THE GOLDEN FLAKES
The Golden Flakes is the official publication of The Gold Discovery Park Association
May, June, July 2015
www.marshallgold.org
Volume 45, Issue 51,52,53
Visiting California’s State Parks
Contact Info:
530-622-6198
As you get out and about this summer, why not explore some
of the many scenic areas around our beautiful state, including
some of California’s State Parks? A few years ago, when many
of the parks were on the “closure list”, our family made a mad
dash to visit several of them. Of course, history is our favorite so
historic parks were at the top of our list so I am going to review
a few historic parks. The Sonoma area has alot to see and you
can hit more than one in a day: Vallejo’s charming victorian home
- “Lachryma Montis”, and the Solono Mission with the barracks
nearby and the statue in the square depicting the Bear Flag
Revolt ...are all within a few minutes of each other. You’ll have to
drive about twenty minutes to get to the Petaluma Adobe (Mariano Vallejo’s ranch) And if you are interested in seeing ALL the
missions at once, there is a wonderful museum (free) at the Cline
Cellars windery in Sonoma. All 21 missions are on display in
small scale.
Other parks we have enjoyed recently include: Sutter’s Fort -
where we particiapted with our grandchildren in the overnight program. We’ve also made the trip up the coast to Fort Ross which
boasts some wonderful buildings depicting the Russian presence
in that area. You cannot miss all there is to see in Monterey as
well! Some of the buildings which had previousl been closed to
the public are open once again: The Pacific House museum, the
Custom’s House, The Cooper - Molera Adobe and the Larkin
House.
As far as scenic? There are too many to list. Have a great
summer visiting California’s State Parks! Oh, and if you’ve volunteered enough to earn a State Parks PASS don’t forget to use it!
Jennifer Steward
GDPA President
Gold Discovery
Museum
&
Mercantile
Hours
10 am - 5:00 pm
Daily
Board of Directors
Jennifer Steward
(President)
Gale Nored - Tanquary
Dennis Amaral
Bill Bennett
(Secretary)
Maureen Brown
(Treasurer)
THE GOLDEN FLAKES
MAy JuNE JuLy 2015
Meet Our Volunteers
PAGE 2
Gale Nored Tanquary
Long time docent, Gale Nored Tanquary, comes to the park several times a week
from her home in Newcastle. Not only does Gale do all the decorating for events like
The Victorian Tea and the annual Volunteer Dinner, but she is the lead cook for the
Dutch Oven Cooking Program. Gale also currently serves on the board of Directors
for the GDPA. You can pop in and say “Hi” to her in the Gold Rush Mercantile a couple
times a week where she also volunteers.
Gale first came to Marshall Gold in 1995 when she responded to an article in
the newspaper featuring docents Emily Vigus and Jenny Thevany holding up a quilt
and looking for volunteers for Sarah’s Quilting Party. Since Gale already knew Jenny
and also wanted to learn to quilt, she signed up. Jenny took the class with Gale and
after the class they met a woman from Placerville who was demonstrating Dutch oven
cooking. That’s when Jenny and Gale started the cooking program at Marshall Gold.
Gale never learned to quilt, but boy can she cook! Gale says she started cooking back
when her kids were in the 4th grade in the ELP program at Sutter’s Fort. They needed
a cook so Gale soon found herself cooking for 75 people! She’s been cooking ever
since!
Gale, who was raised in the Marysville / Auburn area says this area has always been special to her because her
mother was a miner and the family spent their summers camping on the rivers and creeks around the Georgetown area.
Gale was self - employed for 34 years as the owner of JR’s Transmission in Auburn. She is now retired so she enjoys
spending more quality time at the Park. Together with her husband, John, they have 7 children and 5 grandchildren.
Continued on page 6
Meet Our Store Supervisor - Julie Andert
Please welcome Julie Andert - the newest addition to The Gold Rush
Mercantile team! Born and raised in Orange County, California, the third
of 6 children, you can imagine there was “never a dull moment” at Julie’s
house. When her parents decided to purchase a hardware store in 1980,
the family moved to the small town of Oakhurst so Julie finished her teen
years attending Yosemite High in the foothills of the beautiful Sierras. Julie
and Kip were married in 1987 and moved to Cool in 1994 with their two
small children Brittney and Dylan - and later welcomed their third child Riley. Brittney and her husband Trent have made Julie a the proud grandma
to little Sawyer. Dylan just finished Police Academy and looking for a job
in law enforcement. And Riley is 16 and a cheerleader at the local high
school. Julie and Kip have run a successful trapping business for nearly
20 years called Creature Catchers Wildlife Management.
Julie loves spending time with family, horseback riding, hiking, camping,
photography ...you get it...just being outdoors! The family has attended
Cool Community church for over 20 years where Julie currently helps run the Awana program.
