Odd, Old News: Lively Times At Klondike

Crop of the 1898 Lentell map of Humboldt County)

Nuggets of old news are served up by David Heller, one of our local historians.

In 1900, traveling north through the northwestern corner of Mendocino county on one branch of the coastal stage route one would have passed through such towns as French, Davis, Scottsville, Klondike, and Gopherville, names that have largely faded from both map and landscape.

Like many remote areas on our North Coast, the landscape has re-absorbed almost all signs of bustling logging eras. Tan bark camps, lumber mills, worker cabins, stores, and the requisite saloons have come and gone. Wooden structures have disintegrated, rusty metal remains of timber operations have slowly merged back into the earth. Even the exact locations of these towns has been somewhat veiled by time.

These small communities were located just to the south of the Humboldt/Mendocino county line, on a small stretch of road leading from the Whitethorn Valley towards the coast. We are indebted to Diane Hawk’s research, and her book A Glance Back, A Northern Mendocino County History, and Ray Raphael’s endeavors for what little we know about these towns.

The 1898 Lentell map of Humboldt County shown above reveals two of those old town names. What we call 4-Corners in modern times was initially named French after its first postmaster David S. French (no relation to the Frenchs of the Ettersburg), who will figure in one of our articles.

The town named Davis shown on the map may also have been called Scottsville, a name that disappeared when its Post Office burned down in 1902. Davis and Scottsville may different names for two other town names that were in common usage, but never appeared on a map, Klondike and Gopherville. We know that Klondike was named after its Klondike Saloon. Similarly, Davis was thought to have been named after the owner of its bar, Albert Davis. In this era, the excitement of the early Alaskan gold rush caused a statewide proliferation of saloons being named “Klondike”.

Historian Ray Raphael’s interview with the Lewis family of Whitethorn revealed that one big saloon in the Gopherville area was located “when you make the turn past Lost River hole”. A short distance away, the Klondike bar was run by William “Bill” Hamilton, son of Archibald Hamilton, the Pt. Arena Justice of the Peace and stockman who ran his stock in Shelter Cove in the early 1860’s and was involved in a vengeance raid on the local Native people in the summer of 1861. This story, and a more in depth look at Gopherville, will be shared at some point in the future.

Though both locations. Gopherville and Klondike. are mentioned in the news in 1901, it is possible that they were the same town. We have some record of their having been a mill, cabins, store, and the requisite saloons “needed” to serve a large population of tan bark workers, teamsters and port workers at Gopherville. At this time, the Wagner tan bark processing mill in Briceland had not been built, and many tons of the unprocessed bark were being shipped directly out of Bear Harbor and Needle Rock located just a few miles to the west.

There were at least five saloons within a few miles of each other on this stretch of wagon road and, typical for bars, fights or “affrays” were common. The distance from the Mendocino county seat allowed for an even more lawless environment.

This week Odd Old news takes a look at articles that describe graphically violent incidents in the Klondike region at the turn of the 20th century, beginning with one rather euphemistically entitled….

LIVELY TIMES AT KLONDIKE
Humboldt Times
August 11, 1900
Two Bloody Affrays Reported From Little Mendocino Town. Quarrel Over a Women Results in a Participant Being Seriously Wounded. Finn Disemboweled by Albert Pollock of This City—Doctors Say He Cannot Live.

Klondike, a little town down in Mendocino county, bids fair to outrival even the frozen north. Within the past two weeks it has had two bloody affrays, one of which will undoubtedly have a tragic ending. The participants in the first affair, which occurred a week ago last Sunday night, were David French and Benjamin Smith. French is part owner in one of the numerous thriving saloons of the equally thriving town of Klondike. To the rear of this saloon, Miss Mattie Jensen, a dissolute character, occupied rooms. Both men were paying attentions to the woman and on the Sunday night mentioned Smith called at the house. French appeared on the scene some minutes later and demanded to see Smith. He was standing in the yard at the time and just as Smith passed through the door he struck him a heavy blow. The woman handed Smith a weapon which he immediately used, firing one shot at his assailant. The nature of the wound led the physician who took charge of the case to believe that four shots were fired but upon investigation it was found that the bullet had made four separate wounds.

