History of the Hotel Léger - Mokelumne Hill

Mokelumne Hill is situated in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, between Jackson and San Andreas.  During the Gold Rush, Mokelumne Hill or "Moke Hill" as I have always called it, was a booming mining town surrounded by many other mining camps in the area. In this particular blog, I will be sharing with you the history of the Hotel Léger, and also debunking some of the "rumors" that have been circulating about this historic hotel for the past several decades. In a future blog I will go further in depth into the history of town of Mokelumne Hill itself, and some of its other intriguing tales.

To start, the Hotel Léger was founded and built by George Léger. But that wasn't the hotel's original name. In fact, this hotel has had several names over the years from the Hotel de France, Union Hotel, Grand Hotel, and of course its namesake, the Hotel Léger. 

The Léger Family

George William Léger was of French ancestry, although he wasn't a native of France. According to the 1860 Census he was born in Hesse-Cassel, a small state within Germany. During the time in which George was born, Hesse-Cassel was occupied by French troops and was actually considered to be a "French satelite state." I imagine that George's mother was probably a German woman who married one of the French soldiers who was stationed there and that is how George came to be a Frenchman who was actually from Germany. 

According to records, George was born sometime in 1815. It has always been said that he came to the U.S. in his mid-thirties, and that he settled in at Mokelumne Hill around 1851. The San Joaquin Valley as well as the Sierras had a large population of French, even in the early days when the French trappers arrived (long before actual settlements). During the Gold Rush, many Frenchmen came to "Moke Hill" as well as Germans, Scots, Irishmen, Chinese, Mexicans, Chileans and even Australians heading for California along with so many others.

It is interesting to note that the biggest rush I have found during my research about Moke Hill happened between the Spring of 1851 and the Summer of 1851. Soon after a huge portion of miners headed up to San Andreas to their newly discovered diggings. Still, many miners kept at it in Moke Hill and the population of the little mining camp continued to grow exponentially. This was around the time that George Léger set up his tent-like wooden and canvas hostelry on the corner of Main and Lafayette streets. At some point the hotel was built up, but was only a one story structure in the beginning.  

On August 21, 1854 around 3:05 a.m. a fire broke out in John Ward's restaurant on  Main Street. The fire swept through the main part of town from Franklin to Ravine, through Front street, Center street to Washington, to the bridge over the ravine and Lafayette streets. The only structures saved in town were Parker's stable, four houses, Hawkins store, Magnolia Hotel and about seven small buildings in total.

Of the structures lost, Léger's hotel was one of them (Union Hotel). Others included: Morris & Peyton, Root & Co., Cadwaller & Co., Halsey & Bro., S. Forman, Strouz Fountain House, United States Hotel, Dudley's Restaurant, Ford's Restaurant, Sturges & Co., Dr. Soyer, Wells Fargo & Co., Adams & Co., and the post office. 

Within a year the hotel was rebuilt once again.

George & Louisa's Marriage Record

On May 26, 1856, George Léger married Louisa Wilkin by Justice of the Peace, B.H. Williams. The three witnesses who signed on behalf of the marriage were Henry Krat, Henry Anhiser and Henry Mayer. 

The couple were to have three children: Albert Henry (1856-1886), Matilda (1858-1937) and Louisa (1860-?).

Their daughter, Louisa's birthdate was November 26, 1860 which sadly coincides with the death of her mother, Louisa Wilkin Léger, who apparently died the next day of complications after childbirth. Louisa was buried in the Mokelumne Hill Protestant Cemetery. Her headstone reads (as translated in English): 

"Here beloved wife and mother, Louisa Leger (born Wilkin), born on 25 of November, 1833, died on 27 of November, 1860, missing and grieved."

The loss of his wife must have hit him very hard, as it appears he never remarried. He continued to raise his children who all grew up into adulthood. Albert Henry Léger was listed as a registered voter on May 21, 1877 (aged 21 years). By April 21, 1886 though, Albert passed away for reasons I could not find; However, he did not die in the hotel or even in Calaveras County for that matter. He passed away in Fresno County and his body was brought to Mokelumne Hill to be buried at the cemetery where his parents are buried.

Matilda grew up and married William Todd in 1879. According to Wendy Cook on Find-a-grave, Matilda married twice and died in 1937 in Seattle, Washington. As far as Louisa, I could only find her mentioned on one document, the 1880 census where she is listed as running the hotel. They erroneously listed her age as 17 and year of birth as 1863, however we know she was actually 20 years old and was born 1860. 


According to Maureen Love-Allen Elliott on the "Motherlode Memories" Facebook page, she found Louisa listed in the 1885 census in Washington. At the time she was married to David Edwards, who was also a hotel keeper. Amador County Marriage Records also note that Louisa married David Bartlett Edwards on February 3, 1881 in Jackson, Amador County, which was only two years after her father's death. They apparently moved to Washington a short time later.

It appears the two separated and divorced, since Mr. Edwards is later listed being remarried to Ida Buck. Maureen believes she remarried to a George Wilson, in Ballard, Washington. The first document I could find of this marriage shows only that she listed her name as "Lou Edwards" but there was no listing of her maiden name or her parent's names on that particular document.  Maureen provided me with a second document where it does in fact state that Louisa's parent's were George Leger and Louisa Wilken, so we now know she did remarry. By the 1930 census in Washington, Mr. Wilson is listed as a widower, so she must have passed on sometime before.

