ignored the petition signed by 126 concerned citizens
The investigation into this tragic event will continue until all facts are presented to the citizens of the village.
One of the beauties of Mountain Ranch is gone now, but the rich memories of what was remains. We have had our moment in time, and while some may go on forever, others must be content to be memories of the past.
So it is with this small and unforgettable memory.
Black Bart in Mountain Ranch?
Sat. Nov. 3, 1883 was cold and clear with a sharp wind. R.E. McConnell, driver for the Nevada Stage Company had been up early preparing for his run to Milton from Sonora. He was carrying no passengers, only a small amount of gold coin and 228 ounces of amalgam (a gold and mercury mixture).
After Jimmy Rolleri had taken McConnell and his stage acress the Stanislaus River on the ferry he operated, he suggested that he ride over to Copperopolis with him, hoping he could find something to shoot.
As the stage stared up Funk Hill, Jimmy got off in hopes he would find better game. He could cut cross country and meet the stage on the other side. As McConnell neared the top of Funk Hill he turned his head to look at some movement in the bushes and he looked straight into the muzzle of a shotgun.
Black Bart had been watching the stage through a powerful field glass and he saw a driver and a boy on the front seat. Between the hillside and his position Jimmy had dismounted. When the stage drew up and was halted by Bart, his face concealed by a flour sack slipped over his head, at once demanded: “Where’s the other man.”
McConnell said he had gone hunting and that it was a boy not a man,, to which Bart responded in his usual deep voice, “Get Down.” Bart did not use his usual command of “Throw down the box” because he knew that in this case the chest was inside the stage and fastened securely to the floor. Bart had visited the Patterson Mine earlier in the week and found out all the details of the shipment.
McConnell dismounted and unhitched as he was told. Bart ordered him to take his horses on up the hill and over the crest out of sight. Bart then hammered open the treasure box with an old axe he carried just for this purpose.
McConnell could hear Bart hammering away at the box so he did not hear the movement in the brush until Jimmy Rolleri was almost upon him He attracted Jimmy’s attention and signaled him to walk in detour around the foot of the hill and come to him out of sight of Black Bart. Jimmy was a smart boy so he knew something was wrong.
When Jimmy got up to the driver they made their way to the crest of the hill just as Black Bart was backing out of the stage with his treasure. They fired three shots with Jimmy’s rifle.
On the last shot Bart stumbled and dropped a bundle but held on to the sack and disappeared into the brush.
McConnell and Jimmy gathered up what had been scattered, hitched up and drove to Copperopolis to report. Wires were sent to the Calaveras County Sheriff at San Andreas and Wells Fargo and Co. at San Francisco.
Sheriff Ben K. Thorn was a quite thorough man. He found many clues, a leather case for field glasses, a belt, a quartz magnifying glass, a razor, a handkerchief, two linen cuffs, and two flour sacks. He also found the laundry mark on the handkerchief .F.X.0.7.
Sheriff Ben Thorn, J.B. Hume of Wells, Fargo and Co., his special detective Harry Morse , and Capt. Stone of the San Francisco police went to work on the case. In just one week Nov. 12th the mark was traced to a laundry at 316 Bush St., San Francisco, operated by Thomas C. Ware. The mark belongs to a Mr. C.E. Bolton, a mining man A family bible and discharge from the 116th Illinois Volunteer Infantry listed his name as Charles E. Boles.
Mr Bolton was a man dressed elegantly, carrying a little cane. He wore a small Derby hat, a diamond pin, a large diamond ring, and a heavy gold watch and chain. He was five feet seven inches tall, straight, broad shoulders with blue eyes and a large gray mustache.
Bart was arrested and taken to San Andreas. Sheriff Thorn met the boat at Stockton along with a large group of curious. Bart was photographed at Stockton adn kept in jail overnight. The next morning they started early for San Andreas by way of Milton. At San Andreas there was another crowd who for the first minute or two mistook Morse for Black Bart and took the well dressed prisoner for the detective. This seemed to please Bart a great deal. Bart was kept in the San Andreas jail.
