Here's A Sneak Peek At My New Book:
"Stories of the Forgotten III: Tales of the Motherlode"
Chapter One. "Jackson Boarding House"- (Part One)
Have you ever driven by a house or building and wondered about the history hidden behind those walls? I know that I have. In fact, my very first historical non-fiction story that I researched and penned over 18 years ago, was about a house that I was enamored by as a young child. Later on, as an adult I took that deep dive into its history to share with the world what I uncovered in the archives.
Well, now I am going to do that again. I am going to take you on a journey back in time to share with you the history of this property. With this story though, it won’t be about just one person, but instead it encompasses a large span of time with several families and many stories associated with the home. My biggest goal, which is of the utmost importance to me is to share the facts with accuracy, respect and love.
The home we are going to take a deep dive into today is located at 315 N. Main Street in Jackson, California. This property's address was originally 156 N. Main Street. So why this house? Well, in the last few years this home has been getting quite a bit of attention due to it being advertised as a haunted house.
Some of the things that I was hearing though, historically didn’t sound quite right to me. Then I started getting random emails from several people asking me to look into the history of the home to set the facts straight since there had been a lot of mis
90% of my research on this house dates back in 2022, but with having to finish my previous book, "Down Below: A History of Deaths at the Kennedy Mine," which was published the Fall of 2023, this particular chapter took a backseat until I was able to put my full attention to completing it.
With that being said, I hope you enjoy this trip back in time to explore the true history of the Jackson Boarding House, a.k.a. the Guerra Boarding House, a.k.a the Ginnochio Boarding House and later on the Toffanelli family home (and rooms).
The Beginnings
Back in 1872, the Amador County land deeds show that George Stasal, a local businessman owned that entire section of North Main Street. He then sectioned off parcels and began selling those plots of land. By 1878, county deed records state that a young lady by the name of Margaret Guerra purchased lot #3, block #9. It is the author’s belief that a small dwelling had been built on this property prior to the sale. Margaret purchased this property for the amount of $450.00. She would be the first homeowner of this property.
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Copy of the original deed
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Margaret Guerra purchased from George Stasal, 1/2/1878 Courtesy of the Amador County Clerk’s Office |
So who was Margaret Guerra? Maggie, as she was noted in the 1880 Census, was born between 1856-1858, more than likely in Mokelumne Hill, where her brother Frank was also born. Maggie’s mother died at some point after 1862, as her youngest brother was born that year. It appears that after the death of his wife, Dionesio Guerra moved his family up to West Point. Dionesio Guerra originally came from Chile to this country to get into mining, while his wife had been a native of Mexico. Maggie’s brother, Frank was also listed as a miner. As an adult, Maggie operated a laundry business with her sister, Lena and brother, Albert (sometimes referred to as Emmanuel or Manuel) out of her home on N. Main Street.
Contrary to what others have insinuated in recent years, there is nothing documented anywhere in our local history to substantiate any rumors of Maggie having been a prostitute or madam. This salacious rumor was made up just in the last couple of years. It is not only posthumous slander, but it is also a disrespect to Maggie and her entire family.
For the record, there is no proof that the home was ever a brothel and we will get into that whole “brothel” subject a little later on in another chapter within this book, backed up by actual documentation that proves the early “female boarding houses,” as mentioned in Larry Cenotto’s famous Logan’s Alley, were in an entirely different spot on N. Main Street all together.
Another thing I would like to add about women owning property in Amador County at the time, although it was not considered common, it wasn’t unheard of. In fact, I have found other women in the late 1800’s who owned property within the county, and no, they weren’t prostitutes, either!
When Maggie purchased the property in 1878, for
In fact, according to the University of Washington’s Center for the study of the Pacific Northwest, the average two-bedroom home back in 1870, was about $300.00, while a four-bedroom home was about $700.00. Given the fact this was a few years later, in 1878, it is not too far of a jump to see a small home go for the price of $450.00 at that time.
According to the Consumer Price Index or (CPI), $450.00 cash in 1878, would be the “real price” equivalent of $14,323.17 today. Real estate value of that amount of money would have only increased to around $34,630.79 according to U.S Inflation Rate Calculator, based on 2.77% from 1890 to 2022. That just goes to show you how affordable housing was back then as opposed to our over inflated economy today.
