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President’s Message

HERITAGEVolume 34, Issue 1 www.elcajonhistory.org January 2013

Fran

15,000celebratecentennial

EL CAJON HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Happy New Year Members and Friends,The El Cajon Historical Society will begin another year with 2013. 

We had a grand time celebrating the first 100 years of cityhood for El Cajonduring 2012.  We have lots of memories and stories to share but first areminder that, if you are not a life member, your yearly membership duesfor 2013 can be paid anytime now.

We had great 2012 programs at the quarterly meetings and weventured into candlelight as we lit up the Knox.

Special evenings were held at the Knox House as part of El Cajon’smonthly Art Walks. Several local artists displayed their art for the tours. October featured our author and Board Member, Carroll Rice, tellinghaunting stories.  We finished the evening programs with the museumdecorated in the holiday family style of the past.  Cookies and ciderwere served in the favorite place in the home both then and now – thekitchen. Your Board and members enjoyed presenting these programsfor you.  (See page 5 for photos of these events.)

Being a docent is not just giving a tour at the museum  We also havethe pleasure of listening to what our guests are sharing.  So many timesfurnishings like the iron range in the kitchen triggers memories of earlychildhood and we share each others gifts.  I shared about the jar ofpickled Fiddlehead Fern in the Hoosier Cabinet in the kitchen and

What a proud day it was for thecitizens of El Cajon, City employeesand volunteers! Reminiscent of mid-1800 celebrations in cities and townsall over the U.S., the parades, bands,formal introductions of and speechesfrom local, county, and state politi-cians enthralled the audience.

ECHS’s 3rd Grade Essay Contestwinners were honored at the celebra-tion. 1st place champion AlexisHaynes read her essay about hergrandma’s diary and 2nd place winnerCalista Dicker read hers about thecontributions of Amaziah Lord Knox.

The fair-like atmosphere drew aCity-estimated 15,000 people –mostly families – who wandered fromactivities and presentations throughoutPrescott Park, past the library exhibitand other tents and along both sidesof Main Street to Magnolia, stoppingalong the way to purchase snacks andlunch from food trucks before movingon to peer inside booths to get theirfair passports stamped.

Children fanned out to participatein Cowboy Boot Camp and to makehighly creative paper bag hats whileadults without children wanderedamid the lines of exhibit tents filledwith displays on everything fromorganizational doings to old photos

learned it was dangerous for horses if theywere to eat it as it grew in the fields.

We look forward to continuing tocelebrate the “Centennial Year” through2013 along with the City of El Cajon.  Youcan expect more of the successful HistoricalPrograms at the El Cajon Library starting inJanuary. (See page 7.)  We’re also planninga home tour soon featuring houses that are100 years old or more. 

Thank you to all our members andespecially to our great Board of Directorsfor all the support you share to keep ourEl Cajon history alive.

Fran Parsons Hill por-trayed Josephine AsherVacher for El Cajon’sCentennial Celebration.

Looking back while moving ahead

(continued on page 2)

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Although already shown as anolder man on the sign standardssupporting the City’s El Cajon signthat spans Main at Magnolia Streets,Amaziah Lord Knox is now also asuitably larger presence as a youngerman on the Knox House Museumexterior.

The graphic was made possibleby the members of the Friends of EastCounty Arts, a local organization thatprovides funds for the growth anddevelopment of the live performingarts and the fine arts and artists in ourschools and East County community.

In years past, the “Friends” havealso paid for ECHS’s printing of aseries of slim history books featuringthe experiences of real children on ourEl Cajon frontier including JosephineAsher of Old Town and Horton’s“New” Town San Diego; her son,Eugene Vacher; and artist GeorgePaul – each from a different era – andall near today’s Fuerte School.

Because of their backing, thesebooklets have been available toprivate and public 3rd grade elemen-tary school teachers for more than 15years. “Friends” also paid for 5,000copies of our Knox House Museum

(continued from page 1)

After 136 years, Amaziah Knoxfinally assumes his rightful size andposition as the Founder of the Cityof El Cajon on the Magnolia Avenueside of the Knox House (originally asmall hotel at the corner of MainStreet and Magnolia) now resting ablock south at the corner ofMagnolia and Park Streets.

brochure and for the scenes paintedon the museum’s window shades.

Thus, ECHS would like to publiclythank the Friends of East County Artsfor their continuing interest and far-sighted financial support.

