OLD NEWS

[vini]

Daily Evening Bulletin, San Francisco, CA, June 04, 1859

THE CHINESE EXPELLED FROM HORNITOS

The Chinese expelled From Hornitos- A fire broke out in the Chinese quarter of the town of Hornitos on the morning of 24th May, which was fortunately extinguished without doing much damage. The citizens having about three weeks before warned them to leave immediately, held a meeting and ordered them to leave at 3 o'clock, P.M., that day. Not heeding this second warning , they were driven out by force. There was but little excitement about it, and a portion of the citizens took no part in it. They intend building a town on the hill between El Dorado creek and Hornitos- Mariposa Star

ariposa Gazette, April 1 1862

Saturday last a fight took place between two companies of Chinese on the

Lower Agua Fria, in which a Chinaman named Ty was seriously if not mortally

wounded by a countryman named Tin SEE. The difficulty occurred about a water ditch

and division of water. An examination of the affair took place before Justice

BRUCE, who, in default of a $500 bond, committed the said Tin See to prison to await

the action of the Grand Jury.

submitted by Harriet Sturk- Jan 2003

FATAL GRIZZLY ENCOUNTER

Daily Evening Bulletin, (San Francisco, CA) Friday, October 22, 1858; Issue 13; col C

The Mariposa Gazette says that a man named Kenny, who reside on the Stanislaus, was last week so badly injured by a grizzly, which he had wounded and followed into the thicket, that he cannot possibly recover. Two of his ribs were torn out, and one arm and one leg badly crushed.

Stockton Daily Argus

Monday, 27 May 1861

FATAL DUEL -- A duel took place in Marin county on Saturday between Hon. Chas. W. PIERCEY, from San Bernardino, and Hon. Dan SHOWALTER, from Mariposa, both members of the late Assembly. The weapons used were rifles and the distance 40 paces. PIERCEY was shot dead on the 2nd fire. The difficulty originated in a debate on the Union resolutions which passed the Assembly on the 17th inst., in which personal remarks were made by SHOWALTER. On account of this language, after the adjournment of the Legislature, Mr. PIERCEY sent a challenge to Mr. SHOWALTER. H.P. WATKINS, Senator form Yuba, and Sam. SMITH of the same county, acted as friends of Mr. PIERCEY; and F. SORREL, Assemblyman from Siskiyou, and Thos. LASPEYRE of San Joaquin, filled the same office for Mr. SHOWALTER.

Mr. PIERCEY was a young man, single, a farmer, and lived at Gorgonia Pass in San Bernardino. He was from Illinois, 26 years of age, and a Douglas Democrat. Mr. SHOWALTER is also single, 30 years of age, a resident of Horse Shoe Bend, a miner, a Breckinridge Democrat, and hails from Pennsylvania.

MARIPOSA IS ROCKED BY SEVERE EARTHQUAKE

Modest Bee and News- Herald

Friday Nov. 12, 1948

Mariposa, Nov.12- The historic mining community of Mariposa rocked Wednesday evening during what old timers described as the worst earthquake in their memory.

The quake hit the town at approximately 6:30 o'clock and most residents rushed outdoors to see what blew up. Many thought it was the neighbors' gas tanks or hot water heaters.

No damage was reported to the various historic buildings in the community. The quake lasted a few seconds.- c feroben

MARIPOSA FIRE

Merced Express, September 16, 1922

The town of Mariposa narrowly escaped possible destruction by fire Thursday when the forest fire, which had been raging for several days, burned up to the local county hospital in town, threatening it and the section of town on the west side of Mariposa creek. The schools were closed, and the high school boys aided residents in fighting the blaze, while the school girls carried water. The fire was about four miles wide and burned over 30,000 acres of dry feed. submitted by Tom Hilk

Fresno Bee July 28, 1924

Woods Fire Rages Uncontrolled in Mariposa County

Whitlock District, Near Briceburg Prison Camp, Devastated by Blaze; Big Timber is Eaten into by Conflagration To-day; Fifty Fighters Busy

MARIPOSA (Mariposa Co.) July 28- a brush and timber fire which started in the Whitlock district six miles north of here at noon yesterday, is still raging uncontrolled to-day, in spite o the efforts of fifty men, twnety-five of whom were recruited in this community.

The fire at present is sweeping south up Mt. Bullion and north toward Merced River, where Briceburg and the convict state highway labor camp are located. These places are not yet threatened by the blaze it is said.

