Stories of the Forgotten

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Taken To The Grave - A Sacramento Mystery

Alice Louisa Curtis' grave

Over 110 years ago, lived a young, beautiful and ambitious young lady named Alice Louisa Curtis. In 1902, she was 25 years of age and in the prime of her young adult life when her life was taken, far too soon. The secrets as to why or how exactly she died have been shrouded in mystery still to this day.

Alice was the daughter of William Roland Curtis Sr. and wife Susan Potter Curtis, of Oak Park. The Curtis' were originally from Massachusetts, arriving in Sacramento in 1852. Within two years time, Curtis had taken over his brother's homestead. Later after acquiring even more land, Mr. Curtis eventually donated some of the south-eastern portion of it to the city, naming it "Curtis Park."

In 1893, William Curtis, a devout Republican, was elected as a County Supervisor where he served for nearly eight years. The last two years of his service on the Board of Supervisor's he was elected Chairman.

William R. Curtis, Sr.

Curtis had five children, a son William Roland Curtis, Jr. , another son Frank (who died from a childhood illness) and three daughters, Carrie, Alice and Edna. Their oldest child, William Roland died at the young age of 17 on August 23, 1880 from a scything accident on the farm, to which he unfortunately bled to death. I was able to find his death notice via the archived newspapers (Sacramento Daily Record Union, 8/24/1880).

The younger children were Carrie M. Curtis (Born 1865) Alice Louisa Curtis (Born 1876) and the baby, Edna Curtis (born in 1884). In 1892, on December 26th, Carrie M. Curtis, the elder of the two daughters, married George Cutter. George H. Cutter was one of the leaders of establishing the fruit growing industry in Sacramento, even becoming the President of the California Fruit Exchange for 20 years.

As far as Alice, she was one of the youngest and certainly, "Daddy's Little Girl." Nothing was withheld from Alice due to growing up in such a prestigious family. Certainly, being among the youngest of the children was to her advantage during her young life. It was stated that her father always made sure that she had "all the comforts money could procure." So then that leads us to ask ourselves, why would this terrible tragedy have occurred at all?

Alice Curtis (c/o Dan Murphy)

THE MYSTERY

When I first learned of this story, a friend of mine had mentioned it to me. You see, both he and I share a similar passion for uncovering the truth about the lives and deaths of people who have long since passed on. Just as I go from cemetery to cemetery to stumble upon interesting stories and tales to research, he does as well. I guess many years ago, he had found Alice's grave at the Historic Sacramento City Cemetery located at 1000 Broadway, in Sacramento. He then looked into the archives there and found some interesting information.

According to him, he found information that stated that Alice had been shot in the stomach, later dying. Speculation had spread that she had been involved in a secret relationship with a man that her father did not approve of. In fact, this man was someone her father despised. In fact, according to the Sacramento Bee, dated August 21st, 1902 states, "From one source the story has gone out that the reason for the opposition was that the young man had opposed Mr. Curtis in a political campaign, but those intimately acquainted with the Curtis family assert that this is not true and that all Mr. Curtis would exact from any applicant for a daughter's hand was that he should be of good and industrious character and able to support a wife as soon as he should assume the marriage obligation."

Regardless of the story of her forbidden love, somehow Alice ended up shot and later died. My friend came to me wondering what else I could find out about this young woman, and I certainly was up for the task.

THE STORY

On August 19th, 1902 Alice Louisa Curtis was found at home with a wound to her chest, having been shot with a revolver. She was conscious when she was found, claiming that she alone had inflicted the wound by attempting to shoot herself in the heart. Unfortunately for her, the bullet passed through her breast and penetrated her left lung, completely missing her heart. Instead of a sudden death, she lingered for 3 days until finally dying.

Top: Alice Curtis, Below: The Curtis' Ranch House

Now during those three days, several people questioned her as to why or what exactly happened. She vowed she would never reveal why she did it, but continued to take the blame for her attempted suicide.

The San Francisco Call dated August 20th reads:

“ Attempts To End Life Of Promise” – Talented Young Woman in Sacramento at Death’s Door

“Sacramento, August 19- Alice Curtis, 25 years of age, the handsome and talented daughter of ex-Supervisor William Curtis shot herself in the left breast at a late hour this afternoon and is in a precarious condition. The Curtis family occupies a beautiful country home about a mile beyond the city limits. Mr. Curtis owns broad acres and he has been able to provide for his family all the comforts money can procure. Miss Curtis, still conscious, admits that she inflicted the wound, but gives no explanation for it, and the only theory that has been assigned is that she committed to the act while in a fit of melancholia due to a slight illness.

By all of her neighbors Miss Curtis is held in the highest regard and they are praying that she may be saved from death. But little is known concerning the details of the sad occurrence, the family being almost as completely mystified as are outsiders.

Miss Curtis was about her duties as usual this morning and seemed in ordinary health. She visited the home of a relative and there procured a revolver. Returning to her home, she placed the pistol against her heart, as she supposed, and fired. The bullet penetrated the lung, but did not touch the heart. Medical and surgical aid was promptly summoned and the patient made as comfortable as possible. She admitted the act, but gave no other reason than that she wanted to die.

