This is an archive of the History Column
"Echos Of Solano's Past" written by Kristin Delaplane Conti.
These articles were written for the Vacaville Reporter Newspaper between the years of 1995 and 1999.

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Latest additions: 2009-10-09 10:43 Ranch life full of drama / Delaplane, Kristin [435] [ECHOS-1999-435] Today I am announcing my retirement from this column. It has been a source of great pleasure, and knowing there are many good stories yet to uncover, I feel some regret. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Long family roots grew on Winters fruit ranch / Delaplane, Kristin [434] [ECHOS-1999-434] Melvin Fong and Nira Fong Wong are the grandchildren of Go Long, who started fruit farming in the Suisun Valley in the 1860s. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Go Long built a new life for his family in America / Delaplane, Kristin [433] [ECHOS-1999-433] Nira Fong Wong's grandfather, Go Leong (also known as Go Long), was born an only child in 1846 in the village Dai Do Province of Canton, China. He migrated to America about 1860. He first found work in Marysville on the railroad. After a short time, he moved to Suisun Valley, where he took up farming, and became an established fruit farmer during the next 30 years. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Marble, healing water spring from Tolenas site / Delaplane, Kristin [432] [ECHOS-1999-432] It was said that long ago, native Indians called the springs, located on a hill five miles north of Suisun City, "The Land of the Healing Waters." This was to become the site of Tolenas Springs (a.k.a. Solano Mineral Springs and Suisun Soda Springs), a famous Solano County landmark for many decades. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Rossi family steered Dixon for seven decades / Delaplane, Kristin [431] [ECHOS-1999-431] On almost every corner of every busy street it seems there is a gas station. But that wasn't the case in the early years of this century, when "horseless carriages" began clattering over roadways. In fact, when Emil Rossi arrived in Dixon, he probably couldn't see a station at all. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 A Look Back in Time / Delaplane, Kristin [430] [ECHOS-1999-430] In 1859, John Sweeney was killed at a corral in the Montezuma Township. Philander Arnold pled self-defense to the deed, but when it was pointed out Philander's son had provided his father with the double-barreled shotgun, the case went against him, and Philander was found guilty of manslaughter. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Many women helped build Solano County's character / Delaplane, Kristin [429] [ECHOS-1999-429] There is some record of the local Patwin Indian women. Their small communities included the Suisunee and Ulatus. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Emigh recalls simple, fun times in Rio Vista / Delaplane, Kristin [428] [ECHOS-1999-428] When Soren and Dorthea Nielsen first moved to their farm near Rio Vista in 1897, there was a one-story house with a kitchen, dining room, living room and one bedroom. As the family grew to four girls, Soren added two more bedrooms. Furnishings were simple; in the living room, a chair, a couch, some throw rugs on the wood floors. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Lena celebrates 100th with Rio Vista memories / Delaplane, Kristin [427] [ECHOS-1999-427] This summer Lena Christian Nielsen Emigh, born June 17, 1899, on the family's Rio Vista wheat farm, was feted at the Congregational Church on her 100th birthday. Lena traces her heritage back to Denmark. Her parents migranted to San Francisco in the 1890s. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Vacaville life in the '20s was picturesque / Delaplane, Kristin [426] [ECHOS-1999-426] Roberta Gates Ormaas traces her Vacaville heritage back to the 1850s when both sets of grandparents settled on ranches. Her paternal grandparents had the G.M. Gates Ranch in Lagoon Valley. Her maternal grandfather, John Montgomery, was a Methodist minister and had a ranch where Monte Vista and Eldridge meet today [...] Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 John Lowe's father arrived in Suisun Valley in the 1920s / Delaplane, Kristin [425] [ECHOS-1999-425] At the time this interview took place Mr. Lowe was recovering from a stroke and was taking some Chinese herbal medicines to help him recover. Today he is in good health. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Roy Mason continues ranching tradition with cattle, grapes / Delaplane, Kristin [424] [ECHOS-1999-424] Roy Mason and his wife, Betty, live on a ranch in Green Valley, where he runs cattle and grows grapes. On the same property, his daughter and her family now occupy the house where his grandmother lived. The family, which traces its Solano County heritage to the mid-1800s, also owns and operates a vineyard in neighboring Suisun Valley. