Author Archives: David L Stevens

About David L Stevens

David has been the creator and maintainer of Trona on the Web since 1996. He has been creating websites since the beginning of the World Wide Web. He is not the best person to be the webmaster for a Trona Website but someone needs to do it and Doug Polly isn't with us any longer. David worked in maintenance for the San Bernardino City Schools, retired from Honeywell, worked in IT for a while, as school bus driver until COVID-19 made it too dangerous. David is now retired and spends his time gardening, collecting stamps and learning to cook.

Larry Fox Class of 1951

Larry Fox of Ridgecrest

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While looking for an obituary for Elton Fox, class of 1945 I found the obituary of his brother, Larry Fox. Larry graduated with the class of 1951. He died May 30, 2012. Larry lived most of his life in Ridgecrest but lived in Trona for a while.

I think I vaguely remember Larry. I think he and his family lived on the west end of Clover Street for a while. My parent knew him and were friends with his father, Joe Fox. When they were first married they lived at what was called the Bowman Hog Ranch which was owned by Joe. Joe also several businesses in Ridgecrest.

According to Larry’s obituary he served in the military during World War II and was responsible for the first teeth being painted on Fish Rock during the 1930s

Fish Rock The Early Years

This is the way Fish Rock looked like in Larry Fox’s artistic days

There is another version of the Fish Rocks story that has Larry Fox’s father Joe as the one that painted the teeth on Fish Rocks see Angling the Fish Rocks Story and High Desert Memories

In Memory Additions

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Lit Brush emailed the names of two of her 1945 classmates that died in 2012. They are: Samuel Downs Jr. and Barbara (Ford) Westbrook. Another 1945 graduate died in 2009, William Elton Fox.  They all died all of natural causes.

Barbara Westbrook is listed as Barbara Ford in the 1944 yearbook and and Barbara Ford Merritt in the 1945 yearbook. Lit Brush told me that “Merritt” is the last name of her stepfather.  I have used the same name as her obituary.

Barbara (Merritt) Westbrook, Class of 1945

Barbara (Ford) Westbrook, Class of 1945

 

Elton Fox

Elton Fox Class of 1945

Ssm Downs Jr.

Samuel Downs Jr. Class of 1945

 

 

 

 

W.E. Fox

WILLIAM ELTON FOX (Age 82) A resident of Springfield, VA died on December 26, 2009. He was a retired Scientist for the Environmental Protection Agency. He is survived by his loving wife Ruth McCrary Fox; two sons, Thomas and James Fox; one daughter, Peggy Fox; one brother, Lawrence Fox; Five grandchildren, William, Robert and Rachel Fox, Logan Horan and Leah Horan. Memorial Service will be on Wednesday, January 6, 2009, 1 p.m. at Greenspring Chapel, 7420 Spring Village Dr., Springfield, VA 22150.

Arrangements entrusted to Demaine Funeral Home, 5308 Backlick Rd. Springfield, VA, 703-549-0074.
Published in The Washington Post from December 30 to December 31, 2009

Shopping in 1915

Trona Centennial Celebration March 2014

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The Trona Centennial Celebration will be held March 28-30, 2014. The Former Tronan’s Picnic will be held on Saturday, March 29, 2014 from 3PM to 5PM at the Trona Elementary School Cafeteria. Please check the centennial schedule for more information.

Centennial Schedule and Map
Trona Centennial Celebration History Symposium Schedule
Official Trona Centennial Celebration Facebook Page
The Daily Independent Ridgecrest
Centennial Car Show
Car-Truck-Motorcycle Show Registration Form

The post office is the building on the left behind the cars in the picture above. It opened on March 27, 1914. It’s opening marks the beginning of the town,Trona. The first post office in Searles Valley was actually on the other side of the lake in Slate Range City.  Slate Range City was already an abandoned ghost town by 1914. The picture below shows the post office from another angle.

Trona Post Office2

More Centennial Information

1920 Photos

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The following is from Dr. Jim Kennedy Dover, NJ:

In the 1919 and 1920 my father worked for the American Borax and Potash Company. He and two other young men, each independently, took pack horses and armed with Winchester ’94 carbines and for months at a time on horseback rode the perimeter and internal areas of the company’s land. My father’s name was James Davis Kennedy (1902 – 1996). He worked for for about two years. He was originally from San Francisco.

I have pictures of him in Trona (on the company railroad) and in Ballarat. Also a place I believe was called “Indian Joe’s Wells. I would very much like to find out more about that time in Trona or to find anyone who might have knowledge of my dad. Perhaps employee records or other co-workers.

 

 

1915 Photos

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I have been sent more great 1915 – 1920 pictures. These came from Steven Faulkner of Oregon. Please check them out. With the exception of the Liberty flag postcards these pictures came from Steven’s grandfather Phillip C. Eberwine and grandmother Edna Moberly-Reynolds-Eberwine. They met and were married in Trona.

Trona Railway Stove

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This is an email sent to me several years ago. Obviously John thought he was contacting the Trona Railroad Company.

“Dear Sir:

Let me introduce myself and why I am e-mailing the Trona Railway.  My name is John Giannini and I live in Riverside, CA.

Several years ago, about 15 to be more or less exact I bough a Pot belly stove from an antique store in Pomona  CA. The store owner told me that they believed that the stove had once been in an old school and the stove need to be restored some what.  I started cleaning up the stove about a week later and found a Trona Railway, property tag attached to the base of the stove (pictured above).

I removed the tag before I had the stove sandblasted and then reattached it after all welding and stove blacking was completed.  Could or would anyone know when this type of property tag was used by the Trona Railway.   Any information provided would be of great help, thank you for you’re time

John Giannini. ”

If anyone can help John with his question please email me. My guess is that this stove came from a Trona RR caboose.

Hi There

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This site is being completely rebuilt to make it usable on Mobile devices such as iPhones and iPads. I will try to get this done as soon as I can but it will take time. If there is something you really need to look at for the old site please email me at web_master@trona-ca.com and I will figure out a way for you to get to it. Most of the Old Trona on the Web is still available however I messed up the menus when I tried to update them. They were created in an old Microsoft format that is no longer supported. I am in the process of converting them to a new format. I think I am pretty  much done. Let me know if you spot any problems. Old Trona on the Web

Thanks for your understanding.

David