Eastvale has Arrived!

I have been a little slow letting you know about my latest book. Called "A Brief History of Eastvale," it is about the second newest city in Eastvale, Jurupa Valley being the newest, of course. My coauthor is Loren Meissner, who actually went to the Eastvale School many years ago. It was Loren who really pushed to get this book in print. He wanted all the new residents of Eastvale (which is almost everyone who lives there now) to know that Eastvale's history started way before 1975. It is available in local stores, online, and through the Eastvale Community Foundation.   

This Day in History - September 22, 1897

On Wednesday the 22^nd Mr. Gorbruegge broke his shoulder in a serious accident. He was riding a horse when the horse went out of control and dashed under a clothesline. This caused Gorbruegge to be thrown from the horse. He then hit his shoulder on a cistern platform. 

This Day in History - June 5th, 1928

It was reported int he Riverside Daily Press that Justice H.D. Biggs of West Riverside Township had obtained permission to use the school auditorium for the jury trial of A. G. Beauchamp who was charged with reckless driving and speeding. The trial was scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on June 6th.

This Day in History - May 22, 1930

In the Riverside Daily Press:

Miss Mildred LaRue, school teacher of West Riverside, has taken the physical examination and has been granted  and has been granted a student's airplane pilot's permit. Miss LaRue was a former student of Roman Warren. She plans to complete the course at the Riverside airport and obtain her license.

A Saturday Afternoon in April

On Saturday, April 17th, 1915, quite a party of little girls, members of the "Jolly Bunch," enjoyed the afternoon at the home of Miss Essie Knell. The girls played their favorite games and late in the afternoon Mrs. Knell served dainty refreshments.  

This Day in History - March 29, 1929

Well, Hello Dollie! On March 29th, 1929, when women were rarely elected to public office, Mrs. Dollie Stone, who lived in the Fort Fremont area of West Riverside (today's Rubidoux) was elected to be a school trustee of the West Riverside School District.

This Day in History - March 14, 1929

Who says mothers didn't have the same concern 84 years ago as they do today? From the Riverside Daily Press:

A very interested group of 20 mothers met in the class on parental education at Glen Avon School with Mrs. F.E. Schirtzinger teacher. Sex education and the adolecent were the topics of instruction.

This Day in History - February 26, 1903

A reception was given on February 26th at the school house for the Jurupa Band. The rooms were beautifully decorated with pepper boughs and potted ferns, branches of violets being placed everywhere, in every nook and corner, giving a pleasant fragrance to the rooms. A program was performed, the band played a few selections, and then punch and wafers were served. The balance of the evening was spent in a social way.  

This Day in History: February 18, 1911

The Riverside Daily press reported on this date the following real estate news:

A. Pellisier, the dairyman, has leased from the R.L. and I Company 2000 acres in the rivers bottom for pasturage for his dairy herd. the land lies between the West Riverside bridge and Spanishtown and will all be fenced by Mr. Pellisier.

Elson Art Exhibit

The West Riverside School had the Elson Art exhibit on the evenings of February 1- 19, 1921.

Elson Art exhibits featured 200 reproductions of the world’s great masterpieces. I wasn't able to find much information on these exhibits other than the fact that schools across the country held Elson Art exhibits. The earliest reference I found dated to 1915 and the latest to 1929.  These exhibits were designed to introduce both the children and the adults in the community to great art and to help them choose, at least according to one newspaper article, "art appropriate for the home." 

For the Love of Pete - A book review

Because of various things I do I seem to have gotten on some lists concerning books that have to do with history. I get contacted on occasion and offered a copy of various books. If it is something that looks interesting I agree to take a copy. If I like the book I might tell you about it. What I really like about the these books is that I would have NEVER known about them otherwise.   They are self published or published by small independent publishers. So while they may have nothing to do with Jurupa history, they do have to do with history. I like the idea of helping the little guy. I hope you don't mind!

As you have probably guessed, I love history. I also enjoy reading children's literature. I admit it, I am a "Little House" addict! Happily, my two loves came together in a very enjoyable fashion in Ethel Barker's "For the Love of Pete."

The book is about three children who are living on the streets of New York. They are eventually taken on the Orphan Train to live in Iowa. There are lots of details about their lives in both places, the difficulties they go through, and there friendship with each other.

This book was obviously a labor of love for Ms. Barker. I really enjoyed the way it was written in three different voices: Rosie, her sister Iris, and their friend Pete. The children had to endure some hard times but, with a surprise twist at the end, the three stories were resolved nicely by the conclusion of the book. I plan on passing my copy on to my 10 year old goddaughter. I think she will enjoy it just like I did!