I have since found a grave for a Louisa L. Edwards (not Wilson), born in 1860, who passed away in 1918. She was buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland. But it is highly unlikely she would have been buried using her first married name (Edwards) and not the second one (Wilson), so I am currently at a standstill in regards to locating Louisa's grave.

The county seat moved to San Andreas in 1866, which meant the courthouse would no longer be used, but the jail was still in use until March of 1868. Once the new county jail was built elsewhere and inmates were moved out, it was then that George wanted to purchase the empty courthouse located on the corner of Lafayette and Court Streets (now China Gulch). He then used the old courthouse as an addition to his hotel. In 1874, there was another fire that swept through Mokelumne Hill. The hotel burned again, but the part of the hotel that was stone (the former courthouse) survived the fire. The last rebuild of the hotel was the final one, and the hotel stands now just as it was in 1875. On April 26, 1875, George held a grand reopening of the hotel which included a Grand Ball. It was a big 'to-do' around those parts, and all of the county's most important residents attended.

Over the years the hotel ownership has passed through many hands. Here is a small list of previous owners of the past, which I am certain isn't complete but here you go:

George Léger
Louisa Léger (daughter)
George Muths
Kaufmann Hexter
John McLean
Nevil Magee
Myron Greve
Charles Pfeiffer
An Attorney from San Francisco (name unknown)
Bob Rosenthall
Alice & Roger Cannon
Ron & Joyce Miller
Joe Rohde & Marci Biagi

At George's grave.

George's Death

Contrary to the majority of people's opinions, written theories, and adamant statements in books, online or even on television shows, George Léger was NOT murdered. I really wish people would stop spreading that fabricated and completely false story. It is not only a disrespect to the history of the hotel but a personal insult to Mr. Leger himself. 

According to the Calaveras Chronicle, Mr. Léger had been ill for two days and passed away suddenly. He was mentioned as being the "oldest, most esteemed fellow townsmen." The Sacramento Daily Union stated: "George W. Leger, Chief Engineer of the Fire Department, a prominent Odd Fellow, and one of the oldest and most respected citizens of Calaveras County, died here this afternoon."

The Amador Ledger said this of their beloved pioneer: 

Amador Ledger (3/15/1879)

Obviously the paper had the wrong information about his native nationality, because it was his wife Louisa who was from Prussia, but other than that, his obituary was right on the money. This is an important piece of information that should be remembered as we get into this subject matter a little further on in this blog. 

George is buried at the Protestant Cemetery in Mokelumne Hill with his wife.

Debunking Local Legends and Lore

So if George Léger was not murdered in his hotel, then why on earth would this story have come about in the first place? I have my suspicions of just who may have started the rumors and why.  You see, I have been digging up as much as I could on the hotel's history and it wasn't until the 1980's when the rumor of George being murdered appeared on paper. Along with the story came some very unsavory accusations about George himself, claiming he was a "ladies man"which was unwarranted. 

According to a syndicated article that appeared in the Desert Sun (as well as many other newspapers all over the country) dated December 1, 1987, then owners of the hotel, Ron and Joyce Miller were quoted saying that George "was quite the womanizer" and that he was "murdered outside his room in 1881."  They were interviewed a couple of more times in 1987 reiterating the whole haunted aspect, again being very adamant that George was a "ladies man" and that the woman who haunts the hotel is probably one of his "old flames." 

The Millers obviously wanted to capitalize on their investment and bring in tourists with the interest in an historic and "haunted" hotel. Unfortunately, they didn't do their homework on the history of the hotel or they would have known George didn't die in 1881 and wasn't murdered. It is plain to see that they sensationalized the hotel's history to gain publicity which worked, and unfortunately, it worked too well, since their tall tales of the Hotel Léger's history has become one of those urban legends that have spun out of control. Now every book, every tv show and most writers and investigators repeat the same old yarn without actually doing the legwork to see it was completely fabricated.

There is absolutely no evidence or documentation whatsoever that has ever mentioned George Léger being a womanizer or sleeping around with women in town. In fact, he was one of the most respected men in town, as well as the county. Had he gained such a soiled reputation as that, surely there would have been something mentioned over the years, but instead, these accusations only popped up in the mid to late 80's which is a red flag that it was completely made up.

So, for the record, George Léger was NOT a womanizer, he did NOT sleep around with all the women in town, and he was NOT murdered by a jealous husband or any other person for that matter. He died from illness at the hotel, where he lived. 

So what about the other "ghost stories"? 

Again, the first ever mention in a newspaper claiming the hotel being haunted was in 1987, by the Millers. Although they claimed that the previous owners had told them it was haunted, the Millers were the first to publicize that there was an apparition of a woman seen going back and forth upstairs, or a boy sitting in a chair who played with a toy wagon. 

George W. Léger

The Millers also claimed that George was around, and that they, as well as their son, had seen him, too. The former owners before the Miller's, the Cannon's purchased the hotel back in 1971, after they read an ad in the Wall Street Journal for the old hotel. Alice and her husband Roger Cannon, who was a traveling appraiser for the forest service, purchased the hotel and moved their six children there in the beginning of 1971. They never mentioned the hotel being haunted in their interview for the paper, but instead they seemed delighted to have such a gem to restore. 

