Sarah Winnemucca - Advocate and Author by Nancy J. Farrier

Sarah Winnemucca, daughter of Chief Winnemucca, granddaughter of Chief Truckee (Chief of the whole Piute Nation), spent her adult life making people aware of the plight of her people. During her life, she worked as an educator, military scout and interpreter, and advocate of Native American Rights. Her book, Life Among the Piutes, by Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins, published in 1883, details the treatment of her people at the hands of the government. (For research, I started reading her book and couldn't put it down.)

Born sometime in 1844, Sarah was given the name, Thocmetony, which means shell flower. In her early years in Northern Nevada, the Paiutes and Washos were the only people inhabiting the area. Sarah talks in her book about the spring Festival of the Flowers where all the girls who had flower names would search to see if their flower was in bloom. They would gather the flowers and make wreaths, crowns or scarves to wear as they danced. As they walked, or danced, they would sing to themselves. The young men would often dance alongside them, especially if they were a sweetheart.

Shell Flower

Here is what Sarah would sing: “I, Sarah Winnemucca, am a shell-flower, such as I wear on my dress. My name is Thocmetony. I am so beautiful! Who will come and dance with me while I am so beautiful? Oh, come and be happy with me! I shall be beautiful while the earth lasts. Somebody will always admire me; and who will come and be happy with me in the Spirit-land? I shall be beautiful forever there. Yes, I shall be more beautiful than my shell-flower, my Thocmetony! Then, come, oh come, and dance and be happy with me!” (Life Among the Piutes, pg. 43)
. 

She recalls the time when her grandfather, Chief Truckee, first saw white people entering their land. His excitement can be seen in his recorded words, “My white brothers, — my long-looked for white brothers have come at last!” Chief Truckee’s gestures of peace were ignored and despite trying many times to extend friendship to the white people, he finally gave up, hoping the next party to come through would be friendlier. His hope came true in following years when Captain Fremont and his troops accepted his friendship. Chief Truckee and his men helped fight in the Bear War to defeat the Mexican army and win California for the United States of America.

When Sarah first accompanied her grandfather to California at age six, she was frightened of the new things she encountered: beds, chairs, unusual food, bright-colored dishes. Her grandfather insisted that Sarah and her sister become members of Major Ormsby’s household when Sarah turned thirteen. By fourteen, Sarah had acquired five languages. At sixteen, Sarah and her sister, Elma, attended a convent school in San Jose, CA—a request her grandfather made on his deathbed. The sisters weren’t allowed into the school officially, but Sarah continued to learn. 

Lewis Hopkins, Sarah's Husband

In 1872, Sarah went to Washington D.C. to speak out on behalf of her people, who were suffering injustices at the hand of Indian Agents on the reservation. In 1880, she again pleaded their cause before the Secretary of the Interior and President Rutherford B. Hayes. She gave more than 400 speeches on behalf of her people. 

In her book, Sarah says the following of her grandfather, “I can imagine his feelings, for I have drank deeply from the same cup. When I think of my past life, and the bitter trials I have endured, I can scarcely believe I live, and yet I do ; and, with the help of Him who notes the sparrow's fall, I mean to fight for my down-trodden race while life lasts.” She lived out this desire to the best of her ability.

I am amazed that such a young girl learned languages so quickly and had such determination. How about you? Do you speak more than one language? Have you ever given a speech or spoken for a cause you felt strongly about?

Nancy J Farrier is an award-winning, New York Times best-selling author who lives in Southern Arizona in the Sonoran Desert. She loves the Southwest with its interesting historical past. When Nancy isn’t writing, she loves to read, do needlecraft, play with her cats and dog, and spend time with her family. You can read more about Nancy and her books on her website: nancyjfarrier.com.

The Original Town of Washington, California by Denise M. Colby

County map of California, 1860, by S.A. Mitchell, Jr., Atlas map

There was a town called Washington located across the Sacramento River from Sacramento City. It was never officially recorded and the town became later known as Broderick, a suburb of West Sacramento.

