Chamber members debate need for junior college in 1920
On Oct. 15, 1920, Eureka Chamber of Commerce members attended a debate about whether Humboldt County needed a new junior college or should just expand the Humboldt State Normal School in Arcata, which was a teacher’s college at the time.
According to the Humboldt Times on that day, George Jensen, a local high school principal, took a stance against a new school and instead appealed for expansion of the existing college.
University of California graduate Frank Georgeson countered by telling chamber members that “a number of junior colleges are needed at once to take care of the first-two-year courses of the universities, which are being crowded to capacity.”
After the presentation, chamber member Charles Duck volunteered to contribute $500 toward the purchase of land for a new college, but a chamber of commerce committee decided to table the discussion for the time being.
According to the College of the Redwoods website, the Redwoods Community College District was formed in January 1964 by an election of the voters of Humboldt County. A bond issue of $3,600,000 was passed for the initial construction of what is now the college’s Eureka Campus.
Other news from the week of Oct. 15 to 21, 1920, included:
The Oct. 16, 1920 Humboldt Times reported that the last 1,000-foot stretch of the newly paved highway between Eureka and Fields Landing had been opened by the state’s highway engineers.
Also on that day, amid a heavy rainstorm, power was turned off on the east side of Eureka so crews working on the light and power company lines at Fourth and G streets could finish their work without endangering their lives, the newspaper said.
A day later, on Oct. 17, 1920,
shipping was tied up by rough waters from the storm. Crewmembers from the steamer Washington — which had a reputation for “rarely ever halting” due to harsh seas — stood by for several hours waiting for a chance to get out past the bar before deciding to turn back. The oil tanker Whittier also tried to make a crossing, but gave up.
According to the Humboldt Times, the Vanguard, Wilmington, Whittier, Washington and the British bark Gladbrook were all loaded and ready for sea, but crew from all those vessels refused to take a chance on the bar until the water calmed.
On Oct. 19, 1920, the Humboldt Times reported that seven quart bottles of wine, one five-gallon demijohn, one keg of wine and one flask of “powerful” homemade brandy fell into the hands of Deputy Collector Reid of the Internal Revenue Department when the Dante restaurant on Second Street in Eureka was raided.
A. Volpi and A. Nannini were arrested for having the liquor in their possession and a warrant was issued for the arrest of V. Baronti, owner of the Dante restaurant, according to the newspaper.
The Oct. 20, 1920 Humboldt Times said that the Hippodrome Theatre, a new playhouse in Eureka owned by Richard Sweasey, was set to open on Nov. 25 as long as a heating plant could be installed by then. A pipe organ and theater seats were in storage and would be put in place once the building was ready to go.
The Humboldt Times said, “The interior decorating has been completed and is as fine as can be found in any theater in San Francisco. The color scheme has been carefully worked out and applied by L. Brusatori, a graduate of fine art of the Royal Academy of Milan, Italy.”
An article in the Oct. 21, 1920 Humboldt Times started with one short sentence: “Hayfork is saved!” The newspaper went on to say: “The little village, which was to be given away by the Department of the Interior, was given another lease on life yesterday when a second map of Trinity County was received from Washington by the local U.S. Land Office. While there is not 6,000 acres of government land in this section open to homesteaders, as was originally announced, there will be between 3,000 and 4,000 acres available Dec. 3.”
Ex-servicemen would get first dibs on the land, and then the remaining land would open to anyone interested in homesteading in the Hayfork region. Some people who traveled to the area, however, told the Humboldt Times that the land was not adapted to agriculture, and was almost entirely hilly with little or no water.