Prior to the Cannon's owning the hotel, I have found a newspaper article that stated an attorney from San Francisco had purchased it in 1960, with the mindset that he would restore it back to its former Gold Rush days. He planned to bring in authentic items to give it that old west flavor. By 1961, the hotel was planned to become a permanent museum to exhibit 19th century masterpieces of California paintings, but it appears that plan fell through.

And even earlier than that, the Greve family had owned the hotel for well over five decades, making them the family with the longest running ownership of the hotel. So as I dug further and further back into the hotel's previous owners, it was obvious to see that the slanderous story about George being a womanizer, or that he was murdered, along with the "ghost stories" seems to have all started in the 1980s, with the arrival of the Miller family. Again, it is possible that a local or locals could have told the Millers of this story and they just took it at face value instead of researching it themselves. Still, it appears the Miller family were the first to get publicity for it, by sharing their "ghost stories" which ultimately put the hotel on the map for paranormal investigators.

Old Jail Cells/Dungeon

What about the rumors of the "dungeon" under the hotel? The courthouse and adjoining jail were on the first level of the stone building which was constructed on the hill (corner of Lafayette and Court Street, now China Gulch). 

While researching the murder of B.R.C. Johnson back in 1866, just prior to the courthouse being moved to San Andreas, two of the three murderers were arrested and being held at the jail cells in Mokelumne Hill awaiting execution. On a stormy night, those two inmates made a daring escape from the jail.  According to records the convicted killers, John Ferguson and Jesus Miranda, along with another inmate Brian Fallon, made their escape by cutting their way out of their cells from the ceiling which was composed of boards without covering. The men managed to break free from their shackles, pile buckets on top of one another along with an old chair and Ferguson reached the ceiling and cut his way out with a sharp pointed instrument (the newspapers assumed it was a three-cornered file).

While cutting away, the other inmates made noise such as singing, clanking chains and dancing to distract the jailer from hearing Ferguson breaking the boards apart. The man working in the front room, Joe Douglass, was unaware of what was going on just behind him and when he took his break to get some dinner, the prisoners made their escape. At one point it appeared as if the men had contemplated murdering Douglass at first, since they would have had to climb over a partition into the front room where Douglass was working but he had left for dinner so his life was spared. 

Ferguson discovered a ventilation system during their escape, so they decided to crawl out of the building through there, and jumped down to the back jail-yard fencing area near the hangman's tree, and eventually made their way out of town.  They were eventually captured and they met their fate at the hangman's tree which once stood in the back property of the courthouse (more than likely near the pool of the hotel today). The point of this story is that the jail cell areas were on the first floor of the stone building in the back of the property. In fact, it said the jail area and the front room in the court house were only separated from a "partition." It wasn't dungeon-like, it was just a jail. (To read the entire story it can be found here: "The Murder of B.R.C. Johnson" )  As the years went on, the basement area would later be used as a storeroom and wine cellar for the hotel.

I do not believe the basement was used as any form of torture chamber for the inmates as the episode of Ghost Adventures implied. It was a storeroom.

During the time that the stone court house was still being used as a jail, the authorities held them, tried them, and if they were convicted, they were sent to prison or hanged. If they were acquitted or their cases dismissed, they were set free. 

Another point to make is about the alleged "tunnels" - Many times in the 1800's courthouses had tunnels where they would bring in criminals to be held until their trial or hearings. Instead of bringing the criminals in through the front of the courthouse where there would be an audience of people watching, they would sneak them in from another entrance or tunnel. A good example of this is the old courthouse in Auburn. There once was a tunnel that went across the street to the old "White House" and there are remnants of a closed up tunnel that can still be seen today. Again this was not uncommon. There is absolutely no proof that there was tunnel or that one was used for smuggling people, prostitution, or any other illegal activity and those types of assumptions or accusations are not based on facts, but instead on wild imaginations.

Who died in the Hotel (or on the property)?

Okay, so let's get down to the facts. Who do we have on record that actually died in the hotel?  It is more than likely that George's wife, Louisa died in the hotel, given the fact she died after childbirth and she lived in the hotel, so the doctor would have came to her to deliver her baby. So I think it is safe to say Louisa died at the hotel. We also know that George died in the hotel, given the fact that is documented. Another former resident, Mrs. Mae C. Suessdorf passed away at the hotel per the September 20, 1907 edition of the Amador Ledger which stated that she died very suddenly. She was only 34 years old. She was a member of the Order of the Eastern Star and Daughters of Rebekah. Her father was a longstanding Justice of the Peace in Calaveras County, Patrick Kean.

Besides these people I have listed, there are countless others who were hanged behind the courthouse at the hangman's tree. Convicted killers, John Ferguson and Jesus Miranda were just two out of many who met their fate at the end of the hangman's noose. According to the March 14, 1868 edition of the Calaveras Chronicle, it stated that the jail closed that week when the last of the prisoners were removed from the jail and sent to the new jail in San Andreas. 

