C ALI FORN IA’S OLDE ST NE W SPAPER
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– Midweek Edition – VOLUME 174 • ISSUE 9 | $1.00
mtdemocrat.com
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2025
Back in time Mountain Democrat photo by Noel Stack
A large sign outside Station 86 advises the public of the building’s closure. Mold remediation and repairs could take several months.
Moldy discovery prompts EDH fire station’s closure Noel Stack Editor
Mold has forced the temporary closure of El Dorado Hills Fire Station 86 on Bass Lake Road. Crews with Engine 86 and Medic 86 are currently operating out of a rented home nearby while damage is assessed and repairs are made. “We want to get them back at the station as quickly as possible,” EDH interim Fire Chief Michael Lilienthal said, with the caveat that the mold is remediated and the station is safe for firefighters and the public. The chief stressed there is no impact to public ■ See CLOSED, page A8
ON PLACERVILLE DRIVE
City working out a walking plan Andrew Vonderschmitt Staff writer
Pedestrian connectivity is coming to Placerville Drive, mostly. The Placerville Drive
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Pedestrian Connectivity Project will construct new sidewalks with curbs and gutters from Fair Lane to Armory Drive and will include improvements at the fairgrounds crosswalk. “This project is really exciting,” said Melissa McConnell, city engineer. “We have an immediate need to get pedestrian safety in this corridor.” The sidewalk will start at Fair Lane on the west side of Placerville Drive beyond the fairgrounds entrance to a new crosswalk in front of the gas station meeting up with the new sidewalk in front of the El Dorado County Historical Museum on the east side continuing to Armory Drive. ■ See PLAN, page A8
Mountain Democrat photos by Shelly Thorene
Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park volunteers Ian Lemieux and Clifton McCurley show park visitor Asher Percy, 8, of Cool, left to right, how water diverted from a stream or river into a sluice box made gold mining easier during Gold Discovery Day held Jan. 25 at the park in Coloma. The event marked the anniversary of James Marshall’s life-altering discovery in 1848.
Gold Discovery Day delights and educates Shelly Thorene Staff writer
V
isitors to Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park met with volunteers Saturday to commemorate the discovery of gold with living history activities held throughout the venue. On one end, visitors could step back in time inside the Coloma Schoolhouse where blackboards featured chalk-written cursive writing lessons with a poem, “Every line, every letter, try to write a little better.” Park docent and retired Montessori teacher Cheryl Trutt of Coloma answered visitors’ questions regarding the structure, which was the second schoolhouse; the first one burned down in 1919. She pointed out skid marks on the floor where a log truck once crashed into the building. Fortunately no students were present at the time. Both the Papini and Monroe houses were open to the public. The Monroe House was built in 1925 by Pearly Monroe, grandson of Peter and Nancy Gooch, who were freed from slavery when California became a state in 1850. An ornately carved
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Chase Loris, 4, of Auburn, center, keeps time with a pair of spoons, above, as his father T.J. films the performance with his phone. Park volunteer Wes Murrish, second from right, plays a fretless Boucher banjo while Nancy Murrish, right, demonstrates needle binding, a form of knitting using a single needle and 3-foot yarn ends to create hats, gloves and socks. Blacksmith Dennis “Bisquits” Brehm, below, assists Henry Rocha, 5, using tongs to dip a red-hot “mild” steel heart into a bucket of water to cool it off. headboard, bed frame and dresser built by James Marshall sits in the bedroom of the home along with other furnishings of the time. Blacksmiths Dennis “Bisquits” Brehm, 76, and Robert Benson, 63, both of Sacramento, could be seen working on “mild” steel hearts for Valentine’s Day in the blacksmith shop. “Mild steel,” explained Brehm, is the closest thing to iron “tool steel.” The blacksmiths invited children to participate by allowing
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