French is not in as precarious condition as was at first reported. From a gentleman who arrived from Klondike yesterday afternoon it was learned that his chances for recovery are reasonably good. Neither was Smith seriously injured. His skull was not fractured as was stated in the Chronicle dispatch, published by the evening paper. He was able to be around shortly after the mix-up and aside from a sore head was not injured in the least.

No arrests have been made nor are any likely to occur.

The second fight which is of more recent date and likely to have a fatal ending took place last Friday night in the same saloon. Albert Pollock and a Finn whose name could not be ascertained quarreled over a game of cards. Pollock was attacked and driven to a corner where the Finn was in the act of administering a terrible beating, when the former drew a knife and used it to such good effect that the Finn was nearly disemboweled. No hopes were held for his recovery at the time the Times informant left Klondike, and it is probable that he has since died. In the scuffle Pollock’s arm was broken, but he was not otherwise injured. Pollock is a son of Mr. and Mrs. Sam Pollock of this city and is now at the home of his parents undergoing treatment for the fractured limb.

Trouble seemed to come in threes at Klondike:

ANOTHER TALE OF BLOODSHED
Humboldt Times
August 14, 1900
Reported Killing of Ben Breeden, at Klondike, Mendocino County. He Was Shot in the Neck and Expired Almost Instantly—Trouble Over a Woman the Cause. Name of the Perpetrator of the Deed Not Learned – Third Affray in Two Weeks.

The little town of Klondike down in Mendocino county, if report be true, has another bloody tale added to its bloody record of the past two weeks. Benjamin Breeden, so says a message received here yesterday, was shot and killed there last Friday. Facts concerning the reported tragedy are so meager that they can hardly be regarded as such. It was learned, however, that the trouble grew out of a dispute over a woman whose name could not be learned, nor could the identity of the man fingering the weapon ascertained, Breeden it is said was shot in the neck, the bullet entering the throat near the jugular vein and from what could be learned death must have been instantaneous. As before stated not very much light has as yet been thrown upon the killing.

At present there are a large number of Mendocino people in this city. Many of these were seen last evening but other than the news that Breeden had been killed they had heard absolutely nothing as to details. This is the third bloody affray with which the little town must be credited in the space of two weeks but is the only one attended with fatal results. The man French at whom Smith fired with such good effect two weeks ago Sunday is on the high road to recovery, while the unnamed Finn who was nearly disemboweled by Albert Pollock, Is now out of danger and bids fair to recovery.

A gentleman who was in this city yesterday stated that the only drawback to knifing and shooting affairs in Mendocino county was that but few of the participants are killed, which tends to show that there are a few characters there whose absence from things of earth would not be missed. Owing to the distance of Klondike from Ukiah, the county seat, few arrests, if any, are ever made and the lawless element has full control of the town.

The story of Breedon’s death was repeated in the Humboldt Times:

A flying rumor had reached Scotia to the effect that Ben Breeden, a saloon keeper at Klondike had been killed in a fracas at Klondike two or three days ago. As the statement ran he was shot in the neck and killed. The victim, if such, is well known in Eureka(Humboldt Times, 8/14/1900).

As it turned out, the rumor should never have flown:

James Johnson, who has been living at Needle Rock several months, arrived here yesterday afternoon. He clinches the contradiction of the recent report that Ben Breeden was shot to death in the Klondike section one day last week. He ate dinner with him the day before leaving Needle Rock(Humboldt Times, 8/24/1900).

Earlier Odd and Old News:

There are many, but here are the most recent:

• Mammoth Beets And The Sugar Beet Industry That Never Took Root In Humboldt County
• When Empress the Elephant Came to Humboldt County
• No Such Thing As Impassable Roads For Fool-Proof Modern Motor Cars
• A Parent’s Worst Fear Stories of a Century Ago
• The Wreck of the Steamer ‘Active’ North of Shelter Cove
• Early Adventures in Automotive Travel
• A Trip Up the Coast to Crescent City
• ‘Dope Evil Plainly Growing,’ Warns Early Eureka Newspaper
• A Real Fight With a Bear Up Mad River
• A Carriage Ride Down the Coast in 1892