Early History

It originally was a land grant from the Mexican Governor to John Schwartz. John had built a shack along the river six miles south of where the American and Sacramento Rivers converge. He and his brother had established a salmon fishery there, then expanded to raising livestock and growing potatoes and melons.

The 600 acres was purchased by James McDowell in 1846 (before the Gold Rush in 1848). He and his wife, Margaret, and their three daughters (I’ve also read there were five children in a different report) lived there. James died by being shot in a saloon brawl in 1849.

In order to survive, Margaret McDowell took in boarders, but it wasn’t enough. Then she realized how valuable her land was. She hired a surveyor to map out 160 acres, which was then divided into 41 blocks. She named it the Town of Washington. Rumor has it she formed the town on Washington’s birthday and thus the name. Since there wasn’t an official registry, it’s possible she named it on the day of sale for the first plot, which sold for $500.

On it’s way to longevity in the 1850s

Whatever the date, the Town of Washington thrived for more than ten years. Businesses included a shipping company, hotels, saloons, restaurants. Fishing and farming were a staple as well. Washington was the pivotal destination from Sacramento for those traveling further west, or for those traveling East before crossing the river to Sacramento.

The Pony Express would deliver their parcels to Sacramento, then put it on a barge that traveled down river to San Francisco. On the few occasions they would miss the barge, they would travel by ferry to Washington, then follow the established wagon trail route from Washington down to Vallejo (I actually use this route in my 3rd book No Plan at All). 

It’s been said that a town is official once it establishes a post office. Washington gained one in April 1854, but it burnt down two years later and was never rebuilt. They had to go to Sacramento to get their mail after that. On a side bar, there is another town called Washington (located northeast of Sacramento in Yuba County) formed in 1850 (and most likely recorded). This other Washington is only 1.9 square miles and received a post office in 1862. I’m making an assumption here, but it is probably the reason Margaret’s Town of Washington never had a new post office because no two towns named the same can have a federal post office. When the town was renamed to Broderick, then it received a new post office in 1893.

Margaret (now with her third husband) donated land to form a school district in 1856. Named the Washington Unified School District, which still exists today.

Factors causing Washington to falter in the 1860s

The area flooded. I wrote about this in an earlier post about all the flooding in Sacramento. This caused the government to move several times between San Francisco and Sacramento. In 1851, the county seat (now called Yolo County) was relocated from Fremont to Washington. And for the next ten years, Washington was positioned to be considered for it permanently. Unfortunately the massive flood of 1862 (which caused Sacramento to “raise” their streets) made those voting for a permanent location to shy away from Washington, and they chose Woodland instead.

On top of that, Washington couldn't afford to raise their streets to prevent flooding like Sacramento did. They had to endure the flooding year after year (which I believe became worse once Sacramento raised its streets.

The final step in causing Washington’s demise was the railway bridge built in 1870. A train depot was built in 1868 in Washington which increased the amount of visitors and travelers. During this time, the only way to travel to Sacramento on this side of the river was by ferry. This made Washington a pivotal spot for travel by train from San Francisco, then ferry over to Sacramento to pick up the train there and vice versa.

 

1869 advertisement for train travel through Washington

(note that it was considered Sacramento)

However, there was so much competition between the railways that one rail company decided to build a railway bridge across the river in 1870. The tolls on the bridge ended up being cheaper than the ferry ride. This diverted traffic away from the town. Because passengers could now ride direct to Sacramento, they ended up bypassing Washington, and what was once a booming town filled with travelers, now saw a steady decline. 

All of these things impacted property values in the once-thriving community of Washington. In one report I read—it didn’t survive.

The community did to some extent, and it was renamed Broderick before the turn of the century. Then in early 1900 it was merged with two other communities to form what was called East Yolo, which then ultimately became the City of West Sacramento.

As I searched for a location to place my fictional town, I stumbled onto this settlement and it’s crazy history and it’s almost claim to fame. I think the words in the original research ‘did not survive’ had me wanting to form a fictional town with a different outcome. But I also didn’t want to confuse people with the name Washington since a Washington, California still exists today. So in honor of this small town, I chose the name Washton (and had my townspeople call it that as an abbreviated form of Washington).