Miss Curtis is a graduate of the Sacramento High School and a young woman of refinement, devoted to literary and musical studies. It is not known that she had any love affair, and as her relations with the rest of the family were of the happiest, today’s tragedy is all the more inexplicable.”

~~~~~~~~~~~

(August 21, 1902 San Francisco Call)

“Love Affair May Be Back Of The Tragedy”

Sacramento, Aug 20.-

"Miss Alice Curtis, the handsome young daughter of ex- Supervisor William Curtis, who shot herself yesterday afternoon, the bullet piercing her left lung, remains in a critical condition. It is still impossible to foretell the outcome. She is conscious, and it is said she has given no explanation of her attempt to take her life.

It appears to be the belief of many acquaintances of the young woman that a love episode had entered into her life, and that she grew despondent when her father, to whom she is greatly devoted and whose business affairs she manages, opposed the proposed match.

It is said that Miss Curtis formed the acquaintance of a young man living at Oak Grove and that a warm attachment followed. This her father did not favor owing to the fact that the young man gave no promise of ability to support a wife."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

(August 22, 1902 – San Francisco Call)

“Takes Her Secret To The Grave”

Sacramento, Aug. 21-

"Miss Alice Curtis passed away at the home of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. William Curtis, early this morning as a result of a self-inflicted bullet wound. The young woman died without revealing the cause of her act.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why did Alice choose to end her young life?

Did she really shoot herself?

Or was she covering for someone?

Love @ Turn of the Century

One more thing to think about was that her body was not examined by doctors in Sacramento, but instead William Curtis had her body brought to San Francisco to be cremated before being brought back to Sacramento and buried in the family plot. Now, if you think about that for a moment, why wouldn't a prestigious man like Curtis allow the local doctors to examine his daughter post-mortem or furthermore cremate her there? Well, one question that arose was that perhaps they would have noticed her in a delicate condition? Remember, it was 1902 and that could have brought reproach upon the entire family. Rumors spread around town like wildfire that she had been in an illicit affair with a man from Oak Grove, one whom her father did not approve of.

Now to me, if that was the case, that changes everything. Imagine what her father may have felt or wanted to do to that man had he learned of her condition and the fact that the man had not "made a promise to support a wife." In other words, the guy didn't want to marry her. Could Alice have tried to end the eminent shame she knew she would bring upon her family name, had she gone on with life and had a child out of wedlock? Could her father have been mad enough to attempt to shoot the man who had violated his daughter's virtue? What if Alice had jumped in front of her lover and took the bullet herself, continuing to preserve the truth of what really happened that afternoon all the way up to her last breath? For the record, I am not accusing that William Curtis did anything of the sort, this is just a simple theory.

Could it be that she was just so heartbroken that she was not able to be with the man she loved, that she felt that she had nothing left to live for? Or worse yet- what if the man she loved had no desire to make a life with her? Could that have brought on this 'melancholia' that the doctors diagnosed her with?

William Roland Curtis was never the same after Alice's death, only 5 years later he died at the age of 75 on January 27, 1907 (via The Sacramento Bee, 1/28/1907). His wife Susan also passed away 4 years after the death of Alice. I am sure it killed him inside knowing that he was unable to save his daughter, despite all the doctors he had dispatched to care for her during those painstaking last 3 days of her life.

For the record, we do not know for sure if Alice was pregnant or not, that is just another possible theory. The only other possible scenarios were that either she was so heartbroken of the fact she could not be with the man she loved, that she took her own life or she was accidentally shot and didn't want to say by whom.

Sadly, the true secret as to why Alice ended up with a bullet in her chest, later dying from such injuries, will be one that literally was taken to the grave with Alice. She and she alone holds the key to solving that mystery, a mystery we shall never truly solve.

No matter why, how or who truly pulled the trigger that hot August afternoon in 1902, let us never forget the story of Alice Louisa Curtis.

Alice's final resting place

TO READ MORE ABOUT ALICE'S LIFE AND DEATH, AS WELL AS MANY OTHER MYSTERIOUS AND BIZARRE TALES, PURCHASE YOUR COPY TODAY OF: "Stories of the Forgotten: Infamous, Famous & Unremembered." Available now on Amazon!

(Original Copyright- 10/30/2012, J'aime Rubio)
Also published in the book, "Stories of the Forgotten: Infamous, Famous & Unremembered" by J'aime Rubio, 2016.
www.jaimerubiowriter.com

SOURCES:
(2) PHOTOS: of Alice Curtis c/o Dan Murphy
Sacramento Bee, 1/28/1907
Sacramento Bee, 8/20/1902
Sacramento Bee, 8/21/1902
Sacramento Daily Record Union, 8/24/1880
San Francisco Call, 8/20/1902
San Francisco Call, 8/21/1902
San Francisco Call, 8/22/1902
Curtis Park House History
"Sacramento, Happenings in History's Spotlight"-
Sacramento Bee via Pete Basofin (4/8/2012)

A BIG THANK YOU TO:
Find A Grave (website) via Roland Boulware, contributor/freelance photographer
Thank you Sacramento City Cemetery, Archives (and the lovely ladies who work there!)
Thank you to Dan Murphy for photos of Alice, and to Tuula Laine from the Sacramento Library!

Who Was Vesta Sapenter?

Vesta Sapenter

Not too many people know the story of Vesta Sapenter, but sadly her story is not a good one. On July 18, 1947, her body was discovered in her bedroom. She had been strangled with a hemp cord and raped. In my book, "Behind The Walls" I discuss the murder of Vesta Sapenter, along with two other murders of a similar nature allegedly committed by the same person of interest, Eugene Monroe.

To start off, Vesta was a 17 year-old, African-American honor student at Jefferson High School in South Central Los Angeles. On the afternoon of July 18, 1947, her 14 year-old brother Carlisle came home from playing with friends at the park only to find the body of his sister in her room upstairs. According to Carlisle, he had arrived home at 5320 Holmes Avenue, to find Eugene Monroe. At the time Monroe was was using his step-father's last name, Jefferson. Monroe seemed to be delivering furniture to the house, and asked Carlisle if he could use the restroom. Carlisle agreed, and Monroe headed upstairs. When he came back he had asked if he knew where his sister was, and he replied, "she's upstairs."

After not seeing Vesta for awhile, Carlisle became suspicious and decided to go upstairs to check on her. Monroe followed Carlisle upstairs to "check" on Vesta, when he realized the door to his sister's room was locked. Carlisle broke down the door, only to find the lifeless, half-dressed body of his sister. She had been hanging curtains in her room when the murderer came in and attacked her, more than likely from behind.

Immediately, Eugene was taken in for questioning but the police couldn't hold him. One of Vesta's friends, 16 year-old Benjamin Allen was also questioned and released. He was the only other person to see Vesta on the day she died, when he walked her home.

The detective on the case, R.R. Coppage claimed that he was certain that Eugene (Jefferson) Monroe was their guy, but because of no witnesses and lack of evidence they had to release him.

"I am certain this boy did the job, but we were just never able to prove it. He was the only one in the house at the time and had ample time to commit the act."-- Detective R.R. Coppage's statement.

The Los Angeles newspaper headlines at the time barely even mentioned this heinous crime, giving Vesta's story only two paragraphs in the paper. During a time when many murders in Los Angeles to young women was rampant and making daily headlines, especially since the Black Dahlia case, which had only occurred six months prior to this. Sadly there was no more mention of it. Vesta Belle Sapenter, died on July 18, 1947, and the main suspect of her murder got away with it. But this would not be the first nor the last time that Eugene Monroe would make headlines for being a suspect in a similar murder.