On Nov. 16th, Bart appeared before Justice P.H. Kean of San Andreas and said he wanted to plead guilty. On the next day Bart was brought before Judge C.V. Gottschalk and asked the court to pronounce judgement. The minutes of these proceedings read: “Whereas the said C.E. Bolton has been duly convicted of robbery by his own confession, it is therefore ordered, adjudged and decreed that the said C.E. Bolton be punished by imprisonment in the state prison of Calif. for the term of six years.”
Sheriff Thorn escorted Bart to San Quentin Prison on Nov. 21, 1883. He was committed as prisoner number 11046. Bart settled into prison routine and was a model prisoner.
On Jan. 21, 1888 Charles E. Bolton was released from San Quentin, his term completed, the law satisfied. There is no sound proof that anybody anywhere ever saw Black Bart again. There were many stories of stage hold-ups and personal visits by Black Bart but nothing was ever proven. It is a matter of record, however, that Bolton spent much of the two years of his parole in Calaveras County after his release.
Charles E. Bolton was born in New York in 1828. His early years remain a mystery as do his later ones. He came to CA as a young man in 1850 to seek his fortune in mining like so many young men of his day. He left a wife and two daughters behind in Hannibal, Mo. In 1863 he returned to serve in the 116th Illinois Volunteer Infantry during the civil war. In 1865 he again returned to CA to teach school in Concord, CA but lost this job due to his fondness for gambling. For the next 10 years he traveled northern CA never holding one job very long.
On July 26th, 1875 the Milton-Sonora stage was held up and this is where Bart left his famous poem;
“I’ve labored long and hard for bread
For honor and for riches
But on my corns too long you’ve tread
You fine haired sons of bitches”
Over two years later he held up his second stage on Aug. 3rd, 1877 on the Russian River. Here he left his second poem and his last. In Black Bart’s twenty eight stage hold-ups he wrote only two poems, but they were enough to earn him the title of PO-8 for the rest of his life. His second poem was;
“Here I lay me down to sleep
To wait the coming morrow
Perhaps success, perhaps defeat
And everlasting sorrow
Let come what will I’ll try it on
My condition can’t be worse
And if there’s money in that box
‘Tis munny in my purse”
Two men claim to have seen Black Bart following his release from prison in 1888. John Ross has a picture that supposedly shows Bart in about 1892. It was taken at the Union Copper Mine Boarding House in Copperopolis. The small boy in the picture is Ross.
According to Ross’s father, the highly respected Gilbert Ross, Bart came to visit his friends in Copperopolis and this picture was taken.
Romi Rolleri says that he also saw Bart when he visited Angels Camp after his release. Rolleri says that Bart came and stayed at the old Calaveras Hotel in Angels Camp
Bart came to see Jim Rolleri who had been instrumental in Bart’s arrest and conviction . Jim Rolleri had died while Bart was in prison, but one of his brothers revisited the site of the robbery on Funk Hill with Black Bart. The visit was common knowledge with the old timers in Angels Camp according to Romi.
In Sept. of 1968 both the Stockton Record and the Calaveras Enterprise reported that Phil D. Alberts discovered, on his property in Mountain Ranch, Calaveras County, a smooth moss-covered stone at the head of a mound of dirt and rocks that resembled a grave site. An initial has been chiseled on the stone. Initial “B”. Its location remains a well-guarded secret.
Alberts himself a historical writer, has made inquiry among many of the old timers in the area who might have some knowledge of what definitely appears to be a grave. No one can recall a local buried on the property. Until Alberts purchased the land a few years ago it had been part of the Domenghini Ranch since 1872, and before that it had belonged to a man named Pugini.
For many years there has been more than a little speculation among old timers here that Black Bart was secretly buried in Calaveras by well-meaning friends to prevent possible desecration of his grave or body, as was done in the case of Joaquin Murietta.
Those who follow this theory say that Bart was pleased with the use of his initials and often used them instead of a full signature. They contend that the simple letter “B” would have pleased Charles Bolton, alias Black Bart.
Even if it does not contain the remains of Black Bart, the grave still presents a mystery, and, who knows, perhaps the ghost of Black Bart is close to Mountain Ranch and the Ghost from Dirty Gulch than many suspect.
