Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1888-05-26

congratulate you upon the happy thought of
forming Society, the purpose of which is to
keep verdant the memories of the early placer
mining days, the ennobling recolections of
earnest endeayor, and the strong ties of friend
ship.
Conveying again my sincere thanks for the
honor you have done-all the more appreciated
because unsolicited-presenting congratulations
for the success which has attended the history
OF your Society. ana Looping upon some early
occasion 10 be with you, have the honor 10 re-
main, very sincerely, s. T. GAGE.
SAN Francisco. May %, 1855.
George H. Condee, Esq.-MY DEAR SIR l re-
gret very much that / cannot attend the meet
ing of the ii Dorado Society at Placerville on
May 25th. have to go East in few days and
cannot get away.
l went to FL Dorado county before 1 was
twenty years of age, mined at Cold Springs in
1888 and at Weaver i'll 1854, and then LEFT for
Amador county. My first work in this State
was do2e in El Dorado, and cannot forget,
and l would not forget if could, my early and
toilsome life in that county.
1t was then one of the great mining centers of
the state. No one who was not there can fully
appreciate the early and flush times of FL Do
rado. and yet let me prophesy that new pros
perlty IS soon to dawn upon that county, of
which in the early days we knew nothing, and
even now can hardly comprehend. | refer to
the fruit and farming industries.
Sincerely hoping that your visit to our old
home may be pleasat one, and that the Fl Do
rado of the past may renew much of its old-time
prosperity, remain, sincerely yours:
NJ NJ. ESTEE.
Letters and kilograms of regret were
received from the following: George w.
Thomas San Quentin g. X Smith, Biggs,
n. G. Fassett, San Francisco; Jesse Var
nell, Los Angeles A. G. Searle, San Fran
cisco f. H. Harmon, Eureka, New; w C.
Salmon, Portland Charles W. Barnes,
Austin, Texas; DR.. Obed Harvey, Gait.
HISTORICAL "REMINISCENCES.
N
'49-er, on account of illness, was un able
to attend. He, however, wrote the follow
ing address, which was read by Captain
Alex. P. Murgotten, a Ser;
Old Time Friends and FellotU- Citizens of
El Dorado County: Thinking that as the
Ell Dorado County Society would hold their
fourteenth annual reunion in the city of
Placerville, as the guests of the good citi-
zens OF old FL Dorado county, it occurred
TO me that few events of the early times
of your grand old county would not be un-
interesting, not only to the old boys" but
also to the young and later residents. |
have prepared the following brief sketch,
which l submit with the hope that it may
remind you of the :" olden days
HANGTowN
The origin of the name of Hangtown is
not generally known. 1t arose from the
execution of q white man and two Mexi-
cans in January, 1S49. My informant was
one Prosper Cailloux, Frenchman by
birth, but who had spent the greater por-
ton Of his life in Mexico as a general trader
and who had come to California on learn
ing of the discovery of gold by James w.
Marshall at Coloma on January 10, 1S4S.
This Prosper Cailloux had very close call
for his lite at the hands of two of the three
men that were executed. Cailloux lived in
a log cabin near the junction of Cedar ra-
vine with Hangtown creek. One night he
was awakened by noise and saw standing
at his bedside q Mexican with an uplifted
dagger in one hand and a pistol in the
other, while another Mexican, lighted can
die in hand was ransacking his chest in
which he had about fifty ounces of gold
dust He was warned to make no outcry
on pain of instant death. He obeyed and
they took his gold dust and departed.
Strange to relate, these Mexicans were in
no haste to leave the camp, and this act of
bravadO, if it may be so termed, cost them
their lives, for early on the morrow Prosper
Cailloux announced to the miners in that
little valley what had occurred to him.
The Mexicans were at once taken in charge,
and about the same moment there arrived
IN the camp party in pursuit of horse
thieves from the southern part of the State.