The 1880 Census has her brother listed as the “Head of Household” although Maggie was still technically the homeowner at the time, being that her name was on the deed. I believe that because they came from a Hispanic background, most likely Catholic, and the fact that at that time period the men were usually the head of household, there was a sense of propriety expected, and that is why he is listed in the Census that way. At that time, Frank, 26, his wife Amelia, 26, his children: Louisa, 7, Amalia, 5, John, 1, and siblings, Maggie, 25, and Lena, 22, and Emmanuel, 17, are all living in the house on North Main Street.
William Holder was born in England in 1855, and had immigrated to the United States in his early adulthood. By 1880, he was living in the home of William Bryant and family in Pine Grove, working as a blacksmith. By July 3, 1881 he married Frances "Fanny" Hawkins Younglove, who had just been divorced by her 1st husband Dwight Younglove. Dwight appeared to have been a habitual womanizer, getting married multiple times, only to divorce shortly after. Perhaps William was Fanny's "knight in shining armor," and even though she had a young son from the previous union, it did not deter William from marrying her.
Sadly, on February 22, 1884, Fanny passed away from what appears to have been a short illness, and was buried at the Ione Cemetery. She was originally from Missouri, and grew up in Lancha Plana, currently where Lake Camanche rests. Interestingly, it appears that William loved his wife so much, as he fought over the custody of his stepson, Albert, against Albert's father, Dwight Younglove, upon Fanny's passing.
Per Fanny's will*, she named William and her brother, Melville as executors of her estate, and requested that her young son to remain with her mother, Mary Ann. As mentioned above, Fanny is buried at the historic Ione Public Cemetery in Ione, California. *(A big thanks to Megan at the Ione Public Cemetery for all her help with Fanny's probate records.)
Only eight months after Fanny's death, it appears that William or "Billy" as locals called him, fell in love again, this time to Margaret "Maggie" Guerra. Maggie and William married on October 22, 1884.
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Copy of Marriage Record,
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Amador County, CA 10/22/1884 |
It was only a few months later, that Maggie would sell the deed to the property to Henry Eudey for $300.00 on January 26, 1885. It is the author’s belief that the money Maggie received for selling her house to Eudey more than likely went towards building a new house on a new property. County records show a deed transfer recorded in the newspaper on March 28, 1885, which shows William Holder purchased a property in Jackson from Michael Newman. Only a few months later, Maggie’s brother, Frank would take over ownership of the N. Main Street property, having purchased it back from Henry Eudey on July 27, 1885, for the amount of $ 5.00 in gold. The newspaper mentioned this transaction in the August 15, 1885 edition of the Ledger.
So, why did Eudey allow Frank to purchase the property back for a mere $5.00 in gold? That is a very good question. It appears that at that time in 1885, Eudey was a foreman at the Zeila mine in town, but he was also known for his savvy business sense, making investments in businesses and people all over.
It is the author’s belief that instead of Frank paying for the property outright, Eudey might have held a promissory note on the remainder of the value of the property, as an early type of mortgage, where Frank was responsible to pay Eudey payments and interest. Eudey’s personal investments within the county proved so successful, he eventually became the President of the Bank of Amador County in 1898.
Later on that year, Maggie and William’s first child, William Jr., was born on November 21, 1885.
On the evening of Friday, February 11, 1887, Mr. & Mrs. William Holder were attending the “social ball” at Moon’s Ranch, when Maggie tripped down the stairs while holding her young baby in her arms. Thankfully the baby was unharmed, though poor Maggie suffered several broken ribs. It was such an event that it was mentioned in two different newspapers the following week.
One thing to note, if Maggie had a reputation for being a prostitute or a madam in town as recently claimed**, I highly doubt she would have been accepted at a social ball in the community, let alone be referred to as Mrs. William Holder in the newspaper. There was still some sense of propriety back then.
Sadly, the couple could not protect their child from everything, as young Billy jr., died at the age of 2 1/2 years old on June 8, 1888. There is no mention of what he succumbed to, however it was more than likely a childhood illness, as that was the most common at the time. The couple would go on to have two more children, daughters Della and Amelia, born in 1888 and 1892. These two girls would grow up into their adulthood. By 1893, the Amador Ledger shows that William is now selling wagons that he was manufacturing himself.
So, we have established that Maggie and William more than likely did not live at the house after getting married and selling the house to Henry Eudey. We find more evidence pointing to this conclusion in the edition of the Amador Ledger dated, April 17, 1896 which had a somber mention of Maggie’s passing: “Mrs. William Holder, died at her home in South Jackson, and was buried Wednesday.”