Phil D. Alberts,
“the Ghost from Dirty Gulch”
The Great Ride
Dave “Swede” Zwinge was constable in El Dorado Camp, now Mountain Ranch, in 1910. He was paid $40 per month and carried a 5 shot 38 cal. Iver Johnson pistol now owned by the Alberts Family. Just over 6 ft. 6 inches tall this big lawman had a reputation of getting the job done.
Many colorful tales have been told of this big daredevil but none as wild as this ride he took on his faithful black horse this Jan. day in 1910.
The story began when a white man named John Thomas from the Glencoe area was murdered. An American who some thought had committed the crime, accused a young half breed Indian named Two Dog.
The so-called Glencoe Rangers, nothing more than self appointed vigilantes, attacked the temporary jail where Swede had housed Two Dog. Swede and his helpers were able to repulse the Rangers but Two Dog was shot, not fatally. As soon as Two Dog recovered he was placed on trial. Hanging the poor Indian was foremost on their minds.
Judge A.I. McSorely was the one officiating at the trial. The local D.A. presented his case and the jury found poor Two Dog guilty. Judge McSorely sentenced Two Dog to life imprisonment at San Quentin.
The Glencoe Rangers wanted to hang Two Dog and they waited for Swede to come out of the court room to the jail. Swede was ready for whatever would happen. He had his trusty black horse and another equally good steed saddled and ready for a quick exit to the penitentiary. With the angry mob behind him, Swede decided horses for this cross country ride would be much better than the automobile, for at that time none of the roads in this area were paved.
While the Glencoe Rangers were waiting Swede and Two Dog were lowered from the second story window and quickly mounted their horses and dashed away.
All hell broke loose and it took about 15 minutes for the Glencoe group to get horses ready for the chase.
Swede and Two Dog rode madly north of town and flashed through sleepy Poverty Flat before the people knew what was happening. Whiskey Slide was passed as well.
In little over an hour they riders reached Jesus Maria. There they changed horses and continued north toward Moke Hill over the roughest terrain.
With Two Dog’s injury the going was slower than Swede wanted for the closer they got to Sacramento the more open the terrain which would give the Glencoe bunch a good shot.
Their frantic ride continued and on occasion they passed men on horseback and at one point drive a couple in an automobile entirely off the road. The ride was beginning to take its toll. The afternoon was fading as they passed Sutter Creek town site.
The Indian was getting weaker and Swede was now worried he might not make it. Swede told Two Dog to “look back and you will see they are gaining on us.”
They pushed their horses for more speed, but they were still gaining. At last Swede saw the most welcome sight of all his life, the bridge over Bear Creek, Sacramento was in sight.
The race was not over, they found the streets deep in mud and their tired horses struggled and toiled to get through this mire.
As they glanced back they saw the Glencoe Rangers very close but they could not fire on them, being almost in town. The jailer threw open the doors and the dauntless deputy, as white as death but seemingly unwearied, gave his prisoner into safe keeping. Seconds after the iron doors swung shut the Glencoe Gang arrived, too late. Swede had saved Two Dog from hanging.
Just four hours had passed since Swede and Two Dog had been lowered from the Dughi Building window in Mtn. Ranch Swede disclaimed all credit for bravery or daring for his deed.
Swede was a practical man and did what he felt had to be done. He had little time to think of his great ride, 48 miles in four hours, or of the fate of Two Dog.
Shortly after this brave ride he was shot in the back by an assassin, but so it was, and one night his faithful black horse came home without him. In the cold light of the early morning he was found near Wiggins Sawmill with a jagged hole in his back but still alive.
It would take more than a coward’s bullet in the back to stop the biggest and bravest man in old El Dorado Camp now called Mountain Ranch
Dave “Swede” Zwinge lived out the rest of his life in Sheep Ranch. Hoping to reach 100 years of age, he almost made it.
This story has been told and retold many times in Swede’s live and after it, and always seemed to add a bit at every telling. It is commonly believed a small part of it is true.
