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Wednesday 10am - 4pm Saturday 10am - 4pm

http://dcn.davis.ca.us/~hattieweber/

Hattie Weber Museum of Davis, 445 C Street, Davis, CA (2026)

06/08/2023

Exploring the Rich History of Davis Cemetery by Aaron Wedra

As a volunteer at the Hattie Weber Museum of Davis, I’ve had the opportunity to delve into the captivating history of our town. Recently, I rediscovered another gem that has opened a world of new research possibilities—the Davis Cemetery. Each grave beckons the visitor to connect with the past, offering a glimpse into the lives of remarkable individuals as well as the captivating story of the cemetery itself. I was also left saddened at the stories untold—as is too often the case—of minority groups.

According to the official website: “The Davis Cemetery is perhaps the oldest cemetery in Yolo County, and was named a ‘historical site’ by the Davis City Council in 1985. The earliest remaining grave markers in the Cemetery are from 1855, on land originally owned by Colonel Joseph B. Chiles. Few burial markers from the mid-1800’s exist today. The earliest settlers, predominantly Chinese, now lie unmarked due to the havoc caused by vandals and grass fires over the years, which destroyed all but one remaining wooden grave marker. However, headstones of all descriptions still mark the burial place of many pioneers…The Davis Cemetery District currently maintains one 27-acre cemetery. The Davis Cemetery, formerly Davisville Cemetery, consists of 16 acres of active cemetery and 14 acres of undeveloped land.”

Every visitor to the cemetery embarks on a unique exploration guided by their own interests and curiosities. Since I am a member of the Odd Fellows, I was particularly fascinated to find at least one section of the cemetery that seemed to have been dedicated to members of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. (You can discern an Odd Fellow’s grave by looking for the three links symbol.) One of the primary, and somewhat archaic, tenants of the IOOF is to “bury the dead.” I wonder if some of the graves were paid for by the governing lodge for members who couldn’t afford a gravestone. This might be true for some of them; however, it is unlikely in the case of Gottfried Schmeiser (1835-1901), who owned a fair amount of property but was still buried in this section.

Schmeiser is perhaps one of the more well-known of Davis’ departed. According to Davis Wiki: “In the mid-1800s, Gottfried Schmeiser, a young carpenter, left Germany for the New World. After obtaining a land grant signed by Ulysses S. Grant, he headed west to ‘settle’ his land. By 1868, he had built a lovely home, planted fields of wheat and an almond orchard, and married his neighbor, Sophia Oeste, for which Oeste Drive is named.”

Due to the limited space of the original post, I’ll note one more person for which the Hattie Weber Museum of Davis is named. Harriet Elisha Weber was Davis’ first librarian and was one of the initial trustees of the Davis Cemetery District. I was touched when I found her tombstone and feel compelled to continue my exploration into the cemetery for a new exhibit at our museum in the future.

I want to extend an invitation to embark on your own journey of discovery by visiting the Davis Cemetery. Explore the grounds, stroll through the arboretum, and witness the diverse array of headstones that chronicle our town’s history. To assist in locating specific graves, the cemetery provides a convenient “Burial Search” software available on their website. Their office is open Monday through Friday 8am–3pm, and the grounds are open from sunrise to sunset every day.

04/01/2023

Mondavi Center and Patwin Sacred Burial Ground and Village:
View from the Saddle, by Aaron Wedra

Bicycling offers intimacy with the land and environment, sprouts new connections in one’s mind, generates helpful navigational landmarks, and galvanizes meaningful memories with emotional significance. We highly recommend bicycling through Davis, CA, within UC Davis, and especially along Putah Creek where you’ll find, among other gems, the Native American Contemplative Garden.

According to Davis Wiki, the garden “sits on the north side of the arboretum, just south of King Hall. It was built...in part, because of the discovery of 13 Native American bodies from the Patwin tribe at the site of the Mondavi Center.” Records indicate that in 1999 construction for the Mondavi Center broke through a former parking lot that was built on the former site of a 4,000 year old Patwin sacred burial ground and village. Davis Wiki further states, “The remains found there were moved to a new [undisclosed] site under the supervision of a Patwin representative, and planning from then on took into account the wishes of Patwin representatives.”

To find out more about the Patwin people, we further consulted Davis Wiki, and we learned that “Patwin… is a term that has been used to describe a large group of Native Americans who share historic similarities in language and cultural development.” The word “Patwin” means “people”, and probably did not connote an organized society in the way we think of groups of people today. Our source also revealed that “in its academic meaning, Patwin refers to the indigenous tribes who lived in a part of the lower Sacramento Valley west of the Sacramento River and north of Suisun Bay.”

