Archive Record
Images
Additional Images [6]
Metadata
Catalog number |
1997.2.2586 |
Object Name |
Newsletter |
Date |
1987 |
Description |
TITLE: Quicksilver County Park News SUBTITLE: Newsletter of the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association Issue # 13 May 1987 NEW ALMADEN QUICKSILVER MINING MUSEUM "It may not be gold, but the treasure locked in the hills of Almaden Quicksilver County Park is worth far more than that to a steadfast group of patrons who have adopted the park. " And now, the New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association is within weeks of reopening a museum to share the history of the park's days as North America's most productive mercury mine." by: Pamela Kramer San Jose Mercury 4/1/87 We are ready to open. Starting on May 23rd we will open every Saturday from 12 noon to 4 p.m.. Donation: $1.00 for everyone. Group tours will be arranged on a group by group basis by calling Kitty at 286-6591, Peggy at 268-8331 or the Museum answering service at 268-1729 and leaving a message. Connie Perham has opened a Terra Mare Photographic Gallery and New Almaden Collectibles at the Bulmore House on the same property as our Museum. This shop features photography, collectibles, cinnabar ore, mining materials, books and gifts and is open every Saturday and Sunday from 12:00 noon to 4;00 p.m. BULMORE HOUSE 1854 The Sunday School of New Almaden will have their annual tea on June 2d. Games will be indulged in at the flag pole grounds. Ice cream will be provided and a general good time is expected. On the following Sunday the anniversary services will be held in the church. The Reverend Dr. Matthews of San Francisco will preach on that day and the children will also make it interesting by rendering songs and recitations. New Almaden, California San Jose Daily Herald May 28, 1894 GUADALUPE MINE - 1918 On April 15, 1987 the mill from the Guadalupe MiningOperation was delivered to our Museum by the drivers at the Jim Zinardi Guadalupe Mine Dumps. We now have a terrific outdoor mining display depicting the actual workings from the Guadalupe days. Thanks to Jim Zinardi's foresight, that era of mining quicksilver is now preserved for the future education of our county citizens. walks in Quicksilver Park are Amazing in variety, there are Lush green canyons with Kaleidoscopes of colors. The Sunshine and shadows color your paths. In the springtime it is special, No other place on earth is quite as beautiful. Participate if you get a chance And don't let the weather stop you. In the Rain it's even nice - just knock the mud off your feet and enjoy! Peggy Melbourne A knowledgeable and fun loving group of people hike in the park every weekend. If you would like to join the hike any time, just call Kitty at 268-6581, or Peggy at 268-8331. HORSES AND HIKERS CAN CO-EXIST Hiking is an activity which I enjoy and so regularly through-out the year. The best seasons are winter and spring when the air is cool and the vegetation fresh and green. One of my favorite parks is the Almaden Quicksilver County Park. This one is used by picnickers, hikers, runners and riders; cyclists are prohibited. Most of the trails are for multiple use, except the New Almaden Trail which is for pedestrian use only. Since our parks are for the benefit of everyone, users should familiarize themselves with the park rules and regulations and in turn, respect them. This also means consideration for others who use the park. On a recent hike along the "Pedestrian Only" trail, there were horse and bike tracks which had caused some damage. Creating these trails and maintaining them requires much work. I know: I belong to an organization, The Santa Cruz Mountain Trails Association, whose main purpose (as unpaid volunteers) is building and maintaining park trails. We also spend time collecting assorted debris thoughtless people discard along trails. Many hours are continually devoted to these efforts. The multiple use trails are a problem. Horses can damage a trail to the point where it becomes difficult and hazardous to both hiker and runner. This is especially evident during the wet season when the trails become muddy. This past season while hiking with a group, we encountered several long stretches of road along the Randol Trail where the horses hoofs had made a quagmire of the entire surface with ankle deep mud holes. The whole width of the road had been used. It seemed that the riders were determined to leave no portion suitable for pedestrian use. As the rains subside and the mud dries, the pot-marked surface becomes hard like concrete and, unless worn down by traffic, can remain rough throughout the summer. Perhaps when some people mount their steed a personality change takes place and they become oblivious to everything except satisfying themselves without any consideration for others. A question to riders; Along roads, is it not possible to allow a narrow footpath for pedestrian use? There are I know, many riders who are considerate and who probably fully understand and appreciate this problem. I believe it would be helpful if you could bring this to the attention of your fellow riders. The Park Rangers are dedicated to preserving and protecting the environment. They cannot do this alone