REMEMBER: If you are lucky enough to live in Mtn. Ranch, then you are lucky enough!
Many colorful tales have been told of this big daredevil but none as wild as this ride he took on his faithful black horse this Jan. day in 1910.
The story began when a white man named John Thomas from the Glencoe area was murdered. An American who some thought had committed the crime, accused a young half breed Indian named Two Dog.
The so-called Glencoe Rangers, nothing more than self appointed vigilantes, attacked the temporary jail where Swede had housed Two Dog. Swede and his helpers were able to repulse the Rangers but Two Dog was shot, not fatally. As soon as Two Dog recovered he was placed on trial. Hanging the poor Indian was foremost on their minds.
Judge A.I. McSorely was the one officiating at the trial. The local D.A. presented his case and the jury found poor Two Dog guilty. Judge McSorely sentenced Two Dog to life imprisonment at San Quentin.
The Glencoe Rangers wanted to hang Two Dog and they waited for Swede to come out of the court room to the jail. Swede was ready for whatever would happen. He had his trusty black horse and another equally good steed saddled and ready for a quick exit to the penitentiary. With the angry mob behind him, Swede decided horses for this cross country ride would be much better than the automobile, for at that time none of the roads in this area were paved.
While the Glencoe Rangers were waiting Swede and Two Dog were lowered from the second story window and quickly mounted their horses and dashed away.
All hell broke loose and it took about 15 minutes for the Glencoe group to get horses ready for the chase.
Swede and Two Dog rode madly north of town and flashed through sleepy Poverty Flat before the people knew what was happening. Whiskey Slide was passed as well.
In little over an hour they riders reached Jesus Maria. There they changed horses and continued north toward Moke Hill over the roughest terrain.
With Two Dog’s injury the going was slower than Swede wanted for the closer they got to Sacramento the more open the terrain which would give the Glencoe bunch a good shot.
Their frantic ride continued and on occasion they passed men on horseback and at one point drive a couple in an automobile entirely off the road. The ride was beginning to take its toll. The afternoon was fading as they passed Sutter Creek town site.
The Indian was getting weaker and Swede was now worried he might not make it. Swede told Two Dog to “look back and you will see they are gaining on us.”
They pushed their horses for more speed, but they were still gaining. At last Swede saw the most welcome sight of all his life, the bridge over Bear Creek, Sacramento was in sight.
The race was not over, they found the streets deep in mud and their tired horses struggled and toiled to get through this mire.
As they glanced back they saw the Glencoe Rangers very close but they could not fire on them, being almost in town. The jailer threw open the doors and the dauntless deputy, as white as death but seemingly unwearied, gave his prisoner into safe keeping. Seconds after the iron doors swung shut the Glencoe Gang arrived, too late. Swede had saved Two Dog from hanging.
Just four hours had passed since Swede and Two Dog had been lowered from the Dughi Building window in Mtn. Ranch Swede disclaimed all credit for bravery or daring for his deed.
Swede was a practical man and did what he felt had to be done. He had little time to think of his great ride, 48 miles in four hours, or of the fate of Two Dog.
Shortly after this brave ride he was shot in the back by an assassin, but so it was, and one night his faithful black horse came home without him. In the cold light of the early morning he was found near Wiggins Sawmill with a jagged hole in his back but still alive.
It would take more than a coward’s bullet in the back to stop the biggest and bravest man in old El Dorado Camp now called Mountain Ranch
Dave “Swede” Zwinge lived out the rest of his life in Sheep Ranch. Hoping to reach 100 years of age, he almost made it.
This story has been told and retold many times in Swede’s live and after it, and always seemed to add a bit at every telling. It is commonly believed a small part of it is true.
REMEMBER: If you are lucky enough to live in Mtn. Ranch, then you are lucky enough!
The Giants of Calaveras ... No, Not the Big Trees...
The Zwinge Family
Joseph Zwinge Sr. arrived in Calaveras county in 1853. He came originally from Germany. In 1855 he married Miss Elizabeth Evas in St. Marys Catholic Cathedral, San Francisco. His ranch, which he worked until his death, was located near the Sierra Vista Lookout. His son John also had a ranch nearby in later years. Joe Sr. was killed in 1890 when his team ran away on a downhill road into Murray Creek with a load of lumber. He is buried in San Andreas.