(Added note: previously on this blog I had noted that a person named Owen Fallon had been shot outside of the jail by someone named Boyd who had mistaken him for an inmate that escaped. This was a mistake. I had somehow mixed up the name of Owen Fallon with that of Brian Fallon, one of the escapees from the Mokelumne Hill jailhouse February of 1886. Interestingly, according to an article in the Calaveras Chronicle dated February 28, 1868, it claims that Owen was Brian's brother. As it turned out, because of mixing up the two people, and after reading page 331-332 in the "History of Amador County" by Jesse D. Mason (1881) which briefly read: "Owen Fallon, a respectable man, being mistaken for an escapee from Mokelumne Hill jail, was shot by William Boyd," I accidentally confused both incidents with one person. The only problem was that the shooting took place in Irishtown (Pine Grove area) not outside of the jail. I didn't realize this oversight on my part when I first published the blog, until it was brought to my attention recently. I apologize for the minor misinterpretation of that particular information on Fallon that I had previously published. I wanted to correct this error as soon as possible. So for the record, Owen Fallon DID NOT die on or near the property of the Hotel Leger or old Mokelumne Hill jail.) 

True Accounts that took place on the property

Besides, deaths that took place on the property, I found the story of a cook who assaulted a waiter at the hotel in June of 1900. Henry Daigel (the cook) got into a heated argument with Walter Luke over the consistency of his mashed potatoes. It was then that the cook threw his cast iron frying pan hitting Luke in the head. He was charged with assault with intent to cause great bodily harm, but claimed he really didn't mean to hurt him. He lost his temper and threw the pan. The cook's son, who was a dishwasher at the hotel took his father's side and the case was dismissed. 

Just earlier that month in 1900, the storeroom which I believe was located in the basement of the hotel, was burglarized with large amounts of rice, tea, prunes and soap being the provisions stolen. The chambermaid who lived in the room adjacent to the storeroom claimed she heard nothing, and the burglars made their way out a door that opened to the back yard on Court Street (now China Gulch).

I am sure there are other stories out there just waiting to be resurrected from the archives, but so far I haven't found any really crazy ones. We know that there was gambling and prostitution at Mokelumne Hill because I have found it mentioned in several newspaper clippings, but none have ever mentioned the Hotel Léger. I will continue to keep searching for more history of this fantastic hotel dubbed the "Gem of the Mother Lode" and I will update this blog with any future findings.

In ending, this blog isn't to rain on anyone's parade in regards to their beliefs of the hotel's history or whether the hotel is haunted or not. That is not for me to say. Not all historic locations are haunted, but with the same token, there are lots of places that have "activity," too. This blog isn't to touch on that aspect, but instead this is my way of enlightening those who truly love this hotel and want to know the true history of it. Not just the fabricated or sensationalized stories, but the documented facts. The most important part about learning is growing, and sometimes we find out that what we were told, or read, or watched on a television show was not accurate. It is up to us whether we want to accept that or not. I just want to provide the most accurate information as possible so that those earnestly seeking the truth about this location, can read about it and appreciate it.

Happy History Hunting!
(Copyright 2018 - J'aime Rubio, www.jaimerubiowriter.com)

Some of my sources:

Census: 1860, 1880

California Great Registers

Public Vital Records: 

Amador County Marriage Records,

California Death Records

History of Amador County, Jesse D. Mason

San Francisco Call – March 14, 1892

Amador Ledger – July 11, 1902

Sac Daily Union – August 21, 1854

Sac Union- February 14, 1916

Geyserville Press – November 25, 1960

Amador Ledger – June 29, 1900

Calaveras Chronicle – June 23, 1900

Healdsburg Tribune – November 17, 1977

Calaveras Chronicle – March 14, 1879

Sac Daily Union – March 14, 1879

Amador Ledger – June 1, 1900

Sac Daily Union – January 1, 1880

Redlands Daily Facts – April 17, 1971

Oakland Tribune- October 22, 1961

Desert Sun – December 1, 1987

Times Herald – August 25, 1987

Oakland Tribune – May 31, 1925

Calaveras Chronicle – March 14, 1868

Calaveras County Illustrated History

Sac Daily Union – March 14, 1879

San Jose Mercury Newspaper – October 26, 2003

Stockton Record – October 26, 2003

Calaveras Chronicle – March 15, 1879

Amador Ledger, December 1, 1911

Information from Maureen Love-Allen  Elliott

Alida Ghirardelli - The Chocolate Heiress' Tragic Death

Artist sketch as seen in S.F. Call, August 17, 1909

     The Ghirardelli family had its share of tragedies,  one of which was the death of Domingo Ghirardelli's granddaughter, Alida Ghirardelli. The eldest daughter of Domingo Jr., and his wife Addie Cook Ghirardelli,  Alida was born on September 3, 1879, in San Francisco, California.  The heiress of such a prestigious and wealthy family, Alida had all the luxuries one could ask for in her young life. She went to the best schools, she enjoyed the company of high society and traveled abroad in her study of fine arts.  

According to the book, “Carmel-by-the-Sea, The Early Years,” by Alissandra Dramov, Alida studied her art with her aunt and uncle, artists Angela Ghirardelli Jorgensen and Christopher Jorgensen, first in San Francisco, and furthered her studies in Paris. From 1901 to 1906, Alida lived in Paris, mastering her craft. The talented young artist drew acclaim in her own right,  which is shown through newspapers and various periodicals, including the 1907 issue of “Western Woman,” which gave her praise for her painting titled “Interior of a Barn.”  The article mention reads, “it is the best thing this very promising young woman has done. Mechanically good, the composition, tone, color, make it a notable little canvas.”