without the cooperation of us all who use the parks. The main burden of responsibility is upon us, the users. by: Friedolin Kessler MINING MOUNTAIN CABIN It isn't often one can go back to the mountain cabin where he lived 50 years ago and find the skillet in which he used to fry his breakfast eggs those mornings in the mid-1930's. Ray Stark did exactly that on a February hike to the Day Tunnel and the Buena Vista Works where he had been an enthusiastic young miner working the New Almaden Quicksilver Mines and living in a cabin up the mountainside from the Buena Vista. Although he had attended the Pioneer Day celebration at San Cristobel Tunnel in October of 1985, he had not been back to the site of his cabin these past 50-plus years. Actually, finding the cabin posed a greater challenge than finding the frying pan, for the cabin had burned, and the surviving foundation and chimney were thoroughly obscured by thick under brush, including flourishing clumps of poison oak. Amazingly, he was able to locate it and to bring down some rusted but recognizable utensils to the rest of us waiting at the Buena Vista, and to present them to his daughter, Sandy Stark Dias, and to Jo Schneider Young, daughter of his old boss, Jimmy Schneider. The cabin, a one-room accommodation with a sleeping porch, was home for two years. Kerosene lamps provided light, a small gasoline camp stove served for cooking, and the fireplace provided enough heat to keep them warm even during the worst winter storms, except for the sleeping porch, which Ray says was only warm in summer, and then sometimes too warm when the weather was hot. We couldn't have had a finer day for an outing; Kitty, as usual, had ordered up splendid weather. We all enjoyed a sunny picnic at the Day Tunnel, overlooking green slopes and the valley beyond. Hiking or riding up with Ken Silviera, the new ranger, were Ed Lewis, Margaret Teufel, Cathy Carpenter, Mark, Sandy Dias, Ray Stark's daughter, Peggy Melbourne, Jo Schneider Young, Kitty Monahan, Herb Greenfield. By the way, Ray did not come down with poison oak despite fighting his way through it to reach the cabin site. He says that 50 years ago he would immunize himself by taking the drops of poison oak extract put out by Cutter Labs. We've heard of long-lasting medications, but 50 years is incredible: by: Nancy Greenfield BACK IN THE THIRTIES MINING IN THE QUICKSILVER Our truck driver didn't plan too far ahead the time he drove up the little unused road for the first time. It was a sharp left turn all the way, and very narrow. So narrow the left front tire was hugging the side of the hill all the way and the right rear tire was close to hanging out over the edge. Slowly as we drove along all was OK until we got to the point where it was a dead end. It was only then that the driver admitted that he should have planned ahead a little and found out there was no place to turn around and come back out. There was only one way, reverse gear all the way back, it's a good thing it was only about six or seven hundred feet back to the good road. Rear wheels don't steer so naturally they would not hug the inside of the road like the front wheel would. They would tend to run to the edge of the road and drop off while backing up. We thought the truck would have to stay there the rest of it's natural life, but soon Jimmie Schneider came looking for us because by that time we were long overdue. He was a man that had that expertise and magic touch to cure any problem that arose. So my Jimmie's instructions we got some short two by fours and blocks and built up a little ramp for each rear wheel to climb up on while backing up. Then we would push the truck off the blocks toward the inside of the road. We had to repeat that system about every eight or ten feet while backing up. After far too much time and labor was wasted, we got the truck back on the good road again, luckily the truck was empty and not loaded with cinnabar like it was most of the time. We never did find out for sure how badly the driver got chewed out, it was a subject that nobody brought up but for quite a while after that the truck driver seemed kind of tamed down from his usual wild self. by: Ray Stark ASSOCIATION GOALS The New Almaden Quicksilver Park Association was formed to: (1) Increase public awareness, understanding and enjoyment of the historical, recreational, biological and geological resources of the Almaden Quicksilver County Park. (2) To encourage and facilitate community involvement in: a) The development, maintenance, and protection of recrea-tional facilities within the Park b) The commemoration, restoration, interpretation, and protection of historical resources within the Park c) The interpretation, management, and protection of natural resources within the Park d) The establishment and operation of interpretive programs and facilities within the Park. CALENDAR OF EVENTS: Saturday, May 2 - Almaden Ride and Tie, Brown's Arabians. Information: Rich Appleton. Saturday, May 9 - Almaden - Quicksilver 50k. - 5p mi. Endurance Run, Fleet Feet. Information: Bill Maida Saturday, May 23 - Museum opens - 12:00 - 4:00 p.m. Information: Telephone 268-1729 Saturday, May 30 - Quicksilver Endurance Riders, in Grant Ranch Information: Joe