Wiltsee Collection Panels 141 – 150
Panel 141
Letters from Markleeville, Martinsburg, and Marysville.
No. 881
Sent from Markleeville, California, to Miss Shebe A. Halcomb in Jenny Lind.
No. 882
Sent from Martinsburg, California, to Capt. M. H. Darraoh in Oroville.
No. 883
Sent from Marysville, California, to Ellis and Crosby in San Francisco. Inside is a letter from Hawley Simmons and Co. requesting a receipt for an express shipment of money by Freeman and Co.’s Express. Dated December 16, 1850.
No. 884
Sent from Marysville, California, to J. O. Carr in Troy, Missouri. Inside is a letter dated April 14, 1851, from B. F. Todd, writing “in the mountains of California” to his father. He writes that he moved to the banks of the north Feather River, about 200 miles from Sacramento, “where we expect to spend the summer and then all will leave for home. We hope to make something that will pay us for the trip.” This seems to be a change of plans as he explains, “I have written so often that I was coming home this spring that I almost fear Ellen [his wife] will not believe anything I say about it.” He explains why he has not returned home yet: “I dread returning home without money and think by being a little more selfish than I have been I can make it and I want one more fare [fair] chance this summer.” He adds, “I have learned to take things as I find them in the world and not trouble myself about that which I cannot help and never rack the brain cooking for trouble that probably never will come. Our real troubles in life are enough without imagining them.” He adds, “[I] never will try to get my family here and I intend Ellen [his wife] shall have her choice as to the place where we live when I return. Yet California is a very agreeable climate and good country for a poor man.” He closes with a reminder: “I am 200 miles from the post office and have a bad chance to write or get letters so do not be uneasy if I do not write so often as formerly.”
No. 885
Sent from Marysville, California, to the Secretary of State in Sacramento. Dated May 5, 1852.
No. 886 & 888
Sent from Marysville, California, to William P. Harrington in Kno Castle [New Castle], Maine.
No. 887 & 889
Sent from Marysville, California, to William P. Harrington in New Castle, Maine.
Photograph of the old “Crane House” on the La Porte road, California, 1930s.
Panel 142
Letters from Marysville, Maxwell Creek, Michigan Bar, and Millerton.
No. 890
Sent from Miami, Missouri, to Robert W. M. Daniel in Marysville, California. There, it was forwarded to Sacramento. Dated January 9, 1855.
No. 891
Sent from Marysville, California, to William H. Keene at the Van Buren Post office in Illinois. Postmark indicates it was taken “via Placerville,” and “Over Land Male.”
No. 892
Sent from Marysville, California, to Benjamin Allston in Charleston. There it was forwarded to Georgetown. Dated February 12, 1859.
No. 893
Sent from Marysville, California, to Benjamin Allston in Charleston.
No. 894
Sent from Maxwell Creek, California, to William A. Guard in Mariposa. Contained the election returns from Coulterville for the 1858 election. Within the year, Maxwell Creek changed its name to Coulterville.
No. 895
Sent from Michigan Bar, California, to Ed Quackenbosh in San Francisco.
No. 896
Sent from Michigan Bar, California, to Rev. G. S. Phillips in Sacramento. Dated July 1857. Dated July 1857.
No. 897
Sent from Millerton, California, to Y. I. W. Cornett in Santa Clara.
Photograph of the old stores in Coulterville, California, 1930s.
Panel 143
Letters from Monroeville, Montezuma, Monterey, Moore’s Flat, and Mountain Ranch.
No. 898
Sent from Michigan Bluff, California, to John Forbes in East River, Nova Scotia. Dated May 1856.
No. 899
Sent from Michigan Bluff, California, with “private papers.” Addressed first to Henry D. Paine in Albany, New York. Later corrected and sent to Augustin W. Hob. Taken by steamer on March 5, 1858.
No. 900
Sent from Milpitas, California, to Edwin C. Gould, the Postmaster at Fort Lyon in what was then called the Colorado Territory. Taken through Denver City, and dated February 4, 1863.
No. 901
Sent from Mission San Jose, California, to Mrs. Jane Harbaugh in Waterloo, Illinois.
No. 902
Sent from Mokelumne Hill, California, to Lizzie Kilton in Grafton, New Hampshire.