Julie homeschooled her older children in the early 2000’s then received her AA at Sierra College in 2005. When
Riley started school, Julie began working (and continues to work part time) at the American River Conservancy. Julie
loves Coloma because, besides being close to her home and her work, is a small, tight-knit
community of amazing people who contribute to this small river town in so many ways. She
knows many volunteers who give generously of their time and talents. Julies says, “We are
so blessed to live and work on the Divide, and to be so close to the American River and recreation trails.”
Together with working at The Gold Rush Mercantile as well as the Conservancy,
Julie finds it helpful to supplement her income and occupies her time. She is happy to work
for another non-profit with a great purpose and equally great people and says, “I have
found that here at the Mercantile. The GDPA is an amazing organization that improves the
park and provides a historic gold rush interpretation. I’m so excited to be a part of it. I look
forward to meeting more members of the community and visitors who come from all over
the world to see our little town. Be sure to drop by and say hello.”
CGRL Theme:
NEWS OF THE DAY
THE GOLDEN FLAKES
May June July 2015
PAGE 3
THE GOLDEN FLAKES
MAy JuNE JuLy 2015
Springtime in Coloma ~
~ Victorian Tea & Brunch
This year a new spring event was added to our park Springtime in Coloma. And since Mother’s Day is such a popular
day for families to bring Mom out, we hosted our first ever Victorian
Tea & Brunch.
On Saturday, there was a momentous occasion in commemoration and celebrattion of the 125th anniversary of The James Marshall’s
monument, and a large crowd gathered on top of the hill around the
monument as The Natives Sons and Native Daughters of the Golden
West presented a plaque. The NSGW were represented by Placerville
Parlor #9, Auburn Parlor #59, and Georgetown Parlor #91. The NDGW
were represented by Margurite Parlor # 12 Placerville, and Sutter’s
Mill Parlor # 336 Coloma. Guests enjoyed the music presented by The
Pioneer Brass Band then both Superintendent McReynolds and Ed Allen
(who interprets the character of James Marshall), shared a few words on
behalf of the occasion.
The Gold Discovery Park Association hosted a fundraiser barbeque so visitors could grab a hamburger or hot dog then
stroll through the nearby mini Tent Town. Interpreters were on
hand to demonstrate different aspects of the Gold Rush: candle
dipping, Miners, ladies spinning and sewing, pioneer cooks, a
Saloon, Old Time Photos, The Mormon Battlion demonstrated the firing of the cannon, there were wagon rides and much
more. Folks could even stop by our little Flower Shop and
Sweet Shop to pick up a special gift as a treat for Mother’s Day!
Sunday at the event featured a church service in The
Emmanuel Church with Reverend Cool (presented by Jerry
Pozo) preached a sermon as well as being accompanied by the
lovely music of the Kendall Sisters.
PAGE 4
THE GOLDEN FLAKES
MAy JuNE JuLy 2015
PAGE 5
Directly following the church service, a Victorian Tea and Brunch was served outdoors. Tables
were decorated and set with antique China (compliments of Gale Tanquary) and a buffet style
display of delicious food like scones, quiche, pastries, sausage, potatoes, and fruit as well as
Mimosas, tea and coffee. Pre- sale tickets were sold to the first one hundred tea goers who
came and enjoyed a casual morning in the park sipping tea while listening to Edwardian music
on the Victrola (CD player). After brunch was served guests made their way to the stage which
was set with a fainting couch, washstand and other Victorian decor - just perfect for a family
photo!
There were lots of people in the park over the Mother’s Day week
end and many made their way over to the pioneer area to pick up
some flowers or tasty treats, sip a beer in the saloon or gather round
as George auctioned off delicious chicken dinners calling out “Winner,
winner...chicken dinner!”
Truly, one of the highlights of the weekend was the Victorian Tea &
Brunch. Our park ladies were all dressed up with their 1900’s regalia
and ready to serve guests. We had many compliments with people
telling us “This is exactly what we wanted to do for Mother’s Day.”
Our new cook - George Kydd
Dennis & Toni Amaral & Friends
Victorian Ladies
Gina Threshie serves guests
Terry Cree and Jaime Crockett
The Walters Family - candle dippers
Bill Bennett - Saloon Barker
THE GOLDEN FLAKES
MAy JuNE JuLy 2015
An Unsettling Time
On May 22nd, park superintendent
Jeremy McReynolds was removed from
his position at Marshall Gold Discovery
SHP, leaving staff and volunteers feeling
very unsettled. In the interim, Barry Smith
of Folsom, has been sent by District
acting superintendent, Rich Preston, to
serve as acting superintendent for Marshall Gold.
Superintendent McReynolds is well
liked and respected for his many positive
accomplishments here at the park and
while not much is known regarding the
situation, he is appealing this decision
through the proper process.
As the president of the GDPA,
together with our board of directors, we
have worked closely with Superintendent
McReynolds and enjoyed a positive and
successful partnership with California
State Parks over the past few years.