Younger Amaziah Knox adornsMagnolia side of Knox House

Celebrationand information on the San Diego-Arizona Railroad run.Many wandered through the patio/garden at the WieghorstMuseum, vocally amazed at the size and breath of thestunning cacti standing tall in the sunshine-filled courtyardbefore strolling through the gallery to admire the westernpaintings and sculptures.

Also among the tents on Rea Street was ECHS’s exhibit.(Rea is a one-block street named for Main Street’s first store-keeper before John Rea purchased vast acres of land andplanted groves of oranges – now the site of Disneyland).

Inside ECHS’s booth was board member/professionalspinner and weaver Mary Saxton, who’s practiced fingersspun strands from balls of wool for seven hours. Also

inside was a huge framed, aerialphoto of the city taken just before thefreeway was built, courtesy of Rickand Sharon Hall.

Through it all, newly retired CajonValley elementary teacher BeckyTaylor spent the entire day helpingyoungsters paper-weave placemats instrips of orange, purple, brown, andyellow – colors that she patientlyexplained to each participant repre-sented the original grapes, citrus, andwheat crops grown in the valley.

Meanwhile, Joe and ChristyKlock stamped passports, whileBonnie Fredensborg stepped in torelieve workers in both our tent andthe one run by Friends of East CountyArts. As did our president Fran Hill –balancing her time between our tentand activities in the one operated byEast County Art Association.

A common link in conversationwas the success of Bonnie’s six-week-long history series of speechesin cooperation with the County libraryby a host of knowledgeable localspeakers – among them, our ownCarol Clark Cunningham voice-overing her video of her family’sarrival in El Cajon’s early years, G.Carroll Rice speaking on the “LivelyArts in El Cajon”, and Lynn Carusowith an often amusing presentation onteaching during the frontier years.

It was a great day for the City ofEl Cajon!

After an early morning setup coordinated by Rick Hall (atright), ECHS’s booth was ready when the crowds arrived.

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El Cajoncelebrates100 yearsas a city

Mary Saxton spun strands from balls of wool.

An old-fashioned parade, featuring local residents,was part of the festivities.

“Tools of the Trade” from the late 1800s to early 1900swere displayed including doctors’ instruments, carpentrytools, children’s toys, and bottles from the Corona Hotelarchaeological dig.

An El Cajon resident tries to located his house on thisaerial view of the city taken before the freeway was built.

The California Notecatchers, right, performed old favorites while ECHS’sChristy Klock, left, and Bonnie Fredensborg chime in. Funds to cover thecost of the barbershop quartet were donated by Inland Supply Company.

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presentation on her family’s reasonsfor emigration and musical andtheatrical researcher G. Carroll Riceon the elevated cultural talentsbrought to the valley by world andnationally famous professional singers,musicians and writers. Rice will alsorecall his own experiences with thetheatrical arts and musical cultureprovided by talented and committedteachers at Grossmont High School.

Docent training will be held at1:20 p.m. Tuesdays starting January 29in the new El Cajon Police Station,located across Magnolia Avenue fromthe Knox House Museum. The six-part series runs through March 5, withthe last class being a hands-onpractical method(s) of conductingpublic tours of the museum.

Docent classes will start promptlyat 1:20 p.m. and end at 2:50 p.m.

Those completing the instructionand comply with museum standardswill receive certificates allowing themto serve, when needed, as a docent atthe Knox House.

Docents are the public faces ofmuseums, historic buildings andgalleries of fine arts. As our historicalsociety’s public representatives, theKnox’s new docents will represent uswell by knowing the history of the cityand people of El Cajon.

Frequently people ask whypeople would leave cities, towns andfarms “back East,” Europe and Asiato come specifically to El Cajon.“Particularly,” they say, “when travelwas so difficult and limited.”

Our docents will be able toprovide background information oneverything from a comparison of thenational spirit of adventure before andafter the Civil War, to the lack ofattention writers, historians, and film-makers have given to the settlement ofSan Diego County than to the rest ofthe West. They’ll know of the localimportance of expanded southernrailroad routes at war’s end, as wellas the level of knowledge El Cajonsettlers brought with them on theexplosion of scientific, agricultural,mineral, and geographical discoveriesand developments.

Docents-in-training receiveinformational notebooks beginningwith the blend of sophisticated socialand cultural movements and expecta-tions brought to the area by earlysettlers to Old Town and Horton’sNew San Diego before moving inlandto El Cajon.