No. 903
Sent from Mokelumne Hill, California, to Maria Smiley in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
No. 904
Sent from Mokelumne Hill, California, to Mrs. Julia Ann Baker in Meriden [Meridian], New Hampshire.
No. 905
Sent from Mokelumne Hill, California, to Mrs. Farah Chamberlin in Franklin, New York.
No. 906
Sent from Mokelumne Hill, California, to Ambrosio Reynolds in Ledyard, Connecticut.
Photograph of Senator Stanford’s house in Michigan Bluff, California, 1930s.
Panel 144
Letters from Monroeville, Montezma, Monterey, Moore’s Flat, and Mountain Ranch.
No. 907
Sent from Monroeville, California, to “Wm. B. Ide, Judge of Colsi County, concerning certificate of time of appointment of John S. Hughes as Judge.” Forwarded from “Vellijo” to Sacramento.
No. 908
Sent from Montezuma, California, to J. W. Mandeville in Sacramento. On the reverse is a seal from G. F. Nesbitt in New York.
No. 909
Sent from Monterey, California, and addressed to Van Voorhies in San Francisco, but forwarded to San Jose. Inside is a letter dated February 17, 1851, from Preston K. Woodside, a clerk in Monterey County, requesting copies of the statutes since the county never received full copies.
No. 910
Sent from Monterey, California, to Hiram O. Miller at the “Pueblo” of San Jose in upper California. Dated May 16, 1851.
No. 911
Sent from Monterey, California, to Secretary of State of California Van Voorhies in San Jose. Inside is a letter dated May 14, 1851, from P. K. Woodside, a clerk in Monterey County. He writes, “I have noticed in the Public Prints that the Legislature have passed some act relating to the old archives now under my charge in the county clerks office. I had previously represented to … our senator from this district the necessity of the passage of a law appropriating a sufficient sum to defray the expense of properly assorting, arranging and indexing these papers, which I should think could not properly be performed by any save under my own supervision…”
No. 912
Sent from Monterey, California, to Secretary of State J. W. Denver in Benicia. Inside is a letter dated June 15, 1853 from state legislator W. P. Hartuell concerning “the remained of the laws referred to in your last communication have not as yet come to hand.” He adds “I am progressing as fast as possible with the translation of the law already received, and shall in due time attend to your instructions.”
No. 913
Sent from Monterey, California, to Ellen Tuck in Hallowell, Maine.
No. 914
Sent from Moore’s Flat, California, now a ghost town. Formerly it was known as Clinton. Sent to Hiram Manter in West Mills, Maine.
No. 915
Sent from Mountain Ranch, California, to W. I. Dakin in Mokelumne Hill, California.
Photograph of Haggerty’s Store in Moore’s Flat, California, 1930s.
Panel 145
Letters from Mountain View, Mount Ophir, Mt. Bullion, Mud Springs, and Murphy’s.
No. 916
Sent from Mountain View, California, to Thomas Cleary in Mitchellville, Iowa.
No. 917
Sent from Mount Ophir, California, to J. B. Campbell in Mariposa.
No. 918
Sent from Mt. Bullion, California, to Miss Phebe A. Holcomb at Jenny Lind.
No. 919
Sent from “Mud Springs,” California. In 1857 this town changed its name to El Dorado. Sent to Miss Eliza W. Wright in Owensboro, Kentucky.
No. 920
Sent from Exeter, New Hampshire, to Murphy’s Camp, California. There it was forwarded to San Francisco. Inside is letter dated July 19, 1853 to Gardiner Gilman from his brother. The letter explains why the letter was misdirected. In a previous letter Gardiner said he was going to go to Murphy’s Camp. He even asked for advice from his distant brother who responded: “I cannot of course say anything as to the fortune of Murphy’s Camp, as to what it can offer for an enterprising man.” He did add that based on what he had heard, “Life in Cala as a general fact is not one of such stability and depth of purpose. The interest seems to be contained in the present moment.” Besides sharing stories of friends and family, Gardiner’s brother also wrote “Our nursery is flourishing and duly cared for. The cherry trees have done themselves credit this year. I could have wished you might have enjoyed their products with us at home.”
No. 921
Sent from Hinsdale, Massachusetts, to H. A. Messenger in California. Although originally sent to Murphy’s it was forwarded to Campo Seco.