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Sources on Solano County history abound / Delaplane, Kristin [423] [ECHOS-1999-423] This is the second in a two-part series devoted to providing a list of history centers and historical sites in Solano County. These places offer a myriad of activities that enhance our regional heritage and teach people about the area's exciting past. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 County abounds with sites to uncover region's past / Delaplane, Kristin [422] [ECHOS-1999-422] Most of these organizations have a membership service and welcome volunteers. Following is a listing of these centers, sites and resources: Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Orchardist prospers after early struggle / Delaplane, Kristin [421] [ECHOS-1999-421] Both my parents were born in Iowa and grew up within five miles of each other, but they didn't meet until they were almost grown. In Iowa we had a farm, 230 acres. The crops were corn, oats, barley and soybeans. I think they're still raising mostly those same crops back there [...] Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Ranch work: Hardest job a family ever loved / Delaplane, Kristin [420] [ECHOS-1999-420] 'We have bobcats. Foxes on and off. I've never had a problem with the coyotes. I don't know why, everyone else does [...] Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Ranchers carve homestead from wilderness / Delaplane, Kristin [419] [ECHOS-1999-419] ''In 1892, William Henry Samuels homesteaded this ranch, which is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Part of the ranch is in Napa County. When they first moved up here it was mostly brush and rocks and they raised sheep. The sheep were slaughtered right here and the meat taken down to town [...] Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Woman recounts time living in Suisun Valley / Delaplane, Kristin [418] [ECHOS-1999-418] 'My father, Chun Tim, came into America in 1873 at 20 years old. He traveled from his village, Sek Keh, to Hong Kong and took a boat to San Francisco. The trip was four months. Toward the end their supplies were getting low. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Ex-Vacan recalls town's Japanese past / Delaplane, Kristin [417] [ECHOS-1999-417] During the heyday of the fruit orchards in Solano County, the ethnic mix of orchardists and workers was astounding. The early arrivals were the original settlers, the Spanish and then the trailblazers from back East. Then came the Chinese. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Tracing ranch ties through generations / Delaplane, Kristin [416] [ECHOS-1999-416] 'My mother's grandfather, John Wesley Hill, came from Missouri in 1847. He rode up here when the oats would come up to the top of the horse's back. He says, 'That's good enough for me,' and he squatted on some land. His main thing was raising cattle. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Longtime Solanoan recalls family's past / Delaplane, Kristin [415] [ECHOS-1999-415] Granville Swift was my great-grandmother's brother. He got to California in 1841. In about 1844, he moved to Orland where he started a horse and cattle ranch. "In 1848, when gold was discovered, he went over to the American and Feather rivers and made a killing [...] Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 English teacher recalls days in the fields / Delaplane, Kristin [414] [ECHOS-1999-414] Marcus Lopez is the son of Mexican migrant farm laborers. He now teaches English at Solano Community College. He graduated from the University of Santa Clara. He also studied at University of California, Berkeley and San Francisco State University. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Moreno family builds legacy in Vacaville / Delaplane, Kristin [413] [ECHOS-1999-413] 'At the turn of the century, the governor of Hawaii came up with the idea that maybe the Portuguese and Spanish people would be good to work in the fields. They had knowledge of sugar cane, because sugar cane was raised in many of the Spanish colonies. Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Carrying on family's agricultural tradition / Delaplane, Kristin [412] [ECHOS-1999-412] "I am a fruit rancher and fourth-generation Vacavillian. My great-grandfather, George Sharpe, came here from England. He was a contractor and a builder and when the train stopped in Elmira, he decided the building opportunities were here. The towns were booming in the 1860s or 1870s [...] Detailed record - Similar records 2009-10-09 10:43 Agricultural tradition of Solano recounted / Delaplane, Kristin [411] [ECHOS-1999-411] While the discovery of gold in California is being celebrated throughout the state during the sesquicentennial, the majority of people who came to California did not find wealth in the Gold Rush but rather in agriculture. Detailed record - Similar records [>> more]