The two Mexlcans and white man pres
ent being Identified as the thieves they were
in search of, their doom was settled, and
they were hung from the limb of an oak
tree that stood where now stands two
story brick building, northeast corner of
Main and Coloma streets. Their bodies
were buried on the north side of Hangtown
creek, and over their remains stood until
the disastrous fire of July 6, 1856, the office
Of tho ho,fDJu;,,
whatever may remain of their bones are
there still. Thus what had before this
hanging been known by the miners in that
part OF California as the Old Dry Dig
gingS" was known thereafter as Hang
town." which name it bore until 1850,
when it was changed to Placerville.
SOME OF THE PROFESSIONS.
The pioneers in the several branches of
business professions and pursuits in the
early days of Hangtown," from forty
nine and the fifties, were about as follows
Attorneys ys-at-law-Robert Robinson, ]. L.
Perkins, j. Quereau, S. w. Sanderson, ID.
X. Newell, Thomas H. Hewes, John Hume,
Thomas Il. Williams, John NJ Howell,
Thomas Robertson, G. L. Racliffe, A. A.
Van Guelder, W. H. Brumfield, Charles
Meredith. In the early fifties most of the
above were located in Coloma, it being the
county seat until 1859. Physicians-W.
H. Bruner. II. w. A. Worthen, Robert
Ranken, B. F. Keene, G. Ober, E. A. Kunk-
Ter, II. Gaillardet, J. L. Shober, H. P. Cham
berlin, o. Harvey, I. S. Titus and Asa
Clark. Pioneer Sheriff. Uncle Billy Rogers,
Pioneer Justice of the Peace, Thomas Wal
lace. Blacksmiths-John H. Murphy and
Walter Burrell. Carpenters and builders
Benjamin II. Bost and II. c. Murgotten.
Butcher, Captain II. c. Smith Druggists
John ?. Martin and s. f. Childs. Pioneer
hotels and boarding houses were kept by
the families of Stewart, Alvord aud Cot
fey. Mrs. Stewart kept on Piety Hill; Mrs.
Alvord, on the north side of the creek, op-
posite (about) where now stands the Central
House told Mounjoy), and Mrs. Coffey,
on Sacramento street, near where now
stands the Ohio House formerly Orleans
The pioneer in the line for excellest pies
and cakes was Mrs. Wakefield subse-
quently Mrs. G. c. Batterman. Pioneer
grocer, Miller, who had his store on Piety
Hill, named such after Mr.. Stewart, who,
with his family, occupied log cabin ad-
joining Miller's. 1t seems that Mr.. Stewart
was man OF strictly moral principles,
considerably inclined to piety and thus
the little eminence on which his cabin
stood was, in token of his recognized
pious character, named Piety Hill by Tom
Wallace.
None of the old boys" can ever forget
those scholarly, genial and companionable
gentlemen, Perkins and Quereau, who also
resided on Piety hill. The pioneer capi-
talist was Joseph NJ. Douglas. In 1852
Douglass was a candidate for the Assembly
on the Wing ticket, but was defeated. The
pioneer printers were F. H Harmon and
Thomas A. Springer. The former was one
of the original founders of the old Sacra-
mento Union. The pioneer road builder was
Colonel J. 9. Johnson, familiarly known as
Jack" johnson. He built the celebrated
Johnsons cut off over the Sielras. The
Colonel also very creditably served Ell Do
rado county in the Assembly in 1855. Very
few men ever lived in FL Dorado county
possessed Of more public spirit, enterprise
and energy than Colonel Jack Crawford.
In SO, among other social institutions in
HangtoTn there existed glee club. Itwas
not numerous in numbers, neither were all
the several parts of voices represented, but
Its sweet and melodious rendition of the
popular sentimental songs of those days
could be frequently heard in the still hours
OF the night, when on their serenading ex-
cursions. Thomas c. Nugent was the
leader. One of their principal songs was
" Dearest May"
HIGH PRICED EGGS.
There resided in Hangtown in 1919
family by the name of Upton, who alone
owned chickens, and they also imported