An area of ten or twelve square miles has already been burned over; mostly grass, brush and white oak and white pine. The "big timber" is being burned into to-day and the damage will probably mount much higher during the day.

Two homes in Whitlock have been destroyed. One was known as the HELM house and occupied by William P HOSSTETTER. The other house, occupied by an unidentified man, was also destroyed, and $100 in bills burned with it.

The fire started on the farm of A E BENJAMIN, from undetermined causes. The Whitlock district lies a few miles west of the state highway, which runs north from Mariposa to Briceburg.

[vini]

Mariposa Gazette

August 26, 1927

100,000 Acres Are

Burned In

Co. Fire

After eight days of continuous burning, in which more that 150,000 acres of land were left a blackened waste, the largest and most destructive fire in the history of Mariposa county was brought under control 10 miles east of Mariposa last Monday night. The loss will run well into six figures.

The fire started Wednesday, August 11, near the Mt. Gaines mine in the Quartzburg district although various reports as to the cause of the fire have been given out, such as the burning of brush and smoking of ground squirrels from their dens, the real origin of the fire is unknown.

Owing to the high grass and the favorable wind, the flames spread rapidly in several directions, making its way over the mountains toward Bear Valley and Mt. Bullion, crossing the Bear Valley road and onto the Mt. Bullion. A large force of men were fighting the flames and practically had the fire under control by Friday. It jumped the fire line at Green's Gulch on Saturday and for several hours threatened the town of Mt. Bullion. A number of houses, including the Trengove and Tedrow homes and the dance hall took fire but were saved by the heroic work of the fighters.

A half-ton of giant powder was exploded in the powder magazine at the Mt. Bullion mine, completely demolishing the house and hurling tons of stone and debris into the air, near where the men were battling the flames; the assay office, Fournier mine buildings and carpenter shop at the Mt. Bullion mine were destroyed with several thousand dollar loss. The buildings and timbers in the shaft at the new Princeton mine took fire in several places and it looked for a time that the property must be destroyed as the fire-fighters were forced to leave the scene on account of the intense heat.

Again the flames were almost under control but at Agua Fria creek the higher winds swept the flames on toward Mariposa and Cathay Valley. On Sunday a thousand men were on a forty-mile fire line fighting to save dozens of ranch homes and the towns of Mariposa and Mt. Bullion which latter place was again threatened by the approach of the fire from the north.

Near Mt. View the fire crossed the Yosemite highway and burned its way south toward White Rock destroying the Robert DeMoss and James Ward ranch buildings, also it burned east toward Bootjack and Pea Ridge over the several thousand acres of fine feed and destroyed hundreds of cords of wood that have been cut for the trade.

The fire threatened the town of Mariposa again on Monday when it broke out again near the top of Mariposa hill, four miles north of Mariposa. This was brought under control that evening by running the backfire line down the county road and into the old fire line about a mile for Mariposa.

On Tuesday the fire started again near the Peterson Ranch. This was the last out break of the fire and was under control by evening.

Mariposa was in darkness from Saturday until Wednesday night, the electric power line having been badly damaged.

A Fire was reported to be burning on the Locke ranch near Cold springs last Tuesday. It was placed under control before doing great damage. transcribed by Tom Phillips

THE HERMIT OF HORSESHOE BEND

Daily Review, Hawyard, CA

December 6, 1965

Hermit Gets His Christmas Supplies

MARIPOSA- The Hermit of Horseshoe Bend- in the rugged foothills of the Sierra Nevada- was visited over the weekend by Mariposa County welfare workers carrying 400 pounds of canned and dehydrated food.

The 83 year old hermit- Italian born Pedro Anato- welcomed the supplies and said it looked as if he would have a good Christmas.

Anato, a former gold prospector, has lived on the banks of the Merced River near Bagby since 1937.

Waters of the Exchequer Dam Project will force him to move from his remote farm in a few months. The old man admitted his tiny farm is in danger and indicated me may simply move uphill.

County Supervisor Gene McGregor offered Anato a stone cabin five miles above Hornitos on the Exchequer Road. Anato did not say if he would accept.

The Daily Review, Hawyard, California

December 19, 1970

OLD HERMIT WILL NOT MOVE

Mariposa- the old hermit of Horseshoe Bend is nearly deaf and almost bland at age 88, but he says he would never leave his mountains.

"He's quite and example of human endurance," Harry Harris, Mariposa County fish and game warden said Sunday of the old man, who lives in a shack he built above Lake McClure.