The series is being led by El Cajonhistorian, author and Knox HouseMuseum Curator Eldonna Lay, whowill provide overviews of national,regional, and local history in concertwith local speakers whose familiessettled the area and/or who areexperts in specific subjects – such asthe San Diego & Arizona Railroad.

Among the locals is our ownCarol Clark Cunningham with her

The newly appointed Docent-Coordinator Becky Taylor will alsobe present at all training classes.

Pre-registration is required, withattendance restricted to those intend-ing to be regularly scheduled docents.Fee for the series is $38, whichincludes classes and training, a year-long membership in the El CajonHistorical Society, and a collection ofbackground materials/publications.

Participants are expected toparticipate in at least two of the fourlocal Quarterly Luncheons in 2013 forcontinuing education on local history.Each luncheon will require a reserva-tion and a check for $15.

The number of non-Board memberparticipants is limited to 28.

Those wishing to take the history-based training can mail checks for$38 payable to ECHS. Please markyour envelope “Attention: Docent-Training/Membership” and send yourcheck to the El Cajon HistoricalSociety, P.O. Box 1973, El Cajon,CA 92022.

Six-week docent training begins January 29Focuses on El Cajon’s history

Carol Clark Cunningham gave her unique perspective on El Cajon at theEl Cajon Historical Society’s 2012 Annual Dinner held October 17 at the ElCajon Sizzler Restaurant.

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During Halloween festivities downtown, Mounted PatrolOfficers Dean Deaton (left on horse) and Keith Anderson visitedthe Knox. Greeting them were Dick Lay (left to right), MarySaxton, Joe Klock, Gayle Culbertson, and Becky Taylor.

Carroll Rice’s spooky tales captivate ayoung museum visitor during El Cajon’sHauntFest.

El Cajon residents Jan and Tom Sticht check outthe Christmas decorations at the Knox House.

Visitors during November’s Art Walkwere amazed at the intricate designsin pine needle baskets created byJoyce Lane of La Mesa as ECHSPresident Fran Hill, left, looks on.

Eventsat theKnoxHouse

The El Cajon Historical Society is looking formembers who are interested in helping lead schooltours during the week. “Expert” knowledge of theKnox House is not required – a “user-friendly” docentguide gives information about each room and the historyof the house. It does require a love for El Cajon’shistory and an eagerness to share that love with children.

If you are interested in learning more about leadingschool tours, or just helping monitor a room during aschool tour, please contact Becky Taylor by e-mail atcruznbecky@cox.net or by phone at 619-440-3069.

ECHS seeks help for school toursExcerptsfrom Mrs. Owens’ Cookbook

and Useful Hintsfor the Household–1883

Courtesy ofHelen Nelson

DEVILLED KIDNEYSThree tablespoons of oil, one of vinegar, salt spoon of

salt, pinch of pepper, and a teaspoon of mustard. Dip thesliced kidneys in the above mixture and broil them. Afterthey are broiled, sprinkle a little cayenne pepper on.Serve when plenty of water can be afforded.

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The Hotel Corona del Cajon wasEl Cajon’s grandest hotel, situated atthe northwest corner of Main andMagnolia. It stood there from 1887through 1920, when it tragicallyburned to the ground. This three-storycommunity edifice had offered 31rooms for rent and numerous essentialpublic service accommodations like aballroom, barbershop with hot baths,livery stable, apothecary, billiard hall,and doctor’s office, as well as a mostvital commercial service, a well-stocked saloon.

Crowning the Corona was itscelebrated cupola, with accompanyingpromenade, that provided a 360degree panorama of the El CajonValley, encompassing the entirety of itsbountiful agricultural splendor. (For ahistorical account of the CoronaHotel, the July 2012 Heritage con-tains an excellent article by G. CarrollRice.)

The December 1920 conflagra-tion of this El Cajon showpiece wasall-consuming and total. However,the hotel cellar and two outdoor privyvaults that had served hotel patronsduring most of the Corona’s 34-yearexistence were well-protected byearthen surroundings and remaineduntouched.

Interspersed amongst the expectedprivy contents could be found thediscards of circa 1900 El Cajonsociety including kitchen throwaways,emptied bottles of all description,various personal accoutrements, andalmost anything else which, eitherintentionally or accidentally, found itsway down a privy hole.