In fact, in 1950 he was arrested and tried three times for the murder of Anna Corbin, the head housekeeper at the Preston School of Industry, after being sent there on separate criminal convictions. After three trials, the first two ending in a hung jury and the last an acquittal, Monroe was again a free man. For someone to be a suspect in two very similar cases, it seemed that he was getting away with murder, but it wouldn't last for long though.

UPDATE: On September 25, 2017, I had the pleasure of speaking to Vesta Sapenter's sister. She was a very kind and gracious lady, who helped me confirm all my suspicions about Eugene Monroe. Our conversation was very emotionally moving for me, hearing her recollection of the time period when her sister passed away, and what she remembered about Monroe. Although it was deeply saddening to hear first hand how devastating this loss was to her family, at the same time I feel maybe we both found a sense of closure on this subject.

For one, I was able to share with her that Monroe died in 2007, thus he can no longer harm another human being on this earth, which I think was a bit reassuring. On my end, Vesta's sister confirmed that her family still believes that Monroe killed Vesta. Her own father sensed that something was not right with Monroe and he told her brother not to associate with him or his friends, and not to let him in the house (which unfortunately he disobeyed.)

Many times parents can sense thing even when no one else does, which is all the more heartbreaking in this case. Eugene Monroe no only took the lives of four individuals (Vesta, Anna, Dorothy and her unborn child) but he also devastated three families and countless friends. He took so much, and I often wonder, what else may he have got away with?

To Read More About Eugene Monroe: "Was Eugene Monroe a Serial Killer?"

For more details of this story and Anna Corbin's story please check out my book, "Behind The Walls"

(Copyright, 1/16/2014- J'aime Rubio) Republished 3/28/2018

J'aime Rubio - www.jaimerubiowriter.com

Sources:
Archived Newspapers
Photo of Vesta from Pittsburgh Courier (8/2/1947)
"Behind The Walls"-by J'aime Rubio
And a big thank you to Larry Harnisch of the 1947project
for the additional information you provided me about Vesta!

Who Was Anna Corbin? One Of The Stories Behind The Preston School of Industry

There have been many sites that speak of Anna Corbin, yet no one had revealed anything about her life prior to her death. You see, when I heard about the untimely death of Mrs. Anna Corbin at Preston Castle, I noticed one thing, no one could really say who she was or what her life was like. It’s almost as if the ghost stories took on a life of their own and for some apparent reason people seemed to be far more interested in what happened after her death, rather than what happened before her death.

Anna’s Earlier Years

Anna Corbin was born on January 16, 1898 in Kansas as Anna Laura Lawton. She was the daughter of Etta Edna Little (1865-1945) and Wilber Austin Lawton (1857-1936) of Americus, Kansas. Her parents were farmers, although Wilber had been a banker, postmaster, politician, Justice of the Peace, under-Sherrif, and member of the School Board during his lifetime. (See Anna's Family Genealogy Notes). As a child Anna went with her older sister Loverna to live with their aunt and uncle in order to attend school in Emporia, Kansas.

After graduating from Emporia High School, Anna met and married Robert Travis Corbin in 1918. A year later a son, Harold Jay Corbin was born in 1919. Since Robert T. Corbin was a Truck Driver it seemed to have made them move around quite a bit. They moved to Colorado where their daughter Avis M. Corbin was born in 1924. The US Census Records for 1930 lists that the Corbin's were living in Whittier, California (East Los Angeles). The records also show Robert as being 34 years old, Anna 32, Harold 11, and Avis 6. Sometime around 1935, they relocated up to Ione, California, where Robert became a group supervisor at the Preston School of Industry, while Anna became a housekeeper. In 1941, Harold Jay Corbin was listed on a draft register card during WWII. Sadly, in 1943 Harold Jay Corbin, only 24 years old, was killed in action during the war. His name is featured as one of the first Amador County residents who were killed in action while serving in the military on the recently made War Veterans Memorial in Ione. He was stationed out of Presidio of Monterey, Army Air Force (2LT # 0-666635). Buried March 14, 1950 at Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno, California. The Social Security Death Index records indicate that her husband, Robert Corbin, died on May 29,1947 at the Veterans Home of California in Napa, California. He is buried at East Lawn Cemetery in Sacramento.

Let’s try to step into Anna’s shoes for a moment, shall we? Now imagine you are a middle aged woman, a wife and mother, and both your son and husband had died. Anna's parents had died as well years prior. Now how would you feel inside? Think about it. There she was, the only parent left for her newly married daughter, Avis. How do you think she felt? Now imagine it is 1950, and here she was not only grieving for two of the most important men in her life but she also had to work full time as a head housekeeper as her only means of support.

Think about this also, her son Harold died in 1943, and yet the US Air Force had not brought his body back to be buried until 1950. His internment was March 14, 1950 a whole month after Anna’s death. So in her lifetime she was never able to visit her son’s grave or know exactly what happened to his body in order to find closure. That must have been agonizing to say the least. I am a mother and I know for a fact losing a child, at any age would be devastating. No doubt she was worn out about life, although many say it didn’t stop her from being a loving and nurturing person. Anna was considered as a second mother to many of the inmates at Preston.

“When I said she was a mother to the boys, I meant just that. She did a great deal to rehabilitate many of the inmates and was one of the greatest contributors to the fact that many of the youths who leave here never again wind up being police problems.” -- Quote from Superintendent Chandler, Stockton Record. (2/24/1950)

Another tidbit to add, Anna DID NOT live in an apartment at Preston, as so many reports and television shows claim. In fact, the newspapers at the time wrote that Mrs. Corbin lived in a five-room home on Marquette Street in Ione. Well, anyone who knows Ione knows that there is no Marquette St. However, there is a Market Street and a Marlette Street....so either street is a possible choice. I have yet to learn the exact address of Anna's former home, but I hope to share this information with the public as soon as it becomes available.

The Day Of The Murder

It was Thursday- February 23, 1950. Many say that just before a staff meeting held by the Superintendent Robert V. Chandler, a ward discovered the body and notified the staff of the grisly finding. According to the Amador Ledger, dated February 24, 1950, it stated that a fellow staff member Lillian McDowell was the one who found Anna.

Many online sites that speak of Anna Corbin's death start to contradict themselves about this point. Some say she was killed in the kitchen, some say she was killed in a room in the basement, known as the “mattress room”. Some say she was stuffed in a cupboard while some say she was left on the floor.**

** (One note to add, I am posting what all the newspapers claimed at the time, it doesn't mean each account is accurate. As you will read on in this article, you will see that Anna was found in a room in the basement, as other archives, witness accounts and official reports confirm).

c/o Oakland Tribune 2/24/50

According to the Amador Ledger's article (2/24/1950) it states that Anna was found several hours after her death in a store room, wrapped in a rug and she had been beaten severely on the head and body with a rope wrapped around her neck. What people always leave out in their stories is the fact that the room Anna was found in was locked and the staff member had to unlock the door to access the room in which Anna's body was found. It was also mentioned in the paper that Director of the California Youth Authority Program, Karl Holton stated that not only the inmates would be investigated but also the staff.