The Zwinges had eleven children: William, John, Joe Jr., Henry, Theodore, Edward, Matthew, Mary, Teresa, Elizabeth and Kathleen. The six boys of Joseph Zwinge were said to be the tallest in the state. The shortest was 6‘2“ and the tallest was 6‘6“. All the girls were over 6 feet tall also.
William Zwinge was the second white child born in Calaveras County. He also was the father of Joe Zwinge, Sheriff for 28 years of the County. Elizabeth married Peter Albers of Sheep Ranch, April 18, 1880.
The present public library building was first constructed as a tent for the first eating place in San Andreas by Joseph Zwinge, in 1853. The tent burned down and was replaced by canvas and lumber by Zwinge. Following a third fire, Zwinge rebuilt the structure in 1857 with stone and rock. Zwinge took in two partners, a brother William A. Zwinge, and Antone Schacten. On December 29th, 1858 the three sold the property to John Huberty, gramdfather of Judge Joseph H. Huberty of San Andreas.
In 1887 the property was acquired by William H. Jenkins, who conducted a hotel and eating place until 1917. The building was known locally as the Old Jenkins Hotel. In 1936 it was purchased by D. Fricot after being idle for almost 20 years. After completely remodeling the old building Mr. Fricot deeded it to the county to be used as a museum and public library. The museum has moved to larger quarters.
May 20, 1858 assessment list by Channcey Johnson, county assessor shows Zwinge and Co. with one house and lot in San Andreas on the south side of main street joining Wells Fargo and Co. Express. Value thereof $1800.
John Zwinge was born in 1856 near San Andreas. He went to school and spent his childhood in the San Andreas area. He worked his ranch, now the present Doster ranch near the lookout and also worked out as a blacksmith. He worked for many mines in the Sheep Ranch - Mountain Ranch area.
John married Louise Filippini on June 6, 1880. They were married by Judge F. O’Connell and witnessed by Henry Zwinge and Sophia Filippini.
The Filippini family was an old family of Mountain Ranch. Four of the Zwinge family married four of the fourteen Filippini family. John married Louise, Joe married Pauline, Ted married Amela and Kate married Dave Filippini. The fourteen Filippini children were Louise, Pauline, Amela, Dave, Dan, Charles, Ellen, Rosie, Sophjia, Josie, Carrie, Flora, Aggie, and Cela. Cela Filippini married “Doc” Cuslidge of Mountain Ranch.
John and Louise Zwinge had six children, Henry, David, Oscar, Eva, Josephine, Agnus, and David.
John Zwinge died in Mountain Ranch in 1949 at the age of 93. His wife Louise died later that same year. Dave was the only one who lived out his life here.
Dave went to school to the 6th grade at three different locations. The old Fisher school located just north of the Zwinge Ranch, at Mountain and San Andreas. Some of his teachers were Daisy Danielson, Tom Moffet, Teresa Rivera, Mrs. Crossett and Lissie Salcido. Dave’s schooling was very limited because he had to help his dad on the ranch.
In his late teens Dave was bigger than most men in the area. He was six foot four and weighed over 200 pounds. He was called “Swede” by his friends. By the time he was 18 years old Dave was working in the mines in the Mountain Ranch - Sheep Ranch area, also made extra money breaking horses, donkeys and burros, Dave says he never found a jackass he couldn’t ride the second time.
Dave also worked on the Emery pipeline ditch from the Emery Reservoir to Cave City with his dad who was a blacksmith and tool repair man on the same job. The foreman was Ed Wigney.
When Dave was 12 years old in 1896 he helped his cousin Joe Hertzig feed the prisoners in the San Andreas jail. The Hertzig family had a contract with Sheriff Ben Thorn to supply the daily food for the guests of the county.