Harris, making his patrol rounds, delivers food to Pietro "Pete" Arata, "but these are not handouts- they are regular grants he earned from Social Security through years of hard work in his early days," says Harris.

Harris has tried to persuade Arata to move to Hornitos, the Mariposa County town from which bandit Joaquin Murietta operated but the hermit has refused. "He was offered free quarters but turned them down, " Harris said.

Arata said he "will never leave" a high bluff where he has lived since 1937, after years of working as a miner.

"I'm all right, but I need wood,' the hermit shouted Sunday through the cloth-and-paper door of his lean-to shack.

Rising waters of Lake McClure, backed up by the new Exchequer Dam, have covered his vegetable garden and forced him to move higher up the bluff six times.

harris said he has tried more than once to convince the old man to go to town and visit and eye doctor, but he refuses.

"He's never been to a doctor," Harris said. "He remembers when doctors used to ride 50 miles on a horse to see someone. He thinks a doctor ought to come see him."

An interviewing newsman reached Arata after a trip up the lake in the boat of Sam Ruff, a retired Mariposa fireman.

Told about the hermits need for wood, Ruff said, "Tell him I'm going right back home and get my chain saw. I'll buck him out some wood."

The old man nodded when he heard a call of "Wood-Sam is going to cut you some wood."

"Thank you," he cried. Thank you for wood."

Fresno Bee Republican, April 22, 1971

HERMIT HAS NEW HOME IN HIS MARIPOSA HILLS

MARIPOSA- The Hermit of Horseshoe Bend has returned to the hills of Mariposa and to a new home.

Pietro Angelo Arata , 88, whose sight was restored through an operation in San Francisco, has come back to Mariposa where he is staying at the Clear Haven Guest House near Midpines.

Arata, who for years lived in solitude near the shores of Lake McClure below Bagby, gained nationwide attention when he was found Jan 23 dehydrated, almost frozen and nearly unconscious in the woods by his home. Nearly blind and hard of hearing, he had become last and went without food or water for almost six days.

He was found, taken to John C. Fremont Hospital in Mariposa and then to the US Public Service Hospital in San Francisco where surgeons removed the cataract covering one eye.

Now he is back and apparently adjusting well to his new home. Mr. and Mrs. Ira Fournier, managers of the home, report Arata is eating well and gaining strength.

For the Doctors at the US Public Service Hospital he has nothing but praise.

"Fine and dandy," he says they are. "When I was at San Francisco hospital I can't see nothing. Now I can see good."

About the guest home, he says, "I feel better since I come here. Sleep and fresh air- I like the place find and dandy. I walk by myself- of course I go slow, but I go along. Soon I expect to be stronger.

Thought Arata has been called a hermit, he is not antisocial. And he claims he did not move away from civilization, but that it moved away from him. He said there were about 25 miners living near him when he settled down. And for many years the yosemite Valley Railroad ran past his hillside home.

If Arata misses his tumble down shack by the lake, he does not say so. When he arrived at the guest home last Friday he spotted some goats in the yard and his eyes lit up. Now he goes for walks in the yard of the isolated home.

[grubstake]

Hey Vini, I know where his old place is, on the down stream side of the Bagby bridge, on the west side of the river, up above the high water mark of the lake in the tree line. Been there and detected a few times. Lots of trash. Grubstake

[vini]

You have scowered those hills haven't you Gary

sorry guys i should have put the link up for the storys, theres hundreds of them right here GREAT reading

Story Website

[grubstake]

Yeh Vini, I can take you right to that cabin site. + many more. 5 years working at Bagby, with two days off aweek, and we shut down every winter for three months, I had time to run those hills for sure! And did! Grubstake

[vini]

THats what it looked like for me on Friday Gary got stuck right across from Solomons mine trying to go up stream a bit more, very expensive to get out.....................ugh

[grubstake]

Bummer Vini, You should have gotten you one of those gas powered Wheel barrows or cart, that you walk behind, they will go anywhere and you can put your dredge stuff right in them. Grubstake

[vini]

Yeah this winter taking the dredge up to Matts and he's going to turn the dredge into a wheel barrel he's got some ideas.

It was just plain stupidity that part of the road is to soft and narrow should see the hole a few guys from mariposa have punched down there , I want to go back even further for a few days this year I dont think much of anyone goes way back any more.

BTW Miner Matt took those pics I had my camera but I really didn't want to have anything to remember that moment by but he insisted