Dear Mad'm by StellaW. Patterson Archives

Siskiyou Pioneer for the year is Grenada History!

July 19, 2016 Judy Bushy Leave a comment

by Judy Bushy
The County Museum in Yreka has had beautiful wedding apparel on display and the Outdoor Museum grand Re-opening recently. What a pleasant surprise at the Museum last week! While I stopped by to pick up some information for a friend doing research, they asked whether it was the book I’d come for. Not having received the letter in the mail, or e-mail yet, hadn’t realized the book was ready. The Siskiyou Pioneer. Each year for the past seventy or so years, the Siskiyou County Historical Society has put out an annual book about the history of some area of the county This year is “Grenada: The first 100 years from 1916 – 2016.”

The first part included previously unpublished articles from the research files of the Siskiyou County Historical Society as well as articles submitted by local authors. Then there are selections scanned from the 1959 Siskiyou Pioneer, a photo gallery, advertisement and information on the Society and museum volunteers and memorials. I’m so glad that they also include an index so I’m able to locate a photo of freight teams in Happy Camp on page 73, the information that a trail spur (railroad) east off the main line was put in to serve a business called the Happy Camp Lumber Company with plans for a mill and planer. The other account was when the first airplanes to land in Siskiyou County came from Los Angeles on the way to Seattle June 8, 1919. Mr. Harlow got them to land in a field south of Grenada. This caused quite a stir and people came all over the county, and “came by wagon and buggy from as far as Sawyers Bar and Happy Camp , taking three days for the journey each way. “

The fascinating thing about looking in to the past history is that for every new interesting information you find, it seems that it opens up more questions. Don’t know if Happy Camp Lumber came to be, but since it was 81.6 miles from Happy Camp and it would take 1 hour and 43 minutes to get there, I wonder if it was a Happy Camp business, or just made use of the name. Perhaps someone can tell us who remembers Happy Camp Lumber Company from 60 years ago.
We are doing research on the characters in the book “Dear Mad’m. In the story, Stella W. Patterson moves to a rustic miner’s cabin down on the Klamath River when she is 80, which would be 1946, this provides our time frame. Dear Mad’m was published as a magazine serial after her death in December 23, 1955 and the book came out in first American printing that spring, followed by international versions and numerous reprinting. Stella’s story is kept alive now by the paperback book published by Barbara Brown of Naturegraph Publishers in Happy Camp.

Stella left us the memory of her friends and neighbors who lived the simple life deep within the Klamath River valley west of Happy Camp. The world outside doesn’t know “Dear Sir” as Fred Mesner, who took his stepfather’s name of Crooks, “Up n Up” as Clarence “Sy”Jensen, and the mystery of his wife “Nora” in the story , who may have been Laura, continues. “Millicent” as a young girl Arlene Oates who became Mrs. Lee W. Joslin. It is fun to know the characters that Stella shared with us. Come to the Dear Mad’m Symposium at the Yreka Siskiyou County Historical Society October 15th at 12:30 to learn more about the history of this celebrity that lived a quiet life along the Klamath River seventy years ago and still brings fans to see the site these days!!

Her garden was an important part of her life in the cabin on the Klamath River, and she may have just ordered groceries out of Happy Camp, but she poured over European nursery offerings for her garden! Gardening is just as important to many of the residents of the Klamath River area where we live. There is also a Community Garden that is north of the Happy Camp Union Elementary School and community volunteers are being requested. They need tommato cages, fertilizer and lots of stuff, not the least of which is volunteers to weed and spend time helping the garden with their green thumbs! Give Lisa Bousfield a message or call and she can direct your assistance to the proper channels.

Touring back in time – Karuk Reunion musings

June 29, 2016 Judy Bushy Leave a comment

By Judy Bushy

It was at the Karuk Reunion that I had the pleasure of meeting Huddleston Oakes! Huddleston grew up Down River with his sister. His sister, Arlene, was the young girl who visited Stella in Dear Mad’m. What fun to talk with him about her! He said he didn’t hang around them much because of the Ladies there, well, he would have to behave!! He is listed, with Arlene in the 1939 Methodist Church rolls too. Their neighbors were the Southards mentioned by Re. Dr. Leon L. Loofbourow who was a circuit riding Methodist preacher who came and encouraged the building of the Log Church in Happy Camp which is the Bible Church now!! His mother, Virginia Effman Oakes, (and later added Anderson) wrote newspaper articles. Before my day, Debbie Wilkinson and Hazel Davis Gendron also wrote articles. It was also happy news to hear that he can read Klamath Views in Weed!

Huddleston had come for the Reunion, of course, with his son and others of his family, but he agreed to take time to give us a tour after lunch. Pauline (Sis) Atteberry and Jeanne Burrer were also at lunch, and Buster Atteberry stopped by as well. Buster mentioned that his Dad often spoke of childhood fun they shared and “Hud” recalled a fishing trip with him. Buster also mentioned that his dad’s first job was to sweep out the schoolhouse at Ferry Point and for that chore he received $8 a month.

Later, Huddleston and his son showed us where he had lived as a child, west of his grandmother’s place, and where another cabin was that they raised chickens to sell. We stopped by the Southard graves and recognized some names from Happy Camp history. We saw where Buster’s Dad had lived as a child before the family moved to Happy Camp for high school. We saw the site of the old one room schoolhouse. The most fun, of course, is to hear the stories of the people who used to live there.

Someone once came by and asked Mr. Southard how far his property went, and he replied, “See that Winchester there, about as far as it can shoot!”

Pete, the mailman, that brought Stella Patterson to the Dear Mad’m cabin in 1946, also used to give Huddleston a ride down to Ti-Bar. It was a great afternoon hearing about those days when every creek had a miner’s cabin or even some cabins where there was only a spring or they had to pack water.

We went back to the Reunion as there were more old time friends and family still to visit with. But he left us wishing we knew more about the Hastings brothers, Taylor’s Ranch, and those characters who lived down where Tinkum Creek met Titus Creek to flow into the Klamath and Robert E. Lee Southard and his family had their cabin.

When I got home and opened the computer, a quote popped up in bold black letters on a bright yellow background.” When you are young your grandparents try to tell you their history, and you don’t care because it doesn’t interest you at the time Later on, you wish you had written what they said down.” (Quote by Lillian Trujillo.) It isn’t likely that we really don’t care, but we are too busy. Too bushy to listen. Too busy to sit and hear all the stories, and we think that we will someday, later. But sometimes, we keep so busy and don’t have time, until there is no one left to tell us the stories and we have lost a priceless treasure! Take time today.

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