Archibald Saturday, June 6 - Poker Ride, Golden State Appaloosa Club and Campbell Kiwanis through Quicksilver Park. Information: Larry Pederson Sunday, June 14 - Quicksilver Challenge. Half Marathon, Fleet Feet, through Quicksilver Park. Information: John Peabody. Saturday, June 20 - GRAND OPENING OF QUICKSILVER MINING MUSEUM. Information: Telephone 268-1729 Saturday, September 19 - Endurance Ride, Santa Clara Co. Horse-men's Assn. through Quicksilver, Calero, Santa Teresa Parks. Information: Jan Roberts. Saturday, November 7 - Quicksilver Endurance Riders in Grant Park. Information: John Hardy Santa Clara County Mobile Library at Almaden Post Office, New Almaden from 12:00 to 12:30 P.M. Fridays of May 8 and 22, June 5 and 19. Three of the original cottages over one hundred years old line the main street of New Almaden. Eighteen of the original twentytwo cottages are still standing. These were occupied by mining personnel while the Mexican, Cornish and Welsh miners lived in separate little settlements on the Hill above the Hacienda. Laurence Bulmore (right) born over seventy years ago in one of these cottages was the son of a mining official. Now retired, he frequently returns to the street of his boyhood. Be has a New Almaden exhibit in the State House Museum maintained by the City of San Jose and located on the County Fairgrounds. (This caption was written by Frances Fox approximately twentyfive years ago. Interestingly enough, all eighteen cottages are still being used today.) PARK RANGER OFFICE The Park Ranger office for New Almaden Quicksilver County Park is located at Calero Reservoir County Park. The phone number is: (408) 268-3883. Reservation office for Santa Clara County Parks and Recreation located at Vasona Park is (408) 358-3741. LIVING HISTORY DAYS Once again history will come alive during LIVING HISTORY DAYS at the San Jose Historical Museum. This year LIVING HISTORY DAYS are scheduled for May 16 and 17 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Last year this 2-day event sponsored by the City of San Jose Parks and Recreation Department, San Jose Historical Museum Association, and KRON-TV 4, had an audience of over 7,000 visitors plus an additional 3,000 participants. This year an added attraction will be "HERITAGE CORNER," an area where other heritage groups in Santa Clara County can share their aims and programs. New Almaden Quicksilver County Park Association will have a fantastic display. Come visit! HERITAGE CORNER will be situated on the greens between the Doctor's House and Dashaway Stables. A LETTER FROM DAN LOPEZ Dear Kitty: I am a native of New Almaden - born across from the San Antonio Church December 4, 1915. My father and both grandfathers mined in New Almaden. My grandfather, Theodore Lopez operated the saloon on Mine Hill and my grandmother operated the "Fonda" or boarding house for miners. Ticking away in our kitchen is the clock which hung in the Mine Hill Saloon circa 1900. My great grandfather made many of the adobe bricks in the old houses in the Hacienda or New Almaden. Tom Monahan, former Mayor of San Jose (and cousin of Kitty Monahan, our President) and owner of the Monahan Mortuary buried many old-timers from Almaden. MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION / MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL FORM Date: Membership: new renewal Name: Address: City: State: Zip: Phone: (area code:-) Dues: $10 per year per household, tax deductible Additional tax deductible contribution $ Total amount enclosed Checks may be made payable to "Quicksilver Park Assn." N.B. Please examine your mailing label. Your dues are paid through the year shown on the upper righthand corner of the label. Dues are payable now through the month of January. COME ONE COME ALL: Come and volunteer your help at our Mining Museum in New Almaden. Join our happy group of volunteers. If you could give one or two days a week, or one or two days a month it would be most helpful to us and you would find it interesting and satisfying, also a learning experience. Help is needed in every phase of the museum operation. Please respond by filling out the following survey: VOLUNTEER APPLICATION/INTEREST SURVEY: NAME: ADDRESS: PHONE: Areas of Volunteer Service (training to be provided) _ 1. Tour Guide _ 2. Artifact and collection care _ 3. Special events (e. g. Pioneer Day, General meetings) _ 4. Trail development and maintenance _ 5. Interpretive programs related to: _ Historical resources Natural resources, particularly: Special Skills Information (please give experience/interests): _ 6. Publicity 7. Fund raising _ 8. Newsletter typist _ 9. Volunteer park patrol program _ 10. Speakers' bureau _ 11. Typist/cataloger _ 12. Naturalist, particularly_____ _ 13. Photography _ 14. Geology/mining knowledge 15. Other: Best Time to Volunteer: I. Weekday -A.M. -P.M. 2. Saturday A. M. P.M. 3. Sunday -A.M. -P.M. |
People |
Bulmore, Laurence (E.) (Emile) Carpenter, Kathy Dias, Sandy Stark Fox, Frances L. Greenfield, Herb Greenfield, Nancy Kessler, Friedolin Lewis, Ed Lopez, Theodore Felix Melbourne, Peggy Monahan, Kitty Perham, Constance (Mrs. Kambish) Schneider, Jo (Jo Schneider Young) Silviera, Ken Stark, Ray Teufil, Margaret Zinardi, Jim |
Cataloged by |
Meyer, Bob |