No. 922
Sent from Murphy’s, California, to Lewis Bly in Central Square, New York.
No. 923
Sent from Murphy’s, California, to Sarah Pellet in San Francisco.
No. 924
Sent from Murphy’s, California, to A. R. Wheat in North Branch, an early mining camp in Calaveras County.
Photograph of Trabucco’s store at Mt. Bullion, California, 1930s.
Panel 146
Letters from Mormon Island, Newtown, Napa City, and Newcastle.
No. 925
Sent from Mormon Island, California, to M. D. Fairchild in San Jose in 1854.
No. 926
Sent from Mormon Island, California, to Charles F. Irwin in Placerville.
No. 927
Sent from Newtown, California, to Michael Greary at 326 Montgomery Street, San Francisco.
No. 928
Sent from McKinney, California, by the Sherriff of Sonoma on March 27, 1850. Addressed to P. H. Burnett. In December 1849, Burnett became the first elected civilian governor of California. Burnett resigned after serving only a year in office, but during that time California went from a territory to a U.S. state.
No. 929
Sent from Napa City, California, to the State Comptroller, J. S. Houston in 1851. It includes the unique address “San Jose or Vallejo!! or God Knows where, Cala.” The capital of California moved three times in three years, which caused confusion and frustration for many trying to reach state officials.
No. 930
Sent from Napa, spelled “Nappa City,” California, to J. M. Mandeville in Sacramento.
No. 931
Sent from Napa (spelled “NA PA City”), California, to G. S. Phillips in Santa Clara in 1859.
No. 932
Sent from Council Bluffs, Iowa, to Miss Sue A. Patton. Originally addressed to Napa City, California, and then forwarded to Danville.
No. 933
Sent from Newcastle, California, to Mrs. S. Richardson at Newton, Massachusetts in 1866.
Photograph of Pilot Hill, California, 1930s.
Panel 147
Letters from Nevada City, Nicolaus, and North San Juan.
No. 934
Sent from Nevada City, California, to Peter H. Burnett in San Jose. This letter was sent in 1850, when Burnett served as the first Governor of the State of California.
No. 935
Sent from Nevada City, California, to Miss Mary Bell in “County Clair.”
No. 936
Sent from Nevada City, California, to Kentucky. Inside is a letter written on May 24, 1852, from Samuel B. to his wife. He wrote of recently arriving in the area and plans to find a claim and start prospecting. Realizing how unusual he must look he pointed out that “If you could see us with our long boots on and pick axes shovel on our backs you would laugh.” He described the new people he met: “There are quite a number here and all they want is to gamble and drink…” To keep in contact with his wife he gave clear instructions on how to address future letters to him. He instructed “And you with the rest can direct to Grassvalley just as you always has directed and when we go from here we shall put our names on the express list and have them sent up to us that will be the best way for us to get our letters.”
No. 937
Sent from Nevada City, California, to Ashbel West in Sardinia, New York.
No. 938
Sent from Nevada City, California, to Mary Baker in Dartmouth, Massachusetts.
No. 939
Sent from Nevada City, California, to Oliver Barnum in Shoreham, Vermont.
No. 940
Sent from Nevada City, California, to Frederic Shaw at 438 South Marshal Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dated September 4, 1858.
No. 941
Sent from Nicolaus, California, to the Secretary of State J. W. Denver in Sacramento City. Inside is a letter dated July 13, 1854, from the County Clerk of Sutter County writing to confirm that he received recent reports delivered by Adams and Co. Express.
No. 942
Sent from North San Juan, California, to C. C. Thacker in Cattaraugus, New York. Dated December 25, 1860.
Photograph of “The Castle” at Nevada City, California, 1930s.
Panel 148
Letters from North Branch, Onion Valley, Oregon House, Oro Fino, Ophirville, Oroville, and Pacheco.
No. 943
Sent from North Branch, California, to Mrs. James Carey in San Francisco.
No. 944
Sent from North Branch, California, to Rosborough and Berry in Yreka.
No. 945
Sent from Onion Valley, California, to John B. Overton, the Clerk of the District Court at Quincy. Originally, it contained a deposition from Robert A Clark. Dated June 30, 1868.
No. 946
Sent from Oregon House, California, to Miss Lizzie M. Glick in Mount Carmel, Illinois. Received July 26, 1851.
