1976: Business district rebuilt after fire

25 years ago Aug. 16, 2001 Funeral services were held for Geneva Tudsbury Riolo, 85, a 4th generation Californian. Her great grandfather, Charles Tudsbury, was born in England and had been a resident of El Dorado County since 1849. Geneva's grandfather, William Holder Tudsbury, was born in 1855 in Pilot Hill. A graduate of Loomis Grammar School and Placer Union High School, Geneva attended UC Berkeley. She was a member of the Order of Eastern Star, Penryn Chapter #159. A Memorial service was held for Yasuko Takemoto, 83, a life-long resident of the Penryn/Newcastle area. A 1936 graduate of Lincoln High School, she married Yoshgio Takemoto in 1937. Yasuko was a homemaker and farmer in fruit ranching for over 64 years. She was a member of the Placer Buddhist Church, JACL and Placer Buddhist Funjai Kai. Lifelong Loomis residents George and Mary Coleman, along with granddaughter Lorena Sims, were surprised to discover the bloom on their 35 foot tall Century plant. Marine Corps Pfc. Jesse Goulard, a 1999 Del Oro High School graduate, received a Meritorious Mast for outstanding service. The Del Oro WINGS student organization helped incoming freshmen get acquainted with the high school and fellow students. One activity was horseback riding with WINGS leader Katie Stannard. The 8th grade graduates with their horses were Tiffany Mistetta, Meghan McCrory, Carolyn Goodell and Heidi Lueck. The Old Loomis Chinatown and the Hoo Quong Family will be honored when the Loomis Basin Historical Society dedicates a plaque to recognize them. The plaque will be placed in Loomis Park South, 100 yards SE of where Chinatown was located. Loomis Chinatown dated back to the 1860's when the Chinese miners of the area congregated at Secret Ravine at King Road with the permission of the land owner Elisha Webb. He was the only person who seemed willing to rent land to the Chinese. Elisha and Nancy Webb were the great grandparents of Ed Horton, who lives on the Webb Ranch along King Road in Loomis. 50 years ago Aug. 12, 1976 Funeral services were conducted for Ernest Henry Duncan, 72, a native of Independence, Mo. and a resident of Loomis for the past 7 years. He was a retired machinist for the Southern Pacific. Two honored old timers, Pat O'Brien and Ralph Naramore, will serve as co-Grand Marshals of the Penryn-Loomis "Spirit of '76" Bicentennial Parade. Parade Director Carol Rau looked forward to the biggest parade to hit the streets of Loomis. Local artist Tommie Moller and her husband built a home in an area that one time served as a Maidu Indian campsite. Tommie researched the Maidu culture and then lectured, wrote and illustrated material concerning the tribe. Debbie Jones, daughter of Mary Ann and Ron Jones of Loomis, excelled in a Nevada County horse show. She was awarded the high point saddle of the day, a beautiful Circle Y show saddle. Several local 4-H members were successful at the Placer County Fair. From Miners Ravine 4-H Club - Mike Paris, with a championship pen of rabbits and Kerry Norris, a reserve champion swine. Master Showmanship was awarded to Maureen Matthews, goats and David Matthews, beef, of Newcastle, Chris White of Loomis, swine, Wendy Wenstrom of Lincoln, dairy cattle. Two French visitors spent part of their stay with the Gire family in Loomis and observed life in America. They marveled at the lower price of gasoline, which in France ran about $1.90 a gallon. Food was cheaper here and breakfasts were amazing because of mixed flavors such as pancakes with syrup. Yesteryear by Vivian Rasmussen: After the fire of 1915 destroyed the Loomis business district, many businesses were rebuilt including the Bank of Loomis. Located on the west side of the main street, it was later moved to the opposite side. 75 years ago January 1950 Henry Cullers, a rancher near Auburn, carried 170 head of cattle on his 735 acre ranch. With the use of hay and permanent pasture, he was able to market beef of high quality. The charming and gracious Bertha Fisher was the new president of the Loomis Congregational Church's Ladies Aid. At the meeting, Lalla Ferguson led a beautiful devotional service assisted in song by Jesse Helms, Dina Martynse, and Carolyn Law. A Card Party given by the Eureka Union School District Womens' Club was organized by Mrs. R. Murray, Miss Orrill Orr, Mrs. J. Poole, Mrs. A. Poland, Mrs. J. Presti, and Mrs. W. Rodgers. Playing at the State in Auburn was "Black Magic" with Orson Welles. Public Health methods for controlling communicable disease in California resulted in a drop in cases of diphtheria, malaria and typhoid fever. Cases of polio in 1949 were less than half the 1948 caseload. Many farmers whose land lied on a slope ran ditches or furrows in an effort to prevent erosion. From a soil conservation point of view, that was not necessary. Instead a cover crop should be allowed to grow. Demonstrating their work were Loomis 4-H members Patsy Brown, Naomi Takahashi, Joan Wickman and Connie Dunlap. Mary Gilbert and Anne Krause served refreshments. Still Standing Guard - oral histories: Victor Montes recalled how his foster parents, John and Gertrude Griffin, would find tenants to live in the homes left vacant by Japan American families who were evacuated during WWII. While some were good tenants, caring for the orchards was another matter. Some failed to water the trees and others just took the fruit. (continued)