The tragedy that took her life, occurred on August 16, 1909, off the coast of Carmel-by-the Sea.  Just a few months earlier, Alida had returned to Carmel, where her aunt and uncle Angela and Christopher Jorgensen were living.  At one time Alida was living with her aunt and uncle at their stone mansion which is now part of La Playa Hotel, but the month prior to Alida’s death, she was actually staying at the Pine Inn about a half mile away. The Inn was known for accommodating eccentric writers and artists who came to visit and stay in Carmel during the Bohemian era.  Alida was known for taking a daily swim in Carmel Bay and was just continuing with her normal routine when the tragic drowning occurred.  Eye witnesses claimed that she had swam past the breakers. It had appeared as if her intention was to let the current take her towards Point Lobos , but that suddenly her hands went reaching upwards, in desperation for aid.

   It was then that two good Samaritans, Robert Mitchell and another man only known by the name Hitchcock, dragged a boat over from the shore near the Pine Inn and  launched it into the breakers. They“bent their backs to the oars,” but as the article mentions, “the feat was impossible.” Seconds after the two men had launched the row boat into the water, the waves heaved it upside down.  Hitchcock remained hanging onto the overturned boat, but Mitchell attempted to swim under the waters in search for Alida but eventually rose to the surface minutes later, having nearly drowned himself. 

       Alida’s aunt and uncle were vacationing in the Yosemite Valley at the time and were unaware of the tragedy that had just occurred on the shores near their estate. Her parents were notified within hours of the incident and made the trip from San Francisco in hopes her body would wash ashore.  The family, desperate to bring their daughter’s lifeless body back home to be buried, kept a vigil along the beach and other residents set up bonfires along the shore in aid to search for Alida.

        Reports showed that “the countryside, from end to end, is tramping along the beaches, hoping that each successive wave will return that for which they search, and the sea, satisfied with the sacrifice which it has taken unto itself, offers as its smallest consolation the inanimate form of its victim.” 

        It was said that Alida’s father, Domingo Ghirardelli Jr., sat on the beach all night, no doubt hoping and praying that the waves would bring his beloved daughter’s body in with the tide. It didn’t take long after the news got out about Alida’s tragic death for rumors to spread insinuating that her fatal drowning may not have been as accidental as previously thought.  Speculations swirled around various social circles, making its way to the San Francisco Call and Oakland Tribune, claiming that Alida may have purposely drowned herself over a broken heart. The Oakland Tribune dated August 29, 1909, stated, 

"It may be news to some of her friends, who heard the several rumors which followed her tragic death at Pacific Grove, that she had a hidden romance; that she had been in love with a well-known American of the United States in Paris. The young man was known to be in love with her and she with him. The smoothness of their love story was marred by the doubt of a parental consent on her part to a marriage. Their intimates in Paris knew the love story and knew that she came home to gain the needed, "God bless you, children," from her family."---

     As the article goes on it mentioned that the American with whom Alida allegedly fell in love, had proved unfaithful to his promise to marry her, and in turn, married another while she was away. It was speculated by the press that this was the reason she drowned herself. What is interesting to note is the fact that certain eye witnesses to her drowning came forward to mention that just two days prior to the fatal drowning, Alida had been pulled from the very same surf unconscious. Mrs. F.B. Signor, the keeper of the bathing pavilion on the beach stated that she "grew alarmed" after the first incident and trained her collie dog to swim after her, "fearing the accident which ultimately took place."

When asked for a statement for the press, Alida's brother, Edwin Ghirardelli declared, "It is folly to think that she committed suicide. All her letters to us radiated happiness and pleasure. She did not have a single care and no reason to take her life. How these rumors started I cannot imagine, but I wish to deny them emphatically. They are unjust to my sister and cruel in their origin."

Regardless of whether or not there was truth to the rumors, they still persisted for months, leaving many to wonder if there was some truth to their theories of why she died after all.  We will never know for sure, being that the young American suspected of leaving her for another was not named in the newspapers, leaving it an unverified rumor.

It took nearly a month before Alida’s body washed up on the coast within about 100 yards from where she had drowned.  The corpse was entangled in the kelp which kept it from washing ashore for so long. In every mention of her body being recovered, it is also brought out that her body was in an “unusual state of preservation” given the length of time it remained submerged in the sea.

 This was not the first story I discovered of a woman drowned off the Pacific Coast where her body washed ashore surprisingly intact and preserved.  I found the same oddity in my research on Agnes Jaycoax’s death as well.  It seems human remains at sea do not decompose at the same rate as human remains on land due to the fact that certain microbes and bacteria that break down the tissue are either not present or not able to reproduce at the same rate.  Also, the temperature of the water plays a part in the rate of decomposition. 

 Science shows that when a body is floating in water that is less than 70 degrees Fahrenheit, by the third week it turns into what is known as “grave wax,”  or Adipocere, virtually a soapy fatty acid that preserves the body in almost a wax like state.  This may explain why both Alida’s body, and that of Agnes Jaycoax were found in such a state of preservation after having been lost at sea for a period of several days to nearly a month in Alida’s case.

Alida’s well preserved body was brought back to San Francisco and her funeral arrangements were made.  Initially, I assumed she would be at Mountain View Cemetery with her family, or at Cypress Lawn in Colma, where her parents and some of her other siblings are laid to rest but early on I hit a brick wall.  According to funeral records available, I was able to determine that Alida’s funeral did take place in the Chapel at Mountain View Cemetery and she was originally interred in the Ghirardelli family crypt on September 13, 1909.  The cost of the funeral expenses was $618.85, paid by her father. 