The UC Davis Department of Native American Studies website says, “Patwin people lived not only in villages along Putah Creek, but in hundreds of villages lining the creeks from Glenn County to San Francisco Bay. As a people, they were decimated by disease and forced relocation to missions. Today, only three federally recognized Patwin (Wintun) Indian rancherias remain… Patwin Elder Wright has stated that the new reflective area [Contemplative Garden] offers encouragement to American Indian students, telling them that they belong here, that they belong in higher education.”

Today, the Mondavi Center, founded by Robert Mondavi and supported by Barbara Jackson and Larry Vanderhoef (and others), is committed to maintaining state-of-the-art, world-class performance facilities and providing the highest quality experience for both artists and audiences.

03/11/2023

We are just now finishing our "Davis on Board" exhibit featuring two versions of Davisopoly: one created by Enterprising Entrepreneurs, a Junior Achievement Co., created in 1985, and the other, a Rotary Club edition, that was apparently created between 1996 and 1997. The museum team came to this date based on the lifespan of the businesses and organizations featured in the game: specifically Sophia's Thai Kitchen which opened in 1996 and the Game Preserve which closed in 1997. Additionally in the "Davis on Board" exhibit is Coffee Time, a unique board game developed by six Davis locals this year in 2023.

02/17/2023

The Hattie Weber Museum is celebrating Black History Month with a new exhibit, “Davis Bus to Alabama 1965.” Eleven photographs present the story of a group of thirty-four Northern Californians who answered Martin Luther King, Jr.’s call for supporters of voting rights for African-Americans to join him on a protest march that had started in Selma and would end in Montgomery, the state capital. On March 21, 1965, twenty-seven of them, from Davis and Woodland, boarded a chartered bus at Davis Community Church. Seven more would join at a stop in Sacramento.
Gerald Friedberg, a UCD professor, took the amazing photographs in our exhibit. They show the group boarding the bus, arriving three days later at a town near Montgomery, standing along the highway watching for King’s marchers, joining them for the final fifteen miles, and the next day, marching through the city’s neighborhoods to the Capitol. The presence in several photos of helicopters and National Guardsmen, sent by President Lyndon Johnson, reminds us that the possibility of encountering violence was a constant concern.
Copies of short accounts of the experience, by participants Gerald Friedberg and Rev. Duane Proett (pastor of Davis Community Church in 1965), will be available for those who would like more information. The museum is currently open on Saturdays, from 10:00-4:00.

02/17/2023

🚲 Our third post for our "View from the Saddle" exhibit that we're developing at the Hattie Weber Museum is on J.H. Oeste Ranch.

By Aaron Wedra, museum volunteer

The views are pleasant along Roads 98 and 99, between West Covell Blvd. and Road 29: there is a patchwork of well-tended farmland, including plain tilled dirt, grassy areas, and a variety of orchards. As I traveled, I noted some of the orchards were flooded with the bottoms of the trees completely under water from January storms in 2023.

It’s not necessarily easy to ride your bike on the county roads surrounding the Oeste Ranch area, since there are no shoulders or bike lanes in most places, but if you’re used to biking county roads, you’ll have no problem: please venture out for a ride.

This area caught my attention in 2022. I noticed a metal sign for “J.H. Oeste Ranch” on the corner of West Covell Blvd. and County Road 29 at the edge of Davis. I was already aware that Oeste (rhymes with toasty) is the last name of a well-known family with roots from our Davisville days. Also, as most locals know, Oeste Drive in Davis is named after the family.

Knowing little beyond that, I felt compelled to investigate. My first find was that J.H. stands for John Henry, also known as Johann Heinrich (1837-1913), son of Jacob William Oeste and Annie Catherine Voigt Oeste.

Davisville ‘68, published by the Davis Historical and Landmarks Commission in 1969, says: “Jacob William Oeste, the father of two sons [including John Henry Oeste] who became prominent Yolo County farmers, came to California in 1868… Shortly thereafter he purchased 320 acres of land southwest of County Roads 96 and 31.” In addition, “the original Oeste home, remodeled on several occasions and no longer owned by the family, still stands” (Davisville ‘68, 1969).

Furthermore, “in 1870, two years after [John’s] arrival in Sacramento, he married Mary Marie Elizabeth Strippel (1853-1935), also a native of Germany, and established a home on ranch property one mile south of the Plainfield farm center. Her brother, Heinrich Strippel, farmed in Yolo County in partnership with John H. Oeste from 1876 until his retirement, in 1905” (Davisville ‘68, 1969). At the time Davisville ‘68 was published in 1969, “the family home stands southeast of the Plainfield Road (98 and Road 30). It is owned by a grandson, Laverne Oeste, of Davis. For the past one hundred years, extensive farming operations have been conducted by John Oeste and his descendants. Several residential subdivisions in the western section of Davis were formerly part of the Oeste farm properties.”