Crossing the River was Dangerous

On May 3, 1884 One of the local Riverside papers mentioned that Clarence Stewart of West Riverside had had an accident while trying to cross the Santa Ana River. He was in a light wagon and had three ladies and a ten-month old child with him. One of the singletrees on the wagon broke causing the wagon to tip over. All of the occupants of the wagon were thrown into the water which, the newspaper said, was hub deep and very swift. Thankfully everyone, including the baby, only received a soaking. All got out of the river safely.

Just so you know, because I sure didn't, a singletree is a piece of wood that attaches to the front of a wagon. It prevents balance problems by insuring that the cart is pulled from the center and insures a smooth pulling action by absorbing the left-right-left-right pulling movement of the animal pulling the wagon. If you want to see what they look like just google "singletree."

This Day in History - January 15, 1903

On Thursday evening, January 15th, the Jurupa band gave a reception and social at the school house. The reception was in honor of the ladies who had helped them with their recent concert in San Jacinto. The evening was spent listening to music played by the band and in various games. Delicious refreshments were then served. The remainder of the evening was spent playing games outside by the light of the moon. The moonlight lent enchantment to the scene. All those present reported having a delightful time.

Upcoming History Event

Since folks who check out this blog have to be interested in history (!) I thought I would tell you about an upcoming event in San Bernardino. Information is below. And by the way, Happy New Year!

This Day in History - December 29, 1917

Miss Ida Sargent of Glen Avon was married on December 29th, 1917. She and Mr. W. Verley were married in the parsonage of the Highgrove United Methodist Church by Rev. J.C. Livingston. The bride is the daughter of Mrs. Ida Sargent of Glen Avon.

The bride attended school in South Dakota as a child and knew her groom then. She visited her old home last summer and because reacquainted with Mr. Verley at that time. Since then the two have been corresponding and Mr. Verley recently moved to the Riverside area. He was employed a the Glenwood Garage in Riverside shortly after moving to the area.    

Chain Gang Road Improvements

On December 20, 1899 the Riverside Enterprise reported that the chain gang had been employed the day before graveling the road "near the Wilson place." The chain gang had worked on the road leading west from the bridge and north along the river from the bridge. The Enterprise reported that the work had made "both of those thoroughfares excellent ones." The paper also noted that the ranchers who had to haul their crops to Riverside were very pleased with the work.

Poor Mr. Contreras

According to the Riverside Enterprise on August 23rd, 1902, A. Contreras was a resident of West Riverside who worked on the canal. He returned home on the 22nd to eat supper and discovered someone had broken into his house. What did they take? His best set of clothes! He went the following day to inform the the Sheriff's department of the burglary. Unfortunately, with no clues to go on, the Enterprise said chances of recovery were not good.

Brass Band

In December 1901 it was announced in the local paper that a brass band was being formed in the West Riverside area. New instruments were ordered for the band, all of which were nickel plated. To be known as the "Jurupa Band," it initially had 11 members comment to the weekly practices. G.W. Greene was the director. It was planned that they would be having a concert soon for the community.

E-Book Available

I am happy to report that Wicked Jurupa Valley is available as an e-book. It is (or will be) available for sale via Amazon (on the Kindle), Barnes & Noble (on the Nook) and Apple’s iBookstore (on the iPad). I feel so hip and up to date knowing you can read Wicked Jurupa Valley on all of these devices! Whoo hoo!

Save Jurupa Valley

I feel like saving my city is a bit like saving my history. It is a fact of life that the preservation of history happens when there is a governmental entity that wants to save it. Unlike our neighboring county of San Bernardino,. the forefathers of Riverside County have never seen fit to create a County museum.   Therefore the history of my long time unincorporated area is scattered here and there in various libraries and achives, or, much worse, was thrown out over the years. Excuse me a moment while I weep for that lost history. Sniff!

But now, Jurupa Valley is a city. I feel confident that, with time, more and more historic preservation will occur just because we are a city. However, that very cityhood is in danger of disappearing. The state of California took away 47% of our first year budget, just like that, leaving my city in a desperate financial situation.

A small goup of us has formed a community based nonprofit called Save Jurupa Valley. Our organization's only purpose is to raise money to save our city. Please feel free to look at our brand new website at www.savejurupavalley. If you can donate or pledge, even a small amount, please do. Pennies can add up to millions! Even more, please pass our website address on to as many people as possible. We want the world to know that the newest city in California, Jurupa Valley,  refuses to die!