I have loved finding old maps and studying the area. You can see the train tracks on this current map where the train depot in Washington once sat.

 

Current Google map showing once was Washington (across river from Sacramento)

the red circle highlights the train tracks built for the Washington depot 

With each story, I have expanded my town a bit or the surrounding area building on what I first started. In my fictional town there is currently one main street, one schoolhouse, one church, and the ranches north of town raise cows.

 

Best-laid Plans Series

Three young women. One new beginning. A journey of faith, friendship, and unexpected love. It’s 1869 and three young women travel to Sacramento, California, ready to begin new lives as teachers in the rural one-room schoolhouses of the West. But the plans they carefully laid soon give way to something far greater. As God gently redirects their paths, each woman discovers lessons in friendship, faith, and trust—and encounters the most surprising gift of all: love. (No Plan at all is a prequel story with side characters.)

 

Denise M. Colby writes historical romance sweetened with faith, hope, and love. She finds history fascinating and contemplates often how it was to live in the 1800's. Her debut novel, When Plans Go Awry, is a 2025 Carol Award finalist. Sign up for her newsletter at

www.denisemcolby.com or follow Denise on Facebook, Instagram, Bookbub, Pinterest, or GoodReads.

The Historic Sacramento One-Room Schoolhouse by Denise M. Colby

 

The one-room schoolhouse in Sacramento, California is a wonderful museum that sheds light on how schoolrooms operated in the 1800s.

At one time, fourth grade classes could sit in a reenactment. I was fortunate to attend it twice with m first two son's field trip. One was inside the actual schoolhouse, another was underneath the city (I wrote about how Sacramento built on top of itself in last months post).

In both instances, they had all the kids sit through a lesson as it would’ve been taught in the 1860s. Boys on one side, girls sat on the other. If you answered a question, a student must stand. Reciting was a main part of the lesson. There was even a dunce cap in the corner.

 

My son's class sitting in the one-room schoolhouse

 

In these two photos the teacher is showing the boys how to stand and bow appropriately

 

It really was an immersive experience.

And is quite a special memory. My writing journey began here, on that first field trip. Even though I had visited multiple times, this visit to Old Town Sacramento and the one-room schoolhouse birthed an idea. But it wasn’t until the second trip with my second son, did I actually act on it.

What would it be like to be a teacher during that era? How did she keep order? Implement the discipline?

 

 What a schoolteacher would've worn during this time.

The setup on our visit included tables with era related things to purchase. One sheet highlighted all the rules a teacher must follow including how to cut the pencil tips. Other instructions included:

 

These rules were posted on the wall inside the schoolhouse

Another parchment listed out how many lashings a student would receive for any of the following infractions. When you read this list, you realize that many of these rules wouldn’t fly today.

 

The schoolroom is a permanent fixture in Old Town Sacramento. Recently I learned that they have not been doing the reenactment classes since COVID. That’s a shame, as I believe the hands on experience gives students an example of how different people lived over a century ago. 

At least they can still visit the classroom and learn about it from the docents who still work it. 

 

 

Best-laid Plans Series

Three young women. One new beginning. A journey of faith, friendship, and unexpected love. It’s 1869 and three young women travel to Sacramento, California, ready to begin new lives as teachers in the rural one-room schoolhouses of the West. But the plans they carefully laid soon give way to something far greater. As God gently redirects their paths, each woman discovers lessons in friendship, faith, and trust—and encounters the most surprising gift of all: love. (No Plan at all is a prequel story with side characters.)

 

Denise M. Colby writes historical romance sweetened with faith, hope, and love. She finds history fascinating and contemplates often how it was to live in the 1800's. Her debut novel, When Plans Go Awry, is a 2025 Carol Award finalist. Sign up for her newsletter at

www.denisemcolby.com or follow Denise on Facebook, Instagram, Bookbub, Pinterest, or GoodReads.

 

Sacramento, California Origins and How They Dealt with Floods by Denise M. Colby

I’m very excited to be joining the HHH blog. I’ve been a follower for many years because I love history. Now I will be contributing each month and I couldn’t be more ecstatic. As this is my first blog post, I wanted to share a little about myself, and why I chose this as my first topic.