I also found a modern resource in order to get more up-to-date information. According to a neatly organized website, oestefamily.com (2023), “Sharlene Oeste Stahl (1941-2021)… was the last born Oeste, one of Laverne and Ethel Oeste’s two daughters, and a fighter for her family’s farm heritage and legacy. Her family still owns property in a partnership that continues to produce crops near Davis along W. Covell Blvd. between County Roads 98 and 99.”

I hope to continue to learn about the Oeste’s and their properties. I still need to verify if the two aforementioned family homes still stand as of today, since the source was published in 1969.

02/16/2023

Tad Franks, over at the Hotdogger, is going to let us display his edition of Davisopoly which looks remarkably different than the version shown in our previous post. This was a very lucky find considering it is said to be in near perfect condition and complete 🎉

02/11/2023

Does anyone know of any other Davis based board games that have been created over the years?

We are thinking of doing an exhibit with Davis board games including the well-known Davisopoly created in 1985 and the brand new Coffee Time game created by six Davis locals and released in 2023.

02/08/2023

The Hattie Weber Museum is celebrating Black History Month with a new exhibit, “Davis Bus to Alabama 1965.” Eleven photographs present the story of a group of thirty-four Northern Californians who answered Martin Luther King, Jr.’s call for supporters of voting rights for African-Americans to join him on a protest march that had started in Selma and would end in Montgomery, the state capital. On March 21, 1965, twenty-seven of them, from Davis and Woodland, boarded a chartered bus at Davis Community Church. Seven more would join at a stop in Sacramento.

Gerald Friedberg, a UCD professor, took the amazing photographs in our exhibit. They show the group boarding the bus, arriving three days later at a town near Montgomery, standing along the highway watching for King’s marchers, joining them for the final fifteen miles, and the next day, marching through the city’s neighborhoods to the Capitol. The presence in several photos of helicopters and National Guardsmen, sent by President Lyndon Johnson, reminds us that the possibility of encountering violence was a constant concern.

Copies of short accounts of the experience, by participants Gerald Friedberg and Rev. Duane Proett (pastor of Davis Community Church in 1965), will be available for those who would like more information. The museum is currently open on Saturdays, from 10:00-4:00.

12/01/2022

🚲 Our second post for our "View from the Saddle" exhibit that we're developing at the Hattie Weber Museum. This exhibit highlights especially bike-able or cycle-able locations in and around Davis, California. Bike-able meaning the ride would be fit for ages 8-80, and cycle-able meaning the terrain or road/path could be more challenging for those who are not skilled bicyclists.

We consider the Anderson Farms Co. building as a cycle-able location: 4600 2nd Street, Davis.

There is a building next to Mace Boulevard, near where it crosses over Interstate 80, surrounded by very tall and noticeable palm trees. There is a sign there that reads, “Anderson Farms Co.”This building served as the Anderson Farms Co. company’s headquarters, and it may have included the private office of a local legend, Jack Anderson.

The story of Anderson Farms Co. is largely the story of John (“Jack”) B. Anderson (1942 - 2015). Many agree that he was one of the finest athletes to come out of UC Davis. An in-depth article on Anderson can be found in the Davis Enterprise online archives. One article, “Anderson was a giant among Aggies,” was written by Bruce Gallaudet and published in honor of Anderson after his death.

In this article, Gallaudet writes that Anderson “was voted into both the UC Davis Baseball and Cal Aggie Athletics halls of fame.” In addition, “his senior year saw Anderson named an NCAA All-American—the school’s first such baseball player to achieve the honor.”

Gallaudet goes on to say, “When Anderson graduated with a degree in economics (specializing in agriculture), his vibrant story was only beginning to unfold.” Indeed, Anderson went on to become a tomato farmer, and “his business savvy and ingenuity afield helped expand his farm holdings—eventually evolving into real estate, mining, casinos and ranching.” In fact, Anderson owned at least one South American diamond mine and even purchased the old Maxim Hotel and Casino in 1981.

Anderson’s obituary confirms these facts and adds that Jack “regarded [the people who helped him farm] as family.” However, “farming was not enough for this young entrepreneur,” and so “Jack diversified with real estate holdings, ranching, mining and casinos.” The obituary also talks about Jack’s leisure activities and says, “Jack enjoyed philanthropy, following baseball and basketball, pursuing duck and deer hunting and reading every day.”