And so they had lain, undisturbedand forgotten by most over the nextthree generations succeeding the fire.That is, until the early 1990’s, whenmany of you may recall the corner of

Main and Magnolia was subjected toextensive modification during the MainStreet Redevelopment Project. Whatyou may not be aware of is thearchaeological study related to thisproject.

After having become acquaintedwith the scope of planned activityassociated with this major city project,and being keenly aware that anyburied items of historical interest weresoon to become lost to us for genera-tions, if not forever, local history nut,bottle collector, and long-time ECHSmember Rurik Kallis secured permis-sion from the City of El Cajon toperform a salvage excavation on thesite in May 1992.

Rurik, with help from an archae-ologist-in-training friend, had originallyintended to map out what objects werefound where, at what depth, and inassociation with what other artifacts,and to then donate most of the intacthistorically significant material to the ElCajon Historical Society, of whichFran Hill was then president. (Funnyhow some things never change!).

However, shortly after their workhad commenced and the first investi-gatory trench was dug, local archae-ologists became alarmed that “non-professionals” were disturbing the site.They informed City officials that byallowing private excavation on publicland containing archaeological resourcesof substantial stratigraphic integrity,they were in violation of the 1970California Environmental Quality Act.City officials then had little choice butto renege on their recently-granted digpermit. What followed was the long(and expensive) process of conduct-ing an Environmental Impact Reportand bidding out the project to aprofessional archaeological recoverywork crew.

Lost Treasures of the Corona Hotel

(Side note: While salvage workwas on-going, the professionally-hiredand professionally-salaried workers,when posed with a stickler, ended upconsulting with ... guess who? Yup ...you got it … Rurik!)

A very extensive final report onthe project was issued in 1994, andsoon thereafter, the artifacts recoveredwere turned over to the properlydesignated caretaker, the City of ElCajon.

So what happened to all of thismaterial, which newspaper accountsat the time placed at approximately25,000 pieces inside some 200 oddstorage boxes? Many have inquiredover the years, with all being informedthat it was just “gone”, that it was notin City storage, that no one knew ofits whereabouts. (Those of you whoaren’t acquainted with me shouldknow that as an ex-governmentemployee of 31 years, having workedwithin the “system” for 31 years, I amhard-pressed to accept an officialresponse of “no” or “don’t know” asan answer.)

by Mike Kaszuba

Mike Kaszuba holds up some bottlesfound in the storage vaults.

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The word was that the salvagedartifacts had originally been offered toRuss Stockwell, an old-time ECHSfounder and Knox House curator in1995. But where to store such avolume of material, the bulk of whichwould be of little interest to most folk?So Russ declined. And at that point,the material vanished and the storypretty much ends.

That is, until early this year, when Ibecame interested in what became ofour “lost treasure”. I began to activelycontact all of the people associatedwith the project, from Rurik to theteam archaeologists, from archaeolo-gist friends of mine to those ECHSmembers with any memory of theproject and still with us, from the SanDiego County archaeological storagefacility to early 1990s’ newspaperarchives, and finally back to thedestination where all indications stillseemed to point:– the City of El Cajon.

After another round of inquiries, Ifocused my attention on two people:Deputy City Manager Nancy Palm, aproven friend of ECHS, and TonyShute, a Senior Planner who, unfortu-nately for him, responded to mypersistent cage-rattling. These peoplewere just wonderful to work with, andbetween the two of them, they con-tacted anybody and everybody theycould imagine who might be aware ofthe whereabouts of the artifact collec-tion, including a whole lot of people Ihad already contacted, and manymore I would never have considered,and still they came up empty. Theyliterally had searched high and low atCity Hall, at Public Works storageareas, etc. The “Journey to our Historical Past” speaker series continues at the El

Cajon Library:January 17 Del Hood, long time Editor of the Daily Californian.February 7 Kate Breece from the Helix Water District on “The Flume”.February 21 Steve Varner on Olde Highway 80March 7 Tom McGrath, long-time announcer at the Cajon Speedway.March 21 Ed Jarrell of the El Cajon Fire Department.Presentations will be held from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the El Cajon Library

Community Room, 201 East Douglas Avenue, El Cajon. Admission is free.

Historical speaker series continues

At this point, Tony and I wererunning short on ideas, and the onlyother sources we could think ofcontacting were a couple of universityarchaeology departments, and failingthat, retired former employees of thePlanning Department. Tony agreed tobegin with the latter, and it paid off bigtime! He successfully located theperson who had assigned the collec-tion to storage off-site at McCarthyTransfer & Storage, where it has sat forall these years at no cost to the City,thanks to the magnanimity of TimMcCarthy, the storage facility’s owner.