My name is Denise M. Colby. Born and raised a Californian, I was fortunate to travel up and down this vast state as both a child and adult visiting musuems and towns learning about our rich history. I currently live in southern California, but grew up in the northern part of the state near the state capital of Sacramento, which is where my stories are set.

I love visiting Old Town Sacramento as it feels like a page out of the history books. Even as a kid, I found the stories about why the boardwalks were so high off the ground fascinating. So I thought I would start with a little Sacramento, California history and the flooding the city endured early on.


Sacramento Origins

John Sutter established the original Sacramento city in 1839. He picked the location for his trade business because it was situated near a massive river, making it perfect for trade. The city grew quickly, partially due to the Gold Rush.

Because it was a booming city, it became the state capital in 1854, after going back and forth between San Jose, Vallejo, Benicia (due to flooding and other reasons). Later it moved for one year to San Francisco (due to more flooding) before a more permanent resolution took place in 1863.

a post from the Sacramento History Museum's Instragrams page highlights the 1862 flood that prompted change

(and moved the government to San Francisco for the rest of the year)

Flooding was a problem

The river (called The Sacramento River) flooded several times (1850, 1852, and 1862) wiping out the city each time. They rebuilt, but they couldn’t afford it to flood again. So they came up with several ideas on how to fix the problem.

The main solution? Build up.

And that’s exactly what they did. A massive project which never had been done before. They started with the streets and boardwalks, using bricks and filling in the spaces with dirt. A lot of dirt. Thousands of cubic yards of dirt, brought in by the wagon full.

Then they lifted the buildings. Or some of them. They gave building owners options. Lift your building up a floor, or turn your second story into your first floor.

How did they raise a building? Small jacks and a lot of man power. I read a report that it took forty days to raise one building.

For those that didn’t raise their building, the original doors and entryways were covered with brick to seal it up tight so no water would get in. Then those who lifted their building had their first floor even with the second floor of another.

I took this picture on a trip in 2013 - notice the different heights of the buildings

There were other solutions implemented as well including building levees and redirecting the flow of the rivers that fed into the Sacramento River. But I’ll share those details in a future post.

If you are interested, I found a small video snippet from Bartell's Backroads of this history on YouTube titled Sacramento's hidden history.

Visiting Old Town Sacramento today

If you ever have the chance to visit, there are some buildings that are three stories and some that are only two. A complete mix. And because it was done by hand, no two buildings are raised exactly to the same height. Which is why the boardwalks had to be set up so high from the street in some places so that it reached the doorways. This is also the reason you might have to step down into some of the stores as well.

And the doorways? Some of them are quite large. That’s because the buildings that weren’t raised, now had their taller second story doors (that were for ventilation, light, or for moving larger equipment) as their first floor doors. And the wooden boardwalks built in front of the storefronts had to accomodate the highest entryway, so there is a massive step up in some spots.

All in all, it took almost fifteen years to raise the town somewhere between ten and fifteen feet. And all this variety is one of the reasons Old Town has such a unique charm to it. 

Screenshot of the Old Town Map taken from the website years ago (not sure of year and not able to find it today)

I use this to help me figure out streets and buildings in my stories.

Visitors can walk the wooden boardwalks and cobblestone streets and take an underground tour of buildings they’ve dug up and exposed. There’s a lot to see. Taken from the website because it states it best: In the mid-1960s, a plan was set forth to redevelop the area and through it, the first historic district in the West was created. Today, with 53 historic buildings, Old Sacramento has more buildings of historic value condensed into its 28 acres than most areas of similar size in the West. Registered as a National and California Historic Landmark, the properties in the district are primarily owned by private owners, with individual businesses leasing shops and offices.

If you’d like to learn more about old town Sacramento, you can go to the website and look at their page on its history. I’m having fun incorporating many of these historical points (including a fictional flood) in my stories as my characters walk around Sacramento in 1869 and 1870.