But researching who is interred at the Ghirardelli crypt today, there was no mention of Alida being there. Thanks to help from Nichelle Sevier who works in the archive vault at Cypress Lawn Cemetery in Colma, California, the mystery was solved. She was able to pull archived records showing that years later the Ghirardelli’s moved Alida, Edwin, Esperanza “Hope” and another member of the family with the initials M. Ghirardelli from Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, and reintered their remains in the family plot at Cypress Lawn in Colma, California.

     What is most intriguing is the fact that Alida’s funeral record states that she was not cremated, but instead interred in a pine casket at Mountain View Cemetery,  yet records Ms. Sevier was kind enough to find and share with me indicate that when Alida’s remains were later moved to Cypress Lawn with her siblings, all were noted as having been cremated.

     Alida was not the only Ghirardelli grandchild who met such a dramatic and tragic ending. Edwin Ghirardelli, Alida’s younger brother, committed suicide in 1913, while their cousin Aurelia Mangini died at the Ghirardelli home in 1878. To read more about Alida, Edwin and Aurelia, please pick up a copy of "Stories of the Forgotten: Infamous, Famous & Unremembered," today on Amazon! 

From the book, "Stories of the Forgotten" by J'aime Rubio (ISBN-13:  978-1523981175)

Copyright 2018 - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 

The Real Joaquin Murieta- Fact Is Better Than Fiction

When you hear the name Joaquin Murieta, what comes to mind?

Maybe you think of a bandito who stole from the rich and gave to the poor? One who waved his pistols in the air, shooting and screaming “Viva Mexico” while riding his noble steed into the sunset? Or perhaps, you think of a debonair Mexican vaquero who won the ladies hearts and magically eluded the authorities from capture. 

In some areas, Joaquin Murieta is a hero. Someone who was treated badly by the “Anglos” and was wrongfully given a bad reputation. To others he was a heartless killer who sought only treasure, no matter what it meant he had to do to get it. There have even been claims by people who say they are his descendants and that his whole operation was his way of fighting for the land that once was Mexico. 

Whatever you choose to believe, is probably based on stories and legends heard or read in books throughout the years. Unfortunately, much of the stories have been fabricated or overindulged in great detail. The real story has been covered over and forgotten for so many years that I almost thought I couldn’t find it, but I did.

The story of Joaquin Murieta (also sometimes spelled, Murietta or Murrieta) had been romanticized after a writer by the name of “Yellow Bird” (John Rollin Ridge) decided to write a dime novel about Murieta. That is when he took some fact and overindulged his own ideas of fiction to bring a fantasy story to life. What many people don’t realize is that the real story was better than fiction. 

PHOTOS OF JOAQUIN

First things first, there are NO photos of Joaquin Murieta in circulation. Many people claim to have photos of him, however the most circulated of photos (found in the Murphy’s Museum) that is alleged to be of Joaquin was a photo that belonged to a man named Frank Marshall. Again, there is no evidence whatsoever that this is the real Joaquin Murieta. All other photos are just drawings depicting Murieta, published in various newspapers during that time period.

THE STORY EVERYONE HAS HEARD

So, as the story goes- Joaquin Murieta was up in the gold country with his wife and brother when American’s came upon their camp. They raped and killed his wife and murdered his brother while they beat and horsewhipped Murieta. He fled and came back with a vengeance going from town to town, raiding and pillaging for gold and loot, killing anyone in his path.

As the State reported, they hired a man by the name of Harry Love, a former Texas Ranger who formed a posse and hunted down Murieta, killing and beheading him. His friend “Three-Fingered Jack”was also killed and his hand cut off. 

According to the June 18^th, 1893 edition of the Los Angeles Herald, it says that Love and his posse snuck up on Murieta and Three-Fingered Jack while they were at camp. The posse shot Jack and chased Murieta who had jumped on a horse and fled. One of the men shot Murieta in the wrist and he fell off the horse and surrendered with his hands raised. The rest of the posse came up and shot Murieta to death without a fight.

They then cut his head off with a knife and threatened the other two captured men in the group to tell them where the rest of their group was or they would cut their heads off too. It was reported that one of the men smiled and motioned to slit his throat because he was loyal to Murieta, even if it meant death. It was claimed that the very same man later threw himself off of his horse, landing in a slough and drowned due to his hands being bound with rope behind his back. Now, they only had one man left from the party. They brought the head of Murieta and the hand of Three-Fingered Jack back to Millerstown where they jarred the two body parts in jars of Brandy and charged people to view it like some sort of side-show attraction.

The last man that had been captured was killed by a mob of Mexicans in jail because they thought he was a traitor and would reveal “evidence” at court. The men who assisted in the capture of Murieta and his men, including Love received their reward for capture of Murieta and the case was closed…..or was it? Murieta’s own sister claimed that the head of the decapitated man was not that of her brothers. After that, the State gave another $5,000 in reward money to Love and his posse for no apparent reason.

I was contacted by a distant relative of one of the men in the group who were attacked by Harry Love and his men, and given a few more details into the story.  Terri Smiley, is a direct descendant of one of the men in the group, Antonio, the one who drowned. He was one of two men captured alive and were being taken to Fort Miller.

