Siskiyou County California
Siskiyou County. Organized in 1852. Bounded
north by the State of Oregon, east by the County of Modoc, south
by Shasta, and Trinity, and west by Klamath, and Del Norte.
Area, 3,040 square miles. Assessed valuation of property for
1874, $2,986,332.
County seat, Yreka. Principal towns: Butteville, Cottonwood,
Etna, Fort Jones, Oak Bar, Oro Fino, and Scott's Bar. The
resources are mineral and agricultural, the latter but slightly
developed in proportion to the capacity, owing to its remoteness
from the great markets, and the want of railroad or water
communication.
Mining for gold has been the chief occupation of the people,
together with as much farming as would supply the home demand.
The gold placers were found in the Yreka and Scott's River
basins, and at different localities along the Klamath River and
in the lake section. The valleys of Scott and Shasta Rivers are
of large area, containing many thousand acres each, susceptible
of cultivation, and generally very fertile. The agricultural and
grazing capacity of the county may be regarded as extensive, and
it will support in comfort and wealth a large population. The
valleys have an elevation of from 2,500 to 4,000 feet, and the
mountains are among the highest of the United States, the great
peak of Mount Shasta rising to the altitude of 14,440 feet above
the sea.
The construction of the California and Oregon Railroad, passing
through Siskiyou, will greatly advance the interests of the
county. At the session of the Legislature of 1873-4 an Act was
passed to annex Klamath to Siskiyou and Humboldt counties. The
portion annexed to Siskiyou possesses much valuable property,
including the famous Black Bear and Klamath quartz mines, and
the prosperous town of Sawyer's Bar.
By the same Legislature the County of Modoc was formed, taking
about two thirds of the area of Siskiyou, being the eastern
portion and comprising Goose Lake, Surprise, and Big Valleys, or
that section of country usually called the Lake region, the
scene of the late Modoc war.
Officers: Edwin Shearer, County Judge; John V.
Brown, Clerk, Recorder, and Auditor; William McConaughy,
District Attorney; Francis Riley, Sheriff and Tax Collector;
Charles Peters, Treasurer; George Durand, Assessor; (vacant).
Surveyor; John W. Hughes, Coroner and Public Administrator;
William Duenkel, Superintendent Public Schools.
California Gazetteer |
AHGP California
Source: Pacific Coast Business Directory for 1876-78, Compiled
by Henry G. Langley, San Francisco, 1875
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