When Plans Go Awry - Book 1 in the Best-laid Plans Series

Olivia Carmichael flees her past to become the schoolmarm in the small ranching town of Washton. Luke Taylor chose a mail-order bride to help care for his sisters, but the beautiful new teacher unsettles his carefully laid plans. As Olivia’s resolve is tested and Luke’s expectations unravel, the meddling town—and its infamous rooster—help them discover God’s plans are better than their own.

When Plans Go Awry is a 2025 Carol Award Finalist in the Debut Category.

Denise M. Colby writes historical romance sweetened with faith, hope, and love. She finds history fascinating and contemplates often how it was to live in the 1800’s. Her debut novel, When Plans Go Awry, is a 2025 Carol Award finalist. Sign up for her newsletter at www.denisemcolby.com or follow Denise on Facebook, Instagram, Bookbub, Pinterest, or GoodReads.

10 Facts about the 1872 Owens Valley Earthquake in California

 by Edwina Kiernan

At 2:30am on March 26, 1872, the sleeping town of Lone Pine, California had a rude awakening. The Owens Valley Earthquake was one of the largest Californian earthquakes in recorded history, in which 27 people were killed and 56 were injured. Here are ten facts I discovered as I researched it for my latest book...

1) The quake was felt as far away as Sacramento and Los Angeles.

2) The Diaz family, who had emigrated from Chile in the 1860s, operated a successful cattle ranch until the earthquake hit. A natural spring filled the quake basin, turning the ranch into a lake, named Diaz Lake to this day.

3) At the time of the earthquake, Mt. Whitney was known as Fisherman's Peak.

4) 27 inhabitants of Lone Pine were killed - more than 10% of its population.

5) The quake generated a fault scarp more than 2m tall, with the ground shifting 5m to the right. The scarp can be followed for more than 40 miles north and south of the epicenter. The ground fissures can be followed for more than 225 miles.

Lone Pine fault scarp

6) The earthquake's estimated magnitude was between 7.4 and 7.9.

7) The interest in seismology that this earthquake sparked led to the formation of the first permanent seismic observatories in the United States.

8) Numerous eyewitness accounts survive to this day, including one from the Scottish naturalist, John Muir. He described the shocks as being so violent and so closely following one another that trying to walk was like trying to balance on a ship tossed at sea. He also had an optimistic outlook during the event - part of his account says: "...Though I had never before enjoyed a storm of this sort, the strange, wild thrilling motion and rumbling could not be mistaken, and I ran out of my cabin, near the Sentinel Rock, both glad and frightened, shouting, "A noble earthquake!" feeling sure I was going to learn something." You can read his full account here.

9) A series of aftershocks continued for months afterwards, causing even more buildings to collapse due to their already weakened structures.

10) A number of the victims are buried in a mass grave. It was registered as a California Historical Landmark in 1953, and a new memorial was established in 1988 on the 116th anniversary of the tragedy.

The original marker of the 1872 Lone Pine Earthquake victim's common grave

1988 memorial, detailing some of the victims' names and nationalities

Did You Know?

My new release, Heart of Integrity, features the Owens Valley / Lone Pine earthquake of 1872. Susan and Ifor have each traveled miles across the world to escape their pasts and build new lives. But when a devastating earthquake throws them into a state of upheaval, long-buried secrets soon shake loose with devastating consequences...

Not all fault lines are hidden in the earth...

Find out more here: EdwinaKiernan.com/integrity

About The Author:

Edwina Kiernan is an award-winning author of Christian Historical Romance. She lives in rainy Ireland with her husband and son, and uses her pen to point people to Jesus - the Living Word. She also drinks more types of tea than most people realize even exist. Find out more at EdwinaKiernan.com, and sign up for her weekly newsletter for lots of fun, fiction, freebies and faith.

The History of the Famous Hollywood Sign

By Michelle Shocklee

We've all seen it at some point, either in person, in photographs, or on television. It's probably one of the most famous signs in the entire world. Yep, I'm talking about the nine enormous letters that sit on a hill overlooking Los Angeles, California, that spell out H-O-L-L-Y-W-O-O-D!