Only problem was, said Cityofficial must have forgotten to notifyanyone else in the department aboutthis arrangement when he stoppedworking for the City, and with nostorage bills coming due ... you knowthe rest.

At any rate, the Lost Treasure ofthe Corona Hotel, as I have decidedto refer to it, has been found! Notonly that, it now belongs to us.

The El Cajon Planning Departmentdecided that the El Cajon HistoricalSociety would be the proper stewardsfor this collection. And talk abouticing on the cake … lifetime ECHSmember McCarthy Transfer &Storage has agreed to continue tostore the material for us, free ofcharge! The moral to all this is that ifyou are on an information quest,especially where government entitiesare involved, a polite yet dogged

persistence will quite often yieldpositive results.

So ... what now? I began thissearch to determine what actuallybecame of the substantial artifact-richcollection described in newspaperaccounts of 1994 with hope thatsome artifacts of a bygone era mightbe obtained for display in the KnoxHouse Museum and to show someold bottle specimens and perhapsother artifacts of interest in our displaybooth at the centennial celebration.

Four bottles were displayed at the100-year festivities. Now plans areunderway to set up a permanentrotating display at the Knox House.It appears that what remains instorage is around 25% shy of the 200boxes recounted in old newspaperarticles, but after an initial examinationof the three storage vaults’ contents,I’m optimistic that most of the betteritems detailed in the final archaeologicalreport might still be there.

Since no inventory sheets havebeen found, I have begun the dauntingtask of documenting/photographingthe collection. Ultimately, I would liketo contact the archaeology departmentsof our local universities to make themaware that this great historical resourcehas been located and is now availablefor research. Hopefully, the not-too-distant future will present us with asparkling new thesis or dissertationproject expanding our knowledge ofEl Cajon’s glory days.

WelcomeNew Members

Terry DickinsonJack Dickens

Anthony AudetteJeanette L. Way

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A Look at the Lively Arts in El Cajon1892 – 1952

by G. Carroll Rice

Part 2

FOR EL CAJON ACTORS,THE PLAY BECAME EVERYTHING

Local actors presented a play called The Breakers inthe Town Hall in 1894. The names are unfamiliar andnothing is known of the play itself, but their pioneeringperformance signaled the way for budding thespians for allthe years to come.

In the earliest years, El Cajon’s citizens had littleaccess to professional theatre, but as train and bus trans-

issued to avoid overcrowding the school’s 1200-seatcapacity gymnasium/auditorium for each of four presenta-tions. It was truly a gift to the community from the facultyand students of Grossmont High School, all giving freely oftheir time and talents. A complete history of the pageantwritten by Richard Dunlop may be found on the Internet,under the subject of Red Robe Choir. The full and propercredits for the production of the Pageant at that site are farbeyond the limits of this article.

Spurred by the great ‘Little Theatre Movement’ of the1920’s and 1930’s, a group of teachers and interestedpeople from El Cajon and La Mesa met in 1937 to formThe La Mesa Little Theatre. With the enthusiastic supportof a corporate sponsor, The Cordtz Outdoor AdvertisingCompany, the group began producing plays immediately.Attracting actors from La Mesa, El Cajon, and the backcountry, the theatre welcomed older players who had beenpart of the early motion picture community. What anexciting opportunity for newcomers like me to be exposedto their theatrical knowledge and overhear tales of legendaryplayers recalled by those gray-haired old timers! BillCordtz donated the complete records and scrapbooks ofthe La Mesa Little Theatre to the La Mesa HistoricalSociety when the group reorganized as the Lamplighters in1976.

Grossmont High School’s Red Robe Choir continues tothis day, shown here sometime during the 1970s-80sconducted by Robert Boucher.

portation became available,trips to San Diego for entertain-ment became popular.

Dr. Charles Knox, son ofEl Cajon’s founder AmaziahKnox, told me how he had seenplayers such as Frederick B.Warde and Lawrence Barrett inSan Diego. Eugene Vacher alsotold of going to San Diego onthe train for his weekly musiclessons, and going to vaudevilleperformances with his father

afterwards to hear different kinds of music. Incidentally, hisfather took him to a few shows, presumably burlesque,that he was not to mention to his mother, El Cajon’sbeloved first-grade teacher, Josephine Vacher.