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| Maggie Guerra's Grave, St. Patrick Cemetery, Jackson. |
According to records, she died on Tuesday, April 14, and was buried on Wednesday, April 15. She was interred in a plot at St. Patrick Catholic Cemetery in Jackson.
After the death of Maggie, it appears that their daughters went to live with Frank and Amelia Guerra. So, where did William go? For the record, Holder was well known around Jackson, and everyone seemed to like him, but he also liked to drink. I have yet to determine whether Williams’ alcoholism started prior to or after Maggie’s death.
Only on one documented occasion that I could find was he involved in anything negative that made the newspapers, and it really wasn't his fault. It appears that on the 4th of July, 1907, during the festivities an Indian (Native American), who was overly inebriated, assaulted William in public and they duked it out, which landed the Indian in jail. William walked away from the altercation with his hands clean, meaning he didn't go to jail. There was no mention though if William had been drinking prior to that altercation.
Although he was known for his intemperate habits towards the end, he was spoken of as: "unassuming, courteous, always cheerful, never boisterous.... and was liked for his better qualities, while pitied for the degenerate condition to which his appetite dragged him."
It appears that in his early years he had been a very hard working man, a blacksmith by trade, and had even owned two shops, one of which included the wagon making business. He was considered a "prosperous business man," so it is very sad to see how he ended up. With all of that potential, he allowed his bad habits and addictions to get the best of him, which ultimately led him to losing his family, his businesses, his prosperity and eventually his life.
The death of William Holder took place Tuesday evening, January 12, 1909. According to the Amador Dispatch, Holder had been found that following morning, "lying face downward in the sand and the mud of the north fork of Jackson Creek, the lower limbs partially in the water."
His boss, V.J. Chichizola, whom Holder was working as a blacksmith, discovered his body that morning around 8 a.m. He was found just west of the Chichizola store, across the road where the creek is located. Upon examination by Coroner Potter, it was ascertained that Holder had been seen at Casazza's saloon the evening prior. Witnesses stated that he came to the bar around 8 p.m. already very inebriated, and although he stayed for about an hour he didn't drink any more while there. He left the bar around 9 p.m. and stumbled out of there on his way home to his small cabin across the creek just north of Teresa's Place. At the time of his death in 1909, William was living in a little cabin near his job, while his two young daughters were being raised by Maggie's family.
So basically, he tried to cross the creek and it knocked him off his feet, and being as drunk as he was, he didn't have the strength or stamina to pull himself up and he drowned. The sand in his hair and the pockets of his clothes were evidence enough that the water had risen up higher than normal in the night, and sadly, Holder didn't make it.
Just to quell any suspicions of foul play -- the Coroner determined based on physical evidence that it was an "Accidental Drowning." Holder wasn't murdered, and no one robbed him— in case anyone wants to make those assumptions. There would be no reason to have killed him. He didn't have any enemies, and he didn't have anything of value on him, except the new shoes on his feet, which were found on his person when they discovered his body. In fact, he had just purchased those shoes that day at the Chichizola Store. He was buried at the City Cemetery in Jackson in a small plot. Hopefully now he has the peace he struggled to find at the end of a bottle.
It wasn’t until Frank Guerra and his family took over the property that I believe the home became a boarding house. This is when there was additional construction done on the house to enlarge it. You see, when the home was originally purchased in 1878, the pricing would have fit for something small along the likes of a two or three bedroom home.
The house as it stands today is fairly large, and according to the Sanborn Insurance Maps it looks like the original dwelling, and the one next to it, were possibly demolished and rebuilt. If you take a look at the 1890 Sanborn map below, you can see two dwellings very close in proximity to each other and both had stove pipe heating. The one on the right would be the Guerra’s residence. By the 1898 Sanborn map, you can see that it was enlarged and now there is a larger gap between it and the neighboring structure.
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Map #1 of the 1890 Sanborn Map, North Main Street
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Again, it appears that the original dwelling that Maggie Guerra had purchased in 1878, was demolished sometime after 1890, and another home built a little further south on the lot, while the neighbor to the north (left side) had theirs completely enlarged as well. Both homes had terra cotta chimneys added. It also appears that both dwellings were set further back on the property towards the creek, allowing for larger wrap-around porches on both homes. These images from the local historical maps, leads me to believe that this is when the boarding house was actually built.
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Map #2, Sanborn Map of 1898, N. Main Street.
