Susan Farrell Bankhead, Certified Genealogist (sm)
Three Fingered Jack Hit Petersburg: Drowned Towns
Have you tried to find a town where you ancestor lived and it’s not on any maps today? It may be a drowned town!
Let me start with a story as an example:
Lucy Frye lived in Petersburg, Calaveras county, in the California gold country during the 1850s. The story passed down is that she had a small store where she sold various things the miners needed: flour, sugar, beans, etc. In exchange for these commodities, Lucy often took in gold dust as payment. She had quite a bit of it when someone warned her that Three Fingered Jack was coming to rob her place that night! (In case you’re wondering, I have no idea why “Jack” only had three fingers, if he was born that way or lost two fingers in an accident, I don’t know).
That night Lucy took her gold dust home rather than leave it at the store.
When Lucy opened her store the next morning, the place had been ransacked, flour sacks ripped open, but her gold had been kept safe.
In my research, I wanted to know more about Three Fingered Jack and the location of Petersburg.
Three Fingered Jack: This robber was so popular that a volcano in Oregon has been named after him. He was said to have been Joaquin Murietta’s right hand man, Manuel Garcia. Murietta spent many years robbing and plundering in California’s gold country. Every community in the Sierra foothills has one or more stories of plunder by Murietta and Three Fingered Jack from 1850 to 1853.
Petersburg, California: Petersburg, Calaveras County, California, is no longer on any current map. It is under the waters of the New Hogan Reservoir. Petersburg was not alone in its’ demise. There were many towns flooded by water projects. For instance, most of the town center of Enfield, Massachusetts, was flooded by the Quabbin Reservoir.
Things you can do to verify a story or find a drowned town:
- Check the newspapers.
- Check local and county histories.
- Interview the locals.
- If you suspect a town (anywhere in the U.S.) where your family lived is now underwater, you might want to check the following list:
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/basic-scuba-discussions/366180-united-states-drowned-towns.html
What stories has your family inherited?
My mom grew up in Heber and talks about Deer Creek and Strawberry Reservoirs that were built. She remembers the farms that were covered by those two lakes. She said that the reason they named Strawberry Reservoir is because there was a large farm that grew strawberries that was covered by water. We used to drive to visit family in Wyoming and drove through what is now Jordenelle. There was a crag of rock that always had the American Flag painted on it right by the highway. My mom said someone painted it in the 1950s and it was repainted every year since. I often think of that rock covered now by water when I see Jordenelle.
Great stories Kristy! I would have never known that about Strawberry and Jordanelle. Thanks for sharing!