Another newspaper article that confirms this (Oakland Tribune dated February 24, 1950) also states, housekeeper Lillian Lee McDowell and her helper-inmate Robert Hall both noticed a trail of blood from Anna's office leading into the school store room and into a padlocked closet where Lillian unlocked it to discover Anna's bludgeoned body.

The Head Gardener at Preston, Jeff Machado seemed to be the last person to see her alive as he claimed to have brought her the acacia blossoms around 9:30 a.m. Anna's body was discovered around 1:30-2 pm. Another housekeeper, Elizabeth Goodman stated that around 10:23 am she came into Anna's office and left an apple on her desk. That apple was still there upon the discovery of Anna's body.

According to Lillian McDowell, after seeing the blood trail leading to the store room from the supply room, she and her helper Robert Hall noticed that a ladder was overturned, mop buckets were tossed around and rugs covered in blood along with a pool of blood on the floor. The Coroner stated that she had been dead for at least 3-4 hours when her body was discovered. That meant she died between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. that morning. Another thing I want to point out is that according to other archives, the boy who found Anna's body, Robert Hall gave a statement that Anna was actually found behind rolls of carpet in the storage room, not a closet, but a padlocked room that was 16 x 35 feet in size in the basement.

A source of mine revealed to me that another ward that was at Preston during that time that Anna was murdered, came to Preston as an adult and spoke about his memory of the event saying that he actually saw Anna's body in the basement, in the larger room when investigators had just got to the scene, which corroborates Hall's statement. Another employee of Preston who has been interviewed also made a statement that Anna was found in a larger room and not a closet. No matter where people want to claim she was found, an exact location is left for us only to speculate, one thing is for sure, we know that Anna was found in the basement, covered by carpet.

Update: (6/24/2015) "So after speaking to John Lafferty yesterday, and after discussing the murder of Anna Corbin, we have both agreed that Anna Corbin's body was found in the basement, but not where most people think. We believe she was found in the room where the disenfecting pool (plunge bath) was located.

This information corroborates the statements from Lillian McDowall and Robert Hall who found Anna's body. They claimed the room she was found in was 16 x 35 feet in size (another news account said the room was 10 x 17). In any case, I always knew she was not found in the cubby hole that has been told over and over for years. Thankfully that information given by eye witness statements and the evidence John Lafferty had found in a transcribed oral statement of a staff member, claiming that Anna's body was found in the room with the pool that had been boarded over, we finally know the exact location where Anna was discovered.

I am glad that particular part of the mystery is finally put to rest. Thank you Mr. Lafferty for confirming a theory I had always suspected -- Rest in Peace Anna" - J'aime Rubio

Back to the Story.....

SUSPECTS?

Initially the Superintendent, along with Sheriff George Lucot and other investigators singled out the 22 wards on "housekeeping detail" before questioning other wards there who had been convicted of assault and sexual crimes. After those groups were questioned, they detained all wards to their rooms to further question and investigate each one. Superintendent Chandler made it very clear that everyone was a suspect, even staff and that they would be investigating thoroughly. Out of the 657 wards questioned only one was charged, Eugene Monroe. He was a 19 year old African-American inmate who was from Southern California.

What many don't realize is that Monroe was the chief suspect in a murder of a 17 year-old girl, Vesta Belle Sapenter in Southern California in 1947. The details of Vesta's murder were eerily “similar” to the details of Anna’s murder, as noted in my book, "Behind The Walls". But as I state in my book, due to lack of sufficient evidence, the authorities couldn't hold him on murder charges. How Monroe ended up in Preston was for a separate conviction of burglary charges.

One inmate William J. Mercer, who basically ruined his own reputation on the witness stand in the preliminary hearing, claimed he and Eugene were having a secretive homosexual relationship and that during a time when they were engaging in a sex act that Anna had walked in and witnessed them. He claimed that it infuriated Eugene and he said he was going to kill her for that.

Monroe's attorney tried to throw out any testimony of Mercer's at the trial due to the fact Mercer recanted his statement, and then during the trial he claimed that the entire story was in fact true, but that Monroe's attorney, Nathaniel S. Colley had threatened his life when he visited him at the Amador County Jail and told him that if he didn't take back his story that he would make sure Monroe's friends took care of him after he was released. Despite his fear of retaliation, Mercer testified in the trial and aired out the whole story, stating that his initial statements were true, including his claims that the defense tried to intimidate and threaten the prosecution's main witness.

Everyone, including the inmates were shocked and infuriated that Anna had been killed. Inmates were even reported to have told the staff that if the assailant was found within Preston, that they better hire more guards because the inmates may "take the law into their own hands" in order to avenge the death of their beloved Housekeeper and motherly friend, Anna Corbin. Both Monroe and Mercer were too afraid to go back to Preston, so both were held at the Amador County Jail during the trials.

I find it rather suspicious that after the three trials, two of which were ended in hung juries, and the third a final acquittal, that one year later in 1951 Eugene was convicted and confessed to the murder and rape of a pregnant woman, Mrs. Dorothy Waldrop in Tulsa, OK. He was sentenced to life in prison but only did 29 years.

TO READ MORE ABOUT EUGENE MONROE: "Was Eugene Monroe A Serial Killer?"

More Shawnee Attacks on Settlers- West Virginia History

In my previous article, The Clover Bottom Massacre, 1783, I touched on the terrifying account of when Mitchell Clay’s homestead was attacked by Shawnee Indians, ultimately leaving three of his children dead. What many don’t realize is that this was a regular occurrence during these times. People today seem to look at things from a one-sided perspective most of the time, and that is not right. They often go on and on about how the “White Man” was so evil and destructive, stealing the land away from the Native-Americans. What many don’t talk about is the fact that from the very beginning of Europeans stepping foot on this “new land”, the natives were far from friendly. If you were to go back even farther in history you would also see that the native people were not originally from North America, but migrated here over the Bering Strait anyways, so technically this land was not their land originally either. They came here and settled, just as later on the Europeans came here and settled.

It’s fair to say that both sides should take blame for much of the bloodshed equally, but did you know that many of the people who came to America did not want to, nor were they even aware that they would have to face, let alone fight or kill the natives? Many of them felt they were in the middle of something they didn’t want to be in. They had to face the dangers of living in the wilderness of a new land, yet they also had to obey the authority of the Governor who was greedy and didn’t really care about his own people or the natives. I will go into that subject later on in this article.

Indian Massacre of 1622