Hollywood sign; Free use photo

I remember the first time I saw the sign. I was about ten years old, and my family had traveled from New Mexico to California, with stops at Disneyland, the San Diego Zoo, and Arizona's Grand Canyon One of the most exciting sites for me, however, was the famous Hollywood sign. Why? I have no idea. HA! I suppose it represented a foreign, exciting world to me back then. A world where the rich and famous lived, and where you could see a movie star on every corner. Well, we didn't see any movie stars while we were in California, but I still remember seeing the huge, white letters on the hillside as we drove through Los Angeles in the craziest traffic I'd ever witnessed in my short life.

Yet even though most of us recognize this famous landmark, not everyone is familiar with its history. Let me tell you a fun little tale...

Once upon a time (it was actually 1923, 100 years ago!) a group of real estate developers bought some land in the hills above Los Angeles, California, with the intention of building upscale homes on big lots. One of the investors was Harry Chandler, publisher of the Los Angeles Times. Harry wanted everyone in LA to know about this new housing development called Hollywoodland, but he needed something BIG and EXTRAVAGANT in order to capture the publics attention. Your average advertising billboard simply would not do.

Hollywoodland; Free use photo

Harry hired Crescent Sign Company to create his vision. For $21,000, the company crafted thirteen giant letters, spelling out Hollywoodland. Each letter stood 43 feet tall and was 30 feet wide. But even though the entire sign was over 350 feet long and was visible from up to 15 miles away, Harry wanted to be sure it was seen 24-hours a day. So he had 4,000 lights installed on each letter, along with spotlights shining from below. At night the sign blinked into the darkness: first ‘Holly’, then ‘wood’, and finally ‘land’, punctuated by a giant period. Now everyone could see it!!

Because of its instant popularity, the sign that was supposed to stay on the hill for a year or so, remained in its original location, with blinking lights and all, into the 1930s. In 1933, however, the new owners deemed it too expensive to illuminate, and the power was turned off. Over the next decade the sign began to deteriorate. The "H" was damaged in 1944, either by strong wind or vandalism. By 1949, complaints from residents began to roll in, deeming the sign an eyesore and asking that it be removed.

Enter the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber offered to take over the cost of repairs of the sign, but one thing had to change: the last four letters -- L-A-N-D -- had to be removed. The sign was shortened, repaired, and continued to grow in fame. Sadly, in the 70s, it once again fell into disrepair. This time the public was invited to save the famous landmark. People from the movie industry, famous singers, and businessmen contributed money, raising over $250,000, with each contributor assigned to a letter.

Hollywood sign; Public domain picture

Today, the Hollywood sign continues to draw visitors, although access to it is not easy due to private land that surrounds it. But millions of people, including myself, have been in awe upon seeing it in person for the first time.

Your turn: Have you been to Hollywood and seen the sign? What did you think?

Michelle Shocklee is the author of several historical novels, including Count the Nights by Stars, winner of the 2023 Christianity Today Book Award, and Under the Tulip Tree, a Christy Awards and Selah Awards finalist. Her work has been included in numerous Chicken Soup for the Soul books, magazines, and blogs. Married to her college sweetheart and the mother of two grown sons, she makes her home in Tennessee, not far from the historical sites she writes about. Michelle's next novel, Appalachian Song, releases October 3, 2023, and is available for preorder. Visit her online at www.MichelleShocklee.com

COUNT THE NIGHTS BY STARS
*2023 Christianity Today Book Award Winner*

1961. After a longtime resident at Nashville’s historic Maxwell House Hotel suffers a debilitating stroke, Audrey Whitfield is tasked with cleaning out the reclusive woman’s room. There, she discovers an elaborate scrapbook filled with memorabilia from the Tennessee Centennial Exposition. Love notes on the backs of unmailed postcards inside capture Audrey’s imagination with hints of a forbidden romance . . . and troubling revelations about the disappearance of young women at the exposition. Audrey enlists the help of a handsome hotel guest as she tracks down clues and information about the mysterious “Peaches” and her regrets over one fateful day, nearly sixty-five years earlier.
https://www.tyndale.com/p/count-the-nights-by-stars/9781496459930