The HSSR and the Northwestern Pacific Railroad Historical Society (NWPRHS) in celebrated the historical railroads that once crisscrossed the City of Santa Rosa. The event included tours of Santa Rosa’s historic train station and an evening of presentations held at the Sixth Street Theater.

The presentations included a discussion of the historic railways in Santa Rosa, the archaeological study of the “right of way” for rehabilitation of the NWP line and a discussion of impacts to the community. Gaye LeBaron moderated the presentations and discussion.

On October 8th, 2016 the HSSR held it’s third History Hunt at the Santa Rosa Rural Cemetery.  More than 70 participants used clues to locate the graves of 15 different people buried in the grave yard and when finished received a booklet telling about these local celebrities.

Following are the clues and answers from the Hunt.

1. This Civil War hero escaped Bloody Bill Anderson in Centralia.  He was the Sergeant taken captive and who lived to tell his regiment’s tale.Thomas Morton Goodman

   Born February 28, 1829

   Died February 5, 1886

   Buried Eastern Half Circle Plot 52

    

   In 1864 one of the most infamous events of the Civil War occurred in Centralia, Missouri. Bloody Bill Anderson, a Confederate sympathizer and bushwhacker who did not belong to an organized military force, and his men executed 26 unarmed Union soldiers, who were on leave, only sparring Sergeant Goodman.

   Goodman, born in Kentucky, was a sergeant fighting for the Union in 1864.  He and his company were granted leave and were headed home when Bloody Bill came across them.  (William Anderson has been called a sociopath and was well known for being a brutal and destructive leader who harassed Union troops in Missouri and Kansas.  A young Jesses James was part of Anderson’s band and learned how to be an outlaw from him.)  It was customary to allow furloughed soldiers from the opposing side to go unmolested as they did not have military weapons, but Bloody Bill executed all the men in Goodman’s company sparing only Goodman, apparently because a sergeant from Anderson’s company had been captured and Anderson was looking for an a prisoner exchange.  Goodman showed courage and resourcefulness in surviving for ten days until escaping when his capturers attempted to cross the Missouri River.  Goodman later wrote a book to honor his fallen comrades and bring attention to their bravery as they fought on battle fields that were not part of the eastern centered war.

   Goodman married Mary Ann Wood in 1849, and they had five children before moving to Santa Rosa.

    

A second showing of the HSSR’s short film documentary on the history of Santa Rosa was presented on the big screen at the Roxy Stadium.  The Premiere event filled quickly and the HSSR quickly arranged for this second showing to meet members’ desire to view the film.  Again, Santa Rosa: The Chosen Spot of all the Earth was received with great applause. The film showing was supplemented with a Question and Answer session with Producer, Writer and Director Don Cambou and local historian, Don Silverek who stars in the film.  The film was made possible by the generosity of community members.

HSSR Members enjoyed a beer and wine hosted reception at The Roxy Theater as the Society presented its short film documentary about the history of Santa Rosa.  Board members greeted attendees in red-carpet style.  Santa Rosa: The Chosen Spot of all the Earth was received with great applause. The film was followed by a Question and Answer session with Producer, Writer and Director Don Cambou and Santa Rosa’s favorite Historian, Gaye LeBaron.  The film was made possible by the generosity of community members.

On June 21, exclusively for members and friends of the HSSR, we held an evening walk of the Santa Rosa Junior College campus and guided tour and discussion of historic buildings of this educational jewel.

The HSSR Membership Meeting started with a short summary of the year’s events and a look at plans for 2016. John Louder displayed various Santa Rosa collectibles and artifacts, John Burton brought part of his very extensive Grace Brothers Brewery collection, Denise and Joe Hill brought their collection of over 500 Santa Rosa postcards and Merle Avila brought his collection of Santa Rosa tokens dating to the 19th century and other SR items.  Attendees browsed and discussed the collections before and after the meeting.