First, I will briefly discuss several accounts of families being brutally attacked by the Shawnee Indians during a specific time period in West Virginia and Virginia territory. These accounts need to spoken, because in the end you need to see that it wasn’t just the European settlers who brought death and danger, but the natives also struck fear in the settlers hearts and left a trail of blood and tears behind as well.

Long before the Clover Bottom Massacre, there had been numerous accounts of brutal attacks on settlers by the natives in this country. One to mention of course was the Indian Massacre of 1622. Looking into the history of it, you would see that the Powhatan tribe of Indians came to the Colony of Virginia, bearing gifts of food but once in the colony they began a vicious attack, killing over 347 settlers. They then traveled up and down the river, burning the settlements and homes and killing settlers. As I stated above, the people in charge of the colonies really didn’t have the best interest of their settlers or their safety at heart, thus putting them all in danger.

During my research into specific areas in West Virginia history, I found several accounts of brutal attacks on settlers who were not seeking out the native people, not torturing them, and certainly not attacking their villages or burning their homes like the native people did to the settlers. One account that took place, happened in 1777 ( six years before the Clover Bottom Massacre). Colonel James Graham and his family had retired for the evening in their cabin when Graham heard a knock on the door. When he approached the door, he heard a voice in broken English muttering, “Open Door!”

When Graham refused to comply with the request, the Indians outside grew very angry and started shooting at the door. Grahams two children had fled to a detached cabin where the Indians managed to break into. They shot through the clapboards, injuring the boy with the gunshot, shattering his leg. They then proceeded to enter the dwelling, kidnapping both children. While traveling to their village the young boy’s condition grew worse and he was not able to walk, so the Indians bashed his head against a tree, smashing his brain. They kept the young girl, who was only 8 years old at the time. They held her captive for nearly 8 more years until her father was able to later ransom her and secure her freedom.

During 1777, the dangers of continuous attacks and murders of white settlers by the Indians during the Summer months, prompted many families to flee to forts for safety and remain there sometimes for the entire Summer. You see, the area in which these attacks continued to occur was what the Shawnee considered their "Summer Hunting Ground"- although their villages were all the way in Ohio. So during the Summer months the threat of attack was far more severe than at any other time of the year.

In 1778, a massacre was averted thanks to the help of Captain McKee and his men. Over 200 Indians attacked Fort Randolph, but thanks to the garrison of 21 men defending the fort, they were able to thwart off the attack. When the Indians headed away in the direction of the Greenbrier settlements, McKee sent off two of his men who actually made it to the settlements first to warn them of the impending attack. Due to their quick thinking and diligence, they saved numerous amounts of lives and averted a massacre.

In the Spring of 1778, another brutal attack on a family homestead occurred on the mouth of Wolf Creek, on New River. The attack was on the McKensey family who lived in a house on the property near the creek. Mr. McKensey, his wife, children (sons: Isaac, Henley & daughters: Sallie, Elizabeth, Margaret, Mary Anne, a baby) lived on the property with a housemaid/hired servant, Ms. Estridge. It was said that the settlers did not have land that had boundaries or fences in which to allow their stock (cows, horses, etc.) to wander and graze so they would put bells on the animals and let them roam. Well, the horses wandered off into the woods. Mr. McKensey figured the horses meant to head back to the place from which they had initially travelled from, Walker’s Creek. So Mr. McKensey took his older son, Isaac with him to search for their horses to bring them back home. When Mr. McKensey and his son had made it all the way to the top of Big Hill, they heard the sounds of gunfire in the valley below. His younger son, Henley had been on the hill looking for a spot to plant sweet potatoes when the attack ensued.

Woodcut of Indians Raiding a Fort

The Shawnee had waited until McKensey and his older son had left the area when they began their attack on the household. They first shot Henley, killing him. Then they made their way to the house and tried to enter. Sallie and Mrs. McKensey had tried to barricade the door, but the Indians still managed to push their way through. The first one, squeezed his head and arms through the door, trying to wiggle his way in, while Sallie reached for an axe and attacked him, severely wounding him. While that was taking place, another managed to push the door open and attempted to take Sallie as their prisoner. She gave up a good fight with him and in the end he drove a knife through her chest, killing her as well as Mrs. McKensey.

The hired servant, Ms. Estridge took the little girl Mary Anne and tried to hide in the shed. However, upon the little girls crying and whimpering, Estridge became fearful that the little girl’s noises would give up their hiding place. Trying to save herself, Estridge let the little girl go, who ran off scared and the Indians grabbed her, bashing her head into a door frame and crushing her skull. The saddest part of this story is the fact the Indians took the nursing infant, who was barely crawling, and attempted to scalp it alive. The record doesn’t state if it was a girl or boy, but that upon finding the bodies of his family, McKensey found his infant child alive, scalped and trying to nurse on it’s mother’s bloody corpse.

Two of McKensey’s daughters were unaccounted for, being that they had been kidnapped. During this ordeal the Indians managed to kill Philip Kavanah whom they had ran into on their way out of the area, and they also captured Francis Denny. They brought their captives back with him to their village where the two girls Elizabeth and Margaret remained for nearly 18 years. After being traded between tribes and forcibly raped by the Chief, who wanted her to marry him, Margaret refused and kept the hope of one day escaping her captors. At one point Margaret was able to get a horse and attempted an escape. Her foster sister in the tribe told her she would defend her with her life, when she was caught by the Chief. Not willing to let Margaret go, the Chief told her that if she didn’t marry him, he would kill her. Margaret fought with him over a knife, when her foster sister attempted to intervene and told Margaret to hide. The fight between the girl and the Indian was brutal, although no one died from the incident. The Chief later left with other Indians and was killed in Wayne’s Battle. Later Margaret and Elizabeth managed to get free and returned home, never forgetting the trials and tribulations they faced in their early life.

There are so many more stories just like these that happened too often back then. I haven’t even touched on the incident at the Davidson-Bailey fort yet, which I will go into further in my next blog. Not only did the settlers have to face attacks and murders of their own families, but the settlers had to deal with the fact the Shawnee often stole their horses and ran them up to Canada and sold them as well.

You may wonder why I am so interested in telling these stories. Well, I must be honest, I am a truth seeker. I don’t like half-truths. I don’t like society blaming the European settlers on all the bad that took place in our history’s past, because that isn’t accurate. I read a letter that was addressed to the authorities of the time by the settlers in regards to the conditions in which they were living in, in the late 1700s.