Dave was working in the Square Head Mine for a Mr. Haggerty in 1905 when he married Helen Lovelace. The Square Head Mine was located just south of San Andreas. Helen Lovelace was a sister to Florence Clyde of Sheep Ranch. Dave and his new bride lived in the San Andreas and Mountain Ranch in the old Dughi building. They were married by the Justice of the Peace Pat Kean of San Andreas.
Dave ran for constable against his uncle Henry in 1910, and held office 4 years. It all started on a hunting trip as a practical joke. Dave’s uncle said no one could beat him so Dave proved otherwise. During his term of office Dave became an expert in the art of catching chicken thieves. He spent most of his time rounding them up. His salary was $40 monthly.
In 1914 Dave ran a saloon in Mountain Ranch located next to the road on the old Filippini hotel property. He later went to Arizona to work in the mines near Oatman with Paul Lewis and Ray Cuslidge. Paul broke his arm trying to crank Dave’s old Ford and stayed in L.A. After about a year in Arizona he sold the Ford for $200 and returned by train.
Dave and Helen had three children, Mourice “Molly”, Bernice and Dorothy. Out of the 22 Zwinge boys in four generations, the shortest was 6 foot 2 inches.
After working in many mines in the Mountain Ranch area Dave went to work at the Sheep Ranch mine for John Lewis. He worked there until it closed in 1921. The foreman then was Frank Thor. Dave was night foreman and John Canavera was day foreman.
After separation of Dave and Helen, he married Lola Kelly Jenkins in 1922 in Jackson. He then worked at many different mines in the area and also worked in the woods until 1930.
Dave belongs to the Native Sons and joined the Masons Lodge in 1922.. He is a member of the Blue Lodge, Scottish Rites, and Shriners.
In the early 1930‘s Dave was hired by Attilio Domenghini who was on the Board of Supervisors, as foreman on the country roads in the Mountain Ranch - San Andreas district. At this time he lived in the old Rodesino building.
In 1931 he worked at the Marjoh mine owned by John Martin. The mine went broke and Dave never got his pay. Years later the mine was sold for taxes and bought by Lester Canavera and Louis Domenghini. In 1967 when the estate cleared Dave received his pay. Things still move a little slow in the mountains.
He worked on the old C.C.C. camps at Blue Mountain and Glencoe as a crew foreman for Ed Cooke until 1933. Floyd Butterfield was one of the C.C.C. Boys from Minnesota who worked for Dave at Blue Mountain. Butterfield grew up and went to school with Alex Alberts, father of Phil D. Alberts, in Shovel Lake, Minn. It was a small world even then. Floyd is retired and lives in Arnold. Dave worked on the country roads in the winter and the camps in the summer. Jim Jack was his boss on the country road jobs.
During the depression Dave was never out of a job. He worked wherever work could be found. He did some mining, worked in the woods, and worked on ranches. He worked on the Clyde Sherwood ranch also, now owned by the Senders family.
In 1937 he went to work a the Calaveras Cement Plant at Kentucky House for Sam Lockwood. Dave worked there for twenty years. The superintendent then was Louis Alsman.
Dave rented a house from Louis Domenghini which burned down in 1941. He moved to another Domenghini rental which burned down in 1945. This was rebuilt at once and Dave and Lola lived there until it was sold in 1965 to Phil Alberts. Between these two fires Dave lost all their family possessions. Old family pictures and records were the greatest loss.
In 1965 when the Domenghini property was sold Dave moved just north of Mountain Ranch to the Shattuck Ranch. This was the original Filippini ranch which is now owed by Tim Lane.
Dave retired at the age of 71 but was still very active. He cut his own firewood, rode his young horse and looked after the ranch.
Dave planned to spend the remaining years in the town of his youth. He made his daily trip to the old Domenghini Store to swap stories with anyone with the time to listen. He can well remember when people were not always in a hurry as they are today. He recalls when life was a whole lot simpler and people were a whole lot friendlier. Dave hoped to reach 100 years of age and he almost made it.
Next month I will tell you about an heroic deed Dave accomplished while he was constable in an old El Dorado camp, now called Mountain Ranch.
