Exploring Shasta County History: A Hidden Highway Under Whiskeytown Lake?

The Shasta to Weaverville Road or the Weaverville to Shasta Road has been well traveled by pack trains since 1850. It was often deemed as a “hard road to travel”. However, developing this trail into a wagon road was a slow process until it was debated by the California Legislature in the State Assembly and the route was finally authorized […]

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Exploring Shasta County History: The Greater Redding Chamber of Commerce

The Redding Chamber of Commerce was established on October 20, 1908. It was I.J. Johnson who was elected as the very first president of the brand-new Redding Chamber of Commerce, and their vice president was Augustas H. Gronwoldt, both men were chosen to lead the board of directors for this group. Additional members of the board were: David N. Honn, […]

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Exploring Shasta County History: The Harlan D. Miller Memorial Bridge at Dog Creek

In 1926, a general engineer named Charles E. Andrew began the construction on the brand-new 234-foot open spandrel arch shaped Dog Creek bridge which is located in the Sacramento River Canyon, 30 miles north of Redding at Dog Creek, and just east of present-day Interstate 5. This bridge was designed by a general engineer named Harlan D. Miller, of Oakland, […]

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Entrepeneur John Durwood Weast and his contributions to Shasta County

EARLY LIFE John Durwood Weast was born to Jacob Gordon Weast and Elizabeth (Reasson) Weast on January 1, 1859, at Palmyra, Fluvanna County, Virginia. At the age of one year old in 1860, John was living with his parents at Rochelle, in Madison County, Virginia. His father was a miller by trade. He was the youngest child in their household […]

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Pollock; A former townsite on the Sacramento River arm of Shasta Lake

Pollock was formerly located along U.S. Route Highway 99 at the junction of Salt Creek and the Sacramento River. Today, Pollock is located just opposite of Sugarloaf Resort and Antler’s Marina on the Sacramento River arm at the mouth of Salt Creek under Lake Shasta. Construction on U.S. Route Highway 99 (also known as the Pacific Highway) began in California […]

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California drought reveals 112-year-old freight train derailment wreckage on Shasta Lake

Jeremy Tuggle contributed to this article. LAKEHEAD, Calif., — When Shasta Historical Society’s Education and Community Engagement Manager Jeremy Tuggle finished filming a segment of his popular YouTube show ‘Exploring Shasta County History’ earlier this month he never could have imagined the “rare and historic” discovery that would follow just days later. The find, described as wreckage and artifacts from […]

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Just Surfaced: A Historic Railroad Retaining Wall on the Sacramento River, 8-14-2021

JUST SURFACED: A HISTORIC RAILROAD RETAINING WALL ON THE SACRAMENTO RIVER NEAR CHARLIE CREEK, 8-14-2021. SHASTA LAKE WAS 153.25 FEET BELOW THE CREST OF SHASTA DAM. Meet the writer: Jeremy M. TuggleEducation and Community Engagement Manager – Shasta Historical Society Jeremy M. Tuggle, born in Redding, is a descendant of 11 pioneer families who settled Shasta County between 1849-1889. Jeremy […]

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A redeveloped and subdivided patented mining property: The Tilton Consolidated mine

On January 1, 1902, a prospector and miner named Richard P. Wheelock struck an appealing quartz vein which warranted further investigation of the land he was prospecting on. After that, he sunk a shaft and drove an adit into a hillside establishing a lode mine, which led him to a bonanza of gold. He then called this mining claim the […]

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Furnaceville & Ingot: Home of the Afterthought mine – Part 2

Miners searching for silver struck the copper vein of the Copper Hill mine in 1862, during the silver rush excitement at Silver City. This vein was located in the boundaries of the Cow Creek mining district. However, mining activity lacked on this property until 1873, several years after the abandonment of Silver City, a former settlement which existed above the […]

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Silver City: A prelude to Furnaceville & Ingot

In 1862, a silver rush caused the creation of a mining community called Silver City, also known as Silverton, about 2 1/2 miles above the present-day town of Ingot. It’s name derived from the silver ore which the miners of this burg sought after along the channels of Silver Creek and Cedar Creek. It was located in the boundaries of […]

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