The letter showed that these settlers did not come to this country with the idea they would have to deal with or fight off Indians. They left their native country with the promise of peace and freedom of practicing their Christian faith without fear of any sort of persecution. It was obvious that the settlers were thrown in the middle of the Governor and his authority and the anger the Natives felt towards the new visitors. Most of the settlers wanted nothing to do with any sort of fighting and even mentioned that they adhered to “rational, constitutional principles, pacific (meaning peaceful), steady and uniform conduct.” They go on to mention that when they “crossed the Atlantic and explored wilderness”, starting their new lives in a new land, it only led them to experience “savages.. insistently…committing depredations” on them since their first settling in the Country. “These fatigues and dangers were patiently encountered, supported by the pleasing hope of enjoying these rights and liberties which had been granted to Virginians, and denied us in our Native Country.”

Basically, they stated that they fled their previous homeland with the hopes and false promises of a peaceful new life in a new land, that they were told they would be allowed to live on in peace. The settlers came here, tricked on false pretenses of being “free” in every sense of the word, but the Government who built the colonies didn’t have their people’s best interest at heart at all. Nor did they care about the natives either, but it wasn’t the settlers fault. They were just as naïve about what was happening as much as the natives who didn’t understand why or where these new people were coming from.

Honestly, I feel badly for the people who came to America looking for a new life because they have been blamed for most of the atrocities that their Government was actually at fault for. Then in turn, the atrocities the Indians committed on the people was directed at settlers instead of the ones running the Government which is unfortunate as well. In the end, it seemed that the settlers received blows from both ends and received a very bad rap.

In my next blog I will go into further detail of the Incident at the Davidson-Bailey Fort.

(Copyright 1/9/2014- Republished 3/28/2018) J'aime Rubio, www.jaimerubiowriter.com

Sources:
American Archives, 4th Series, 1st Volume, Page 1166

A History of Middle New River Settlements and Contiguous Territory

By David Emmons Johnston

Clover Bottom Massacre, 1783 - West Virginia History

Bluestone River

In the next two articles I will speak of some of the atrocious events that took place in U.S. History near where my ancestors settled in the region along the borders of West Virginia and Virginia in the late 1700s. This first article will cover the infamous Clover Bottom Massacre of 1783.

Before I begin, I must tell you this event was not a random occurrence. In fact, it is quite the contrary. Upon my research into these stories I have found dozens of accounts in the general area and vicinity during that time period that showed the native people in the surrounding areas were vicious and brutal, often attacking women and children while they were alone, and showing absolutely no mercy whatsoever. This particular story is to tell you a true historical account, so you can see for yourself what life must have been like for a white settler in the new land we now know as the United States, and all the dangers they faced, lurking literally around every corner.

Massacre at Clover Bottom-

Mitchell Clay House

In April of 1774, Mitchell Clay obtained a Crown Grant from Lord Dunmore, the Royal Governor of Virginia, for 803 acres of land which covered both sides of the Bluestone River (a tributary of New River) named Clover Bottom, West Virginia. Within the next year, he, his wife and children moved onto the land and started cultivating it and living off of it, creating their homestead which was the first white settlement within Mercer County. The Clay family made for themselves a prosperous farm, which contained a field for livestock, a tobacco field, wheat field, orchard and kitchen garden as well as their home which they built.

In August of 1783, after Clay had harvested his grain crop, he and his sons had started to build fences around the stacks of grain to keep the livestock from reaching it while they wandered the fields. Clay delegated the job to build the fences to his teenage sons Ezekiel and Bartley. On a day when Clay had gone hunting, he never imagined what he would find when he returned that evening.

While Bartley and Ezekiel were busy at work, building the fences, their sisters were washing on the banks of the river and their mom and younger children were inside the house. At some point, eleven Indians crept up on the two young men and suddenly the sound of a gunshot echoed through the area. Bartley had been shot and killed by one of the Shawnee encroaching on the farm. The girls heard the shot and immediately headed towards the house, literally running into the Shawnee on the property. One of the older daughters, Tabitha, saw one of the Indians attempting to scalp her brother Bartley, so she attacked him, attempting to reach for his knife. She struggled viciously, eventually losing the fight and succumbing to several stab wounds from the assailant.

During the fight, a man whose name lived in infamy for many generations, Liggon Blankenship had called on the Clay household and witnessed the attack from the side of the house. Mrs. Clay begged him to get involved to save her children who were being attacked, but instead he turned around and fled to the nearest settlements at New River to report that the Clay family had all been attacked and killed by Indians. Needless to say, his name was tarnished for quite some time as a coward.

Indian Raid on Settlement Woodcut

The Shawnee scalped Tabitha and Bartley, while capturing Ezekiel and taking him alive as their prisoner back into the woods from which they came. Mrs. Clay, distraught and in shock managed to pull her two children’s lifeless bodies from outside, into the home and then she and the younger children fled on foot, six miles to the Bailey settlement to seek assistance. When Mr. Clay made it home and discovered his two children’s lifeless bodies, he assumed that his entire family had been killed or captured. He fled off into the night through the woods, heading for the settlements at New River to get help. During his travel in the woods, he ascertained that the Shawnee were following him on horses they had stolen. He managed to evade them until the morning when he finally reached Captain Matthew Farley who rounded up a posse of men: Mitchell Clay, Charles Clay, Mitchell Clay, Jr., James Bailey (son of Richard Peyton Bailey), William Wiley, Edward Hale, Joseph Hare, Isaac Cole, John French and Captain James Moore who all went up to the Clay property to view the gory scene and plan their next move against the Shawnee.

Apparently, upon leaving the Clay property, the Shawnee broke off into two groups, both travelling two different paths. One group of Shawnee went down the west fork of the Coal River over Cherry Pond Mountain, while the other group travelled down the Pond fork of the river on the other side of the mountain. The posse of men followed the trail that led them to the group of Shawnee at the Pond fork where they were able to surround them in the night. The group decided to wait until the break of dawn’s first light to attack the natives, making sure they had the upper hand with men above and below them on the hill. As soon as one of the natives awoke in the morning, he spotted Edward Hale and before he could warn the rest of the Shawnee, Edward shot him dead, awaking the rest of them.

During the attack, two of the Indians were killed immediately while another was wounded. He begged for his life to be spared, but seeing that Ezekiel was not among the group, and realizing they had split up, Charles Clay (who was only about 12 years old at the time) killed the Indian for what happened to his siblings. According to author, David Emmons Johnston, he stated that the location in which this attack took place on the fork of the Pond River is in a location in Boone County, off the old property of L.D. Coon who found a pile of rocks with a piece of an Indian hatchet in the general area. Because of the brutality of the deaths of the Clay children, Edward Hale and William Wiley took from the dead Indian’s, strips of their hides, which they turned into razor straps and kept in their family possession for generations as a battle souvenir.

Unfortunately, because the natives split up in two groups, the other group that evaded Mitchell Clay and his posse, made it all the way to Chillicothe, Ohio, with their prisoner, Ezekiel Clay whom they tortured and burned at the stake. Sadly, another one of the Clay children had perished at the hands of the native people who attacked them.