No. 947
Sent from Oro Fino, California, to Jack Tibbetts in Santa Rosa.
No. 948
Sent from the California mining camp of Ophirville, later known as Ophir. Addressed to Elizabeth Crumbaker in Eastplainfield, Ohio, likely Plainfield today.
No. 949
Sent from Oroville, California, to Lucy H. Lors in Passfield, New Hampshire. Dated July 3, 1859.
No. 950
Sent from Pacheco, California, to Ebenezer Abbott in East Corinth, Vermont.
Photograph of a marker for the infamous robber known as Black Bart, near Oroville, California, 1930s.
Panel 149
Letters from Paradise, Parks Bar, Patterson, Phillips Flat, Petaluma, and Pilot Hill.
No. 951
Sent from Paradise, California, to Elias Ross “or any member of the family” in Murphy’s Camp. The letter contains a return address for W. J. Houston, a shop in Paradise City.
No. 952
Sent from Park’s Bar, California, to William Crapo in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Dated February 3, 1856. Within 3 years, the town no longer existed.
No. 953
Sent from Patterson, California, to Mrs. Frederic Shaw in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Inside is a letter dated May 13, 1856 from Frederick to his wife: “I feel sorry Mary did not suit at the laundry but I know she did as well as she could. You spoke of going to do the work in her place. I do not know how you could leave home. I feel so sorry my poor family are so badly situated as to require such terrible sacrifices but I have strong hopes they will not be much longer necessary.” He added that he would “send you money as I can have no peace until I do. I feel assured I shall now do well in California.”
No. 954
Sent from Patterson, California, to John Grant in Pictor, Nova Scotia. Dated February 4, 1858.
No. 955
Sent from Phillips Flat, California, to B. B. Harris in Mariposa. Dated March 30, 1858.
No. 956
Sent from Rev. Hunter in Petaluma, California, to Rev. G. S. Phillips in Santa Clara. Dated July 19, 1860.
No. 957
Sent from Petaluma, California, to Andrea Tola Filippo in Locarno, Switzerland. Dated December 24, 1873.
No. 958
Sent from Pilot Hill, California, to Rev. George S. Phillips in Sacramento. Dated December 25, 1856.
No. 959
Sent from Pilot Hill, California, to Sacramento.
Photograph of Bailey House near Pilot Hill, California, 1930s.
Panel 150
Letters from Placerville, Pleasant Springs, Poverty bar, Punta Arenas, Quartsburg, and Quincy.
No. 960
Sent from Placerville, California, to Joseph Freelove in Fall River, Massachusetts. Dated July 1, 1856.
No. 961
Sent from Placerville, California, to Miss Jane Conner in South Bristol, Wisconsin. On display is part of the elaborately decorated letter written by Hiram Tasmin Conner to his sister. He included a poem, “When this you see, Remember me…” The rest of letter described his life in California and possible plans to go to Australia: “I am at work for four dollars per day and board myself. I have got to be one of the top sheff koaks. I can make a pie as good as I want to eat. It costs me $4 a week for board. You said that you had not had a letter from me but I have written four to you… I sent you a piece of gold of my digging out, I hope you will get that. I do not know when I shall get back home for I think of going to Australia in the fall if I do well.”
No. 962
Sent from Placerville, California, to Rev. G. S. Phillips in Sacramento. Dated August 1857.
No. 963
Sent from Pleasant Springs, California, to James Mandeville in Columbia.
No. 964
Sent from Poverty Bar, California, to Hiram Messenger in Murphy’s.
No. 965
Sent from Punta Arenas, California, to William Chapman in San Francisco. Dated October 29, 1866.
No. 966
Sent from Punta Arenas, California, to W. P. Chapman in San Francisco. Dated November 11, 1867.
No. 967
Sent from Quartsburg, California, to the County Clerk in Mariposa. Note reads: “Election Returns Quartzburg Precinct, I do hereby certify that I received the election returns from the inspection and that it has passed thro’ no other hands D.M. Pool P.M.”
No. 968
Sent from Quincy, California, by the Overland Mail to J. J. Houn in Georgetown, Kentucky. Inside is a partial letter dated March 2, 1860. The letter starts, “My son I am at a loss to know what…”