Joseph Zwinge Sr. arrived in Calaveras county in 1853. He came originally from Germany. In 1855 he married Miss Elizabeth Evas in St. Marys Catholic Cathedral, San Francisco. His ranch, which he worked until his death, was located near the Sierra Vista Lookout. His son John also had a ranch nearby in later years. Joe Sr. was killed in 1890 when his team ran away on a downhill road into Murray Creek with a load of lumber. He is buried in San Andreas.
The Zwinges had eleven children: William, John, Joe Jr., Henry, Theodore, Edward, Matthew, Mary, Teresa, Elizabeth and Kathleen. The six boys of Joseph Zwinge were said to be the tallest in the state. The shortest was 6‘2“ and the tallest was 6‘6“. All the girls were over 6 feet tall also.
William Zwinge was the second white child born in Calaveras County. He also was the father of Joe Zwinge, Sheriff for 28 years of the County. Elizabeth married Peter Albers of Sheep Ranch, April 18, 1880.
The present public library building was first constructed as a tent for the first eating place in San Andreas by Joseph Zwinge, in 1853. The tent burned down and was replaced by canvas and lumber by Zwinge. Following a third fire, Zwinge rebuilt the structure in 1857 with stone and rock. Zwinge took in two partners, a brother William A. Zwinge, and Antone Schacten. On December 29th, 1858 the three sold the property to John Huberty, gramdfather of Judge Joseph H. Huberty of San Andreas.
In 1887 the property was acquired by William H. Jenkins, who conducted a hotel and eating place until 1917. The building was known locally as the Old Jenkins Hotel. In 1936 it was purchased by D. Fricot after being idle for almost 20 years. After completely remodeling the old building Mr. Fricot deeded it to the county to be used as a museum and public library. The museum has moved to larger quarters.
May 20, 1858 assessment list by Channcey Johnson, county assessor shows Zwinge and Co. with one house and lot in San Andreas on the south side of main street joining Wells Fargo and Co. Express. Value thereof $1800.
John Zwinge was born in 1856 near San Andreas. He went to school and spent his childhood in the San Andreas area. He worked his ranch, now the present Doster ranch near the lookout and also worked out as a blacksmith. He worked for many mines in the Sheep Ranch - Mountain Ranch area.
John married Louise Filippini on June 6, 1880. They were married by Judge F. O’Connell and witnessed by Henry Zwinge and Sophia Filippini.
The Filippini family was an old family of Mountain Ranch. Four of the Zwinge family married four of the fourteen Filippini family. John married Louise, Joe married Pauline, Ted married Amela and Kate married Dave Filippini. The fourteen Filippini children were Louise, Pauline, Amela, Dave, Dan, Charles, Ellen, Rosie, Sophjia, Josie, Carrie, Flora, Aggie, and Cela. Cela Filippini married “Doc” Cuslidge of Mountain Ranch.
John and Louise Zwinge had six children, Henry, David, Oscar, Eva, Josephine, Agnus, and David.
John Zwinge died in Mountain Ranch in 1949 at the age of 93. His wife Louise died later that same year. Dave was the only one who lived out his life here.
Dave went to school to the 6th grade at three different locations. The old Fisher school located just north of the Zwinge Ranch, at Mountain and San Andreas. Some of his teachers were Daisy Danielson, Tom Moffet, Teresa Rivera, Mrs. Crossett and Lissie Salcido. Dave’s schooling was very limited because he had to help his dad on the ranch.
In his late teens Dave was bigger than most men in the area. He was six foot four and weighed over 200 pounds. He was called “Swede” by his friends. By the time he was 18 years old Dave was working in the mines in the Mountain Ranch - Sheep Ranch area, also made extra money breaking horses, donkeys and burros, Dave says he never found a jackass he couldn’t ride the second time.
Dave also worked on the Emery pipeline ditch from the Emery Reservoir to Cave City with his dad who was a blacksmith and tool repair man on the same job. The foreman was Ed Wigney.
When Dave was 12 years old in 1896 he helped his cousin Joe Hertzig feed the prisoners in the San Andreas jail. The Hertzig family had a contract with Sheriff Ben Thorn to supply the daily food for the guests of the county.