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Notice the homes are now set further back on the property, closer to the creek? |
Frank Guerra was not just a miner, he was very involved in the community being active in local theater, even taking part in various plays and minstrel shows, including one that took place at Rocca’s Hall on Water Street in 1881, and even being a member of the committee for the Grand May Ball which took place at Love’s Hall in 1882. Among some of the other committee members was none other than early Amador County Historian Jesse D. Mason. He was also a member of the Elk’s Lodge, the Knights of the Pythias, and the Supreme Order of Caucasian Officers, as a “warden.”
Now, if you were to look this group up today, you will find a lot of negative opinions about it, basically calling it a racist fraternal order. But it simply wasn’t as cut and dry as that. You see, at that time period in the late 19th century, fat cats such as Charles Crocker had invited many Chinese immigrants to come to the United States promising them work. This however, displaced the workers who were already here, already skilled, and already had those jobs.
To put it bluntly, the Chinese were used for their labor at cheaper prices while the original workers were pushed out, and virtually put out of work. This is what unions today would call “scabs.” On March 3, 1875, an Order of Caucasians was filed with the Secretary of State, and it wasn’t just “white folk” who were members, but also every type of European immigrant such as Italian, Irish, Scottish, and also Americans, Hispanics (such as Frank who was of Chilean and Mexican heritage), as well as African Americans and even Native Americans who were seeing their jobs
During the 1880’s, Frank was a miner by trade, but also much more than just that. His experience in mining made him very much in demand, so he would travel all over from Arizona, down to Sonora, Mexico, to help start up mines. By 1885, around the same time he purchased the property from Henry Eudey, Frank was running the new Amador Queen mine, which had a 20 stamp mill just off Middle Bar Road, in Hunt’s Gulch, on the North Fork of the Mokelumne River.
Because the demand for Frank’s expertise was so high, he was often away from his family for long periods of time, sometimes years. It appears that his wife, Amelia ran the boarding house while he was away. This was not uncommon at the time. In fact, according to local historian Carolyn Fregulia, it was women who mostly ran the boarding houses in Jackson at that time, and “most began as a family-run business or were managed by the wife of an employed miner.”
A boarding house back then was so much more than just renting out a room for a miner to rest. It involved daily cleaning, doing continual laundry, maintenance on the property, food preparation, cooking, canning, gardening and serving multiple meals and alcohol all day, every day. You see, according to Carolyn Fregulia, the rooms would be rented out to three miners per room, in shifts according to their schedules. That allowed more miners to have a chance to have at least 8 hours to rest.
Once their time was up, a new round of men would arrive from their shifts at the mines and would want to rest.
The boarding house down the road on Jackson Gate, owned by Teresa Vinciguerra followed a similar schedule, renting out her 12 room bunkhouse, three miners to each room, in eight hour shifts and serving nine meals a day plus alcohol. The above information provided to me by Carolyn Fregulia is very important to note, as the boarding houses were in competition with one another in order to make money. It is not hard to imagine that the Guerra family followed similar business practices when operating their boarding house.
By 1892, it appears that Frank put the property in his wife, Amelia’s name. Perhaps, knowing that he was always gone, and many times out of the country, and working a very dangerous job, it is possible he felt she would have more security financially having the house in her name. Either way, the title was transferred to Amelia and the business continued on until 1898, when the property was then sold to Enrico Ginocchio. It appears that the sale was in name only at that time, and the boarding house continued to be ran at that time as usual by the Guerra family. There is no record stating why it was sold to Ginocchio.
The 1900 census shows the family still living there at the property. On the evening of October 25, 1900, when John Guerra (son of Frank and Amelia) ended his shift at the Kennedy Mine, he had a terrible accident when he was riding up the skip. He had
As he was nearing the 800 foot level on the bail of the skip, John must have dozed off for a moment, losing grasp of his holding, and he plummeted to the bottom. His funeral was held on Sunday, October 28, 1900, at 3 o’clock in the afternoon at the Catholic Church in Jackson, and subsequent burial at St. Patrick Catholic Cemetery.
The newspaper reported the large amount of people who came to the church to pay their respects to the deceased. In fact, there were so many people, that many had to wait outside until services were done, to follow the burial procession along to the cemetery.
There were lots of flowers brought for the deceased, and many young ladies were seen crying at his grave. The pall bearers were his friends and fellow workers at the Kennedy, some of which would later lose their lives at the same mine years later. John Guerra was laid to rest in an unmarked grave in the Guerra family plot at St. Patrick Catholic Cemetery in Jackson.