According to Smiley, as they were crossing the Sanjon de San Jose Slough, Antonio's horse got tangled in the swamp grass, drifted into deep water and both Antonio and his horse drowned. The Rangers claimed he jumped from his horse trying to escape and drowned, but a man named Juan Mendez found Antonio's body, still tied to his horse so the Ranger had lied.

Antonio's sons worked for Henry Miller of Miller & Lux Ranches for many years. His grandson also worked for Henry Miller and became Constable of Firebaugh, California for approximately 13 years. Smiley said that there is no way to know for certain if Antonio could not speak, but that he was described as "not wired for sound," which gave the family the impression he was mute. Either way, Antonio was not a criminal, and he was the uncle of the owner Juan Jesus Lopez of El Rancho de Tejom and whose Spanish lineage came to this continent with Cortez.  Throughout the entire story being retold, it is obvious to Antonio's descendants that the group attacked by Harry Love's men were victims of mistaken identity. 

THE REAL STORY

Now, what I am going to tell you about Joaquin Murieta is going to be a shock to you. After hearing this new version and the facts supporting it, I hope you come to the same conclusion I did.

According to the Los Angeles Herald dated May 14^th, 1905, it states that Murieta came from Mexico to California during the “gold rush.” At the age of 19, Murieta eloped with a daughter of a wealthy Mexican rancher. After staking out a claim in the golden hills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, he was visited by lawless Americans who told him that Mexicans were not welcome and threatened him to leave. One of the men made disrespectful remarks against Murieta’s wife and so a fight ensued.

Due to the fact Murieta was outnumbered, his wife was assaulted and Murieta was beaten severely. Afterwards, Murieta collected other Mexicans to join him in seeking revenge against the men who dishonored his wife.

Sadly, some of this story is true. According to a childhood friend of Murieta’s, Manuel Marquez (who knew Murieta since Marquez was 16 yrs. old) stated that Murieta did elope with a young lady and they did stake a claim up in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada. He also confirmed that an event similar to the story above did take place. He also dropped a bomb on the world in this interview, that has long since been covered up. Murieta was disabled and therefore could never have done all the things the media has claimed for over 150 years.

“Joaquin Murietta was a peaceful man. He was a cripple. An American, who came here and imposed on us, insulted him and the two got in a quarrel. This stranger struck the cripple and threw him into a well. He was rescued with many injuries.

Then the cripple challenged the stranger to a duel and the stranger was killed. It was ended for Joaquin, He was not used to the “new way.” They made him an outlaw, and what could he do?
It was death for him if he was caught so he said “death to those” who sought him, and many there were whom he sent to the finish.”- Manuel Marquez (Los Angeles Herald, 10/27/1909)

Marquez confirmed that Murieta’s wife had been assaulted, though he never indicated whether she was killed or not. Perhaps Murieta, knowing his life hopes were over, sent his wife back to her family. Many other articles indicated that Murieta was in fact a quiet mannered man and very peaceable.

Unfortunately, the life he was thrust into as a new “outlaw” forced him to survive any way he could. Being captured would mean sure death to him. According to Marquez, Joaquin Murieta’s sister lived at San Gabriel Mission. On many occasions Marquez admitted to helping Murieta evade the authorities and even hid him in his own home. When Murieta would visit San Gabriel Mission he would travel down the coast from San Buena Ventura.

According to Marquez, Murieta wasn’t the hard, mean and vicious bandito that many made him out to be. In fact, Marquez claimed that he was a very loving, peaceful and poetic man. Murieta used to sing a song as he travelled down the coast to see his sister and Marquez was familiar with the tune in Spanish that translated meant:

“As I ride alone by the ancient sea,

No tears are shed for me,

For my only consolation and greetings,

Are the songs of the birds”-

Joaquin even had a poem that he would sing outside his sister’s window, to let her know he was there.

Translated it reads:

“Bright star of the morning,

You look like a grain of gold,

A blossom of filigree,

First cousin to the moon,

Star of morning,

Joaquin, your brother arrives”

According to Joaquin Murieta’s sister, Murieta fled to Mexico and was not the man who was hunted down and killed by Harry Love and his posse of men. Manuel Marquez did not comment on whether he knew if Murieta survived or not, but being that he didn’t say anything at all about his death leads me to think he wasn’t killed at all. Of course, Marquez wasn’t about to admit his friend was alive and well when he knew that the State had stopped searching for him. They had “found their man” according to the papers, so he wasn’t about to give away the fact his friend was very much alive in Mexico now would he?

Famous writer, Joaquin Miller (Cincinnatus Hiner Miller), dubbed the “Poet of the Sierras” even adopted the name Joaquin due to his sympathetic view on Murieta. He believed Murieta was given a bad reputation built on lies and even believed that Murieta had evaded the authorities and escaped to Mexico. San Francisco Attorney, O.P. Stidger stated in 1879 that he heard Murieta’s sister claim that the displayed head was not that of Murieta’s. So if Murieta didn’t die that day, who did?

IF JOAQUIN WAS NOT KILLED, THEN WHO?

In the Daily Alta California newspaper, dated August 24^th, 1853 there was a very interesting article that read:

“The citizens of Los Angeles have a curious story among them, that the capture and decapitation of Joaquin Murieta did not take place on the person of the bandit. It is stated that the portion of Joaquin’s gang is alleged to have been surprised and routed, was none other than a party of native Californians and Sonorians who had gone to the Tulare Valley for the express and avowed purpose of “running mustangs.”