Local Davisites on social media speculate about huge fortunes amassed (in the millions of dollars) from Anderson’s enterprises—as well as giant losses and setbacks. There are also some unverified rumors about overseas money laundering. Due to Anderson’s larger-than-life ventures and his shying away from the limelight in many instances, it’s no surprise that some tales have taken a life of their own.

Many kind words have been recorded as to Anderson’s character. He passed away on December 27th, 2015.

Another note of interest about the Anderson Farms Co. building is that the property used to be the site of a massive cat colony. Several remarks on the cats indicate that there might have been about 75 feral cats, and one person encountered “an army of cats” at one point. In fact, some young people jokingly called the area the “Land of a Thousand Catz.” One source indicates that there may still be 20 or 25 cats at the site today.

09/24/2022

🚲 Our first post for our "View from the Saddle" exhibit that we're developing at the Hattie Weber Museum. We are covering historic sites that are especially bike-able or cycle-able in or nearby Davis. Bike-able meaning meant for ages 8-80 and cycle-able meaning the terrain could be a little challenging. We consider the church and graveyard at the location of the former town of Tremont as a cycle-able location perfect for a bike ride.

Location: Tremont Road, Dixon, CA 95620
Visiting Hours: 8AM – 6PM

Tremont Township (now defunct) was a portion of Solano County, California. It comprised the portions of Solano County opposite Putah Creek from Davisville (now Davis). It appears on an 1890 map of Solano County.

Sources say the early settlers tended to be Germans who came for the gold and stayed for farming during the 1850s. Most started with land received as a land grant as part of the Homestead Act of 1862.

There was said to be a community hall, a school and a post office and store at Tremont and Eggert Road. For a time, trains stopped at nearby Tremont Station if there were passengers or freight.

Residents needed a local church, and in 1863 some local women formed The “Ladies Mite Society of Tremont” for that purpose.
There were various church-related mite societies around the U.S. at that time, named after a biblical story about a widow donating what little money (a “mite” [copper coin]) she had.

The families sold their share of the Silveyville church (about 10 miles away) for $700, and raised $600 from the Mite donations, and while temporarily meeting in the community hall, began to build their church. They built where two acres of land were donated by the Hyde family.

Much of the actual labor in constructing the church was volunteer. The pulpit was built by the Gordon brothers and Judge and Justice of the Peace, Joe Cloutman. The Gordon brothers were also responsible for most of the inside woodwork. Some items of furniture for the church were bought, some hand constructed and others donated by Hale’s and Breuners’ stores in Sacramento. Multiple sources confirm William Gordon’s involvement in the construction, and one source mentions a brother’s involvement as well (possibly Melvin).

The classic country church design was said to be in the Dutch Renaissance style, and it was named the Tremont Westminster Church (of the Presbyterian persuasion) when dedicated on April 25th in 1871 and was active until 1921. Because the church still wasn’t paid for, the Tremont Mite Society continued on, meeting and collecting donations. Mrs. Hyde was the society’s first president.

One local woman, Thelma Dietrich, was 101 in 2013, remembers attending Sunday school at the church in the early 1900s. At first, traveling pastors served the church; eventually it gained a resident pastor, Reverend Fairbairn. However, the church didn’t have the congregational size to support a pastor, and regular church services ended in 1912. Still, the Society worked to keep the building up, and occasional weddings and funerals were held there over the years.

The Westminster Presbyterian Church & Cemetery of Tremont is now listed in the California State Register of Historic Places. The Tremont Cemetery around the Church is part of the Silveyville Cemetery District.

Information for this post is borrowed from an internet article http://cafamilies.org/places/tremont/tremont.html?fbclid=IwAR3kLJjJK14RFYbPGC99kg2g7tzR_aOizdgqFD10ciIB8sBtFHF7_7V8wGE the author of the post lists additional sources including one of our favorites, Davisville '68; the History and Heritage of the City of Davis.

08/06/2022

Ken Kemmerling visited us at the Hattie Weber Museum today and played a few songs from the 30's and 40's on our historic 1908 piano.

We had our full museum staff present today: Merrily Dupree, John Cain and Dennis Dingemans as well as Dennis' wife Robin Dingemans. These individuals have deep knowledge of Davis history. I'm grateful to have been in their presence today as they casually talked about interesting people, places and events.

Seemed like a great opportunity for a group photo.
— Volunteer, Aaron Wedra

Hattie Weber Museum of Davis

06/08/2023

04/01/2023

03/11/2023

02/17/2023

02/17/2023

02/16/2023

02/11/2023

02/08/2023

12/01/2022

09/24/2022

08/06/2022

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