By December of 1904, Grandpa Dionesio Guerra had failing health, and the newspaper said he was suffering from paralysis at his home in west Jackson.
While everyone was expecting the next bad news they would hear would be the passing of the patriarch of the family, Grandpa Guerra, they were shocked by the news that it was his son Frank who would pass so suddenly.
According to the Dispatch dated June 2, 1905, Frank had passed away at Sisters Hospital in Los Angeles on May 16th from cancer of the tongue. He had been diagnosed only eight months earlier and the rapid progression of the disease took everyone for surprise. The last two months of his life he had been unable to speak.
He had been operating a mining claim in New Mexico with a partner when he fell ill. He sought treatment in Los Angeles but there was nothing that could be done. His daughter Louise was notified shortly before his passing, and rushed to be by his side only to find he had passed away before she got there. Frank was interred at Angelus Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles, California on May 18, 1905.
On July 4th, 1905, patriarch Dionesio Guerra passed away. He was 83 years old, and buried at St. Patrick Catholic Cemetery in Jackson.
On August 30, 1906, one of the many miners who stayed at the house was seriously injured in a horrible accident at the Kennedy Mine. Manuel Gonzales, a native of Spain, fell down an ore chute about 25 feet, severing his spinal cord. After an unsuccessful surgical procedure at the hospital, Gonzales passed away on September 9, 1906. For the record, he did not die at the boarding house. He is buried in an unmarked grave at St. Patrick Catholic Cemetery.
After the great earthquake of San Francisco, Amelia's daughters were displaced and the family returned to Amador County temporarily. Did they return to the boarding house? It is possible. It appears Amelia was running the boarding house again during that time until Louise decided to return to San Francisco in 1908.
In fact, on October 30, 1908, there was a notice that Amelia was ready to go to the bay area stating: “Mrs. Guerra is offering her household furniture for sale and preparing to move to San Francisco, to be with her two grown up daughters. She has been keeping a boarding house on the Jackson Gate road, but finds the work becoming to arduous for her. She will take the young Holder children with her to the city.”—
And this is where we end the chapter of the Guerra’s at this specific property, with the passing of Amelia on October 22, 1909. The odd thing about this newspaper clipping is the spelling of her name, as all documents from the census records down to the recorded deed on the property, her name was either spelled Amelia or Amalia, never Amanda. Sadly, this is the last piece of history on Mrs. Guerra’s life for the world to remember her by, and it was spelled incorrectly.
Enrico Ginocchio & Bros. continued to own the property up until 1911, when the boarding house was sold to Rocco Molineri and John Devencenzi. The two were brothers, both having the same mother, different fathers. Rocco, just a little older than him, was born in the old country, Italy and travelled with his mother to the United States. It appears that Mary, his mother, remarried to Mr. Devencenzi and had another son, John.
The two grew up in Volcano, and from what I could find were involved in farming. This time period from 1911 up to 1924, appear to be more on the quiet side as far as documented history. I am sure lots of interesting stories took place there during this time, however, it is very difficult to say for certain what due to lack of documentation.
You see, there are mentions in the newspapers of the time speaking of various incidents taking place at boarding houses on North Main Street, near the gate or at Jackson Gate Road, which is what North Main Street eventually turns into, but there were so many boarding houses along that road it is difficult to say which one they were referring to when the articles did not specify.
Who ran the boarding house for Molineri and Devencenzi at this time? These are questions I have yet to answer, and without documentation it is safe to say some questions may never be answered. By 1924, Stefano Tofanelli comes into the picture when he purchases the house from the two brothers." ###
---- ("Stories of the Forgotten III: Tales of the Motherlode," by J'aime Rubio, ISBN: 9798329140378 )
TO BE CONTINUED.......
To read the rest of this chapter, as well as the other stories within this book, please keep on the look out for "Stories of the Forgotten III: Tales of the Motherlode," which should be released just in time for Christmas!
(COPYRIGHT 2024 - J'aime Rubio, www.jaimerubiowriter.com)
(**Let's be perfectly clear, it is widely known that the town of Jackson was infamously known for its brothels, but the infamy was more prevalent during a later point in time in Jackson's history (20th century) as strange as that may seem. Even so, prostitutes were not really accepted in "daytime" society in the late 19th century or 2oth century, and it would not have been socially acceptable for someone with a reputation for having been a madam or a prostitute to be invited to a social ball with proper "ladies." in 1887. )
