Pioneer Profiles
Artenicia Riddle Merriman – Reluctant Pioneer – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – October 2020
Life is what happens while you are making other plans. In her long life, Artenicia Riddle Merriman did not anticipate being either a pioneer or a movie actress, yet she became […]
School Days, School Days… – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – September 2020
As schools are struggling to find ways to accommodate students during the current COVID-19 pandemic, September seems an opportune time to look at the schooling available to the children of Jacksonville’s […]
Special Pioneer Profiles – In Memoriam: Viola “Vi” Davis – A Bundle of Energy”- by Carolyn Kingsnorth
March 8, 1925 – June 9, 2020
A “bundle of energy” was one of the ways friends and co-workers described Viola “Vi” Mary Busse Davis, longtime Jacksonville resident, businesswoman, and volunteer who passed away June 9, […]
“Getting Here Was Half the Fun”—Two If by Sea… – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – July 2020
During the 1850s, California and the Oregon Territory seemed like the “promised land” to individuals in the eastern half of the United States dreaming of riches, adventure, or better lives. But […]
One If by Land…. – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – April 2020
In the mid-1800s, California and the Oregon Territory seemed like the “promised land” to individuals in the eastern United States dreaming of riches, adventure, or better lives. But first they had […]
Alice Hanley – A Woman of Fortitude & Vision
Pioneer Profiles – March 2020
March is “Women’s History Month.” (Or perhaps, for these 31 days, we should call March “Women’s Her-Story Month.”) So for our March Pioneer Profile, we’re sharing the story of a special […]
Love & Marriage – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – February 2020
Since February heralds Valentine’s Day, we thought we would take a closer look at the Victorian idea of love and marriage (although we’re not sure why romance is celebrated in the […]
David Linn – Master Builder – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – December 2019/January 2020
Most of Jacksonville’s original wooden buildings were destroyed in multiple fires, but a few remain. At least two of these landmarks were the work of master builder David Linn. One, […]
Crime and Punishment in a Gold Rush Town – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – November 2019
This year’s Meet the Pioneers tours of Jacksonville’s historic cemetery included several vignettes portraying 19th Century crime and punishment. In one, a man named Matt Shannon had been killed in an […]
Thomas Fletcher Royal “Minister and Educator” – by Carolyn Kingsnorth
Pioneer Profiles – October 2019
Reverend Thomas Fletcher Royal, known as “Fletcher” to his family and “T.F.” to his friends, arrived with his family by wagon train in the Rogue Valley on October 27, 1853. Gold […]