As in the case of music, enthusiastic teachers led theway to theatrical experiences in local schools. BethMasterson was foremost in direction of grammar schoolplays, developing such talented students as Jack Thomp-son as actors; and directing pageant-like spectacles suchas A Mother Goose Picnic – I played Old King Cole - forthe younger set. Grossmont High was known for thequality of its theatrical presentations due to the demandingdirection of teachers such as Eva Quicksall, BeulahSchriver, and Raymond Kniss.

From 1926 to 1988, Grossmont’s annual ChristmasPageant dominated the holiday season. The 1½ hour-longperformance was a grand spectacle of drama and tableaux,accompanied by a full orchestra and the glorious voices ofthe Red Robe Choir directed by Merle Donohue. Theperformances were free, but the attendance from aroundSan Diego County was so great that tickets had to be

(continued on page 9)

FREDERICK B. WARDE

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(continued from page 8)

El Cajon had no amateurtheatre in 1947, and a group offriends from Grossmont HighSchool joined me to create TheSpotlighters. Our original intentwas to produce children’s playsduring the summer. We soonarranged with Principal John

excellence and how many of the actors and staff, likeMarion Ross, who played the Lady Olivia in that produc-tion, made them stepping stones to stellar careers. But,they also demonstrated how El Cajon and East Countypeople could enter into San Diego activities throughimproved transportation, even when the freeway systemwas still on paper.

. . . AND THERE WERE DANCE CLASSESAND PERFORMANCES

The Depression brought many pastimes into promi-nence such as the assembling of jigsaw puzzles and awidespread popularity of tap dancing. In El Cajon, thevery talented Harvey family contributed to and encouragedthe development of dance programs. Through an arrange-ment with the grammar school, former vaudevillian DixieHarvey taught dance classes after school and producedprograms with the assistance of her husband Milton whowas highly skilled at building scenery and adapting vaude-ville skits for student performances. The Kittlesons,another of El Cajon’s ‘born-in-a-trunk’ performing familiesalso helped promote the lively arts in the valley. Theirparticular contribution in the late 1930’s was using localstudents, mostly friends of Patty Kittleson in a radioprogram advertising Dr. Pepper. Actor, author, andteacher Ole Kittleson continues that family tradition.

OTHER ENTERTAINMENTS CAME OUR WAY, TOO!The west side of El Cajon was an army ‘tent city’

during the World War II years, and army bands scheduledSunday afternoon concerts in the park in front of thelibrary. There may have been more than one, but I recall amemorable Sunday morning when the Army bands playedOnward Christian Soldiers while thousands of menmarched down Main Street to enter the churches of theirchosen denominations.

In the late 1930’s some variety performers including ayoung Charlie Cannon, later of Starlight Opera fame, gavetwo evening vaudeville-type shows at the school audito-rium. There were also occasional assemblies at schoolsfeaturing professional lecturers and performers such asTommy Tucker, the original Hollywood Sound Man. (Hecreated Tarzan’s famous yell and was the original voice ofPopeye.)

Circuses and carnivals came our way, too, adding anexotic touch to the pageant of ‘lively arts’ in El Cajon.

A Look at the Lively Arts will continuein the next issue of the Heritage whenmovie glamour brightens El Cajon.

Montgomery to present our plays in the grammar schoolauditorium. Our first play was adapted from the old storyof Rumplestiltskin; and the second was The Ugly Ducklingby A. A. Milne. The Spotlighters lasted for two moresummers, but school commitments and other prioritiesabsorbed the lives of active students and El Cajon’sexperiment in ‘little theatre’ came to an end. The full storyof our theatrical adventure appears as “The Spotlighters:El Cajon’s Home-Grown Theatre” on the HistoricalSociety’s web site at www.elcajonhistory.org under thesubheading History. Today there are many opportunitiesfor young actors to develop their skills in and around ElCajon. Then, we were pioneers.

The 1949 collaboration between San Diego StateCollege (it wasn’t a university then) and San Diego’sCommunity Theatre led to the founding of the annual SanDiego Shakespeare Festival. By their agreement, the Cityof San Diego provided the Globe Theatre in Balboa Parkand its facilities; and San Diego State College hiredinternationally famous Shakespearean director B. IdenPayne to teach one class and direct one play during thesummer session. The State also paid the expenses offaculty production personnel and materials. With manystudents from the greater San Diego area, including ElCajon, attending the college, it opened a door to a world-class theatre adventure. It should be noted that many ofthe students seeking this adventure were teachers, actorsfrom the 1935 Shakespeare productions, full-time studentsand a full array of business and professional people.

