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Quarry Quarterly Our History Our Heritage Our Community Spring, 2015 President’s Message Jazz musician, business owner dies at 89 Kathie Nippert Many positive changes are occurring in Fred Morgan entertained generations of music lovers our town of Rocklin. Have you noticed Gloria Beverage the new Quarry District signs? The city is working around Quinn Quarry and have asked the Society for help in that Longtime Rocklin resident Fred about a professor at Chico State, who planning. Fruit trees have been planted Morgan, an accomplished musician was arguing the Holocaust hadn’t hap- who entertained music lovers for pened, recalled Rocklin resident and more than 70 years, died Feb. 6. jazz musician Jim Martinez, who was a The 89-year-old founder of Fred member of Morgan’s band for several Morgan’s Big Band and owner of years. Fred’s Musical Repairs in Rocklin With tears in his eyes, Morgan told the started playing saxophone, flute and dinner guests that his job after the war clarinet as a youth -- often practic- in Germany had been to clean up the ing behind his grandmother’s concentration camps. chicken house in Cool. “He wished he could take that profes- As a teen, sor back in time and Morgan at- show him what he Quinn Quarry tended Big had seen,” Martinez Band concerts said. “He told us that on Front Street and the Roundhouse throughout the not a day goes by Park is almost completed. Plans for the Sacramento that he doesn’t think Fire House replica are on our website area -- devel- about what he saw and we have received three bids that oping a pas- and heard. It was are higher than we planned and are sion for jazz, something he’d nev- working on reducing costs with the particularly er forget.” contractors. The City has been very the 1940s era After his tour of helpful in that process. They have grad- music. duty was finished, ed the site, ran electrical and irrigation Before he Morgan returned to underground, poured concrete side- could focus on Placer County and walks and helped speed the permit pro- his music ca- began sitting in on cess for us. reer, however, For more than 40 years, longtime Roseville High I am pleased to report we have two new Morgan Rocklin resident Fred Morgan enjoyed School’s band con- docents in training. Dave Britton and shipped out, at leading the 16-member Fred Morgan's certs, probably be- Linda Dickerson are studying Rocklin age 17, with Big Band. The accomplished musician cause one of the History and shadowing docent to get a the U.S. and owner of Fred's Musical Repairs band members had better understanding of the Museum. Army’s 44th in downtown Rocklin died Feb. 6 at caught his attention. Please stop by the Museum and wel- Infantry Divi- the age of 89. His future wife, then come them. Also, if you didn’t get a sion, fighting Courtesy Dick Schmidt 16, was equally in- chance to see the art work of local artist in several ma- terested, but had Diane Ruhkala Bell at the Museum on th st jor battles, including the Battle of concerns about the age difference. Feb. 28 and March 1 , you missed a the Bulge, and receiving a Purple “He was four years older and that’s a great show. Diane was on hand to dis- Heart, said his wife of 63 years, lot at that age,” Gay Morgan said. cuss her methods and thoughts behind Gay Morgan. Looking toward his future, Morgan all of her pieces. I estimate 50 people He was also among the first Ameri- decided to attend the Conn Vocational came by and were amazed and fascinat- can troops to enter the concentra- School of Instrument Repair in Elkhart, ed by her work. You’ll get another tion camps abandoned by the Nazis Indiana, where he acquired the skills chance to see her work at her home at the end of the war. that would carry him throughout the studio during the Artist Studio Trek At a dinner party years later, Mor- remainder of his life. 2015. gan talked for the first time about The curriculum required that students (Continued on page 2) what he saw in Germany. learn to play some notes on each instru- A guest at the party began talking (Continued on page 11) Quarry Quarterly, April 8, 2015 Page #2 (Continued from page 1) Please donate your unwanted things for the annual Go to www.artstudiotrek.com for more information. Rocklin Historical Society’s Yard Sale. I want to give a big Thank You! to Kathie Nippert The Rocklin Histori- cal Society’s Annual Yard Sale is sched- uled for June 13 from 6:00 am until 3:00 pm at the Johnson resi- dence, the historic white farmhouse at 5200 Fifth Street in Rocklin