After the brutal attack on their homestead, Phoebe Belcher (who was the sister of Richard Peyton Bailey’s wife, Elizabeth Ann Belcher, who happens to be my gr-gr-gr-gr-gr grandmother), refused to return to the Clay farm and insisted to move to Pearisburg to be near her oldest daughter Rebecca. She never stepped foot on the property again for the rest of her life.

Agony In Stone (photo: Ed Elam)

This tale is just one of many tales of brutal attacks against defenseless families on their homestead by the Shawnee. Was this attack, in the Shawnees mind, a way of the native people getting back at the people for the “Dunmore’s War” that had taken place just years before? Well, even if that was their reasoning for justifying it, it wasn’t right they attacked innocent women and children, period. In history, there are brutal stories from both sides, and we need to be willing to see and accept that. The white man was not the only one to blame for vicious and blatant attacks on human beings. In fact, historical record worldwide shows that every single culture is guilty of violence in the name of spreading out over land. It was certainly not the first case, nor would it be the last.

It is a shame that stories like these are swept under the rug and erased from history, due to the fact that people are so afraid to offend the Native Americans of their imperfect past. They are just as guilty as the Europeans of violence and brutality, many times even to one another as well. Again my friends, as I always say “People hate the truth, luckily the truth doesn’t care.” When it comes to history, let us always remember the whole truths, not just half-truths of our Country’s past. Again, whether good or bad, the truth must always be told.

A statue in honor of Mitchell and Phoebe (Belcher) Clay was erected outside of the Mercer County Courthouse in West Virginia. The statue is called “Agony In Stone” and was dedicated to the memory of the three children the Clay family lost that August day in 1783.

Rest in Peace, Bartley Clay, Tabitha Clay and Ezekiel Clay, and the rest of the Clay family including Mitchell and his wife Phoebe. You are never forgotten!

(Copyright 1/9/2014 - Republished 3/28/2018) J'aime Rubio, www.jaimerubiowriter.com

Sources:

Kentucky Clay: Eleven Generations of a Southern Dynasty

By Katherine R Bateman

A History of Middle New River Settlements and Contiguous Territory

By David Emmons Johnston

U.S. Government War Archives

Familypedia

Photos:

"Agony In Stone"-Findagrave , Ed Elam

Bluestone River, Wikipedia (Creative Commons License)

Indian Raid on Settlement Woodcut, U.S. History (Public Domain)

Mitchell Clay House, (from "A History of Middle New River Settlements and Contiguous Territory)

Hidden History of the Hotel Ryde - Part Two

Ryde Hotel, Walnut Grove, CA

In the last article, I spoke about the beginning of Ryde (the community), the origins of the Hotel Ryde and how the original hotel burned down in the fire of 1911. So what happened after the fire?

Well, after the Giusti family moved their business across the river to the Miller's Ferry Station, the remaining residents of Ryde started rebuilding their businesses.

The 2nd Hotel Ryde

2nd Hotel Ryde (Ad)

Let me first state this, the Ryde Hotel that stands today is not the original hotel, nor does it sit on the original spot that the first or second hotel stood. In fact, the parking lot of the current Ryde Hotel (just south of the hotel) is where both the original and 2nd hotel's once stood. I spoke to lifetime resident and local historian, Dennis Leary in depth about his life in Ryde and he told me that the 2nd building that was used as the Hotel Ryde was rebuilt on the same spot as the original. When he bought the property in the 1970s, the building was still there but hadn't been used as the hotel since the mid-1920s.

I could not find any documents that state exactly when the 2nd building was erected, however it was rebuilt sometime before the 1920s, because I found some really interesting stories that took place at the Ryde during that time period. From what I read in old periodicals and what Mr. Leary told me, the hotel was rebuilt and run by the Gianetti family. Some accounts state that Joe Miller had the hotel rebuilt and he then leased it to the Gianetti family, while others stated the Gianetti family rebuilt the hotel.

Also, Remember, the current Hotel Ryde wasn't opened until 1927, so the stories you are about to read took place in the hotel that is no longer standing. If you go stand in the parking lot of the current Ryde Hotel, you will be standing in the vicinity where these next few stories took place.

Murder or Self-Defense?

Literally just days before the onset of the Prohibition Era in California, the Hotel Ryde saw a very tragic and scary incident take place in their saloon. On January 2, 1920, after two guests had one too many drinks in the bar area, the bartender Orlando Fontanini told the two patrons, Alex and Gunnar Johnson that they needed to leave. Of course, that didn't sit well with Alex and he grew angry. The bartender continued persisting that it was time for both of them to leave but that wasn't going to be the case. Instead Alex and Gunnar decided to jump over the counter at the bar and proceeded to attack the bartender, choking him. During the scuffle the bartender reached for his gun he kept under the bar and he shot Alex Johnson in self defense, killing him. Although, he adamantly stated that his life was at risk and he was only defending himself, Fontanini was charged with Alex Johnson's murder and was taken to jail. Gunnar Johnson was held as a witness.

Sausalito News (January 10, 1920)-

(See Photo)

"Sacramento--- Alex Johnston (typo), a carpenter, formerly residing in San Francisco at 3470 Twentieth Street, was shot and killed January 2 during a quarrel in the barroom of the Hotel Ryde at Ryde, Sacramento county. Orlando Fontanini, bartender at the hotel, was arrested and charged with murder. He said Alex Johnston and Gunnar Johnston, a companion had attacked him when he ordered them from the place. Fontanini said he shot in self-defense as he was being choked. Gunnar Johnston is being held as a witness.--"

Sacramento Bee (January 13, 1920)--
"The killing in Ryde January 1st of Alex JOHNSON was investigated and a verdict of death resulting from a gunshot wound inflicted by Orlando FONTANINI, was brought in. FONTANINI, who was a bartender at the Ryde Hotel, shot JOHNSON following an argument over the claring of the saloon. The bartender claimed he shot in self-defense after being attacked. He declared when he tried to close the place JOHNSON became abusive and attacked him. He said one of the men grabbed him by the throat and during the scuffle, he fired a revolver."

I looked into the story further and couldn't find whether or not Fontanini was later freed or if they convicted him of the charges. Honestly, he shows up in the 1920 Census as being a servant for the Gianetti household, but then he drops off from any public records. The possible misspelling of the names Johnson and Johnston in various news clippings is actually quite common for the time period. However, according to the San Francisco Directory for 1920, Gunnar Johnson is listed. So now, we have the correct spelling of their Surname.

Prohibition and Scandal at the Ryde- 1923

By 1923, the Ryde Hotel was in the papers again. This time it was for violating Prohibition laws by serving alcohol to their guests. According to the Lodi Sentinel (November 13, 1923) some federal agents stopped by the Ryde to enjoy dinner in the restaurant. While they were there, they noticed that the restaurant was serving alcohol. Three men who were guests at the hotel confronted one of the three officers when they overheard them talking about the fact the restaurant was violating the law. One of the men walked up to the officer and accused him of being law enforcement, to which Officer Charlton admitted. The guy then demanded to see his badge. When Charlton showed him the badge, the man reached over, grabbed a bottle of alcohol and broke it over the officer's head. This injury cut him severely and he was in bad need of medical attention. Officer Edmund Hemphill ran out to his car and retrieved his gun and held the men who instigated the fight at bay until back up arrived.