The first play, Twelfth Night, was double cast, changingplayers every other night, thus, Feste, the Jester, wasplayed alternatively by El Cajon actors Jack Thompsonand Freeman Meskimen. In my own case, I playedSebastian one night and the Sea Captain who rescuedViola the next. That Festival was truly a labor of love bypeople from all over the county including El Cajon musi-cians Ben Cloud and David Barker who played for thedancing on the green and Mrs. Catherine Knox, wife ofDr. Charles Knox, who was among the volunteers workingon costumes. I know that there were other East Countyresidents involved in this and later productions whosefaces have faded into the depths of time. Much has beenwritten about the Shakespeare Festivals, their artistic

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Disclaimer: ECHS makes every effort to make avail-able accurate information for historical research.Students use a variety of sources. Third grade essaysshould not be used for research.

2012 THIRD GRADE ESSAY CONTEST

The 31st Annual Third Grade Essay Contest celebratedEl Cajon’s 100th Anniversary. Students from ten elemen-tary schools submitted essays covering various aspects of ElCajon’s history. The winning essays are being included inthis newsletter as space permits. They are also posted athttp://elcajonhistory.org (under Education).

The Winning Essays

Judges AwardKumeyaay Indians

Cole McDonough, Bostonia School

and when you had the stick it was your turn to speak. TheKumeyaays made teas for healing. They ground sage for teato cure colds. They used willow tree bark to cure headaches(like aspirin is used today).

The Kumeyaays were the people who greeted the Span-iards when they first sailed into San Diego Harbor in 1542.The boundaries of the Kumeyaay’s land changed after thatday. Today the Kumeyaay’s tribal members are divided into12 separate bands. Out of the total acreage of more thanfifteen thousand acres, the Kumeyaays own about fifty fivethousand acres of it in the east county.

I am going to tell you about the Geology of El Cajon thatstarted 2,000,000 years ago. Geology is the study of thehistory of land. This was my favorite thing to learn about ElCajon. In the rest of this report I will also talk about beforethe valley was made, how the valley was made, and what isin the rich soil.

Many years ago El Cajon Valley was under water. Theocean was so high it reached Alpine. There were earthquakesand the land shifted up and down. People believe that graniterocks came from Colorado to El Cajon. When the moun-tains were done moving, the valley was a salt water lagoon.The four mountains were in the shape of a square.

Several years later the square overfilled and then it madea path to open sea. After the water left the area was about5 miles long and 3 to 4 miles wide. When settlers came theyrealized it was in the shape of a box. They named it El CajonValley which means “the box” in Spanish. The rain washedthe soil of the mountains around the valley.

When the settlers found that the rich soil was good forgrowing crops, they decided to make farms. The floor of theValley is made up of granite rock, a layer of clay and a layerof soil. In 1887, a farmer said the soil was bright red andchocolate colored. This means the soil had oxide and ironwhich helps crops grow. Another great thing about farmingis the farmers found water 5 feet below the soil. The farmersgrew corn, avocados, barley, oats, grapes for wine andgrapes to make raisins.

I told you about before the valley was made, how thevalley was made and what is in the soil. I think it is amazingthat here we live is where it began 2,000,000 years ago. Ihope you enjoyed my geological essay of El Cajon

An Indian woman oncemade shawii (mashed acorns)and placed it in a basket. Shehad made it and left it outside.When she came back for it inthe morning she saw that hershawii was gone and believeit was a mouse who ate it. Thatsame day she did it again totry to catch the mouse. When she went out to see if theshawii was gone she saw a mouse and behind it was a snakethat ate the mouse and saved the shawii. So, now todaywhen they make a basket a snake design is on it.

They used the talking stick when they sat down aroundthe fire with the tribal leaders to discuss new laws and ways,

This report is going to tell you some facts about the historyof the east county Indians, the Kumeyaay, and how they lived.

The Kumeyaay referred to as the diesuno by the Spanishwere the original natives of San Diego. They lived in SanDiego County for more than ten thousand years, before anyother humans.

The Kumeyaay were hunters and gatherers. They hunteddeer (kwak) and rabbits for food and used their fur for shelterand clothes. They used their hoofs for glue for their arrows.They also gathered acorns from the lack oak trees and madeacorn mush (shawii). They also gathered berries (neyrr) to eat.

