Category Archives: Past Events
UNLOCK HISTORY: LEARN HOW TO RESEARCH YOUR HISTORIC PROPERTY
Have you ever wondered about the past life of your home or other historic buildings in Sonoma County? If so, this webinar (recording) is for you! You will learn about the Sonoma County Library’s numerous online databasesoffering free access to digitized maps, newspapers and images, and discover how resources held by the History and Genealogy Library and the Sonoma County Archives can assist you in researching a structure’s history.
The HSSR hosted a Webinar by Simone Kremkau presenting resources and techniques to research your historic home or building using the Sonoma County Library’s website. Simone Kremkau is a Senior Library Associate at the Sonoma County History and Genealogy Library. She holds an MA in English and German Literature from Heidelberg University and an MLIS fromthe Berlin School of Library and Information Science at Humboldt University. She has been with the Sonoma County Library since 2015.
Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery Book: Fascinating Stories of over 5,500 Lives
Authors Sandy Frary and Ray Owen devoted more than 13 years and went to incredible lengths to unlock the stories of the more than 5,500 individuals buried in the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery, which was established in 1854. Their painstaking research techniques reveal many untold stories of Santa Rosa’s past.
The Historical Society of Santa Rosa virtual webinar hosted Frary and Owen as they explained their diverse and sometimes unconventional methods used to uncover the smallest details about thousands of lives, compiled in their new book Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery. Attendees had a chance to add to local knowledge by sharing information about their ancestors buried at the rural cemetery.
Hidden Valley: The Unknown Cemetery
In 1874, Sonoma County Supervisors purchased 100 acres in Santa Rosa to establish housing for indigent poor residents; relocate the county hospital; grow crops for sale and to feed hospital patients, jail prisoners, and site residents; and create a county cemetery. This land housed those facilities on both sides of Chanate Road. The cemetery, which was the county’s first for indigents, was located on the vacant parcel on Hidden Valley Drive.
On August 19, 2021 the Historical Society of Santa Rosa and local cemetery expert, author, and historian Jeremy Nichols hosted a webinar to learn about the history of this site on Hidden Valley Drive as the county contemplates its sale.
Thursday, August 19, 2021 from 6 to 7:30 pm
A Moving Story: Homes on the Move and the St. Rose Preservation District
Starting in 1903 and continuing through 1979, more than 20 historic homes and other structures were “saved” by being moved into the St. Rose neighborhood, just north of downtown Santa Rosa. In this webinar, you will hear the story of how and why so many structures were moved into the neighborhood, which is now designated as the St. Rose Preservation District, one of Santa Rosa’s eight preservation districts.
Denise Hill, who has resided in the St. Rose neighborhood and has researched its history for more than 25 years.
Link to A recording of the July webinar:
www.youtube.com/channel/UC2auTMCkVr1ZiKBxKz9mrvQ
Stories of the Past Revealed: The Carrillo Adobe: One Building, Many Chapters
The Carrillo Adobe, the oldest (partially) standing building in the Santa Rosa Valley, has had many identities – identities that not only changed with the function of the structure, but with the perspectives of the people around it. Hear about several chapters of the Carrillo Adobe’s rich past and how its fluctuating history has, perhaps, blunted efforts to preserve or restore it. The Carrillo Adobe has been the subject of restoration and preservation efforts since at least 1937.
Our online/Virtual event was held June 17, 2021.
Link to our June webinar: https://youtu.be/eKo84uaBzHA
A Virtual Stroll through the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery with Bill Montgomery
The Historical Society of Santa Rosa hosts a Virtual Stroll through the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery with local historian and Volunteer Coordinator of the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery Preservation Committee, Bill Montgomery.
Learn about notable figures in Santa Rosa history such as Julio Carrillo, Col. James B Armstrong, Anabel Stuart M.D., Francis McGaughey Martin, Elizabeth McGaughey Bennett, Dr John Boyce, John Richards, Mark and Ralphine McDonald, Frank Doyle, John Pressley, Otho Hinton, Mary ellen Pleasant and more as Bill Montgomery weaves stories from their past with events that helped to shape Santa Rosa.
Our emcee and zoom host, Leslie Graves, facilitates questions from participants and Bill for the last 30-minutes of the presentation.
The webinar originally aired live on May 20, 2021 and is approximately 1:30:00 in length. For more about the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery visit: https://srcity.org/1044/Santa-Rosa-Ru…
Lost Stories of a Highway and a Neighborhood
The Historical Society of Santa Rosa hosts panelists Dr. Margaret (Margie) Purser, historical archaeologist, and Lynn Prime, Regional & Special Collections Librarian at Sonoma State University, as they present and discuss the Lost Stories of a Highway and a Neighborhood.
This presentation includes the following and more:
• Records, photographs, letters, and property descriptions – documenting the buildings and lives in the path of the future highway
• Neighborhoods, houses, and businesses removed for highway construction
• People who lived and conducted business in the area
• How to access the Sonoma State Library’s Special Collections Archives, as a public resource
Our emcee, Leslie Graves, facilitates questions with Margie and Lynn for the last 30-minutes of the presentation. This recording originally aired live on April 15, 2021 and is approximately 1:40:00 in length.
For more about the Sonoma State University Archives visit: www.library.sonoma.edu/specialcollections
Secrets of Santa Rosa’s Cemeteries with Jeremy Nichols
The Historical Society of Santa Rosa is proud to present Secrets of Santa Rosa’s Cemeteries with local Historian & Cemeterian (cemetery expert), Jeremy Dwight Nichols. His presentation provides hidden information about 13 local cemeteries and dives deeper while answering viewer’s questions facilitated by emcee Leslie Graves.
This event originally aired live on zoom on October 29, 2020. Approximate length 1:41:00
For more about local Sonoma County Cemeteries resource Mr. Nichol’s books: “Cemeteries of Sonoma County California, a History and Guide” (2001) and “Potter’s Field – The Chanate Historical Cemetery in Santa Rosa” (2009) available on Amazon.
HSSR General Membership Meeting
On February 3, 2020, Historical Society of Santa Rosa held its annual general membership meeting at the Central Santa Rosa Library, 211 E Street.
Our guest speaker was Michael Newland, Director of Cultural Resources for Environmental Science Associates. His topic was “Land, People, Sea, and Sky: An Exploration of the Archeology of Sonoma County’s Pre-contact History, Culture, and Climate Change”.
Newland shared important lessons learned from tribal views of the land, through the lens of archaeology and anthropology, as we collectively face our local climate change challenges.
October 5, 2019 Archives Crawl
Each October, the National Archives celebrates “American Archives Month”. That was the inspiration for the first ever “Sonoma County Archives Crawl” on October 5, 2019, an event designed to celebrate archives and encourage visitors to explore and engage with institutions that collect archival material. The event was sponsored by Sonoma County Library.
Open houses were hosted around Sonoma County at the downtown Santa Rosa library, the History & Genealogy Library, the Healdsburg Wine Library, and the Petaluma History Room.
Historical Society of Santa Rosa was pleased to be one of 12 historical societies and organizations that hosted tables at the downtown library. Two presentations at the library provided information for history researchers, genealogists, and archivists. “Preserving History and Democracy,” a presentation by Deva Marie Proto, Sonoma County Clerk-Recorder-Assessor-Registrar of Voters, provided valuable information on searching official records. In his presentation, “Saving, Sharing, and Celebrating Your Family’s History & Heritage,” Jack Schaeffer, Act3 Partners, demonstrated how to restore and archive family photos.
Attendees agreed that the presentations were informative. They enjoyed meeting fellow historians and genealogists.