It is not easy to try to pick up the
pieces during this difficult time because of
the interruption of leadership and guidance leaves us feeling uncertain about
what the future holds. With this feeling of
being on shaky ground, it would be easy
for us to just wander away - and believe
me, I feel the same way - but I urge you
to band together during this time. Let
us continue to pull together as we have
been doing over the past few years and
remain the family that we have become.
I believe we just may be able to weather
this storm...if we do it together.
The GDPA will continue to stand by its
mission. Our utmost concern is toward our visitors and in preserving the story and message
that is so vital to California and her history.
GDPA President - Jennifer Steward
PAGE 6
Volunteer Training
If you are interested in becoming a volunteer at Marshall Gold Discovery SHP (or know someone who
would like to) please inquire with Holly Thane.
Friday - October 23, 2015 6:30 - 8:30
Saturday - October 24 10 am - 4 pm
Tuesday - October 27 10 am - 12:30 pm
Saturday - November 7, 2015 10 am - 3pm
[email protected] 530-622-1048
Meet Our Volunteers
(continued)
Gale loves the
history here, the gold discovery and how important
our park is. She enjoys
knowing all the people
associated with the park
and has found a great
group of people who are
alot of fun. She says, “It’s
a great place to be.”
During events
Gale plays the role of a Mrs. Jensen who came out
west on the McPike and Strother wagon train in
1850. She tells folks she is looking for her husband,
Marvin, who came to Coloma looking for gold and
that he was going to send for her. She knows he
was here because she has a photo of him taken in
Coloma. She then shows visitors his photo and asks
them to keep their eye out for him. It has happened
more than once, that guests have drug a poor
stranger over to her “hotel” saying, “We’ve found
your husband!”
Newsletter submissions are welcome
& due by September 15th. Please submit
your ideas, news, and articles to:
[email protected]
Editor - Jennifer Steward
Gold Rush Concerns
TiDbiTS - iN - TiME
By Holly Thane
July 2015
As we gear up for Coloma Gold Rush Live, read the following excerpts from accounts during the Gold Rush. These will inspire us
and help us better understand the feelings these people had so that
we are better able to portray that to our visitors at the event.
This is the official account of a visit paid to the gold region in
July 1848 by Colonel Richard Barnes Mason
On the 5th we arrived in the neighbourhood of the mines, and proceeded twenty-five miles up the American Fork, to a point on it now
known as the Lower Mines, or Mormon Diggings. The hill sides were
thickly strewn with canvas tents and bush-harbours; a store was
erected, and several boarding shanties in operation. The day was
intensely hot, yet about 200 men were at work in the full glare of the sun, washing for gold—
The discovery of these vast deposits of gold has entirely changed the character of Upper
California. Its people, before engaged in cultivating their small patches of ground, and guarding their
herds of cattle and horses, have all gone to the mines, or are on their way thither. Labourers of every
trade have left their work-benches, and tradesmen their shops; sailors desert their ships as fast as
they arrive on the coast; and several vessels have gone to sea with hardly enough hands to spread a
sail.
California Star Saturday, June 10, 1848
Many of our countrymen are not disposed to do us justice as regards the opinion we have at
different times expressed of the employment in which over two thirds of the white population of the
country are engaged. There appears to have gone abroad a belief that we should raise our voices
against what some one has denominated an “infatuation.” We are very far from it, and would invite a
calm recapitulation of our articles touching the matter, as in themselves amply satisfactory. We shall
continue to report the progress of the work, to speak within
bounds, and to approve, admonish, or openly censure whatever, in our opinion, may require it at our hands.
Note that the “California Star” ceased publication June 14, 1848,
because the staff had rushed to the gold fields. - Gladys Hansen
The miners rushed here from all over the world even if
they did not want to admit that they “had the fever”. For the
most part they would all live in tents until crude buildings could
be formed. That is why we are excited to have received grant
money from The California State Parks Foundation, to help us
build more gold rush mining buildings. This will help us show
our visitors what a mining town would have looked like during
the gold rush.
P.O. Box 461
Coloma, CA 95613
We’re on the Web
www.marshallgold.org
“Dedicated to the interpretation and conservation
of Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park.”
DATES TO REMEMBER
Tuesday July 21
Board of Directors Meeting
The Weller House
Sunday August 2
Volunteer Appreciation Dinner 5:00
Saturday August 8
Living History Day
Marshall Gold Discovery SHP 10:-2:00
Tuesday August 18
Saturday Sept. 12
Board of Directors Meeting 5:30 The Weller House
Living History Day
Marshall Gold Discovery SHP 10:-2:00
Tuesday Sept. 15
Board of Directors Meeting
Thursday - Sunday
October 8-11
Coloma Gold Rush Live
* Check the website as LHD occurs “weather permitting”
5:30
5:30 The Weller House