Originally ran in the Jan. 13, 1972 edition of the Illinois Valley News
I am still getting reports of winter vacations and holiday fun. Some of the Valley’s residents have gone to sunnier climates and not returned. When I lived in California (a very long time ago) we used to brag, “California is where the sun spends its winter,” but I wondered during this beautiful sunny January weather that we have had if the folks to the south of us were enjoying such lovely weather, or if the famous California sun was spending its winter above the smog.
Dorence and Janet Noteboom and daughters Cathy and Susie had their winter fun at Diamond Lake during school vacation and hope they can spend a weekend there again soon. They were accompanied by Francis and Kathy Gibney. The Notebooms went down the “sliding hill” on innertubes. Janet says they are more fun than sledding; more bouncy. They also rented snow-mobiles and had an exciting ride. At sundown the colors on Mt. Thielson were gorgeous, all pink and lavender and blue with changing shadow patterns.
Dora Combest and her sister Sarah Higdom and Mr. and Mrs. Landaker worked at the Diamond Lake Resort during the holidays.
I received this note in the mail from Fern Wisham telling of their two-week vacation in Southern California and the friends and relatives that she and Warren visited. “We visited our daughters Joan and Joyce and the four grandchildren in Downey Christmas Day. We also visited friends and relatives in the San Fernando Valley, Burbank, La Habra, Torrance, and Long Beach. We were somewhat hampered by the heavy rains while we were there, but it was a very pleasant time spent in renewing old friendships and seeing our families.
“When we arrived home on New Year’s eve we had a little impromptu get together with our good neighbors, Myrle and Sylvia Thayer, and Charles and Agnes Britton. It put a nice homecoming touch to the holiday season. I might also add that the old adage, “Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home” sure rings true. It is just great to be back, out of all that traffic and the sea of humanity in the L.A. area.
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Cherry had a one-week vacation which they spent visiting their children and grandchildren. Christmas Day they were with their son Ron and his wife Renate and their four children. From Klamath Falls they drove to Van Nuys, California and spent several days with their daughter Pam Bryant, her husband Ron, and their two children. When the Cherry’s returned to their home on River Street, Pam and the two granddaughters accompanied them for the week and returned home by plane Tuesday night.
I have a copy of a 1935 newspaper in which some of the old timers told stories of their lives and happenings of earlier days in Illinois Valley. John E. Hodgson who lived on Caves Highway at the time and had lived in Josephine County since 1879, told how on Sundays in pioneer times even the old miners came down the creeks to go to church. “People didn’t go dancing on Saturday nights until Sunday morning like they do now,” Hodgson said. “They didn’t drink and smoke as much as they do now. Sunday, people around here went to church. Yes, we had a church on down the road from Holland. We had law too, more than then.” Hodgson married Elizabeth Payne, daughter of J.M. Payne, and sister of Dollie Payne of Kerby.
On the same page of the 1935 paper another story was written by Frank Floyd whose father was sheriff when Kerby was the county seat of Josephine County. Floyd tells of Josephine County’s first jail. It was a small log structure which stood just south of the current Stith house at Kerby. The jail, as described by Floyd, contained six cells. The floor was built of hewed logs, the ceiling being of the same construction. This made a slid log pen in which the offenders against the law were kept. The windows were small with 1 ½ “ steel bars across them. When the structure was torn down some years ago, an old dirk, made of an old pair of scissors was found where it had been placed by some prisoner.
A small one-story building was used at the court house, and this housed the few county officials.