The Kumeyaays made baskets out of straw, pottery outof clay out of the ground, and talking sticks out of a thickstick, leather, and feathers.

The Indians would take straw and stain it with mashedberries and vegetables to make it colored. Then weave it tomake a basket.

Virginia Stead AwardGeology of El Cajon

Aubrie Sobczak, Bostonia School

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Cattle, Cowboys, and CampoSan Diego’s Wild West Frontier

Number Attending _________ ($15 each) Amount Enclosed ___________

Name ____________________________________________________________________

Address_________________________ City, Zip ________________________________

Phone __________________________ E-Mail _________________________________

January Meeting Reservation Form

Deadline January 14Mail reservations & checks to: ECHS, P.O. Box 1973, El Cajon, CA 92022-1973

Thursday, January 17, 201311:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.Doors open at 11 a.m.

Lunch 11:45 a.m.(includes salad, Steerburger Plate, apple cobbler, ice tea or soda)

Featured Presentation 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.Cost: $15/person (includes presentation, meal, tax and tip)

San Diego’s Rancho Period was full of shoot-outs, saloons, sporting ladies, andfandangos -- all derived from the regions first industry-the hide and tallow trade.Explore life on the frontier and learn the history of some recognizable ranchos today.

Presented by Gabe Selakof the San Diego History Center

Junction Steakhouse777 Jamacha Road, El Cajon, CA 92019

Advance Reservations Only - Limited to 40 People

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NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION

US POSTAGE PAID

PERMIT NO. 154EL CAJON, CA 92020

Return Service Requested

El Cajon Historical SocietyP. O. Box 1973El Cajon, CA 92022

A heartfelt “thank you” to the following for their recentdonations:n Hilda Erreca has donated a covered Haviland

serving dish that now resides in the Knox’s dining roomcabinet. She also brought in a lovely watercolor collage ofscenes around downtown El Cajon painted by artist Beth

Sambrono. It, and the winning oil painting by GloriaChadwick for the color scheme chosen for the exterior ofKnox House Museum, is being hung by the city in a publicplace yet to be assigned.n Pat Durbin Potter donated some of her teacher

aunts’ and mother’s 1900-era clothing and an 1850s hatworn by her Boston-bred great grandmother. The hatbecame a focal point in the parlor during the Christmasexhibit of 2012. Some 120+-year-old baby clothing wasincluded in the gift, and it is now worn by a doll “slumber-ing” in the graceful, old wicker buggy on the back porch.n Jane Stokes, another donor, gave ECHS a collec-

tion of stylishly designed and impeccably sewn 1880-90women’s lingerie and dress clothing. One, a purple andblack plaid taffeta suit with an extravagantly beaded collar,glistens with all of its original glamour in the upstairs masterbedroom. There are also two intricately beaded purses,lovely blouses, and a delicately embroidered weddingnight nightgown.

And thanks also go to a neighbor, Steve Haber,who regularly crisscrosses the Knox lawn in his wheelchairto gather up the leavings of his two small dogs – andeveryone else’s, as well. We are very grateful.

President ....................................... Fran Parsons HillVice Presidents .................... Joe Klock, Jonna WaiteTreasurer ............................................... George DallRecording Secretary ............................Carla NowakCurator ................................................ Eldonna LayArchivist ..................................................... Fran HillOffice Manager.....................................Mary SaxtonMaintenance .............................................. Rick HallMembership ....................................... Christy KlockEssay Contest ............Alice Rodriquez, Becky TaylorCentennial Representative ..........Bonnie FredensborgHeritage Editor ..................................... Anita TinsleyMembers at Large .... Ellen Anderson, Mike Kaszuba........... Richard Lay, G. Carroll Rice, Karna Webster

El Ca jon His tor ica l Soc ie ty Board

ECHS thanks three donors and neighbor

2013 promises to be an exciting year forECHS!  As we start the new year, it would begreatly appreciated if every member would checktheir address label on the “Heritage” and send intheir dues on or before the date indicated.  This wouldeliminate the costly expense of sending out spe-cial envelopes and thus enable ECHS to makebetter use of its resources.

Membership dues for 2013 remain $12 forIndividual, $20 Family, $30 Organization, $40Business, and $500 Enhances Life.

 Thank you for your support of ECHS.

Don’t forget your dues