California's Oldest Wooden Iv

THE WINNERS:

w. L. SMITH, SANTA MARIA, FTRST

A. D. McKINNON, HOLLISTER, SECOND

The committee of judges in the Oldest Shingle Contest, have, after examining dozens of entries, announ&d the lvinn€rs, and checks have been mailed to the lucky men.

Californias oldest sawn shingle was made of redw,ood and has beenl in continuous use on a roof since 1849, making this hoary old monarch 74 years old, and is in a condition that would indicate many more years of faithful service.

Mr. W. L. Smith, matr,ager of the Pacific Coast Coal Company,.at. Santa Maria, located this shingle on the old Guadalupe Rancho, near.Santa Maria, and has submitted a statement to the judges as follows:

_ Th" building is at present owned by the Druids Lodge of Guadalupe, and is in regular use.

On the north side of the building the shingles are covered with a beautiful green moss, to a thic[ness of an inch."

As can be seen in the photograph, the seventy-four-year- old youngster_plainly shows the efiects of many yearj use, two shingles from the same roof were submitted, one 4rl inches wide and the other 10 inches. These shingles were laid 4r/z inches to the weather, ,the exposed portion is covered with a firmly attached mossy growth, and the butt

The Guadalupe Rancho was granted March 21st.. 184O, from the Mixican Goverrm.t'tt to Diego Olivera and Teodoro Arrellanes.

The first house erected on the ranch had a tile roof. This house was burned to the ground by General Fremont's soldiers a few years later; then in 1849 the Arrellanes family erected on the Rancho an adobe house wiftr walls thirty inches thick, and roofed with redwood shingles, a sample of which I am sending you. According to Mr. Juan Arrellanes, now eighty-sjx years old, and of clear memory, this second adobe residence cost $5,000.00.

PRIZE WINNER SHAVED SHTNGLE_EiT YEARS OLD is ridged by the work of the elements during these many years, and has a 'corrugated appearance. The nail holei are large, evidently the iarly builders used a heavv souare cut nail, several of the contestants remarked that fhesl old shingles were hard to remove from the roofs on account of the large nails that had been used.

.M.. A. J. Russell of the Santa Fe Lumber Company, instigators of ,the contest, have mailed Mr. Smith a it e.k for $75.00 as- the first prize and have congratulated him on being the finder of the oldest eligible entry.

Mr. Smith submitted another shingle, that was not considered by- the jgdges, but is worthy-of mention, inasmuch as it has given eightv-seven years oi service. Made also of redwood, this shingle was split by hand and put on a roof on the Nipomo Rancha in 1836 by Captain W. G. Dana.The ag_e_ of this roof is authenticated by children of Capt. Danas. He was Prefecto of the district irnder the Mexican Government, and the Nip,omo Rancho which he owned is a historical spot. -Noted in the Fortys for its ttospitariiy, irri. Rancho, the only place on the road between-Santi'Bar_ bara and San Luis Obispo,_-was a favorite stopping place for the few Americans traveling in those days.

This shingle, S% inches r,,,tide, was also laid 4% inches har.e been battling Father Time for over sixty years, and also some youngsters thal have seen but forty_siven years of service. Tl're youngest entry u.as put on a roof in'1g76, rn t utare. and was submitted by the Burnett Lumber Com_ pany.

The Newman.Lumber Company of Newman sent in a redwood shingls that was first taih in 186g, and later was taken from the roof, turned and used on ranqil;., building,

The Gciod Lumber Company entries were proven tq be sixty-six years old. Used- on one buildirs i; lg57. the; were taken from that roof and laid on "rrbthe, ho;.; i; 1865, this fact has been established from the dates on new"spapers that were used for wall paper.

The entries sent by the San Joaquin Lumber Company of Stockton are deseir,'ing of mention. Two shingled'tha't were taken from buildings in Stockton, both built"in 1g52. Robt. Inglis, manager of this yeard says:

"It is a wonderful showing for a wooden shringle roof. W,here u'ould it be poisible to get a roof that would giv-e. fhe same service for any irhere near th,e same cost ?"

_ !5dw9gd shingles seventy-one years old were submitted by The-l\4ission Lumber Company, of Sonoma. While this gntry dj{ -not take any prize, the history of the building from which they were taken, is interesting.

Mr. R. K. Weaver, manager of this yard, in his letter to the judges, says: to the weather and shows no ,signs of rot. The exposecl portion is well worn and has a g6wth of moss, tt E .t'*r"J parts being very smooth.

.D..McK.innon, of the McKinnon Lu,mber yard, -trollrster rs the winner of the second pnze ol $25.00. ,.Running a close second ,to the firsi prize *inn.r,' Mr. rvrcr\lnnons entry is seventy_one years old. This is a fifteen 1g_cn rgdwood shingle, and laid TEN INCHES TO THE WEATHER. The-. shingle pl,ainly shows the saw markq and is in an almost inconecivable wonderful state of preseri vation. This prize winner is 4r/z inches wide, the tutt ,i, lvell worn and is 5-16 inch thick. -

Mr. McKinnon submittecl with this entry the followins affadavit,.made by Mr. Mark Regan, driv"e. "t tte-si"gE tor over lorty years between Hollister and San Juan. , |Iark Regan, being duly sworn, deposes and says: , ]'T!qt 'the McMahon house,in San Juan, from which ' this shingle was taken, was built id l35g, and that this is one of the original shingles, and that this roof is stili doing service. The shingle mill where thisihingle was made was built on Pescadero Creek about thre-e mriles rorth of San Juan."

Mr. McKinnon states that this house was built in San Juan Bautista in 1852, for Mrs. Thomas McMahon. M;;. McMahoi was the baby of the Breen, family .rra on. oi tlire survivors of the fahous Donner family- that crosseci the plains during the gold rush.

The house,is now occupied by an old Spanish lady, Sen_ oI". J. M. Esponosa. She wai born in Santa BLrbara. elghty-hve or ninety years ago, the year is uncertain, and it rs commonly reported that this lady was a sweetheart of vasquez, the notorious bandit who killed so man,y people in.the county during his raids. This howerrei, i, ,ioi acknowledged by Senora Esponosa.

The picture of-this _hous9 shows a part of this old roof, a1_d it is interesting also ,that the clap boards used on the sides were of split redwood, and have-been in use for many years.

A large ,number of shingles were submitted in the con_ test. too many to list. Many of them are old fellows that

"The lumber in this building was imported from Sweden in 1851. The building was probaL.ly built and shingled in 1851 or L852, but Mr. 'Wairess, ,r6t krro*irrg the .exact dates, did not care to make a s,tatement as to the definite dates previous to his ownership of tire property."

These shingles-werd taken from the roof of a blacksmith shop, on the Watress ranch, mear Sonoma.

With the closing of this contest, the lum,bermen of this state .should feel gratified with the results, and with the publlclty that has been given rvooden shingles.

Gus Russell, has written the judges committee, com_ posed of E. D. Tennant, Henry Riddiford, and F. L. M""gan, all .of Los Angeles, thanking them for the -rffiit way that they handled the work in connection Vfth their decision.

This contest is made more interesting by th{ news that : Shingles Branch is considering "a iVatioLt OIA;;;

I nrs rs made th t_!". lrlati, Slringle Contest, to locate .the oldes,t-shingle i" ilrt ;;;;: yit\ ffre ex-ce-ption of Washington and Or"ego", "[t-d-fi;,i the- king of t{hem all, The Oldest Woodeni Shingle