Warrants were issued by the U.S. Commissioner, Gerald Beatty and then federal officers along with Sheriff Eaton Blanchard then arrested the three men from the fight: Allan Eldred, Clay Locke and William Donahue. They also arrested Mrs. Gianetti (the Proprietess) and a waiter (who was serving alcohol) Nick Camicia. They were all charged with, Conspiracy to violate Prohibition Law, Interfering with Government Officers, Destroying evidence, and Assault of Government Officers.

Mrs. Gianetti and Nick Camicia were released immediately on a $1,000 bond, while the three other men were held on a $10,000 bond. Clay Locke obtained his bail within a few hours. Clay Locke was the son of George Granville Locke. Clay's grandfather was George W. Locke, for which the town of Locke was named after. Clay's father, George Jr., was the one who allowed the town to be built on the edge of the Locke Estate and there it sits today as a reminder of an old Ghost Town that once was a bustling little city. Although the records I have found to date show the town of Locke to be a small community early on (around 1916), by the 1930's it was full of diverse cultures including Chinese, Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Italian, Filipino, Mexican, Swedish, German, Hawaiian, Japanese, and Caucasian Americans, As the years passed, people came and went, but that little town remained.

Photo shows 2nd structure and 3rd structure side by side (Circa 1927)

The Hotel Moves

So sometime in the mid-1920s the newer (3rd) Ryde Hotel was built. This is the current hotel that still stands today. It is said to have been built in 1926 and opened in 1927. What happened to the 2nd Ryde Hotel? Well, after they had built a new one just yards away, north of the property, the old hotel building was then used for other various businesses including "Ryde Electric" and an insurance company.

The current hotel has seen many owners throughout the years. Many reports even claim that Hollywood's "Wolf Man", Lon Chaney, Jr. and his family owned it at one point in time. The hotel was also said to have an underground tunnel that had stills for brewing wine, gin and whiskey during Prohibition. There was also rumors the very underground tunnel also led to the river for guests to be able escape undetected into the night, in the instance that there was a raid. The lower level of the hotel had a 'speakeasy' and offered music and booze to their guests (as long as you weren't a cop!)

Actor, Lon Chaney, Jr.

There's been talk over the years about it being a bordello, a place where many unsavory characters and even mobsters would frequent to enjoy gambling, women and booze. I could not find anything in any archive to substantiate these claims, although it is a pretty exciting tale to tell. I think that it is safe to say that the Ryde Hotel did, at times, involve itself in "prohibited" acts according to the laws of the time, whether it be related to Prohibition or what not. Anything else is just pure speculation.

The hotel pride's itself as being the place many of Hollywoodland's elite would come for a weekend stay in the old days. Photos fill the walls with stars that are said to have stayed there. In 1928, Herbert Hoover came to visit the Ryde Hotel and it is reported that at a political rally he held there, he announced his candidacy for President. During the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s newspaper archives note that it was a pleasant place for couples to celebrate their anniversary along the beautiful Delta.

During the 1960s and 1970s the crowd it attracted had changed and at one point had even changed it's name to the Grand Island Inn for awhile. The Ryde Hotel's website even states that at one point the hotel turned into a boarding house when the levee's were built. The hotel has been bought and sold so many times over the years. During the 1970s, when the building that housed the 2nd Ryde Hotel was demolished, Dennis Leary (the owner of that property) allowed the Ryde Hotel access to pave a new driveway down the side of the hotel. Originally the Ryde's driveway was the one on the north side of the building, but after having issues with delivery trucks for so many years due to the fact it was so steep, Leary was nice enough to let them pave a second driveway on the southside of the hotel for easier access. Later, Mr. Leary sold the land on the south, to the hotel where they eventually used it for the parking lot they have today.

Hotel California?

The Ryde Hotel's water tower.

I found some sites claiming adamantly that the Ryde Hotel was the "inspiration" for the Eagle's song "Hotel California". This is absolutely incorrect. First off, my step father was a huge Eagles fan, and that song was his favorite. I have heard every idea that has been thrown out there about possible meanings and inspirations for that song over the years, none of which ever mentioned the Ryde Hotel.

If any hotel would be mentioned for the inspiration for that song, it would be the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles. The Eagle's themselves were quoted stating the song is about the "interpretation of the high life in Los Angeles", plus the Chateau Marmont was the "spot" for everyone in the entertainment world to party at, so that one makes more sense to me.

Secondly, over the years there's been so many ideas about the true meanings of the song, some people have gone so far as to state it was about a hotel in San Francisco that was purchased by Anton LaVey and turned into a Satanic church. Others have even tried to say the song is about the Camarillo State Mental Hospital, in Camarillo, CA. So for the theory that the Ryde Hotel was the inspiration for that classic song, it just doesn't add up. Sorry.

Deaths, Murders, Mystery

In all the searching I have done on the original Ryde, the 2nd Ryde and the final Ryde Hotel that stands today, I haven't found any other deaths besides Alex Johnson's death in 1920. Not to say that no one else died there, maybe I just haven't found it yet. I read on a 'less than credible' website, that a local artist committed suicide there and that he haunts the place. I see no real proof of this, nor to I believe this. I did find that this artist sadly took his life in 2006, however there was no mention that he took his life at the Ryde Hotel.

The newspaper article that I read, stated that he had suffered from depression and mental illness and that he took his life at his home on Grand Island. Honestly, whether he killed himself there or not, I find it in poor taste and given the fact this tragedy was so recent, that for someone to be putting his death on a website to claim a place is haunted or not, is just plain wrong!

I write about historical facts and stories that took place a long time ago. I do this to pay tribute and honor those who can no longer speak for themselves, therefore I will not go any further into this man's life or death, nor will I even mention his name out of respect for him and also to his family. Again, I could find NO EVIDENCE that he took his life at the Ryde Hotel so other websites should NOT be posting this information if they do not have the facts.

In Conclusion

In the time I have spent looking into the vast history of the Hotel Ryde and the community of Ryde itself, I have become even more fascinated with this beautiful piece of heaven. I always enjoyed taking drives out here on weekends and just enjoying the peace and serenity that this little Delta town has to offer, but now even more so it holds a special place in my heart now, and forever.

I am glad to have been able to research and document this history that had been forgotten for so long. It makes me happy that others out there who really want to know the real history of this place can now know what I know. If you are ever in the area of the California Delta, (just about 30 miles northwest of Stockton or 30 miles southwest of Sacramento), I suggest you take a little drive down to Walnut Grove and visit Ryde. It's worth the trip!!

(Copyright 2013- J'aime Rubio. Republished 3/28/2018)

www.jaimerubiowriter.com

Sources:
Sausalito News (January 10, 1920)
Sacramento Bee (January 13, 1920)
Lodi Sentinel (November 13, 1923)
Interview with Dennis Leary
Ryde Hotel Website (www.rydehotel.com)
Free Lance Star 8/5/1977
Sacramento River Delta Historical Society- periodicals
various websites, census records, archives and newspaper clippings

Photo Sources:
All photos of the Ryde Hotel are copyright protected and property of J'aime Rubio
photo of Lon Chaney, Jr. from public domain
Prohibition photo public domain