Dave was working in the Square Head Mine for a Mr. Haggerty in 1905 when he married Helen Lovelace. The Square Head Mine was located just south of San Andreas. Helen Lovelace was a sister to Florence Clyde of Sheep Ranch. Dave and his new bride lived in the San Andreas and Mountain Ranch in the old Dughi building. They were married by the Justice of the Peace Pat Kean of San Andreas.
Dave ran for constable against his uncle Henry in 1910, and held office 4 years. It all started on a hunting trip as a practical joke. Dave’s uncle said no one could beat him so Dave proved otherwise. During his term of office Dave became an expert in the art of catching chicken thieves. He spent most of his time rounding them up. His salary was $40 monthly.
In 1914 Dave ran a saloon in Mountain Ranch located next to the road on the old Filippini hotel property. He later went to Arizona to work in the mines near Oatman with Paul Lewis and Ray Cuslidge. Paul broke his arm trying to crank Dave’s old Ford and stayed in L.A. After about a year in Arizona he sold the Ford for $200 and returned by train.
Dave and Helen had three children, Mourice “Molly”, Bernice and Dorothy. Out of the 22 Zwinge boys in four generations, the shortest was 6 foot 2 inches.
After working in many mines in the Mountain Ranch area Dave went to work at the Sheep Ranch mine for John Lewis. He worked there until it closed in 1921. The foreman then was Frank Thor. Dave was night foreman and John Canavera was day foreman.
After separation of Dave and Helen, he married Lola Kelly Jenkins in 1922 in Jackson. He then worked at many different mines in the area and also worked in the woods until 1930.
Dave belongs to the Native Sons and joined the Masons Lodge in 1922.. He is a member of the Blue Lodge, Scottish Rites, and Shriners.
In the early 1930‘s Dave was hired by Attilio Domenghini who was on the Board of Supervisors, as foreman on the country roads in the Mountain Ranch - San Andreas district. At this time he lived in the old Rodesino building.
In 1931 he worked at the Marjoh mine owned by John Martin. The mine went broke and Dave never got his pay. Years later the mine was sold for taxes and bought by Lester Canavera and Louis Domenghini. In 1967 when the estate cleared Dave received his pay. Things still move a little slow in the mountains.
He worked on the old C.C.C. camps at Blue Mountain and Glencoe as a crew foreman for Ed Cooke until 1933. Floyd Butterfield was one of the C.C.C. Boys from Minnesota who worked for Dave at Blue Mountain. Butterfield grew up and went to school with Alex Alberts, father of Phil D. Alberts, in Shovel Lake, Minn. It was a small world even then. Floyd is retired and lives in Arnold. Dave worked on the country roads in the winter and the camps in the summer. Jim Jack was his boss on the country road jobs.
During the depression Dave was never out of a job. He worked wherever work could be found. He did some mining, worked in the woods, and worked on ranches. He worked on the Clyde Sherwood ranch also, now owned by the Senders family.
In 1937 he went to work a the Calaveras Cement Plant at Kentucky House for Sam Lockwood. Dave worked there for twenty years. The superintendent then was Louis Alsman.
Dave rented a house from Louis Domenghini which burned down in 1941. He moved to another Domenghini rental which burned down in 1945. This was rebuilt at once and Dave and Lola lived there until it was sold in 1965 to Phil Alberts. Between these two fires Dave lost all their family possessions. Old family pictures and records were the greatest loss.
In 1965 when the Domenghini property was sold Dave moved just north of Mountain Ranch to the Shattuck Ranch. This was the original Filippini ranch which is now owed by Tim Lane.
Dave retired at the age of 71 but was still very active. He cut his own firewood, rode his young horse and looked after the ranch.
Dave planned to spend the remaining years in the town of his youth. He made his daily trip to the old Domenghini Store to swap stories with anyone with the time to listen. He can well remember when people were not always in a hurry as they are today. He recalls when life was a whole lot simpler and people were a whole lot friendlier. Dave hoped to reach 100 years of age and he almost made it.
Next month I will tell you about an heroic deed Dave accomplished while he was constable in an old El Dorado camp, now called Mountain Ranch.
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