Eureka and Humboldt County

Images of America: California

by Clarke Memorial Museum

The cry amongst the redwoods-Eureka!-was the shout heard from early pioneers in 1850 as they came to settle in Humboldt County. Discovery of gold permanently changed the area's history, and eventually lead to the extraction of Humboldt's other natural resource: the "red gold" of its forests. Captured here in over 200 vintage photographs is the pictorial history of this bountiful county and its residents.As the gold fever faded in the late 1800s, Humboldt County's primary source of industry became the lumbering of its vast redwoods. Pictured here are the men and machines that felled, transported, and milled the lumber, as well as photographs of the elegant Victorian mansions of the industry's lumber barons, such as William Carson. Weaving the history of Humboldt County together are the stories of its earliest residents, including the Native American tribes, fevered Gold Rushers, the early Chinese community, railroad workers, shipyard sailors, and industrious farming families, all of whom created the foundation it prospers on today.

128 pages, Paperback

First published June 25, 2001

Reviews

[Gary · Rating 3 out of 5]

What this book needed was more narrative. What it is a collection of captioned historical photographs--which may be fine for local citizens of Eureka and its associated history buffs, but for anyone else, the photos lack context. I myself will be visiting the area soon and was hoping the book would give me an outline of its history and background, but I'll have to look elsewhere for that. Once I visit Eureka, I may find the book more relevant as I will then be able to use it to make a "then vs. now" visual comparison.

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great presentation of the history of the area