Old Time Notes from The Beacon
130 Years Ago Sept. 13, 1890
• Thirty-three years ago Thursday, the proprietor of The Beacon landed in Mendocino. The town since that time has made rapid strides in growth and prosperity, and many important changes have taken place. Although the old settlers are fast passing away, it is gratifying to know that their places can be filled by sons and daughters who will keep a diligent watch for the welfare of the community.
• At the beginning of the week it was discovered that the bay was full of fish which were easy prey, even for the novice fishermen. The news soon spread over the town and in the twinkling of an eye nearly all who could wield a rod were at the scene, and after a few hours’ sport returned with well filled grain sacks of the finny tribe. The fishing commenced Monday, and ever since the bay has presented a most lively appearance. Every available boat was on the water and the beach kept alive with men, women and children handling rods with lines.
• Born — In Mendocino,
September 8, to Mr. and Mrs. Christian Nicolaisen, a son. At Fort Bragg, September 2, to the wife of John Randolph, a daughter.
105 Years Ago Sept. 11, 1915
• On last Thursday evening, Mrs. Ann T. Stickney, a well-known and highly respected pioneer resident of this county passed away, after a long illness at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Annie D. Flowers, at Ukiah.
• A daughter was born to the wife of John Pruett of Fort Bragg on September 8th.
• Pete Nonella of Navarro
Ridge was in town on business last Wednesday. He had just completed threshing his grain crop. He had 700 bushels of black oats, 2500 pounds of field peas and 1400 pounds of wheat.
• Jens C. Ottoson of Comptche is now located in San Francisco, having secured a position as conductor with the California Street Railway Company.
• Mrs. John Q. Brown and daughter, Miss Mamie, will leave on the steamer today for a couple of weeks’ visit to San Francisco and the bay cities.
• Miss Yerta Matson of
Greenwood, a recent graduate from the local high school, left last week for San Jose to enter the Normal School at that place.
• Miss Kathryn Boyle will leave today for San Jose, where she will attend the State Normal School.
75 Years Ago Sept. 8, 1945
• Ukiah’s new airport was formally dedicated on Labor Day. Sixty-eight private planes checked in on the field for the occasion and most of them arrived by Sunday evening when a dinner was served at the municipal park for 200.
• Letters from Robert
Enochs received this week state that he had completed a sea voyage from Pearl Harbor to Saipan, where he is now located, probably temporarily.
• Jim Biaggi is reported to have sold his interest in the Point Arena hotel to Fred Price, who will now be Ao Stornetta’s partner in that hostelry.
• George Decker was here from Comptche Thursday. He had just finished harvesting a field of red oats. This was cut by a small combine which was brought over from Anderson Valley. This is probably the first grain cut in that section with a combine.
• Miss Florence May Hunter passed away at Manchester on August 20. She was 83 years of age at the time of her death and was, indeed, a pioneer of the Mendocino coast, as her entire life had been spent here.
55 Years Ago Sept. 10, 1965
• With this issue the Beacon enters its 88th year.
• A daughter of pioneers, who brought her to the Comptche section when she was only two years old, following her birth in Philadelphia, passed away in a Santa Rosa hospital last Sunday. She was Alice (Docker) Gurley, now at 84, a pioneer in her own right, of California, the daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Wm. E. Docker. Her parents soon after their arrival in this section established themselves with their son and daughter on a timber claim, high above the canyons of Big River on one side and with the valley of Comptche below, which became known as “Docker Hill” noted for its beautiful surroundings and beautiful climate. It has remained in the family throughout the years, and Mrs. Gurley spent a considerable portion of her time there.
• Beginning with this week actual filming of the motion picture, “The Russians Are Coming” got under way, with scenes shooting in this area and this is expected to continue until mid-November. Starring in the movie will be Carl Reiner, Eva Marie Saint, Alan Arkin, Jonathan Winters, Brian Keith, Theodore Bickel, Paul Ford and Ben Blue.
30 Years Ago Sept. 13, 1990
• For six weeks this summer, Mendocino’s Marci Fosse got a little closer to her dream of making it on Broadway. Geographically, she was just a few hundred miles away; artistically, she was on her mark. Fosse was enrolled in a Carnegie Mellon University precollege program in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, studying musical theatre. She and 150 other high school-age students from all over the United States were selected to study a variety of subjects, including drama, art and architecture. A senior at Mendocino High School, Fosse hopes to attend college next fall at an east coast school to help her achieve her ultimate lifetime goal.
• Charles F. Oppenlander died July 29, 1990 of natural causes at Oceanside, California. He was born on July 4, 1899 at Comptche, Ca. His great-grandparents were early pioneers of Comptche coming there in 1865 from Denmark.
• A $1,000 college scholarship has been awarded recently to Sarinda Newell of Mendocino, by the publisher of Who’s Who Among American High School Students. Sarinda will attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was an honor student at Mendocino Community High School and was a member of the marching band, choir, drama, won a third place in the Science Fair, and was a National Merit Scholarship finalist.