History Museum downtown Rocklin. The society needs all of our volunteers. The museum donations of your and school tour docents, the chapel unwanted things. committee and all committee mem- How's your New bers, our beloved fix-it crew, pho- Years resolution to tographers, cookie & desert makers, lose weight go- newsletter writers & contributors, ing? Donate those too special event booth greeters, yard -big clothes to the sale volunteers, Board of Director yard sale. members, meeting attenders, weed Are you an empty pullers and the list goes on and on nester and your kids and I am very grateful you have left their stuff in your chosen the Rocklin Historical Socie- garage? We would ty to volunteer. You are the heart love to take it off your hands! Whether you are cleaning out closets, redecorating or are tired of looking at Aunt Mabel's oil paintings, we can turn your gently used items into cash to help us operate the Rocklin History Museum at 3895 Rocklin Road. Your donations are often tax deductible Please contact Gene Johnson at (916)624-2378 to pick up your items. The society needs yard sale volunteers on June 11, 12 and 13 to set up displays, price items and bag up purchases. Consider volunteering for a great cause. Call me at 916 630-9073 if you can volunteer on any or all of those days. Firehouse Project update Kathie and Diane Bell greeted visitors Kathie Nippert to Diane’s show at the Museum The replica of Rocklin’s original firehouse is getting closer to be- and soul of the Society and without coming a reality. Your Hose Co you we will not be able to accom- No. One Committee that meets on plish anything in the future. So Tuesday mornings at Oracle has thank you for your donation of time, been working tirelessly to get the talents and treasures. contractor's bids low enough We will bring back the General for the Rocklin Historical Socie- Membership Meetings in May, July ty to afford. and September and have many more We will get the bare shell of the exciting events coming up so check building, but that will give us the calendar section of this newslet- Home of Rocklin Hose Company more opportunity for RHS volun- ter and let me know if you want to Number One teers to complete the inside details. help and thanks for volunteering. We will continue to try to raise more funds to complete the Fire Hose Co No. 1 and make it a show place for Rocklin Fire Department's hose cart and artifacts. You are always welcome at our committee meetings and breakfast at Oracle is fantastic 2 Quarry Quarterly,Quarterly ,April October 8, 2015 8, 2014 Page Page #3 #3 The Big Day of Giving happens on May 5, 2015 This is your chance to donate to the Rocklin Historical Society From midnight to midnight on May 5 go to: bigdayofgiving.org and donate to the Rocklin Historical Society. The society participates with the City of Rocklin in the development of Heritage Park and operates the Rocklin History Museum and the Old Saint Mary’s Chapel in Historic Down- town Rocklin. The society is Rocklin’s voice in memorializing Rocklin’s unique history and preserving the artifacts of that history. Available now from Sierra College Press and Heyday: Sierra Stories: Ta- les of Dreamers, Schemers, Bigots and Rogues 232 pages with 65 historic photos and images $17 in paperback at book stores and online retailers or $8.99 eBook at amazon.com Author, Professor Gary Noy 3 Quarry QuarterlyQuarterly, , AprilOctober 8, 2015 8, 2014 Page Page #4 #4 Sierra College Press Journal of the Sierra College History Museum Spring 2012 • vol. 4 no. 2 From The Gregson Memoirs, Mrs. Eliza Gregson's ‘Memory’ and the statement of James Gregson Printed at San Francisco by L.R. Kennedy, 1940 Reprinted from California Historical Society Quarterly, vol. XIX, no. 2, June 1940 (Note:Misspellings are from the the local Native Americans. never seen a white child, and it was original text.) It was about Dec 1847 when the soon noised abroad that there was a Eliza Marshall Gregson, a mill- mill stones were finished the grist white child on the place and the worker, and her husband James mill was being built on the Ameri- Indians came from a distance of 40 Gregson, a blacksmith, were na- can river about 3 miles across in an miles to see her. They would come tives of England who married in easterly direction from the fort. At to the door and look and then they Rhode Island in 1843 and almost this time Sutter engaged my hus- would cover their faces with their immediately began planning to band and I to go to Coloma.

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