Valley Springs News Rack: Photo by Sal Manna

"Something From Nothing: The Early History Of West Calaveras County"

By Sal Manna

A column published the first Wednesday of each month exclusively in the Valley Springs News.  The magazine compilation "Something From Nothing, Vol. I" includes #1 through #18 (and the two bonuses).  "Something From Nothing, Vol. II" includes #19 through #38. "Something From Nothing, Vol. III" includes #39 through #58.

 

 

#1 (March 1, 2006): The First Family Of Valley Springs: The Lates And The White House

#2 (April 5, 2006): Shopkeepers: Burson’s Allison Store (Part One)

#3 (May 3, 2006): Shopkeepers: Burson’s Allison Store (Part Two)

#4 (June 7, 2006): Fire & Water In Valley Springs: The 1895 Disaster

#5 (July 5, 2006): Full Steam Ahead: The Poetry Of The San Joaquin & Sierra Nevada Railroad

#6 (August 2, 2006): On The Road: The First Automobile (Mansfield Gregory)

#7 (September 6, 2006): The Man After Whom Wallace Was Named Finally Revealed (John Wallace) 

#8 (October 4, 2006): Murder! The Gruesome Demise Of Frank Hanhardt

#9 (November 1, 2006): What’s In A Name: Valley Springs Or Valley Spring? 

#10 (December 6, 2006): The Admiral Of Calaveras County (Theodore Vogelgesang)

Bonus Holiday Special (December 22, 2006): Historic Markers Rediscovered

#11 (January 3, 2007): Full Steam Ahead: Ettie The Passenger Car

#12 (February 7, 2007):  T.C. Evans And The First And Only Hotel In Wallace

#13 (March 7, 2007): Tough Times, Tough Men: Joaquin Murietta And John Kellogg Pattee

#14 (April 4, 2007): Play Ball! Turn Of The Century Baseball

#15 (May 2, 2007): Murder! The Shooting Of Constable Holman

Memorial Day Special (May 25, 2007): A Poem By Civil War Hero Job Thomas

#16 (June 6, 2007): The Call To Arms: Civil War Sharpshooter Job Thomas Comes To Burson

#17 (July 4, 2007): Hail To The Chief: West Calaveras And The Oval Office

#18 (August 1, 2007): Sister Cities: Connecting Paloma To Folsom

#19 (September 5, 2007): Our Historic Homes: The Wildermuth House

#20 (October 3, 2007): Catts Camp: Samuel Catts Supplies The Gold Rush

#21 (November 7, 2007): All’s Fair In Love And War: The Lillie Family

#22 (December 5, 2007): More Than A Road: The Southworth Teachers

#23 (January 2, 2008): The Country Doctor: William Bright March

#24 (February 6, 2008): “Honey, Who’s That Man Buried In Our Field?” (Hiram Gillam)

#25 (March 5, 2008): Full Steam Ahead: The San Joaquin & Sierra Nevada Railroad

#26 (April 2, 2008): Full Steam Ahead: The Train Conductor Called Mac (Amos McClelland)

#27 (May 7, 2008): Our Historic Homes: Casa Blanca

#28 (June 4, 2008): Duty Served: Captain Messenger And The Civil War

#29 (July 2, 2008): “Old Ironsides” (Prince Athearn)

#30 (August 6, 2008): The Remarkable Story Of John Storey

#31 (September 3, 2008): The Brothers Wallace: Our Evolution Connection (Alfred Russel Wallace)

#32 (October 1, 2008): The Remembrance Book Of Katie Maley

#33 (November 5, 2008): For The Relief Of Insolvent Debtors

#34 (December 3, 2008): Camanche Tragedy: Lawson Hill Shot Dead

#35: (January 7, 2009): Camanche Triumph: Auntie Hill’s Insect Powder

#36: (February 4, 2009): Olive Oil & Our Liquid Gold Rush

#37: (March 4, 2009): The “Beautiful Rocks” Of Rocca Bella Olives (Louis Sammis)

#38: (April 1, 2009): The Calaveras Special Steams Into Valley Springs

#39: (May 6, 2009): “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” And A Calaveras Nephew (A.A. Van Sandt)

#40: (June 3, 2009): Getting Married In 1899: Jake and Pearl Walk Down The Aisle (Jacob Wimer and Pearl Wright)

#41: (July 1, 2009): Black & White & Blue & Gray…Sgt. John Dawson, U.S. Colored Troops

#42: (August 5, 2009): Message In A Bottle (Essence of Jamaica Ginger and Jake Walk)

#43: (September 2, 2009): Our Historic Homes: The Evergreen School

#44: (October 7, 2009): What’s In A Name? Milton (Milton S. Latham)

#45: (November 4, 2009): Our Forgotten Heroes (Union Civil War Soldiers From Calaveras)

#46: (December 2, 2009): Shopkeepers: Camanche’s Cavagnaro-Genochio Store

#47: (January 8, 2010, Friday): Crime Doesn't Pay: The Tale Of Troy Dye, Part I

#48: (February 3, 2010): Crime Doesn't Pay: The Tale Of Troy Dye, Part II

#49: (March 3, 2010): Pardee Dam: The East Bay Taps The Mokelumne River

#50: (April 7, 2010): Welcome To Bewleyland

#51: (May 5, 2010): Li'l Henry: A Model T's Trip Across America, Part I

#52: (June 2, 2010): Li'l Henry: A Model T's Trip Across America, Part II

#53: (July 7, 2010): Shopkeepers: Valley Springs' Pliler & Lillie

#54: (August 4, 2010): The Confederacy In Calaveras: William Gwin, The Duke Of Sonora

#55: (September 1, 2010): The Rock Art Of The First People

#56: (October 6, 2010): Ho For The Klondike!

#57: (November 3, 2010): World War I And The Calaveras Liberty Boys

#58: (December 1, 2010): Daniel+Martha+2: The Bursons Adopt Effie And Clara Belle

#59: (January 5, 2011): Ah Lin: The Last Chinese Gold Miner Of Jenny Lind

#60: (February 2, 2011): Saving Stockton: Hogan Dam

#61: (March 2, 2011): The Doctor Is A Woman!

#62: (April 6, 2011): Where's Waldo? Nah, Where's Norval?

#63: (May 4, 2011): Samuel Ryland, The Miner Who Built Bridges

#64: (June 1, 2011): The Lost City Of Calaveras

#65: (July 6, 2011): The Socialist Catechism In Calaveras

#66: (August 3, 2011): Pardee The Man Not The Dam

#67: (September 7, 2011): Murder! Joseph Hubert Claims Insanity, Pt. I

#68: (October 5, 2011): Murder! Joseph Hubert Claims Insanity, Pt. II

#69: (November 2, 2011): The Grand Army of the Republic's Chickamauga Post 149

#70: (December 7, 2011) Our Historic Homes: Daphne Street

#71: (January 4, 2012) What's In A Name: Jenny Lind

#72: (February 1, 2012) Reason McConnell: The Man Who Shot Black Bart, Part I

#73: (March 7, 2012) Reason McConnell: The Man Who Shot Black Bart, Part II

#74: (April 4, 2012) Thomas Van Buren and Double Springs: The Man Behind Our First County Seat

#75: (May 2, 2012) The Soap Opera Life Of Elijah Swinford