Three of the party have returned to Los Angeles and report that they were attacked by a party of Americans and that the balance of their party, four in number, had been killed. That Joaquin Valenzuela, one of the party was killed and his head cut off by his captors!”

If you think about it for a second, this story you just read has to be true. You know why? Because it makes perfect sense with the original newspaper article I showed you in the beginning about Harry Love’s account of capturing and killing Murieta.

Think about it, if they had killed Murieta why would they be questioning the other two men in the group about “the rest of the party”? They wouldn’t be. The Governor put a reward on Murieta, and ONLY Murieta. He was the “brains” of the operation, according to the authorities, so if they had really captured and beheaded Murieta they would have just killed the rest of the men. They were questioning them and threatening them because they wanted to know where the REAL Murieta was. They only cut off Joaquin Valenzuela’s head so they would have some sort of proof of killing someone in order to get their reward. Harry Love and his posse were liars and claimed to have killed Murieta just so they could get their money and satisfy the State for their bloodthirst.

I believe that the man killed by the angry mob at the jail was killed because the Mexicans knew Murieta was still alive and they didn’t want him telling the authorities that they killed the wrong person. Harry Love killed a Joaquin that day, but it wasn’t the Joaquin he was supposed to have hunted down. It was obvious the Governor eventually figured it out, thus the extra pay off of an additional $5,000 to Love and his men- to erase any doubt in the public’s mind about Murieta’s death and relax knowing their villain was dead and gone.

You see, before the media frenzy of Murieta’s death, the public had made the legend and stories of Murieta take on a life of its own. I read dozens of paper clippings in newspapers all over the State of California claiming that Murieta robbed them, some were accounts on the same day but hundreds of miles away from the other.

The point I am making is, anytime a person was robbed by a Mexican, Joaquin was blamed for it. He became that omnipresent entity that was everywhere at all times and always seemed to be one step ahead of the authorities. Not to say he didn't commit any crimes. We just have no way of knowing which ones he actually committed. When the Governor appointed former Texas Ranger, Harry Love on the job to hunt down Murieta he became the hero hunting down the villain and thus an example had to be made of Murieta (whether it really was Murieta or not).

An article in the 1893 Los Angeles Herald states:

“ Joaquin Murietta, became as famous from one end of the State to the other as was the King of the Sherwood Forest in the merry daps of old England. Joaquin Murietta , completely terrorized the dwellers in the valley. So great was his fame that eventually ALL crimes committed between Los Angeles and Sacramento, Sierra Nevada and the Coast were charged to his account. Ubiquitous Mexican demon sent to torment the hated intruders- los gringos.”

So as you see, Murieta didn’t stand a chance against the State and the media to which blamed him for each and every crime committed by a Mexican across all of California. He then became a villain that had to be stopped, even though that made up Murieta they had built up so big and so infamous really didn’t exist. Yes, the real Joaquin Murieta did exist, but not the one they wrote about and made into a monster.

Whether Murieta truly robbed the rich and gave to the poor we will never truly know for sure. He may have sought out revenge on the men who attacked him and his wife, after getting some of his friends together and thus his group of “Banditos” were created. We will never really know to what extent of crimes he really committed besides killing men who had attempted to capture him at times. Personally, I believe the only reason he had a group of men with him at all times was because he was crippled or disabled in some way and needed help to protect him.

There were always rumors that Murieta robbed various American camps and gave back to the poorer Mexican camps throughout the Sierras and surrounding valleys. There were even rumors that he had a hidden treasure along the Feather River, that was assumed to be worth millions of dollars back then. Of course, whether any of that is true is unknown.

I would like to imagine that if Murieta did live on and fled back to Mexico, perhaps any treasure he had went back to Mexico with him. Maybe he went back to the ranch of his father-in-law, where his beloved wife may have fled after her attack. Perhaps she was there at her father’s ranch, waiting his return. All we know is that according to Murieta’s sister, he left and never came back to the U.S. There were never any sort of newspaper clippings or evidence that Murieta’s wife was killed, thus it is possible she survived that fateful event that changed her husband’s fate indefinitely.

WHAT HAPPENED TO HARRY LOVE AND HIS MEN?

The February 9^th, 1900 edition of the Amador Ledger states that Harry Love, the former Texas Ranger and man who claimed to have killed Joaquin Murieta met his demise after a shoot out with Chris Ericson. Love’s wife, had hired Ericson to work on her house and while Love was away he suspected that the two were having an affair. When Love came home and saw Ericson leaving the property a shootout ensued. Ericson shot Love, injuring him severely. During an amputation surgery, Love died on the operating table. 

Allegedly, one by one, the men who assisted Love in the capture and killing of their alleged “Murieta” and “Three-Fingered Jack” were hunted down and killed or died suspicious deaths over the years. I cannot confirm or deny that allegation, although it has been spread around over the years. 

In conclusion, I hope that the facts I have brought before you today persuade you to understand that we do not know whether Joaquin Murieta was a bad man or not. Nor do we know if he was really the wild and ever eluding outlaw that many have actually idolized as a huge part of Mexican American folklore.

J'aime Rubio (Copyright) 2012

Thanks for stopping by and reading!